Congratulations on creating your course! You have done a great job. Now, it’s time to reach your target audience. You must make an effective marketing plan to promote your course to students. You might be suitable if you think promoting your course is a hassle. But wait! We have crafted 25 easy ways how to promote courses to students. Follow these steps religiously, and you will see the magic of digital platforms.
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Why are promoting courses through online platforms important?
Online courses are great because they let people learn new things from anywhere. But if no one knows about the courses, then no one can benefit from them. It’s like having a treasure chest of gold hidden away where no one can find it. That’s why it’s so important to tell people about these courses.
There are many ways to promote online courses. However, the internet is full of advice and strategies, and what works needs to be clarified. Some tips are very complicated, involving marketing theories and advanced techniques. This can make promoting a course feel overwhelming.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. The key is to keep things simple and focus on reaching the right people—students interested in the course. This means using straightforward methods to get the word out, like sharing on social media, sending emails to potential students, and asking friends and family to help spread the news.
Ensuring the course is easy to find and understand is also essential. Use clear and straightforward language to describe the course and why it’s valuable. Show how it can help students learn something new or improve their skills.
In short, promoting an online course is crucial because it helps students find and take advantage of learning opportunities. Keeping the promotion simple and clear makes it easier for students to discover and benefit from the available courses.
25 Ways on How to Promote Courses to Students
1. Promote Course on Your Blog
Your blog is a fantastic place to promote your course. If you often post free content on your blog about the same topics you teach in your course, your readers might be interested in taking it.
Here’s how you can promote your course on your blog:
- Top Bar of Your Website: Put a link or banner at the top of your website that leads to your course.
- End of Each Blog Post: After every blog post, add a note or link inviting readers to check out your course.
- Sidebar: Use the side area of your blog to display information or ads about your course.
- About Page: Mention your course on the page where you talk about yourself and your blog.
Place information about your course in these spots to ensure everyone visiting your blog sees it. This way, readers who enjoy your free content might want to learn more by taking your course.
2. Start a YouTube channel and promote the course.
YouTube is a great place to promote your course. Here’s how you can do it:
- Create a YouTube Channel: Start a YouTube channel where you share content related to your course topic.
- Make Short Promotional Videos: To reach more people, create short videos introducing your course. You can make several videos, each with a different title.
- Use Popular Keywords: In video titles and descriptions, you can use popular keywords related to your topic. This helps your videos rank in search results.
- Add Links to Your Course: The descriptions include links to your website or course. This makes it easy for viewers to find and sign up for your course.
By following these steps, you can reach more people and turn your YouTube viewers into students for your course.
3. Create multiple courses and cross-promote
Make several courses that each focus on different parts of the same subject. Think of it like a series of books, each making readers want to read the others. For example, like the Harry Potter series, each course can help promote the others. At the end of each course, let your students know about your other courses on similar topics. Since people who take one of your courses are likely to take another, creating more courses for them is a smart idea. This way, you keep your students interested and coming back for more.
4. Promoting the course through social media Platforms
Social media is a quick way to reach a broader audience. You can create social media pages, groups, and communities to reach your target audience.
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Facebook
Your academy’s Facebook page will promote the course. With its wide reach and targeting options, Facebook allows you to create ads targeting people interested in your course topic. By showcasing engaging content, such as videos or posts, you can capture the attention of potential students and direct them to your course page or website. Additionally, you can join relevant groups and communities to share valuable insights and establish yourself as an authority in your field.
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Instagram
Instagram can be used to promote your course to students. With its visual nature, you can showcase engaging content related to your course topic through photos and videos. Hashtags help to reach a wider audience. Communicate with your followers by replying to comments and messages. Utilize Instagram Stories and IGTV to provide sneak peeks of your course content or share behind-the-scenes glimpses. Collaborate with influencers or partners in your niche to reach even more potential students. By consistently sharing valuable content and interacting with your audience, Instagram can help you effectively promote your course and attract interested students.
5. Use Facebook ads to target a more specific audience
You can use Facebook to create ads that target people based on their age, interests, behaviors, and the groups they belong to. Remember, Facebook is mainly for socializing, so people aren’t usually looking to buy things there. To sell your course, you must direct these people away from Facebook and onto your blog or email list. You can share more information and convince them to participate in your course.
6. Use Google ads
Google Ads are used to create ads that appear in the search results for specific keywords related to your topic. Using relevant keywords your target audience uses to search for your topic online is a great way to get your course in front of them just as they search for your topic.
7. Do some off-page activity
Off-page activity means linking or mentioning your course on various web platforms. These platforms are Quora, Reddit, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and others. For instance, you created a course on beginner guide to freelancing. Students interested in freelancing will search for information on how to start freelancing online. If you can provide some solutions to relevant queries about freelancing on Quora, Reddit, or Linked In and leave a link to your course page, students will visit t the course page while reading the solution. This way, you can get visitors, and eventually, they will become customers.
8. Start email marketing
People usually need to hear from you several times before buying something. That’s why having an email list works so well. You can send them useful tips and advice about your topic when someone signs up for the newsletter. Over time, this helps build their trust in you. When you finally tell them about your course, they’re more likely to buy it because you’ve already given them helpful information before asking for a sale.
9. Host a live webinar
One great way to sell online courses is by hosting live webinars for people who are interested in your topic. Share some of your best tips and ideas during the webinar for free. This shows that you’re an expert and helps people trust you. Before you mention your course and ask people to buy it, ensure your webinar gives value they can’t find anywhere else. Each webinar should focus on one topic and offer something special to your followers. This way, they’ll be more interested in your course when you tell them about it.
10. Partner with an online instructor
You can collaborate with other online instructors who serve your target audience and offer courses that complement your own. You can become an affiliate for them (and vice versa) or bundle your course with theirs to create a special “package deal” to offer to new students.
