How to Start an Online School

How to Start an Online Learning Platform.

With the onset of a boost in online learning, there has never been a better time to start an online education business. Running and starting your own online school or membership site has always been challenging.

Most platforms are designed to be easy to use and tech-free, but there are many choices out there, and making the right decision is key to your business. Of course, we recommend using Zenler, and we will explain why throughout this article, with countless reasons why it will be the best decision you make all year!

Let us jump into how you can create your very own online school.

Create Online School Free

With Zenler you can start your online school for FREE. Yes, really, your own school for FREE! This will give you the time to see if what Zenler can offer you will expand and cover all your needs. It is true that key features are not available to you unless you use the PAID PLANS, but still, Zenler offers you the ability to get started and simply upgrade when you realize it's the only choice for an online business for your school or membership!

So what are the choices for your very own online school?

We have written many comparisons between Zenler and other leading learning management systems; I have hot linked to these below:

Kajabi Alternative

Kajabi offers a great choice as a learning management system, but you will see how we compare to this online course platform - Visit the Post

Teachable Alternative

Teachable is another platform that is a great choice for your first course platform. We have written a great article on this and how it compares to Zenler - Visit the Post

Thinkific Alternative

This platform could be a great fit for you, but make sure you check out how Zenler compares and what features you get with Zenler that go above and beyond Thinkific's features - Visit the Post

Systeme Alternative

This funnels-type system offers a great price; although it is not intuitive and feels a bit cheap, it still might suit you, as their pricing at this stage is competitive. See our blog on this - Visit the Post

No Alternative Just Zenler

We have no alternative; if you want a platform that has it all and addresses the number one pain point, which is marketing, there is only one choice for an all-in-one platform. You might have seen posts comparing Zenler to other platforms, but often they will leave out features that Zenler has just because it really is the best choice for you - Visit the Post

Bottom Line: No Jargon, Straight Talk

We, of course, recommend that you use Zenler for your membership, coaching, and courses. Why? Because it's the only true all-in-one platform built around the number one pain point: marketing. It is built from the ground up around marketing, with no need for any additional subscriptions.

Understanding Your Audience and School Needs

The key to starting a successful, easy-to-use school or online course is to plan the student's journey. I assume you understand your audience and who they are; this is a critical step often overlooked.

It's not just a matter of knowing your audience but also knowing their needs and pain points. Once you have determined these, you need to plan the student's journey.

Planning Your Online School Educational Site

By mapping or graphically showing the path of your students, you will likely identify potential stopping points in their journey. By producing a student flow, you can avoid these and provide a smooth experience on your online learning platform. It is crucial to map their entire journey, from checkout to navigating through the school's courses.

As part of the planning process, you will want to consider your time allocation as the teacher. Do you have the time to commit to all the assignments you set? Are there ways to speed up your time as well as the students’?

Your School Needs a Branding Pack and Design

You may already have a logo for your school and even a branding pack to work with. This will include logos, assets, colors, and fonts that you should follow; it might also have a theme or particular look and feel.

If you do not have these, please put a pack together. If you're doing it all yourself, check out other sites to ensure you can pull the best from each. Even a complete beginner can generate their own brand kit quickly, and remember that at this stage, it may change later! If you have no logo, it is definitely worth getting one designed by a professional; make sure they provide you with a transparent version for layering on other colours.

Implementing Your Online Course Platform Site

In the case of Zenler, you can easily implement your school site using the Zenler Quick Start guide. This get-you-started course can help you get up to speed in a few hours.

Many new creators tend to think they need to have everything done at the same time. This is wrong; you want to build your site first and then fill it out later. By building your site now, you create a marketable product where you can share and add "Enroll Now" forms.

It might take you a long time to fully build your course content, so start the process early! And remember to add signup forms!

Your Content for Your New School

By far, the longest part of creating an online school is the content.

We want to get your content out there and not hold up enrollments, so if you can have early enrollments or even drip content, this means you can start the business early.

