6 steps to launch an online course (profitably 🤑)

Hey my friend 👋

In this issue, you’ll learn:

The exact approach that helped me make $78,862 in one course launch (and why you should never start with recording your course content).

Step 1: Get clear on your course topic

Before you start building a course, you need to know what you’re going to teach.

It might be a skill or a specific way of doing something.

For example:

• Advanced technical SEO (that’s what I did)
• How to declutter your home
• How to write and self-publish a book

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It’s important that:

👉 You have expertise on this topic (I’m against “creating a course with AI in 3 minutes”, this is such BS)

👉You’re passionate about the topic (it just makes it so much easier to promote your course)

👉There’s a demand for this topic (people are interested in so many things!)

Plus, people should be ready to pay (we’ll validate it later).

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Step 2: Get clear on your audience

Who are you looking to help?

Please don’t say “anyone interested”.

Targeting everyone is like targeting no one: your message will be too vague, and no one will care.

When thinking about the audience, answer these questions:

❓Who is the one person you’re talking to? (profession, identity)

❓What skill are you teaching them?

❓What do they want to achieve with this skill?

❓What problem do they have that you want to help them solve?

❓What pains do they want to avoid?

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Step 3: Create your framework and course outline

You might be thinking: “But I don’t have a framework!”

You do, my friend.

Write down the steps someone needs to take to get

From Point A (where they are now)

To Point B (where they want to go – the transformation you’re delivering)

These steps are your framework. You just need to get it out of your head and put it on paper.

Trust me, you have a framework in you 😉

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Step 4: Nail messaging and positioning

You never miss this step if you want to create a course people are running to buy 🤑

Your messaging is how you talk about your course and who you’re talking to.

Your positioning is where you’re standing compared to your competitors.

That’s where you’re getting very (I mean VERY) specific on who you’ll be serving and what problem you’re solving for them. You’ll later be using this for your course tagline too.

Think of “A content SEO looking to understand the technical SEO side without learning code”.

As opposed to “Someone who wants to learn technical SEO”.

Ok, how do you do that?

My favorite way is to use a strategic pre-registration list (more about that in the next emails).

You can also do message mining calls with people who match your audience profile (I’ve done this in the past, and they worked very well; most of the people I talked to even bought my course later).

You don’t need to get to 100% of clarity at this point. Your messaging and positioning angles might change later as you get to know your customers.

But you need to get to the point where you understand your ideal client very well.

That’s what builds your confidence in promoting your online course.

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Step 5: Validate your course by pre-selling it

That’s where things get even more exciting.

You take everything you’ve created in the previous steps, set up a simple landing page and checkout and launch your course.

I do it in multiple steps for different audiences:

• My pre-registration list from Step 4
• My general email list
• My social media

It can be scary to pre-sell the course before you have the content ready.

But that’s exactly what you do anyway.

Because this is the only way to see if it’s worth recording the course. Plus, your first customers will have an opportunity to shape its contents. They always get the best price and the most access to you as the creator. It’s a win-win.

When I launch a course, I’m always honest about the timing of the content available.

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Step 6: Create and deliver your course content

This is the last step. Not the first one, as most people assume 🤓

You decide what would be the best way to deliver your content.

You can do it live.

You can pre-record it.

Whatever works best for you and solves your customers’ problem more efficiently.

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