A Way to Make Money by Creating Courses

A profitable side hustle idea

Learning how to do something can be similar, regardless of who the teacher is.  For example, many internet marketers are teaching how to maximize a Facebook advertising budget. While the courses have been created by different people, the information is usually similar.

One individual, whom we will call Jeff, uses this concept to his advantage by purchasing "how to" books on Kindle and using the content to create paid courses. 

Jeff looks for large, detailed books with 175 or more pages on topics that teach how to turn a hobby into an income, such as "How to Make Money with Sewing” or "How to Make Money with your own Newsletter”.

If he can find two or three books on the same subject, even better, as he can get information from each to create a full course.

Jeff thoroughly learns the material, creates an outline for his course, and then records videos for each chapter of the outline. 

(With the recent launch of ChatGPT, this AI tool may be able to assist you with course outlines, chapter titles, etc. Check it out here: ChatGPT)

He talks in great detail about the topic, providing examples and additional information, and then has the recordings transcribed to offer as a drip-fed course (Drip-feeding is all about timed delivery: Your learners get the course material in stages, gaining access to content like lessons, quizzes, and assignments at a set time). 

This model allows Jeff to absorb a large amount of information, make it his own, and then teach it to others. This process takes practice and skill. Alternatively, a person could rewrite the content found in the books and have a professional read it into audio files, as reading aloud oneself may not sound natural to listeners.

Jeff’s valuable courses are drip-fed over a fixed period of months, with a monthly subscription fee charged for a set amount of time. He lets prospects know upfront that the course will last for six, nine, or twelve months, as this significantly increases subscriber retention. 

He has found that offering fixed-term memberships rather than open-ended ones with new information added as long as a person remains a member results in fewer members dropping out and a higher overall income.

To attract members, Jeff uses advertisements in magazines and online newsletters and websites. He particularly enjoys teaming up with list owners and giving them a percentage of the income, as this is an effective method for attracting members. 

In niche markets such as golf and dog training, list owners may be more savvy and expect a larger percentage, but in other niches like knitting and woodworking, list owners may be happy with a smaller percentage. 

His advertisements use the theme of “Make a Full-Time Income from your Hobby,” which consistently brings in buyers and gets a large majority to complete the course.

Jeff has cookie-cutter websites and prospecting emails that can easily be adapted from one niche to another by simply changing the key words, phrases, testimonials, and stories.

He currently has many membership sites with plans to add more, and he spends approximately ten hours per week placing ads and striking joint venture deals to get more members. 

He charges an average of $15 per month for his memberships and earns nearly 6 figures per year with this business model.

Do you think you could do this?

Thanks for reading, commenting, and liking. Peace!