Dear Thot, I want to create a distance learning course.

From time to time we receive requests like: "Could you help me, I'd like to create an "online course" or "distance learning service"?

It looks so easy to create and distribute online courses that everyone feels they could do it with a little work. Indeed, offering online courses is almost as easy as putting together a web page or producing a video.

An analogy can be made with the world of video: anyone can make videos... yet very few exceed an audience of over 1,000 on the Internet, and what's more, access is free. Creating and distributing online courses is far more complicated than a simple video, so you might as well give yourself a few chances.

A well-identified market

While it's easy to produce courses, it's less easy to produce them in fields that are already well covered, such as languages or office automation, and to compete with those that exist in terms of quality.

If you find a market with people willing to pay, either to take the course or to have it produced, then go for it. Otherwise, consider that you'll be working as a volunteer.

If you simply want to offer courses in your environment, but don't necessarily want to create them, there are dozens of e-learning service providers and systems integrators who will be happy to offer you a technological integration framework that will enable you to take advantage of the thousands of courses that already exist (see e-learning service providers).

Don't limit yourself for technological reasons

There are some excellent courses available in simple HTML or by e-mail. Technology is not an obstacle. There are several course delivery services where you don't even have to worry about technology (see below).

Once you've got some hands-on experience in running an online course, and have a clear idea of customer interest, enrolment and student volumes to manage, then you can start worrying about platforms and software(Platform Directory). It's best to cut your teeth on simple technologies.

How to get started?

• 1- Produce your course script.

  Just like building a car or a house, you make plans before you start bending sheet metal or nailing boards. The same goes for a course: you make some plans before you start writing. There are a LOT of elements to consider.

  Here are a few resources to help you:

  • Instructional scripting
    
  • Planning: the key to a successful e-learning project
    
  • Distance learning: how to get started?
  • Carrying out a distance learning course in just a few days... but how?
    
    

• 2- Produce a first version of the course and test it in simple form with a few people. This could be a paper version.
  
  

• 3- Refine the course and improve its quality. Test it with more people on a free delivery service such as :
  
  

  • Kajabi
  • LearnWorlds
  • Learnybox
  • My iCourse
  • Podia
  • RCampus
  • ScholarLMS
  • Systeme.io
  • Teachable
  • Teachizy
  • Thinkific
  • Udemy
  • Udutu
    
    
  • Ecto Learning
  • Edu on Go
    
    
  • Alexandra (video)
  • ApprendreFacile (video)
  
  Or on an open platform: platform directory.

  Finally, from here you have three choices:
  

  • Either find investors to whom you can demonstrate the viability of your courses;
    
    
  • Or offer your courses and expertise to a major educational entity, capable of integrating them into its catalog and integrating you as well;
    
    
  • Or continue to grow your business by taking on more and more responsibilities: managing several courses means managing hundreds or even thousands of students...
  
  

  In short, there will always be room for creative, motivated people who know how to surround themselves with others.

  As in other cultural industries, online education is the work of well-managed teams. You can always start out on your own, but you'll need to scale up to a viable size to succeed.

  When do you start?