How to Create Your First Digital Course In 5 Steps

Creating a digital course is a fantastic method for creating an additional revenue stream. You can just create one course and sell it over time without having to do more work. However, creating a digital course can be overwhelming and downright scary. 

In this post, I will be sharing the most important steps to creating your first (or next) digital course. Make sure to follow these steps to make the process a little easier! 

Step One: Determine Your Course Topic

For your course topic, it’s not just the broad idea of the course. You want to figure out who it’s for, what stage they are at right now, and how they are feeling. 

Don’t forget to get really specific on the type of course you want to create. Is this going to be a mini-course or an extensive signature course covering many aspects of one topic?

Here’s an example of each:

• Instagram Reels Course for Introverts would likely be a mini-course or offer as it focuses on Instagram as the broad topic, but it narrows the focus on how to leverage reels specifically for introverts.

• Instagram Academy would likely be a signature course as it would cover many topics under the Instagram umbrella, such as creating content, engagement, reels, stories, live videos, hashtags, etc.

Step Two: Research Your Digital Course Idea

Every new digital course idea should always start with both market research and competitor research.

Market research – you will connect with people who would be your ideal course students. You can get valuable insights on what they are struggling with, what would really help them, and the language they are using. You can do this through Google forms or Zoom interviews.

Competitor research – will allow you to see what similar courses or offers are already out there in the market with competitor research. Competitor research aims to see how you can create something better, more targeted, or with your unique spin on it.

Step Three: Your Course Promise

Use the market research you performed in step two to help you determine what you are promising someone who takes your course.

For the Instagram Reels for Introverts example, the course promise might be:

Instagram Reels for Introverts will give you a step-by-step system to help you become more visible and show up on reels confidently and authentically without dancing or pointing.

Step Four: Validate Your Digital Course Idea

There are a couple of ways you can go about validating your course idea.

The most helpful option is to pre-sell your course. This means that you have your course outlined and the deliverables planned, but you haven’t created anything yet. You have to avoid countless hours creating a course that isn’t going to sell, so pre-selling is one of the best ways to validate that people are willing to pay for your online course.

The other validation method is conducting a lot of market research. Tell your email list what you are working on and see their response. Before launching your new digital course idea, you could even start a waitlist to see how much interest you receive.

Step Five: Digital Course Creation

After all of the research, planning, and brainstorming, it’s now time to actually create your digital course! 

Map out your modules, lessons, and any bonuses, and let’s start recording. Remember, each lesson should have a purpose. The number one reason people don’t finish a course is that there is too much content, and it becomes overwhelming.

Start small and strategically with your course content. Focus on progress instead of perfection; you can always add new lessons and content later.

What’s your biggest takeaway? I’d love it if want to share with me and DM me on Instagram!