You might know that there is more of a desire for online courses now than there has even been before. More individuals and families have access to the internet than they once did, and they also have the laptops, desktops, and other devices they need to take those classes. Many people also have ample reason to want to take courses, either to expand their knowledge or help their careers.
You might feel like you have an online course idea, but before you plunge headfirst into this endeavor, check out these useful tips we’ve compiled.
Make Sure You’ve Picked a Subject That Sells
If you are going to create online courses with plenty of appeal, you need to pick a subject that sells. If you have the knowledge and you want to create a class, but the content isn’t something that’s going to appeal to very many people, then realistically, you are probably wasting your time.
A science and math course might do well, or you may want to teach people about writing or education. People frequently like learning about health and fitness, and arts and crafts are very popular these days too. Maybe you’ll have some luck teaching a business and entrepreneurship class or one about technology and computer literacy.
Try to Have the Requisite Background to Establish You’re an Expert
Just about anyone can develop a course idea now and create one using the platforms that exist. However, if you can’t establish in some way that you’re an expert in the subject you are teaching, it’s not too likely you’ll attract very many students.
If you’re a tenured English professor, then it makes sense that you would create and teach an online English class. If you’ve started your own company, then people will want to learn about business and entrepreneurship from you.
If you come up with a class and try to teach it, but you’ve never had direct experience in that particular area, it’s going to be hard to convince anyone to spend money on the class. Name recognition certainly helps, but if most people have never heard of you before, it will be your impressive resume that sells the course.
Create a Comprehensive Lesson Plan
Your lesson plan also has to make sense. Maybe you know a lot about a subject, but that does not necessarily mean that you’re going to be the best at teaching it. If you have a teaching background already, that will certainly help you, but otherwise, this will be a completely new experience for you.
It helps if you plan out your lessons and the entire course as much as possible beforehand. Also, presumably, you will be in front of a camera for several hours during the course, even though your students will not be physically sitting in front of you.
Practice teaching in front of a mirror or try out your lesson plan with your family watching. It’s normal for you to feel a little bit of stage fright when the camera is on you if you’ve never tried teaching before.
Be Ready to Answer Questions
You’ll work your lesson plan out beforehand, but you should also realize that your students will want to ask you questions as you move along. Try to be ready for those. Spend some time thinking about the questions that your students are most likely to ask, and have the answers ready.
Also, you want to be able to answer any queries your students have, but don’t let them sidetrack you too much. Be open to answering any urgent questions related to the subject matter, but if you let the lesson go off track entirely, you will not finish each one in an expedient fashion.
Niche Topics Sometimes Sell Best
When you’re coming up with a course idea, you might choose a very broad topic, such as entrepreneurship. Understand, though, that there are probably already a lot of classes available in that niche. Some of the other individuals teaching those courses might be more famous than you, so they may poach your potential students.
You will probably do better if you refine the class’s subject matter. For instance, instead of just making the class about entrepreneurship, you can break it down further. You might do an entire course about the perfect elevator sales pitch.
Like anything else, the first few classes you teach will not be perfect. The more you do it, though, the better at it you should become.
