How to market online courses & reach more students

Having a unique perspective is essential to creating a successful online course. It’s how you get your course to stand out from the crowd. However, that won’t matter if you can hardly get people to know about your course in the first place. 

According to Oxford Learning College, online learning has seen a 900% growth rate since its inception in 2000. This makes it the fastest-growing sector in the education industry, implying that the online course marketplace has steadily become more competitive.

As a course creator, you must actively seek ways to be more visible to your target audience. That’s where the need for a well-tailored online course marketing strategy comes in. 

In this post, we’ll show you how to market online courses and reach a wider audience with potential buyers. You’ll also learn how to position your new online course for better sales results. 

Ready? Let’s go!

Related:
How online teachers use GetResponse
How to create and sell an online course (in 9 easy steps)

How to market online courses

Before creating your online course, you should have a clear plan for gaining visibility and reaching potential students. You can market your online course and increase sales through various mediums. 

Social media marketing, email marketing, search engine marketing, podcasting, and even guest blogging are effective strategies to consider. Let’s see how you can put these together to create a robust online course marketing campaign:

1. Position your USP

Your unique selling proposition (USP) will differentiate your course from other online courses. It’s one of the first things you want to sort out. 

Your USP refers to key offerings or benefits your target audience will derive from your course. It’s like a promise that you make to your potential learners about what they’ll gain, which they can’t get with any other course.

A clear USP will help you craft compelling copy to promote your course and attract the right audience.

Here’s what to do when defining your USP:

• Identify what makes your course stand out. For instance, it could be that you use a conversational teaching style or that you simplify complex concepts. You could also be offering bonus resources like a free template or even a one-on-one session.
• Focus on the benefits that learners will gain. Instead of offering “10 videos in a series,” emphasize the actual value your audience will get at the end of each section.

Your USP should also be based on actual pain points or problems your target audience desires to solve. 

For example, “Practical Copywriting for Beginners” is a free YouTube course by Mike Nardi. Let’s assess his USP by looking at the course description from the screenshot below:

From the above, here are some potential USPs we can find:

• The course covers everything one would need to know to “make money online as a writer.”
• The course highlights steps for newbie writers to improve their skills
• The course has practical copywriting exercises the viewer can practice with
• The course provides a “real world, practical guide, that anyone can follow on their own

These USPs are clear, straightforward, and convincing. In another YouTube course, “Free copywriting course for beginners” by Matthew Online, we see a clearly defined USP:

Matthew highlights that his course will show users how to make $10k monthly. Now, that’s a pretty direct USP. He also reveals what the viewers will be learning — how to write copy, get on sales calls, and so on.

Take a cue from these examples to define the USP for your online course. The more specific your USP, the better. 

2. Define your target audience

The next tip in online marketing courses is to define your target audience. These are the people for whom you’ve created the online course. 

Ideally, you should have a target audience in mind when creating your course. This means you should already know their demographics, preferences, and challenges. These data points will help you tailor a more effective marketing strategy. 

For instance, you’ll be able to create marketing content that speaks directly to their needs, making it easier to resonate with them and drive conversions.

You can differentiate your audience based on experience levels. This may include:

• Newbies with little to no prior knowledge or experience in your course topic.
• Intermediate learners who have some existing knowledge and are looking to refine their skills or learn new techniques. 
• Advanced learners who have a strong foundation and simply want to specialize in a particular niche. 

You can also define your audience based on common pain points. For example, they may be looking to:

• Improve their skill set 
• Drop bad habits
• Get clients
• Make money

And finally, based on interests— Is your ideal audience interested in personal development or career growth? 

Additionally, you can highlight audience demographics like gender, age group, and location.

For clarity, consider creating a “buyer persona” or “student avatar” for your course. This is a visual representation of the typical student who will be taking your course. You can start by writing a clear description of your student, highlighting attributes, preferences, pain points, and objectives they may want to achieve. 

See the example below:

Of course, you’ll need to do some research to create a precise student avatar. You can look for similar courses in your niche and observe the attributes of those who typically engage with them. You’ll likely find this in the review section of online course platforms like Udemy or the comment section of similar course creators on social media. 

