Online Course Creation: Better Done Than Perfect | Plus Intro to Blab.im

Tim Cooper

Aug 16 2015

When it comes to creating and publishing online courses we sometimes have to make adjustments just to get the job done.

As online instructors we are often faced with challenges when producing our course content. In this episode I share some of the difficulties I had to overcome in order to complete and publish my latest course.

I also offer my Periscope for Online Instructors & Coaches course for only $9 until midnight August 24, 2015. Click here for more information.

Before I get into my course creation nightmare story I want to share another exciting tool with you, which when incorporated with Periscope will take your student engagement out of this world!

It's called Blab.im and it is every bit as exciting as Periscope. Blab is very new and still in beta, however it's potential for online instructors and coaches is very clear to see.

Blab is well worth checking out. I highly recommend you visit blab.im and participate in some blabs just to see the different uses it can be put to. All I can say that as a coach and online instructor this is definitely a platform I will be using extensively in the future.

Now on with the story.

My video equipment has been in storage for the last six months, lights, backdrops, tripods etc all locked away in a container. This meant that I was unable to produce professional video for some time.

Recently I moved into a new apartment and was very excited to have access to my video equipment again. One day I set up my equipment as I had in my last house, hit the record button and recorded an entire course.

Yes, in hindsight, a mistake. I should have shot a test video, but everything looked good in the viewfinder.

As I sat to edit the videos I found that there was a slight problem with the lighting level and I couldn't effectively adjust the contrast to produce a solid black background. Hours lost and back to square one.

I then started to experiment with different lighting set ups. All very time consuming and all of a sudden I found days slipping away and I was no closer to publishing my course.

I'm not a full time instructor. Like many online instructors I fit course production into my busy work schedule. So all of a sudden I found I had lost a couple of weeks and my frustration was growing.

A few months ago I created another course. It was an interview style course where I interviewed successful online instructors. One of the main messages all the instructors insisted on was to just get your course published. Don't wait for it to be perfect. Publish what you have and come back and improve it later.

The video definitely wasn't up to professional standard so that wasn't an option. I decided to prepare slide decks in PowerPoint and do voice overs. Once I got over not doing any talking head videos the course production came along quite quickly.

The course is now published. It's not exactly what I want, but at least a course exists. I will be adding new material over the coming months and some of it will be talking head - I will get the lighting sorted out.

The moral of the story

While it's good to have an idea and vision, sometimes things happen and you have to be flexible. Don't be so set on an idea or format that it prevents your progress.

If you hit a roadblock look at alternatives and be prepared to produce something you're not 100% happy with initially (it still has to be professional), you can always produce new content and even swap out videos later down the track.

Just get it done!

Resources and sites mentioned in this episode

Click here to pick up your copy of Periscope for Online Instructors & Coaches for only $9

If you have a question about any aspect of online course delivery, from concept to market, please feel free to send me an email at [email protected]. I'd love to hear from you and your question would very well feature in a future podcast.

I want to deliver relevant material so keep those emails rolling in.

If you enjoyed this episode please like, share and comment below. If you could spare a moment to pop over to iTunes and leave me a rating and review I would really be extremely grateful.