How to Create an Online Course for Free

The 5 steps to creating an online course for free are: figure out the focus of your online course, outline your online course, record and create your content, create a free account on a course platform, choose your pricing, and upload your content. 

1. Figure Out the Focus of Your Online Course

When you set out to create an online course, the very first thing that you should do is pick a topic. 

• This can be anything from a skill that you already have to a topic that you are highly knowledgeable about and that people are willing to pay to learn more about.

• If you already have a skill or a strong background in a specific niche or topic, then it can make the rest of the course creation process go smoother.

• However, it is still possible to create a course in a niche that you don’t have a lot of experience or knowledge in.

• If you find that you are lacking in certain areas of your niche, there are plenty of free online resources that you can use to supplement your knowledge and help pad out your online course.

2. Outline Your Online Course

Always remember that your online course should be cohesive and flow naturally from one point to another. 

• When the learner has completed one stage of the course, they should be primed and ready to take on the next stage, and so on. 

• By outlining the progression of your course, you can ensure that your students find success by learning from your course.

It is also at this stage that you decide how you want to present your online course. 

• Will you be presenting it in video format? 

• Do you want to publish your course as an eBook? 

• Do you want to present your course in a purely audio format? 

Choose a format that works best for your needs and current resources without needing to purchase any additional equipment. In many cases, you can combine multiple formats to provide a well-rounded experience for your students.

3. Record and Create Your Content

When you have a solid foundation for the information that will go into your online course in place, it’s time to get into the meat of the process. 

• If you’ve decided to present your course in eBook format, then it is easy enough to write out your course content in a document.

However, if you’ve decided to present your course content in video format, then you need the right tools to get this done at no additional cost to you. 

• For video recording, you can use Veed or Loom to capture your video content. 

• If you've chosen a podcast or audio recording for your course content, then free audio recording tools like Riverside.fm and Podcastle are great options to consider.

4. Create a Free Account on a Course Platform

The right online course platform can be a great way to gain access to a wide community of ready-made learners, so make sure that you choose this wisely. 

One of the most popular platforms for hosting your online course is Udemy. 

• With over 60 million learners on its platform, it’s a strong marketplace for you to host your course.

• Keep in mind, however, that they do take a cut of your sales, so take this into consideration. 

Thinkific is another great free option to consider to help host your online course. 

• While it doesn’t have the marketplace that Udemy does, it is a good place to host your online course content because of the suite of features that it offers.

5. Choose Your Pricing and Upload Your Content

When you have everything set up, you can price your course content and get it ready for uploading. 

Pricing your course can be quite tricky. 

• When you’re just starting out, you may be tempted to price it as low as possible to appeal to a wide audience.

• While it’s true that a cheaper price may be more appealing to learners, they may not be the kind of audience that you want to attract to your course either. 

• The right learner will be willing to pay your asking price for your course, even if it is a little pricey, as long as it provides them with the value that they’re looking for.

• Once you've figured out your pricing, you can go ahead and upload it to the platform of your choice.

• When that’s done, you can move on to marketing your course and ensuring that it reaches your target audience. 

4 Tips to Keep Your Online Course Creation Process Free

Here are some additional tips to ensure that you don’t have to spend a dime on your course creation process:

1. Content Creation and Course Hosting on a Budget

Creating impactful and engaging content on a budget is entirely possible with a bit of creativity and resourcefulness. 

• To create visually appealing presentations or infographics, leverage free tools like Canva.

• You don't need expensive equipment to create high-quality videos; good lighting, clear audio, and concise content are really all you need.

• Another cost-effective strategy is to repurpose existing content. If you have blog posts, articles, or webinars, these can be transformed into course content with little effort.

• Remember, quality over quantity is critical. Do not compromise on the clarity and value of your content to save costs.

• You can host your course on Open-Source learning management systems (LMS) to avoid paying the fees and subscriptions typically associated with platforms like Udemy and Skillshare.

• Popular platforms include Moodle and Open edX.

2. Take Advantage of Open Educational Resources

Open Educational Resources (OERs) are freely accessible, openly licensed documents and media useful for teaching, learning, and assessment, as well as for research purposes.

• These resources come in various formats: digital textbooks, lecture notes, quizzes, videos, tests, and even entire courses.

• Websites like OpenStax, OER Commons, and MIT OpenCourseWare host a vast array of resources across numerous disciplines, available to everyone at no cost.

• Using these resources can significantly reduce your course creation costs and time. Instead of starting from scratch, you can adapt and build upon these materials to suit your course objectives. 

However, it's crucial to respect the licensing conditions attached to each resource. 

• Most OERs are covered under Creative Commons licenses, allowing you to use, distribute, and modify the content as long as you provide attribution to the original author and do not use it for commercial purposes.

• Remember, the goal is not just to replicate existing resources but to enhance them with your unique perspectives and insights. 

This way, you not only save costs but, more importantly, provide your learners with a rich, diverse, and valuable learning experience.

3. Promote Your Course on Free Marketing Channels

Once your course content is ready, it's time to get the word out and attract students. Fortunately, there are numerous free marketing channels at your disposal. 

• Social media platforms such as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram are great places to start.

• Regularly posting engaging content related to your course topic can help build your online presence and attract potential students.

