Creating an online course has a couple components that need to be considered as they are a requirement and with every component involves a process that comes a price tag.
Domain
A domain name is what you type into a search engine to reach a website. E.g. Google’s is ‘google.com’. We recommend keeping it short, avoiding double letters and sticking with .com. For example, instead of saying myyogacourse.onlineacademy.com opt for something like this: www.yogacourse.com, it’s easier to digest. The average price is between €10- €20, depending on the demand for the name!
Recording device
Whether it’s to demonstrate something or speaking on camera, you will need some sort of visual recording device. Most will not need to go out and buy new devices because of technology today, most phones have high definition/ 4k quality. If your course incorporates live sessions, you will need a computer/ laptop. Most laptops come with webcams, average price being around with webcams costing an average of around €30.
Ring Lights and Mics
Lighting can make all the difference so investing in a ring light can be a good investment. Irish company Glamdoll do some good ring lights. Microphones are a must for recording good quality video. highly recommended are the Rode Mics. There is a good selection on the Irish website Gear4music
Payment processor
The signing up is free. Most payment processors charge a small fee for every transaction made. The most commonly used are PayPal, Stripe, Google Pay and Apple Pay.
Marketing + Advertising
Advertising is so crucial as it is one of the best ways of driving traffic to your course and making sales. Advertising can be around €10 a day or €300 a month. Here are a few that I recommend looking into:
Google AdWords – Cost wise, there is no minimum. Google Ads gives you total control over how you spend your money. You can allocate whatever amount monthly, daily or per ad. You only pay when your ad is clicked upon.
Facebook Ads – Your business niche considerably influences costs, for example insurance related content would be more expensive than fashion. Basically, the more competitive your ad placement, the more it’ll cost you.
YouTube Ads – There are 6 different type of ads on this platform. YouTube ads don’t have to be professional productions. Use your iPhone to film your shoot, upload and you’re done! The current rate is $.10 to $.30 per view, the cost will vary depending on the video quality, targeting and overall goal.
Online course platform
You will need to host your course somewhere. You can choose a DO IT YOURSELF solution where you build your course on their LMS (such as Thinkific or Learnworlds) and then you pay an annual subscription of anywhere between €900-€3000. The positive side is that they platforms are ready for you to use straight away. The downside is the amount of work you have to do and learn in order for you to create the platform for your business. You will do all of the branding and build in relation to your course. In addition to creating the course content that can be a big block for people.
At BrandedCourses.ie we are a DONE FOR YOU service. You give us your course outline and we build the online course for your business. We create the sales pages, the course structure and take care of all of the branding and tech integrations with your site. We have an initial upfront cost of €2750 for your learning portal (which includes the 1st annual subscription) and then are only €850 annually thereafter. If you want to save time and get your course out there with a high quality platform that represents your brand then that will suit our type of service.
Click here to book a consultation with us today where we can take care of all of this and more!
With the many components required, creating an online course can be costly in money and time. Why not let us take on the workload!