You can also distribute surveys or questionnaires through your social media profiles or existing forums on social networks. Accurate data will become invaluable in creating an effective marketing or lead generation campaign for your course.

3. Generate leads through a waitlist

A waitlist can help you determine the level of interest people have in your course even before you launch. It’s a smart strategy because it can provide important insight that’ll help assess or improve marketing efforts for your online course. 

For instance, instead of trying to gather buyers after launching your course, a waitlist ensures that you have ready customers as soon as your course is available to the public. This can help to boost your initial sales. 

Moreover, a waitlist can create a sense of demand. For example, people can grab the limited seats on your waitlist to be among the first to get the course when it launches. This can play into the psychology of potential students, creating more demand for your course. 

Another strategy that works really well is providing incentives to students who join the waitlist. For example, people joining the list could be promised early access to your course content, a discount, or a free resource. You also create a well-designed waitlist landing page for interested prospects. 

So, how exactly do you design a waitlist landing page that can get the job done? First, you want to write good copy telling your readers why joining the list is a big deal for them. Essentially, you’ll share some of the course’s USP here. But as mentioned above, you can offer something extra like an incentive. 

Secondly, a high-converting waitlist has a simple email capture form. You don’t want to ask for more details than you need, as that only discourages sign-ups. Name and email might be enough.

Check out this example from Kelly Nolan.

Also, you don’t have to waste time creating these forms. You can use some of the pre-built email sign-up form templates from GetResponse. It’s quick and easy, plus they come optimized right out of the box.

A waitlist landing page will build your email list. This is awesome because it allows you to start nurturing relationships with those learners through targeted email campaigns. Send them updates about the course they’re interested in, and let them be among the first to know when it goes live.

4. Design a course landing page

Your course landing page will be the focal point of all your marketing efforts. Social media marketing, email campaigns, and other course marketing efforts will send potential buyers to this landing page. That means your conversion rates will hugely depend on how effective this page is.

You should be thorough and well-detailed with your landing page. Start by picking a responsive landing page template, which should be easy if you’re working with a great landing page builder. And, of course, make sure the builder has a drag-and-drop editor that’ll help you customize the template to match your audience’s preferences. 

Next, you need to craft compelling copy highlighting your USP. Use a captivating headline and a clear CTA. You can’t afford to overlook visuals. These will help make your page look lively and could boost conversions. So, add images, videos, illustrations, and smooth color combinations.

Here is a nice example. This is Franklin Covey’s course landing page: 

Covey’s course landing page features a straightforward headline and a clear course overview. 

Like Covey, highlight your course curriculum and potential learning outcomes. See the screenshot below: 

The course creator has also embedded a video, as shown below. Consider doing something similar. You can play around with different ideas, too. 

For example, you could include a video introducing yourself. Alternatively, you could include an excerpt from one of the modules in your course. 

Finally, tell your website visitors how to access your course. For Covey, this would be by getting an All Access Pass:

Yours could be by filling out a form on your landing page or paying directly for the course. Whichever way, ensure the process of getting your course is clear and straightforward for future students.

To make leads more interested, consider adding testimonials from other learners. 

You can also create a sense of urgency by adding a countdown timer to your course sales page like the one above. Additionally, you can offer a money-back guarantee to build trust.

5. Network for better promotion opportunities

Next, you need to build a network to promote your online course.

While using your website and social profiles to market your course may be effective, relying solely on them can limit your reach. That’s where strategic networking comes in. 

Connect with influencers, thought leaders, and other professionals within your niche. By doing this, you can tap into their established audiences and get more visibility for your course. 

Here’s how to effectively network with these groups: 

• Look out for people who have a similar audience to you or at least can resonate with your target audience.
• Nurture relationships by engaging with their content. Leave thoughtful comments and reshare some of their content.
• You can also join online communities and participate in online forums and discussions that offer value.

Over time, you can reach out to pitch your course and ask for a referral. Your connections may be willing to tell their audience about your course. 

For example, Jon Morrow of Smart Blogger promotes a course by his friend to his email subscribers.

