Usually when you create a course for the first time, you run smack into a big learning curve. There can be lots of new skills and technology to master. And, like learning anything new, you’re bound to make mistakes solely because you don’t know what you don’t know, right?
Today I'm sharing some of the common mistakes that I see all the time so that you can avoid them when you are creating your first course.
#1 Adding too much into one course
This is known as the "kitchen sink course" because it has everything--including the kitchen sink. Each part of your course should have a clearly-defined purpose. Leave out the fluff and filler. Before you create course content, make sure you have answers to the questions:
- Why should my course attendees care about this?
- Is it worth their time?
Think of how frustrating it is attending a webinar that doesn’t have a clear message. You know what I’m talking about, right? The 60-minute sales pitch with only five minutes of the actionable information promised in the click-bait title. You know--the live ones that don’t have any video controls so you can’t speed it up or skip to the interesting part.
Your learners should never feel as though they’re wasting their time. They should be keen to see what else you have for them. If your course covers a very broad topic, create a couple of short courses instead of one large one. Creating short courses means you get started faster and are able to sell them faster. You can always offer the short courses in a bundle later.
#2 Not understanding your audience
You have to have a good understanding of your audience and their needs. Because when it comes to learning, one size does not fit all. It’s important that you consider who’s learning needs must be met with your course. Answering this question provides insight into the type of course and content you should create. For example, C-level executives would likely want to see numbers and statistics, while a DIY enthusiast will want to see how-to tutorials. If you start creating your course content without considering who your audience is and what their experience with the subject matter is, you’ll end up frustrating them.
A few important considerations when creating course content for your target audience are:
- Lifestyle considerations. Are your learners sleep-deprived moms who need to work on your course while their baby sleeps? Then, 60-minutes videos are not going to work. Shorter videos with downloadable workbooks would work better.
- Are your learners 9-5 workers? Then audio content would be best because they can listen to it during their commute to and from work.
- Level of experience considerations. Make sure you create content that suits the level of experience your audience has. That way the experts won’t get frustrated if you focus on basic level knowledge. And those who are less experienced won’t get lost if you focus on expert-level knowledge.
#3 Selecting a hosting platform before creating the course
If I had a dollar for every new course creator who starts out asking “What’s the best course platform?” I’d be a wealthy woman. Selecting tech and hosting platforms keeps course creators stuck in analysis paralysis much too long. Sometimes course creators invest in the big complicated platform recommended by their favorite guru without confirming that it meets their requirements.
I’m going to let you in on a secret. There isn't a “best” course platform. Sure, figuring out where to host your course is an important part of creating a course. But first you have to determine what type of course you want to offer and what elements you’d like to include in it. Don’t rush out to purchase a course platform before doing this. Otherwise, you’ll just end up shoe-horning your course into the platform you chose.
#4 Not testing everything before launching
This is a no-brainer, right? Should be but many course creators launch a course without testing everything first. It’s easy to get excited because you finally finishing your course. It's understandable that you would want to share it immediately.
Please don’t do this. Get a couple of friends or family members to test the entire process before you launch. There will be gremlins. And even when you do test it, it won’t be perfect. There will still be things that go wrong the first time around. So, accept that this is going to happen and be ready to fix things as soon as they pop up.
#5 Never finishing the course
This is the BIGGEST mistake and I see it all.the.time. So many course creators start creating a course only to give up as soon as they face the first hurdle. So much valuable knowledge is dumped in a text document just waiting for the right moment to be converted into a course. But the right moment never happens for some and it gets put on hold indefinitely.
Creating a course takes a committed effort, proper planning, and time management. Put the proper foundations in place and you can get it done.
I trust that these tips will help you avoid the first-time course creator pitfalls. I want you to save time and money while getting that course out in the world!