The Hidden Hurdles of setting up an Online Course

Have you ever thought; "I think I could teach what I know to others"? Creating an online course sounds like a dream: package your expertise, reach a global audience, and generate income while you sleep. And while that does sound like a dreamy scenario, the path to getting there can be a bit more nightmarish! The reality is that setting up an online course is far more complex than uploading a few videos and hitting “publish.”

Whether you're a coach, consultant, educator, or entrepreneur, the journey from idea to launch is filled with decisions, tech hurdles, and strategic forks in the road. All of these take up precious time, meaning that your dream idea can quickly turn into distant memories.

Why Create an Online Course?

Online courses are booming—and for good reason. Want to learn about marketing on social media? Sure, someone (in fact lots of people) have a course just for you! Here’s what's driving the upsurge in course creation:

• Scalability: Teach once, sell many times. Courses let you serve more people without trading time for money.

• Authority building: A well-crafted course positions you as a thought leader in your industry.

• Lead generation: Free or low-cost courses can be powerful tools for attracting and nurturing potential clients.

• Passive income: Once set up, courses can generate revenue without you being present in your business 24/7.

While the benefits are clear, the path to a polished, professional course is anything but simple.

Just how challenging is it to set up?

You are an expert in your field, but when it comes to putting your knowledge into a digestible course format that people want to engage with, you can quickly feel out of your depth, and not so much of an expert.

Here are the biggest obstacles that trip people up:

1. Tech Overload

Choosing the right platform is a minefield!

There are countless options, all offering variations of the same thing. One will offer features A,B and C for one price, but then to find the actual features you need, you might need to look at another platform which only offers that and maybe A & B. Trust me, I've been there!!

Setting up payment gateways, configuring enrolment flows, and ensuring mobile responsiveness, all things to make the buyer experience seamless, can also be major headaches. These challenges can turn you off before you even start putting your course together, and take valuable time away from your other business ventures.

2. Content Chaos

You might have a mountain of knowledge, but turning it into structured, engaging, and digestible content is a skill in itself. Some of the key areas that can be challenging are:

• Organizing modules and lessons into logical sequences. Not to mention, how you will present your content- will you use videos or documents or how about branching scenarios?

• Designing branded log in pages and ensuring visual consistency.

• Creating quizzes, certificates, and progress tracking. Even deciding if you need any of these can take up precious time.

Course setup is time-consuming. Between scripting, recording, editing, uploading, and testing, it can eat into weeks (or months) of your schedule-time you could be spending on your core business.

3. Compliance and Data Privacy

If you’re collecting learner data, you need to ensure GDPR compliance. This includes cookie policies, data storage, and secure payment processing. Most platforms will have these features as standard, but you will have to carry out due diligence on your chosen one to ensure it has robust data handling policies in place. You will also need to update your own website privacy policy when you launch your course.

4. Lack of Strategy

A course without a clear learner journey or outcome-driven design can leave students disengaged. Without a solid structure, even great content can fall flat. Start off with your objectives and desired outcomes and align your content to meet those.

Why Outsourcing Course Setup Can Be a Game-Changer

Here’s the good news: you don’t have to do it all yourself. Outsourcing the setup to a specialist can save you time, stress, and costly mistakes.

• Expertise on tap: You're the expert in your field, let an expert help you choose the right platform, tools, and workflows that work. More importantly, they'll know which ones to avoid!

• Faster launch: With someone else handling the tech and structure, you can focus on content and marketing.

• Branded polish: Get help with cohesive slides, templates, and certificates that elevate your brand.

• Automation and scalability: From enrolment to certification, outsourcing can help you build automated systems that grow with you.

Is it worth the effort?

Setting up an online course is a powerful way to share your knowledge and grow your business, and yes it is can be a challenge to get everything put together. However, with the right planning and structure and getting help where you need it, setting up and selling online courses can be a great revenue generator and open you up to new customer bases.

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