Your close networks can promote your course through their social profiles, podcasts, and other platforms where they have an audience base.

Another brilliant idea is participating in online conferences, workshops, and other networking events relevant to your course topic or industry. Jump on panel discussions or speaking engagements where you can showcase your expertise. 

6. Setup drip campaigns and write newsletters

Besides building an email list with the waitlist landing page, you can use a lead magnet like an ebook, a cheat sheet, or a free mini-course. These are excellent assets that most potential learners wouldn’t mind trading their email addresses for.

After setting up your email list, the next thing you want to do is to create an email drip campaign. 

Email drips are a sequence of personalized campaigns you can use to engage your subscribers. Usually, they follow a well-ordered pattern and are triggered by a specific action. For example, the campaign could be deployed when someone pre-registers for your course or clicks the subscribe button on your landing page. 

Here is a simple workflow of an email drip campaign:

We have a fantastic guide on email drip campaigns that you can check out after this. 

But I’ll give you a nice example of a drip campaign that can help sell online courses. Imagine that someone joins the email list for your upcoming course. Here is a welcome sequence you could deploy:

• Send the first email to thank them for signing up and introducing yourself.
• A second email will tell them what to expect from you. You can also share more detailed insights about how they can benefit from your course.
• A third email sharing an update on when your course will go live and how they can enroll.
• A final sequence to tell them when your course goes live.

Of course, you’re not limited to just these emails. As mentioned earlier, you can also build relationships with your email subscribers by sending educational emails before your course goes live. Just make sure you’re not bombarding your list. Spread out your emails to keep your audience engaged.

Now, after you’ve launched your course, you shouldn’t neglect those in your email list. Stay in contact by creating regular newsletters to strengthen your relationships. Your newsletters should be full of valuable content that educates your audience. You can share helpful tips or the latest news in your specific niche. 

For example, course owner and famous writer Jerry Jenkins shares insightful tips with his subscribers, as shown below:

In addition to the valuable content you share, you can use these newsletters to promote courses you create in the future. 

Check out this example from Jerry Jenkins:

Maintain a consistent schedule for sending your newsletters. Consistency helps subscribers know when to expect your insightful content in their inboxes. 

Also, ensure your newsletters are optimized for mobile devices, as most emails are opened on smartphones. Remember to use engaging subject lines and clear messaging in the body of your email. 

7. Choose the appropriate social media platform

According to the Online Learning Trends Report by Thinkific, Social media is the No.1 way major creators attract students to their courses.

That’s your cue to create a robust social media marketing plan to promote online courses. And it starts by choosing the right social channels where your ideal students hang out. You should have this data from the student research you did in Step 2 above.

Look through various social channels to assess the types of content that thrive there. You can also look for platforms similar course creators use. 

Social listening tools like Mention or Hootsuite can help you identify platforms with the most conversations about your topic of interest.

That said, here’s a brief overview of different social media platforms and how you can leverage them for selling an online course:

Instagram

Instagram is a visual platform, so it’s ideal for sharing images or short, engaging video content with your audience. 

You can use Instagram reels to reveal key takeaways or benefits from your online course. That’s what Jess Ramosa does in the example below:

You can also use your Instagram stories to share interactive content like Q&As, polls, or fun quizzes to keep your audience entertained. Another format worth experimenting with is IG carousels. You could use these to share snippets from your course, for example. 

YouTube 

YouTube would be incredible for longer video content. For example, you can create free educational content based on the course you want to sell. This earns you goodwill, showcases your expertise, and can extend your reach. 

You can also share helpful tips around niche-specific topics. See the example from Tara Wagner’s YouTube post below:

Notice how she links to one of her courses in the video description. You can do the same thing to send future students to your course sales page.

The beauty of YouTube is that you can easily embed your video on your course landing page to make it more engaging. YouTube is also considered a remarkable search engine, so be sure to optimize your videos with relevant keywords.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a popular platform for professionals. If your course is built for that category, you can promote it using carefully crafted LinkedIn posts. 

Here’s a LinkedIn post by Mike Barker about his copywriting course. 

