Promoting Your Online Course is Easy with these 5 Steps

What if you invented a tool that would last forever and change the construction industry? It would make construction or trades smarter, safer, more efficient.  This tool would change people’s lives, s it got passed on generation after generation, just like that wrench or hammer that was passed on to you, but your tool never breaks or rusts. Wouldn’t you tell everyone about this tool you invented?

Well, this tool you invented is years of experience, time you put into many jobs, and the knowledge you already have inside your brain. Knowledge is the best tool you can pass down from generation to generation, closing that construction knowledge gap. So why not share it with everyone you know and then some?

One of the best ways is organize your knowledge is to put it online.  We at Construct-Ed have many ways to help you do this, helping you preserve your knowledge into one of our Online Courses and sharing it with the world.

But once you’ve preserved your knowledge on Construct-Ed, what are the best ways you can share your expertise with everyone? Here are five simple tips for you to promote your online course to the world and give that first push.

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Promote – Share With Your Friends and Family:

What better way to share your knowledge than to ask for help from the folks who care about your success? Try to write at least 50 personal e-mails to friends and family, and don’t forget to remind them of how they owe you from that “one time” (they’ll know what you’re talking about). Have them take your course and give an honest review. Be sure to give them tons of thanks and and appreciation for taking the time for any feedback. Construct-Ed can even set you up with a free coupon code, or at least a percentage off (you make the call). If you have some real go-getters in your network, have them share the link to your course in their own network. Add some sales urgency by placing the coupon to only be good for a limited time (e.g. “good for 30 days” etc. – again, your call). With a little creativity, a bit of effort, and a sprinkle of personal touch, you can start day one with a solid base of students who will give you the social proof that can attract other students.

Put it “On-The-Line”:

Back in the day (Post 90’s), if you wanted to reach outside your network you might have posted something in a newspaper, or maybe a flyer on a wall with a bunch of phone number tabs. Today there’s a much easier way. Its called “The Internet” (ever heard of it?). Now, to reach outside your network all you need to do is write a post about how awesome your course is on your blog or website (not sure how to do that? Take our FREE course on Construction Blogging). Now, if you don’t have much of an online presence, no worries, just find someone who does. It will give those folks an online touch-point that they themselves can share with other potential students for you. Again, offer them the discount coupon so they feel like you’re giving them a deal, so in return they can offer the same deal to their network. For the more ambitious instructors out there, see if you really can activate the space. Make lists of organizations, companies, associations, and popular sites in your field. Think about who would be interested in your course and which business’ members would make keen students. Then offer to write a guest blog post, or write-up for them in exchange for collectively with your course in their newsletter or on their website.

Socialize Your Knowledge:

Even if you you do not have a huge following, posting on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and so forth is a great way to try to kick-start some viral marketing because it can be easy for folks to discuss it. Try a simple, creative post like: “Take my course to (possibly) be my favorite person!”. Be sure to again include a discount coupon with the same urgency as before (limited time… yada yada). And don’t forget about LinkedIn! Particularly, if your course could resonate with and appeal to the professional world you’re apart of. There’s tons of groups and associations on LinkedIn for each and every area of expertise. In the event that you’re a member of one of those groups, you can post your course to it and add to the discussion going on within the community forums, also promoting your course there.

Get Those YouTube Searchers:

With all the people in the world, can you believe that some of them haven’t heard of Construct-Ed and all the awesome courses we have? Many would rather spend their time searching YouTube in hopes of finding an answer to their questions or learning needs. So give these people a taste of your knowledge!  Post a tiny part of your course on YouTube (we’ll do this when we publish your course, but it will only help promotion if you do it to). Incorporate a direct link in the video description back to your full course on Construct-Ed, and you could reach all those poor, lost souls, annoyingly searching through crummy videos trying to find the wonderful knowledge that we have so neatly packaged for you in your course.

Spread the Word Using Your E-mail Signature:

Now that you’ve got this awesome course put together for everyone to see, why not replace that quote from Sam Walter Foss at the bottom of your email signature with a discount coupon and a direct link to your beautifully constructed course. Then, whether you send an email to your friends, colleagues, or kids’ baseball team, you’re advertising your course in a classy, but powerful way. You’re saying, “yeah, I’m proud of the course I created and I hope you notice it.”

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