How much should I charge for my course?
If you’re thinking about teaching online, you’re probably wondering how to price your online course. After all, you want to make sure you’re making a profit, but you also don’t want to scare away potential students. Trust me, this is a question ALL course creators ask themselves. Many struggle to come up with the perfect answer, but it’s part of the entrepreneurship journey.
Here’s the thing: there is NO perfect answer. But there are definitely some strategies you can use to price your course in a way that will help you reach your goals.
Cost of Production
The first factor you need to consider when pricing your online course is the cost of production. This includes the cost of any materials or software you need to create your course as well as the cost of your time. For example, if you need to hire someone to help you film and edit your videos, that’s an additional cost you need to factor in. Once you’ve determined the cost of production, you can add a reasonable markup to cover your expenses and still leave room for profit.
Value to Students
Another important factor to consider when pricing your online course is the value it will provide to students. Think about what students will get out of taking your course and how that compares to the cost. For example, if your course will teach students a new skill that they can use in their career, it’s likely worth more than a course that simply offers entertainment value. When determining the value of your course, be sure to compare it to similar courses on the market, so you have a good frame of reference.
Time Invested in Course Development
Another factor you need to consider when pricing your course is the time you’ve invested in developing it. If you’ve spent months or even years creating your course, it’s only natural that you would want to charge more for it than a course that took someone a few weeks or even days to put together. Your time is valuable, and students should be willing to pay for the knowledge and expertise they will acquire by taking your training.
Course Marketing Expenses
When deciding on what to price your course, factor in marketing costs. After all, you can’t sell your course if no one knows it exists. Marketing costs can include advertising, social media promotion, search engine optimization, influencer collaborations, and email marketing, among others. Take your marketing budget into account when coming up with a price for your course. But please remember that not all marketing has to cost an arm and a leg – there are plenty of free or low-cost marketing strategies you can use to get the word out about your course.
Expected Impact on Students’ Lives
If your course has the potential to change someone’s life for the better, then it’s likely worth a higher price tag. But if it’s a more general interest course with less life-changing potential, then you might want to price your online course accordingly. For example, a course on how to start a successful business is likely to have a bigger impact on students’ lives than a course on, say, how to bake a cake. When considering the price of your course, think about the expected impact it will have on students’ lives both in the short and long run.
What’s the Competition Charging?
When setting a price for your course, it’s important to check out the competition. See what other courses in your niche are charging and use that as a starting point. If you feel confident that your course is worth more than what the competition is charging, then, by all means, price it accordingly. But if you feel like your course is on the same level or even below what others are offering, then you might want to consider lowering your price in order to remain competitive.
Type of Content in the Course
Comparing the content in your course to others on the market is a great way to determine its value. It’s important that your course stands out and offers something unique, whether that’s in-depth coverage of a specific topic, exclusive interviews with industry experts, or rare footage or images. If your course is unique and offers lots of value, then you can charge a higher price for it. Information gets reused and recycled a lot on the internet these days, so what really matters is HOW you present that information. If your course offers a fresh perspective or new angle on familiar topics, then it’s likely to be worth more than one that simply regurgitates the same old information.
Online Course Content Quality
As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Students are willing to pay more for high-quality content that’s well-researched, engaging, and informative. On the other hand, if your course content is subpar, then you might want to consider charging less for it. Quality and top-notch customer service should always be your priority, but sometimes we have to make compromises, especially when we’re first starting out. If your budget is tight and you can’t afford to produce top-notch content, then it’s okay to charge less for your course until you’re able to invest more in its development.
Length of the Course
Courses that are longer in length tend to be pricier than shorter courses. This is because they offer more value and require more time and effort to create. If your course is on the shorter side, you might want to consider pricing it lower than similar courses that are longer in length. However, the course length is also subjective. Perceived value (what the student feels they’re getting for their money) is just as important as actual value. Students often associate longer courses with more value, even if the content isn’t necessarily any better than a shorter course. Keep that in mind when setting a price for your course.
Course Delivery Method
The delivery method you use for your course can also affect its price. If you’re offering a self-paced, online course, then you can charge less than if you were offering a live, in-person course. This is because online courses are generally less expensive to create and deliver than in-person courses. In the post-Covid days, online courses will continue to be popular as people increasingly prefer the flexibility and convenience of learning from home.
Course Format
The format of your course can also affect its price. For example, a video course will generally be pricier than an audio course because it requires more production costs. Similarly, a course that’s delivered as a series of videos is usually pricier than one that’s delivered as a single video. This is because the former requires more time and effort to produce. If you’re offering a course in multiple formats (such as both video and audio), then you can charge more for it than if
it should be based on a number of factors, including the cost of production, the value to students, marketing costs, and the expected impact on your students’ lives.
Online Course Pricing Strategy
Once you’ve considered all of these factors, you can start brainstorming different pricing strategies for your online course. A common pricing strategy is charging a one-time fee for lifetime access to the course. This is a good option if you feel confident in the quality and value of your course. Another option is charging a monthly or annual subscription fee which gives students access to all current and future courses in your catalog. This is a good option if you plan on regularly creating new courses or adding new content to existing courses. Lastly, you could also opt for a pay-as-you-go approach where students only pay for the modules or lessons they want access to. This could be a good option if your course is very comprehensive or if students might only need certain parts of it.
Course Discounts, Bundles, and Bonuses
One way to make your course more attractive to potential students is to offer discounts, bundles, or bonuses. For example, you could offer a discount to students who sign up for your course early, bundle your course with another related course at a discounted price, or offer bonus materials (such as an ebook or audio files) to those who enroll. These types of incentives can sweeten the deal for potential students and help you sell more courses. Everyone likes the idea of getting a good deal, so offering discounts and bonuses is a great way to attract students to your course.
Using Online Teaching Platforms to Price Your Course
If you’re planning on launching an online course, an online teaching platform like Thinkific can help you with everything from creating and hosting your content to marketing and selling your courses.
Thinkific is the all-in-one platform that makes it easy to create online courses, launch marketing campaigns, build landing pages, and design the perfect user experience.
And with their free plan, you can try out all of their features and see if it’s the right fit for your business. Sign up today and see for yourself how easy it is to create and sell online courses with Thinkific!
With Thinkific, you can easily create beautiful landing pages, launch automated email marketing campaigns, and process payments – everything you need to run a successful online business. Plus, their support team is always there to help you whenever you have questions.
By signing up for Thinkific’s FREE plan, you can explore their platform and see if it works for you without spending any money! You can always upgrade later if you decide that it’s the right fit for your business needs.
Final thoughts on how much to charge for a course
Pricing your course is an important decision that will affect the success of your business. Be sure to consider all of the factors mentioned in this article before choosing how to price your course. And remember, testing and tweaking are key, so don’t be afraid to experiment with different costs until you find what works best for you and your students! It is through trial and error, as well as feedback from your target market, that you will be able to determine the optimal price for your online training.
