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I want to create and sell an online course - where do I start?

· Kirsty Dove

Creating and selling an online course

You start at the beginning...

More easily said than done!

You may have spent time creating content for an online course. It might contain one or many ideas, images, videos, quizzes, downloads... and it's time to take it out there and sell it. The best way to do this is on a website that can handle courses and/or subscriptions. It is really important that you know the difference between these options, as this will dictate what steps and options would work best for you.

These platforms are typically called an LMS - Learning Management Systems. A way to get learning delivered to your customers, via an online tool.

There are a number of questions that you need to ask yourself first:

If I have WordPress

MemberPress

BEST ALL-IN ONE

One of the most popular options for WordPress is MemberPress. It offers a fully featured complete membership and subscription solution, but it can be complicated to setup so make sure it is what you need.

KEY BENEFITS:

  • Content drip and expiry
  • Subscription management built in
  • Comprehensive content restriction options
  • Integrates with multiple marketing plugins

CONS:

It can be complicated to setup and learn how to use it. Although simple to manage once that is all done.

PRICE

MemberPress has three different pricing plans, each with different features and usage limits - annual pricing in USD:

  • Basic – $149
  • Plus – $249
  • Pro – $349

LearnDash

BEST for courses

LearnDash is one of the most popular for WordPress, especially if you are selling courses. It is a great options if you are just doing courses (although there is a new membership module now), and is drag and drop - so easier than many others to setup.

Used by many companies and even Universities.

KEY BENEFITS:

  • Drag & drop, so easy to build your courses
  • Good for content drip feed
  • Cheap for what you get
  • Complete LMS
  • Marketing options

CONS:

It has to be integrated into WooCommerce to get all the payment options.

PRICE

LearnDash costs $199 USD per year for a single site.

Restrict Content Pro

best for membership

Restrict Content Pro is one of the big players in this space, where Restrict Content Pro

KEY BENEFITS:

  • Unlimited subscription levels
  • Can sell digital products too
  • Drip content
  • Integrations with email marketing services

CONS:

  • Pricey if you need 'Pro'.

PRICE

Starts at $99 USD per year, but if you need to use the drip feature, you will need to get the 'Pro' licence at $249 USD.

WooCommerce Membership

best for 'easy'

Woo Commerce Membership is built on WooCommerce, so if you are already using WooCommerce, this is a great option, as you will already have this setup.

KEY BENEFITS:

  • Content drip add-on.
  • Easy to setup for simple courses where there is a one off cost.
  • Courses can be tied to products. So you could sell an ebook, with free access to membership content.

CONS:

  • You cannot have recurring billing for this - you have to buy the extra Plugin WooCommerce Subscriptions $199 USD at an extra cost.

PRICE

Starts at $199 USD

LifterLMS

best for marketing

LifterLMS is a scalable solution with the ability to create MOOC's (Massive Open Online Course), this platform can do anything, but be prepared to pay.

KEY BENEFITS:

  • Content drip add-on (paid)
  • Course certificates
  • Management tracking (course content and students)

CONS:

There is no setup wizard, so you will need to know your way around WordPress, there will be a bit of a learning curve for beginners.

PRICE

The core plugin is free, but you can't do much with it. Then the prices hike very fast as you add the functionality you will most likely need.

  • One Individual add on from $120 USD per year
  • Each extra piece of functionality will cost extra - e.g. Stripe add-on is $120 USD
  • Bundles start at $360 USD per year

LearnPress

best for Free

If you have a theme that can handle this - it is an option. But it doesn't have great support. Think carefully about going down this road...

KEY BENEFITS:

  • It has a usable free option
  • Integrates well with WooCommerce
  • Management tracking (course content and students)

CONS:

  • Poor support, so if it breaks, you could be in trouble.
  • You do need to use a compatible theme, and it will not work on just any Wordpress theme.
  • You have to pay extra to drip feed the content.

PRICE

The core plugin is free, but you can't do much with it. Still, reasonable costs to get you up and running.

  • Free for the basic option
  • Theme Bundle - $49 - $69 USD
  • Pro Bundle $249 - $499 for 3 websites