But you don’t want all your posts to be about the course. This will likely turn off the interest of potential students. A better approach is to focus on providing value through insightful posts. You can then highlight your course once in a while. 

Facebook

Here is the thing. Facebook is an incredible marketplace. But for course creators, I’d say it’s best used for community building. 

If you want to build a cult behind your brand and course, Facebook is the platform for you. More specifically, you want to build an engaging Facebook group.

Here is an example: This personal finance group has 19,000 followers. Imagine the value you can get from running such a group.

Create a Facebook group where you can share helpful resources with participants. Use the group to foster important discussions around your niche topic. Ultimately, you want to encourage interactions between members so the group is not entirely reliant on your input. 

The problem is that creating an engaged Facebook group takes time. If that sounds like something you’re not interested in, join existing Facebook groups to find and connect with future students for your online course. 

Contribute to the discourse in those communities to ensure your expertise gets noticed. You can also reach out to group admins and ask them to promote your courses for you. 

You can occasionally host live sessions across your social media platforms, during which you interact with your audience and allow them to engage freely with you.

8. Write relatable SEO blogs

Usually, when people want to learn about a particular topic or concept, they’re likely to start with a search engine platform like Google. 

For instance, as a course owner looking to sell courses, you may search for phrases like “how to market my online course” or “how to promote an online course” on Google. In this case, you’ll likely find blog posts with relevant information about marketing your online course— just like this one you’re reading.

Similarly, you can produce content related to your niche or industry. Then, optimize the blog content for SEO to ensure its visibility on search engines. You can then use things like pop-ups or sidebars to promote your course. You can even promote the course within some of those blog posts.

For example, Wellness coach Rebekah Ballagh has a blog post on managing anxiety. She adds a brief copy to this blog content telling readers about her course. She also adds a CTA prompting them to join the course: 

Now, let’s talk about how you can create SEO-infused blog posts.

Start by researching relevant keywords related to your niche or topic of interest. Ahrefs, Ubersuggest, and Google Keyword Planner are good keyword research tools. 

To start, you can target keywords with a relatively high search volume and low competition. Write optimized blog posts targeting these keywords. You can add the keywords to your:

• Title
• Blog headings
• Meta description, and
• Image ALT texts

That said, avoid stuffing keywords in your content. Instead, use them naturally.

Apart from optimizing the blog content on your site, you should also leverage link-building techniques like guest blogging. These techniques will improve your site’s rankings, helping you attract more potential students. 

Send a pitch to sites you’re interested in to secure guest posting opportunities. Target sites whose audiences mirror those of your course’s potential customers or students. 

Alternatively, if your goal is just to boost the rankings of your online course landing page, you don’t have to be so particular about the audience type. However, you should focus on SEO metrics like site traffic, spam score, and domain rating to ensure you’re getting valuable backlinks.

Type your “target keyword + write for us” or “guest blog” on Google to find sites accepting guest posts.

Read through the site’s guest post guidelines and follow them before submitting your contributions. This will increase the chances of your content being published.

9. Organize a live webinar

Hosting a live webinar is another effective strategy for marketing an online course. Your webinar should serve two major purposes:

• To provide valuable insight to your audience. and,
• To drive traffic to your course landing page.

For your webinar, focus on a relevant topic related to your course. For instance, you can focus on the pain points resolved in your course. Then, direct your audience to your course for a more in-depth exploration of the entire topic.

Let’s say you’re promoting a social media marketing course. In that case, your webinar can briefly explore some topics in your course outline like:

• The introduction to key concepts in social media marketing
• Setting social media goals
• Defining your social media target audience
• Choosing the right social media channels

Then, you can prompt your audience to register for your complete course, which covers everything in more detail.

For instance, when Slidebean was promoting their Financial Modeling course, they had a free “Financial Modeling 101” webinar. See the screenshot below:

Make sure your webinar is interactive. Let your target customers see that you’re the type of course instructor they’d want to learn from.

10. Offer a free insight into the course

Still on how to market your online course, the next tip is to offer free insight into your course. You can create a downloadable ebook that touches on a specific aspect of your course. 

For example, the ebook can be on “writing effective blog headlines,” a subtopic in your content writing course. 