Think seriously about this. I know what you are thinking: "But it is not finished! How can I release it, and why would I?"

Let me give you some reasons why you might consider releasing it while the content is still being created:

Pre-release before you have finished the course:

Don't think of it as unfinished; think of it as fresh!
You might change the content based on user feedback.
You can start making money in advance.
You can see how people are finding your course and identify areas for improvement.
You can drip content so you have time for the next module.
It will motivate you to finish it!

Of course, there are negative points: you are forced to work hard to get it done and cannot be lacking.

Testing Your Online Course with a Cohort

It's often a good idea to test your whole site and get feedback before the full release; this is called the beta release or pre-release phase.

So, think about taking a small cohort of people through the course at a discounted price.

Some Features You Can Use in an Online School

Let's look at the features that you will want to or might think of using for your online school.

I can't speak for all the other platforms, but I can say that to avoid extra subscriptions, Zenler is the only way forward. All of the features below come as defaults for all our paid plans, and most are available on our free plan (10% transaction fee on the free plan, 0% on paid plans).

Let's look at key features you might want to use for your online school:

Dripping Content
New Zenler allows you to release course content gradually over time, helping to maintain student engagement and prevent overwhelm.
Unlimited Courses or Memberships
There are no restrictions on the number of courses or membership programs you can create, giving you the freedom to expand your offerings.
Community Area and Lesson Discussions
Foster student interaction with dedicated community spaces and lesson-specific discussion areas.
Coupons for Group Discussions
Create discount codes to incentivize group enrolments or special promotions.
Assignments Graded or for Feedback and Marking
Set up assignments that can be graded or provide detailed feedback to students, enhancing the learning experience.
Live Broadcasts via Zoom Built in No Subscriptions
Conduct live sessions using the built-in Zoom integration without needing a separate Zoom subscription.
Videos Uploads and Viewing
Easily upload and share video content with your students, a crucial component for many online courses.
PDF and New eBook Flip-Style
Present PDF documents and eBooks in an engaging, flip-style format for improved readability.
PowerPoint Viewer
Share PowerPoint presentations directly within the platform, maintaining their original formatting.
Audio Player
Incorporate audio content into your courses with the built-in audio player.
Easy Peasy Text Box
Quickly add text content to your courses with a user-friendly text editor.
Downloads
Provide downloadable resources to supplement your course content.
Free Preview, Sections and Lessons
Organize your course into sections and lessons, with the option to offer free previews to attract potential students.
Compulsory Lessons
Designate certain lessons as mandatory to ensure students complete critical course components.
SCORM and/or HTML Packages
Support for SCORM and HTML packages allows for integration of complex, interactive e-learning content.
Quizzes and Surveys
Create assessments and gather student feedback using built-in quiz and survey tools.
Full Reporting and Student Purchases
Access comprehensive reports on student activity, progress, and purchases to inform your business decisions.
Email Automations and Broadcasts
Set up automated email sequences and send broadcast messages to keep in touch with your students.
Logged In and Out Pages
Create different experiences for logged-in students and potential customers by customizing page visibility.

These are the main features you will use for your online school, but Zenler has many more options built in by default.

Don't Complicate Your First Offering for Your School!

Many new course creators, and for that matter, even experienced ones, overcomplicate their offerings. By keeping things simple, you can grow and actually tailor further courses built from a simple structure. Be conscious of overcomplications as you design your offerings.

Wow, So Now You Have Your Own Online School—A Business to Be Proud Of!

So What Now?

Well, now we need to get the word out. You might already have an audience or be ready to contact a school or institute to offer your solution, so get out there and do it.

You know your audience; find where they hang out and post. Make sure you have set up social media accounts, and start spreading the word.

At Zenler, we have a series of free courses to teach you all you need to know to get your business noticed. Make sure you complete our training; it really does work, and we give it all to you for free, even if you do not use the platform.

Zenler's belief is to make everybody successful, not just our users—it's just who we are.