• Consider starting a blog where you can share insights, tips, and updates related to your course. Guest blogging on popular industry sites can also boost your visibility and credibility.

• Additionally, email marketing remains an effective tool for reaching out to potential students directly.

• You can use free email marketing tools like MailChimp to manage your email campaigns.

• Remember to leverage SEO strategies in your content marketing to improve your visibility on search engines.

• While SEO takes time, it can be done completely free, and the payoff from this strategy can benefit you in the long term.

4. Learn to Maximize Your Followers and Community

Building a strong online community around your personal branding can significantly enhance your course's success and longevity. 

• Encourage active participation by creating a forum or discussion board where your students can interact, ask questions, and share insights.

• This not only fosters a sense of community among your students but also promotes peer-to-peer learning, which can enrich their course experience.

• You can also consider hosting regular live Q&A sessions or webinars to address common queries and deepen student understanding. 

Engagement shouldn't stop at the course end; leverage your alumni as brand ambassadors. 

• Encourage them to share their positive experiences on social media and review platforms. This can increase your course's credibility and attract new learners. 

Bear in mind that building a community takes time and consistent engagement. 

• Remember, the more you invest in your community, the more likely they are to recommend your course to others.

• This not only minimizes your marketing efforts but also builds a sustainable student base for future courses.

If you already have a strong community built around your brand, you can easily test your course material with your followers and get live feedback from them for free. 

This makes it easy for you to test out course content without having to spend money on running A/B testing online.

5 Tools to Help You Create an Online Course for Free

In this section, we’re going to cover some additional tools to supplement your course creation process, from marketing materials to payment processing:

1. Canva

Canva is a user-friendly online graphic design tool that even those without a design background can navigate with ease..

It offers a wide range of templates for different content types, whether you’re creating presentations, infographics, or course materials. 

• With Canva, you have access to thousands of design elements, such as fonts, shapes, and colors, to personalize your course content and make it visually appealing.

• The tool also provides a repository of stock images, illustrations, and icons to enhance your materials further.

• Canva’s import/export features make it easy for you to create graphics and publish them, whether you’re on your laptop or smartphone.

• Best of all, Canva's basic features are available free of charge, making it an ideal resource for educators on a budget.

• While there are premium features available for a fee, the free version is more than sufficient to create engaging, visually striking course content.

2. Veed

Veed is a simple yet powerful online video editor that can be used to produce professional-grade video lessons for your course.

• With an intuitive interface, Veed makes it easy for beginners to record, edit, and enhance videos. You can add subtitles or closed captions, trim clips, or merge multiple clips together.

• There's also the option to add images, text, and even sound effects to your videos, enabling you to create engaging and interactive video content that resonates with your students.

• Moreover, Veed supports all major video formats, eliminating the need for file conversions.

• While there is a premium version with advanced features, the free version of Veed is already quite comprehensive and allows you to create high-quality video content for your courses without any significant investment.

• However, if you’re looking to make a small investment into your online course, then for $25/month, the paid version’s Basic Plan can do quite a lot for your online course creation and can be an option to consider.

This makes Veed an ideal tool for online educators looking to create impactful video lessons on a budget.

 3. Zoom

Zoom is a widely accepted platform for conducting online meetings, webinars, and one-on-one consultations. 

• As an educational tool, it is incredibly versatile, enabling real-time interaction between educators and students.

• Through Zoom, you can host live webinars, offering in-depth tutorials or Q&A sessions, enhancing the learning experience.

• You can also use it to conduct discovery calls with prospective students and learners, providing a more personalized touch.

• With the option to record sessions, students can review material at their own pace. The platform also supports screen sharing, a valuable feature for demonstrating processes or going through slides.

• Zoom's free plan offers unlimited one-on-one meetings and 40-minute meetings for groups, which can be sufficient for many course structures. 

For longer sessions, a cost-effective Pro plan is available. Using Zoom, you can create a dynamic and interactive learning environment without significant expenses, making it an excellent tool in your free online course creation arsenal.

4. Stripe

Stripe is an efficient payment processing platform, trusted by businesses worldwide. 

• As an online educator, it allows you to accept payments from over 46 countries in 135 currencies, making it possible to open your course to an international audience.

• Stripe's user-friendly interface makes it easy to integrate into your course platform, offering a seamless payment experience for your learners.

• It uses advanced security protocols to ensure all transactions are secure and also provides comprehensive reporting features, enabling you to keep track of your earnings.

• Despite its wide range of features, Stripe's pricing is cost-effective with a pay-as-you-go model that only charges you a small percentage per transaction.

• This means there are no upfront costs or monthly fees, making it a viable option for those who are just starting out.

5. GetResponse

So with GetResponse, you can build a professional-looking, high-converting landing page without breaking the bank.

Wrapping Up: Creating an Online Course for Free

As an aspiring online educator, you can now access tools and resources to help you create high-quality courses without having to take on significant operating costs. 

Here are 5 steps to creating your online course for free:

• Figure out the focus of your online course

• Outline your online course

• Record and create your content

• Create a free account on a course platform

• Choose your pricing and upload your content

By following these tips and using the right free online tools in your course creation process, you can take the overall quality of your courses to the next level and effectively engage with your students, at little to no additional cost to you.