You can also develop a short video tutorial that showcases your teaching style and dives into a particular topic in your course. 

Finally, you can share a sample of your course module. Here, you’ll briefly run through different chapters or episodes in your course and tell your audience what each one covers.

The aim for all of these is to get your target audience interested in the full course. 

11. Do collaborations for better reach

We already talked about how to market online courses through your networks. Collaboration is another useful outcome of networking. 

You should go for mutually beneficial collaborations. They could be:

• Collaborative blog posts 
• Social media posts 
• Podcasts
• Webinars
• Joint ebooks and other content types across platforms. 

These collaborations present opportunities to discuss your online course and connect with potential students.

Remember that successful collaborations are based on shared goals and values. So, prioritize creating valuable content that benefits your and your collaborators’ audiences. 

12. Get course reviews from top publishers 

Now, we’ll talk about how to market courses through reviews from publishers.

First, public reviews from notable publishers can boost your credibility and create some form of social proof for your online course. A potential student will likely trust a review from a reputable publisher. Reviews on popular websites can also increase your course’s visibility.

Where can you find publishers to review your course?

Check industry or niche-specific websites that publish course reviews. A popular example of such platforms is Course Reviewers:

You can also use social media to search for publishers who are open to reviewing your course.

A good approach for getting course reviews is to offer a commission, similar to an affiliate program. The reviewer will receive a certain percentage as a commission for every successful sale from their platform.

13. Place your course on the right course platform

There are various course platforms or marketplaces that you can leverage for your course. Famous examples include Skillshare, Udemy, Coursera, and LinkedIn Learning. These platforms have a significant number of users that may be interested in your course. 

You don’t need to have your course on all platforms at once, so you should prioritize choosing the right one. 

Here are some tips to consider:

• Choose a platform that aligns with your target audience. For instance, Skillshare is notable for its creative courses.
• Consider the costs associated with putting your course on the platform.
• Check if the platform has an active user base with significant user interactions. 
• Ensure that the website is easy to use when you upload your courses.

While online course marketplaces can expose you to a vast student base, you may also want to take note of some setbacks that come with these platforms. For instance, online marketplaces don’t give you complete control over how students interact with your course. These platforms also determine how much you can charge for your course and how you receive payments. 

It’s also impossible to get the email addresses of those who register for your course. This means you can’t reach them with future courses or build meaningful connections with them.

Alternatively, you can use standalone platforms like GetResponse, Kajabi, Thinkfic, or Podia. These platforms offer many tools to help you create, host, manage, and sell your courses. 

They also give you more control over your courses and allow you to access your student database. If you choose GetResponse, then your courses will automatically be connected with your email campaigns. But if you choose Thinkific, Kajabi, or Teachable, you’ll also be able to integrate it with a solution like GetResponse. 

Platforms like these are great if you want to create a more personalized experience for your learners. 

On the downside, maintaining self-hosted platforms may be expensive. You’re also fully responsible for marketing your online course.

Online Course Marketplaces	Self-Hosted Platforms
Large student base	Little to no potential student base
Restricted control to course management	Full access to course management tools
No access to student email addresses or database	Access to student database and email addresses
Controls your course pricing	Allows you to price courses as you wish
Little to no maintenance costs	High maintenance costs

If you’re new to selling online courses, you can consider starting with online marketplaces and transitioning to self-hosting as your brand and student base expand.

Whether you’re using a marketplace or a self-hosted platform, choose a platform that provides a convenient user experience so learners can easily access your course.

GetResponse for example offers a self-hosted platform where you can build your online course in no time with generative AI and a drag and drop builder.

14. Use QR codes 

As a course creator, you should also know how to market your online course using creative methods, such as a QR code. 

QR codes are mainly used to share links to websites or landing pages. They are also used to share contact details for payment links. 

You can use QR codes to ensure direct access to your course page. These codes can be placed on offline materials like brochures, business cards, and other printed items. They can also be shared digitally. 

See the example bell from Data Literacy Academy:

QR codes can also come in handy when you attend networking events and want to direct people to your online course. 

