New Instructor, First course

Ben Lovegrove
Ben Lovegrove Posts: 46 trailblazer rank
in First-time course creation

Hello,

I've been a student on Udemy for several years so I'm familiar with the format. I have developed a YouTube channel with just under 20,000 subscribers, all from videos which I narrate so I decided to create my first course on a subject that I know well and that appears to be low competition.

I have worked through the process and the course is now under review.

Once approved I will be marketing using various social media accounts, a promo video on YouTube, and a landing page.

I have an idea for a second course but I think it'll be a stretch for me to create more that two due to a lack of expertise in any other areas, so I need a return on my investment by selling these courses, not providing them for free.

  1. What marketing methods worked best for you?
  2. Do you regard your courses as constantly evolving and to which you add updated and new content?
  3. What's your best tip for a first-time instructor?

Thank you.

Comments

  • Ben Lovegrove
    Ben Lovegrove Posts: 46 trailblazer rank

    Anyone?

  • LawrenceMMiller
    LawrenceMMiller Posts: 2,262 rolemodel rank

    @Ben Lovegrove

    1. What marketing methods worked best for you?

    If you go to the marketing section you will find a lot of discussion about what works or doesn't for instructors. I wrote this post a while back and it is still valid. Although it sounds like you already are doing a good bit of what is recommended: https://community.udemy.com/t5/First-time-Course-Creation/Plan-Your-Course-Marketing-Before-You-Publish-Here-are-Proven/m-p/8558

    2. Do you regard your courses as constantly evolving and to which you add updated and new content?

    I have completely re-recorded my earliest coures because I learned a lot in the process and I new they needed to be improved. But, I don't regularly make changes or add to them. This really depends on your subject matter. If your course is a tech course updating is almost mandatory. For my topics they are relatively timeless.

    3. What's your best tip for a first-time instructor?

    Treat this as a business that you work on developing over time. Instructors who think they are going to make a lot of money quickly almost always fail.

  • Ben Lovegrove
    Ben Lovegrove Posts: 46 trailblazer rank

    Thanks very much for the advice.

    I noticed the thread about extended wait times for reviews. My first course was reviewed but they didn't like the course image I'd used for the landing page, so I changed it immediately for one that didn't contain any text and three days later I'm still waiting for it to get through the process.

    Creating the course was the easy bit. The waiting is the hard bit!

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