Ever wonder what it actually looks like to create and launch a course from step 1 to step done?
If so, then stick around, cause that’s why I’m writing The Fire Path Project series: to give you an inside look at how I went from answering an email to creating an online course – step by step.
In my intro post to The Fire Path Project, I outlined the 9 steps that I took in order to go from no idea to launching a course.
Step 1 was: Listen to your audience.
Step 2 was: Create content.
Step 3 was: Repurpose your content.
Step 4 was: Test your idea.
Step 5 was: Brainstorm the next level.
Step 6 is: Create an outline.
So what does that mean exactly, how can you do it in your business, and why is it important? Let’s take a look…
How to create an outline
Now that you have the next level of content you’re going to create (your online course) – content that your audience wants and needs (and that they’re hopefully going to pay you money for!) – let’s take a look at how to create an outline so you can prepare yourself to market your idea.
Your outline should include key insights and information that you’ve uncovered from your audience (by way of the content you’re going to include), and it should also give you a pretty solid idea of what creating your online course is going to require.
For example, if you’re going to be creating video tutorials, then you know you’ll need to find a video host; if you’re going to create a membership site for the content, then you know you’ll need to research membership site platforms.
The Fire Path Course outline
Here’s what my outline for The Fire Path Course looked like:
Notice that I’ve just made notes on what the course will include:
- How it will be laid out;
- What format the content will be in;
- What the flow of the course will be; and
- Potential bonus materials.
Creating an outline doesn’t mean you have to know EXACTLY what your course will include. You might still have some question marks next to some ideas, like in my example above, and that’s okay. It’s important that you uncover those questions now!
Why creating an outline is important
Creating an outline is important because it’s what will help you visualize your course. As I just mentioned, it’s also going to help you uncover some of the key questions you’ll have to be prepared to answer in the next several steps leading up to actually creating your course.
Creating an outline is also going to help you communicate to your audience what it is you have to offer (without actually creating the course and showing it to them).
They key here is to get as close to your idea as possible through creating your outline so that you can use that outline to get proof of concept, and getting proof of concept will guarantee you’re not wasting your time creating something that your audience isn’t interested in.
Finally, without an outline to help you get familiar with the content and layout of your course, you’re going to have a hard time with the next step, which is step 7: Market your idea.
Now that you have an outline put together, it’s going to be a lot easier to create marketing materials around what people can expect from your online course!