Here are some things to note when adding QR codes to your course marketing strategy:

Ensure that you display your QR code through a visually appealing design. The code should be distinct from the background and displayed prominently. Your QR code should lead to a well-optimized sales page. 

For example, here is the landing page from scanning the QR code on DL Academy’s image:

Finally, you need to add UTMs (Urchin Tracking Modules) to your QR code URL. UTMs are unique tracking codes that show where your site traffic comes from. Adding UTMs to your QR code can help to measure the effectiveness of your QR campaign.

15. Interview for podcasts

Podcast interviews offer great opportunities to promote your online courses. Appearing on relevant podcasts allows you to connect with your target audience. Also, getting featured on a well-respected podcast can position you as an expert in your field. 

Usually, podcast hosts promote their episodes on social channels—- that is an added benefit that can eventually further your reach.

If you’re wondering how to secure a podcast interview, here’s how you can start:

• Research relevant podcasts in your niche that have a good listener base. 
• Listen to several episodes to get a good idea of the type of conversations that are held on the podcast. 
• Reach out to them by sending a compelling pitch. Tell the podcasters about unique perspectives or insights you can bring to their audience. 
• Showcase your track record and expertise on your proposed topic, mentioning that you also have a course on it. 
• You should also highlight how you’ll drive traffic to the podcast by sharing with your audience.

Most podcast hosts will let you promote your online course on the show after appearing as a guest. 

For the interview, your aim should be to have a personal and meaningful conversation that offers value to listeners. During the interview, you can briefly mention your course and refer people to your social platforms for more details—or simply send them to your course web page.

You can check platforms like PodcastGuests.com, Matchmaker.fm, or Podchaser Pro, which are dedicated to connecting podcasters with potential guests.

16. Entice students with an online challenge

Running a challenge for your online course is an excellent way to market your online course. A challenge is a time-bound activity where your audience does a particular task based on specific instructions. Usually, participants do a specific task every day. 

For example, here’s a 5-day self-care challenge by Family TLC:

These challenges build excitement and attract new students when done right.

If you’re not sure where to start, here are two main ideas you can try out:

A problem-solving challenge – Where you get participants to solve a particular problem. Here’s a 5-day challenge organized by health coach Karen Porter:

A creativity challenge – where participants create something. For instance, see this 5-day website challenge by Meredith Paige:

That said, here’s how to market a course through an online challenge 

• Identify a challenge that’s relevant to your course. 
• Provide clear and simple instructions that make your challenge actionable.
• Offer rewards for those who complete the challenge. 
• Use your social platforms to announce your challenge.
• Maintain constant communication with your audience during the challenge.

Finally, at the end of the challenge, you can direct participants to an online course where you provide a step-by-step guide on that specific problem or topic.

17. Get student testimonials

Testimonials allow your previous or existing students to share their experiences and the positive outcomes they achieved through your course. These student testimonials are excellent marketing materials for your online classes. 

For example, TechXR shares a student testimonial on their Instagram page to promote an Advance AR-VR course:

Also, positive reviews from those who took your course can serve as social proof and help you increase conversions from prospective students. 

Thankfully, learning platforms like Udemy and Coursera have a review section where students can leave feedback. 

You can take these reviews and use them in your course marketing campaigns. 

• Add the testimonials to your course sales page. 
• Share them on your social media platforms. And, 
• Use them in your email marketing campaigns. 

If your course is privately hosted on your website, create a feedback section where students can leave reviews. You can also email past students and ask them more specific questions about how they benefited from using your course. 

In closing

Marketing your online course is no small task. You’ll need several strategies to create awareness and direct potential buyers to the point of conversion. This post showed you how to market your online course and reach a wider audience. 

First, you must determine your unique selling proposition (USP) and define your target audience. Next, generate leads by creating a waitlist. Then, build a course landing page. Afterward, you can start actively promoting your course through networking, emails, social media campaigns, guest blogging, and collaborations.

QR codes, podcast interviews, course reviews, and testimonials from previous and existing students are effective resources for marketing your online course.

Now, it’s over to you. Use all the marketing strategies and tools you’ve seen here when selling online courses you create. Good luck!