11. Run social media groups
Starting a Facebook Group about your course topic is a helpful way to create a community of interested students who might want to join your course. It’s also good for showing that you’re an expert. Similarly, creating a LinkedIn Group focused on your topic helps you gather potential students, especially if you’re aiming at professionals. LinkedIn is useful for making professional connections, leading to speaking opportunities, partnerships, referrals, and other benefits.
12. Create a sales funnel
A sales funnel is like a special path that guides someone from being interested in your course to deciding to buy it. Even though all the different ways to promote your course can help get more people interested, not all of them make people want to buy immediately.
To boost your course sales, you must create a sales funnel combining several marketing ideas we discussed earlier. Most of these ideas are good for getting people started on buying your course.
So, by using a sales funnel, you can turn more interested people into actual buyers of your course.
13. Go live from social media pages
Going live from your social media page ensures brand awareness. You can describe your course through live contact and understand what your followers want. Through comments and chat, you can resolve various queries of your audience. Also, you can let old students tell their stories and how your course helped them.
14. Rank your course page through SEO
Students can also find your course through Google search. For this, you must rank your course page in the first few positions in SERPs. To do this, you need to do SEO. Optimize your page by including high-quality content. Besides keyword research and using quality content, create backlinks for your page. This way, Google will rank your course page higher when users search for your course-related keyword.
15. Start a podcast
Starting a podcast about your course topic is a great idea. Each person who listens to your podcast should take your course. Share helpful tips on your podcast episodes, and at the end of each episode, tell listeners to visit your website or learn more about your course.
You can reach a huge monthly audience without spending money by putting your podcast on platforms like iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. This is a fantastic way to increase interest in your courses and brand.
16. Start a local meetup group
Starting a local Meetup group about your topic is a good way to regularly meet people interested in what you offer. It also shows that you’re a leader in your community. You can ask other people who know about your topic to come and talk to your group. This might take much effort, but as your Meetup group gets bigger, it can help you in the long run.
17. Publish a shorter course in the online marketplace.
Putting your course on an online marketplace can help you reach many people already interested in learning. These marketplaces have many customers who regularly buy courses. While these places usually don’t let you promote things outside their website, they let you link to your leading site. By sharing a shorter version of your course on these marketplaces, you can get more people interested and send them to your main website to learn more.
Check which marketplaces are popular for your topic to ensure this strategy works well. This way, you can get the best results for your course.
18. Showcase your reviews to the audience
Encourage your students to write nice reviews about your course on your website. These reviews can help persuade new students to enroll. Display your best reviews on your course page so everyone can see them.
Listen carefully to what your students say. Use their feedback to improve your course. Making your course better can also improve your business. Solving problems your students have makes you seem nice and professional.
Put effort into customer support. If you have people helping your customers, ensure they’re good at their job. This way, your customers get the best help they can.
19. Contribute to other blogs and publications
You can write articles about your topic and share them with other blogs and websites online. Make sure each article is different and has yet to be published elsewhere. Spend time finding popular websites that match your topic. Then, submit your article after including a link to your website or course in your author bio.
20. Press-Release
Press releases are a good way to tell people about your online course. Being mentioned in news outlets, big websites, and popular blogs can make more people notice you on search engines. When you write a press release, follow the right format. Remember, the aim of a press release isn’t to directly sell your course. It’s to share something newsworthy and link it to your course. After writing your press release, send it to a website like PR Web to share it with more people.
21. Capture the Attention of Students With Visual Appeal on Pinterest
Pinterest is a visual platform where people find and save ideas, making it a great place to show off your course content in an attractive way. With over 518 million users every month, Pinterest lets users, called Pinners, create pinboards to express themselves.
People watch almost 1 billion videos on Pinterest every day. Its search feature helps users find content based on their interests, which makes it easier for course creators to reach specific groups of people.
Create well-organized boards and eye-catching pins to attract visitors to your online course. Make sure your content is easy to find through search and stay active and consistent on Pinterest.
22. Affiliate program
Let others help promote your course by creating an affiliate program. In this program, people can earn a percentage of each sale they help make. But don’t just wait for affiliates to come to you. Take action and find them.
Look for people who have audiences that would be interested in your course. Contact them and ask if they want to promote your course as an affiliate. By being proactive and contacting potential affiliates, you can boost your course sales and reach a wider audience.
23. Improve your course sales page.
Write a clear and compelling description of your course. Explain the benefits of taking your course and focus on the results your audience wants to achieve. Talk about their problems and how your course can solve them. Make sure the description is about them, not you.
Consider hiring a professional writer to create this description. Also, use specific keywords in your description to help your course appear in search results. This will make it easier for people to find your course online.
24. Create a free mini-course
Take parts or key ideas from your main course and make a mini-course. Offer this mini-course for free. At the end of the mini-course, invite your students to buy your main course if they want to learn more. This way, potential students can try your teaching without risk before buying the full course.
25. Participate in Forum discussions
Forums are online communities where people with the same interests talk and interact. Join these discussions. Answer questions and be helpful. Notice the questions people ask about your topic; this can give you good ideas for your course content. Wait to promote your course. First, ensure you add value to the forum by being helpful and informative.
Conclusion
Promoting your course to students doesn’t have to be hard. Use different ways to reach people, like blogs, YouTube, social media, and email. Ask for reviews, listen to feedback, and provide great customer support. Create free mini-courses and join online communities to share your knowledge. Being helpful and engaging can attract more students to your course. Keep trying new ideas and stay active in promoting your course. It will help more people find and join your course. Yet, if you really want an expert’s hand, go for a digital marketing agency to promote your courses to students.