Who "should" be creating courses? Don't we need an audience first?

"What if this is my first offering as a creator? Should people just entering the content creation field start elsewhere?"

This is a fantastic question that many aspiring course creators grapple with.

The short answer is:

No, you don't need a large, established audience to successfully create and launch a course. 

In fact, creating a well-crafted course can be one of the fastest ways to build your audience and establish yourself as an expert in your field.

The Power of Courses for New Creators:

The beauty of courses, especially shorter courses or even a single, well-focused webinar, lies in their ability to:

• Showcase Your Expertise: A course allows you to demonstrate your knowledge and passion in a structured, in-depth way that goes far beyond a blog post or social media update. It positions you as a go-to resource.
  
  
• Provide Tangible Value: Students are actively seeking solutions and transformation. A well-designed course offers that, making it inherently valuable and attractive.
  
  
• Accelerate Audience Growth: When your course is aligned with what people want and need, and it's delivered well, it can be a highly effective tool for word-of-mouth audience growth.
  
  
• Build Authority Quickly: Successfully teaching a course, even a small one, establishes credibility and positions you as an authority in your niche.

My Personal Story and Strategy:

I (George Kao) actually started my online business by creating courses right from the start. I didn't have a large following. Here's the strategy I used, and it's one you can adapt, starting with the people you already know:

1. Identify Your Expertise & Passion: What are you genuinely knowledgeable and passionate about? What problems can you solve for others? This is the foundation of your courses.

2. Identify "Influencers" (Within Your Network): Look at the people already in your network. This includes:

   • Facebook friends
   • LinkedIn connections
   • People who follow you on Instagram (or other social media)
   • Contacts in your cell phone address book
   • Email contacts
   • People you've met at networking events or conferences
     
   • Colleagues past and present
   • Clients past and present

   Are there friends, colleagues, or acquaintances who have a network or audience that would benefit from your course topic? These could be bloggers, authors, podcasters, service providers, other course creators with a complementary offering, or even just individuals with a bit of a following. Think broadly – "influence" doesn't always mean having a massive following. It can mean having a small but highly relevant following.

3. Offer Genuine Help: Approach these individuals and offer to help them personally (for free) with the topic of your course. This isn't a sales pitch; it's a genuine offer of value, leveraging your existing connection. You might say something like, "Hey [Name], I know you're interested in [Topic]. I've been developing some expertise in this area, and I'd love to offer you a free consultation/mini-training/resource to help you with [Specific Problem]."

4. Build (or Strengthen) Relationships: By providing valuable assistance, you build (or deepen) trust and rapport with these individuals.

5. Strategic Collaboration: After you've provided value and established a stronger connection, you can then explore the possibility of them sharing your course with their audience. This is much more effective than a cold outreach because it's built on a foundation of genuine help and a pre-existing relationship.

Key Takeaway:

Don't let the lack of a large audience hold you back. A well-crafted course, combined with a strategic approach to leveraging your existing network, can be a powerful engine for growth.

We will be diving a lot more deeply into the above strategy, and working on the specifics, in the coming modules of this course.

Revisiting Lesson 1:

Think back to the qualities of an effective course creator we discussed in Lesson 1. Do you want to embody those qualities more fully? If so, creating courses is not just a business strategy; it's a path to personal and professional development.

Action Step:

Start brainstorming a list of people in your existing network who might be a good fit for the "influencer" strategy described above. Consider who has a relevant audience and who you could genuinely help.

Comment below on whether you have ever thought of this strategy, or how you might now use it. Also comment on any connections that came to mind!