Learning is undergoing a dramatic change. Offline learning as we know it will soon no longer be efficient or as involved. A bludgeoning population, dwindling support systems, rising costs and logistics make offline learning available for the masses extremely challenging.
Combining this with the fact that learners have constant and instantaneous access to knowledge via mobile devices, it is becoming extremely difficult for teachers and educators to stay up-to-date with the latest information. We will see a radical shift in how people learn new and within the next five years, there will be a tremendous push toward online degree courses for learning. Already it is known that by 2025, powered by various online programs and academies, the online learning industry will be worth $325 billion.
Think of it this way. Less than a decade ago, the banking industry relied heavily on paper forms, bank branches, and personnel to grow their business. With the advent of the internet came ATMs and then net banking. So much so that net banking is new; consumers can’t even imagine a bank that does not offer net banking. Yet, at the same time, consumers still would rather wait in the queue at the bank. And that is fine. But the number of such customers is deficient and will dwindle further as banks push net banking further.
Similarly, when online courses were first introduced as a viable option for in-person learning, many were skeptical. At the time, the suspicions may have been well-founded. But not anymore. Over the years, while the quality of online learning has improved by leaps and bounds, many early misconceptions still need to be addressed. Here are some of the top myths and misgivings many have about online education and why they’re invalid or not the complete story.
ONLINE COURSE COMMON MYTH 1: ONLINE COURSES DON’T SELL OR DO WELL OR EFFECTIVELY ENOUGH, UNLIKE TRADITIONAL OFFLINE LEARNING
That’s like saying no one would ever ride in app-based cabs because it’s too tedious, and one can simply go down to the front door and find a yellow cab waiting. If only banks had thought about it in the same manner as net banking, we would be living in a very different world today. Online courses offer convenience, cost optimization, ease of access to learning, instant engagement, and instant gratification to users, and make accessing knowledge previously considered ‘exclusive’ easy. Now anyone can launch an online course based on their knowledge, experience, and interests.
In many ways, online courses are an extension of offline courses. Instead of printing pages and sharing notes, share access to your online course where the documents are shared online and available for the duration of the course. Plus, the benefits are several. Peer-to-peer learning is priceless, instant access to a pool of learners from across the world, access to the latest information on-demand at the learner’s convenience, and so much more.
It’s only a matter of time before online courses become mainstream. Harvard university changed the name of their online courses to Harvard Business School Online.
Online course myth 2: Only experts can launch online courses
Most people who possess specific domain knowledge possibly believe that they are not good enough to launch an online course.
We disagree. The online course industry has come into existence for one specific reason. To democratize learning and make it available to all who wish to learn. As an online class course publisher, you must understand that if you have domain knowledge you have honed with experience, you must share it with the world.
You don’t need to be an expert on a subject matter. If you know, create a course. Once the course is launched, based on the feedback received from your course participants, continue to improve your online course to ensure you can give your online students the best learning experience.
In fact, several examples exist where first-time online course publishers have launched online courses and, over time, done well by incorporating changes based on student feedback.
Online Course Myth 3: Online courses need a big launch platform
On the contrary, most online courses start small and gain traction over time. One key aspect of a great online course is good reviews from existing students about your online course. As more students complete your online courses, if they have truly learned something of value, students almost always refer to the course in their peer circle so that others may benefit from it as well.
Though, indeed, a big launch would help. Hence one should do their best to drive sales when the course is first launched. But it’s rarely the case that an online course makes it big on its own. Unless it involves a mega-budget for marketing and is supported by some crazy marketing budget for social media and influencer marketing, in all honesty, a successful launch is just one step in an ongoing process.
Note: Several successful online course publishers run subscription or membership sites that share valuable insights and content on a regular basis. These sites not just act as a supplementary income source, they also help in lead generation for future online course sales.
Online Course Myth 4: Others are already running courses in my domain and are much more successful. So mine won’t survive
If only Microsoft or Uber had started to think like that! There’s always scope for others. While others may have more success already, that should never stop you from starting your online course. Your knowledge is unique to you, primarily if it’s based on your practical experience.
Even if someone else is doing it, they can’t offer what you have! Your Domain Knowledge!
Also, don’t assume that your course won’t survive if others are already doing it; your course won’t stay. Remember, it’s about slowly and steadily building a following. This means that as you go along, you can improve your course, offer what others haven’t yet, or extend the course to go beyond what is currently on offer. You can do several things by just keeping an eye on what your customers have to say about your course.
Online Course Myth 5: A single course won’t do! I need several to start selling online courses.
While creating multiple courses in a domain is a good idea simply because there is so much more to offer and sell, it is unnecessary that all courses will sell well or do well. Every online course publisher starts with their first course.
Imp Note: Post the launch of your first online course, you can always create bite-sized ‘Free Courses’ that offer a glimpse of the full extended course. Students who like your free course will eventually get convinced to purchase the full-length course. However, the journey starts with the first one.
Several online course creators have done well with just one online course. Always remember the three most important factors for running a successful online system.
The course topic: There’s always a demand for any type of course, that’s the power of the internet. You just have to make sure your course topic is relevant and that it is appealing.
The content: Information is everywhere and for free. YouTube and others make sure of it. So, you need to make sure that your online course offers more than just information. Your online course content should be a guide for students that helps them cut through the noise, enhance their skills and achieve learning quickly.
The audience: don’t just try and make a sale. Think long term. Those who do buy from you, most likely will come back to buy more if you offer value. In order to achieve that, look for ways to make your content more engaging. Incorporate videos, PPTs, PDFs, and other such stuff in your content. Share downloadable content that students can use for later. The more you engage with students and build relationships, the better the success rate.
Online Course Myth 6: Learning the technology to launch online courses is tough!
Another apprehension from online course publishing enthusiasts is that understanding and using the technology to launch online courses is extremely difficult. And that an entire IT Team is required to build, launch, and sell online courses. While this might have been true in the past, withKnorish, building, launching and selling online courses can be quite an easy task. With a step-by-step approach, one can quickly upload their content, build a course, build a website for their course, launch the course, and start spreading awareness about their online course and selling them using digital marketing. With Knorish, you get several class-leading features, such as:
Website Builder: With simple drag & drop actions, our site builder tool allows you to create unique pages for your site quickly. KNorish also offers several pre-designed website themes that can be used to create individual sites where-in you just have to change the site content, and you can launch an entire website in a few hours.
Course Builder: Videos, PDFs, PPTs, Prezis, AR, documents, excel sheets, downloadable files, webinar videos, and live event videos; there are so many options for you to choose from to ensure that you have all the content sources possible to create an engaging online course. All of these are mobile-responsive to provide a consistent viewing experience for your students.
Assessment Builder: To ensure your content has validity and value, assessments can be built in the course, complete with objective and subjective courses. All answers can be embedded with images and videos to make the assessments more engaging. At the same time, you can choose to shuffle the questions, set passing marks, number of attempts and much more.
Course Completion Certificate: Automatically issue course completion certificates to students. Additionally, the course completion certificates come with a QR code for instant verification.
Powerful Integrations: Automate your workflow with excellent integrations for social media, CRM, analytics, custom domain integration and much more. Integrations such as Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Cloudflare, Freshdesk, etc., simply your workload to quite an extent.
Bust the Myths, Make the Most Of The Opportunity Available
There isn’t much to it. Myths have existed forever and will continue to do so in the future as well. Those who have indeed taken the plunge know otherwise. Start slow, and grow big eventually. Even if it doesn’t become big enough to quit your day job, you could generate a severe amount of passive income just like thousands of others. If you are wondering which topic to look at, here’s another article that might help.
