Whether you decide to use the Udemy eLearning tool or the Articulate eLearning tool or another, one of the decisions you have to make is whether you are going to use an instructor directed course or a self-directed course. The benefit of an instructor directed course is that you can generally charge significantly more money for that course. The instructor and student connection provides more value for most students. The benefit of a self-directed course, on the other hand, is that once the courses developed, you can set it up as a passive source of income.
While you should go and update the course on a regular basis to keep it competitive, you don’t need to put as much effort into maintaining a self-directed course as you would an instructor directed course. The Udemy eLearning tool makes it easy to do this, but you need to make sure that the course you create is just as satisfying for your students. We have reviewed the platform as well, check out and learn more about Udemy eLearning tool. This way they come back to your website to get more of your information products and more of your courses.

Create a Detailed Outline Before Writing

In creating a satisfying self-directed course, it’s best to start off with a detailed outline of what the course is supposed to accomplish. If you just throw together a course without analyzing the structure and what you want to accomplish, you will probably encounter a number of problems. While these problems would be an issue for any course no matter where it was published, self-directed courses make this more problematic. As the instructor, you won’t be available for comment. You can’t explain why certain gaps are in the material or why you chose to cover the topics in the order you chose. By crafting a detailed outline in advance, you can get a bird’s eye view of the entire course before you finish writing it. This way you can make sure that the course will provide everything that the students need.

Prepare an In-Depth Syllabus that Includes Instructions

One of the most basic things that you can include to make the self-directed course more satisfying is an in-depth syllabus that also includes instructions. Often times, instructors who use the Udemy eLearning tool just dropped the content into the course. Sometimes they organize it, but usually not before they then direct Udemy to start promoting it. While students can usually figure out what they need to do, you will make the course much easier for them to understand and use it you provide them with a syllabus.
The syllabus may be anywhere from two to five pages. In it, you should explain the purpose of the course, the goals of the course, and what the students should expect. From there, you might give a recommended time for completion on each of the components, or you might leave that up to the student’s discretion. But adding this little detail can make your students feel that the course is more professional.

Place the Course Sections in Order of Use

It’s a simple thing but make sure that if you have multiple course sections in separate files that they are all placed in order of use. It doesn’t matter, whether you use chronological or a prioritized basis for putting the sections in order. Just make sure that students can open the eLearning platform, click on the first section, and get started.

Include Recommended Resources

A great way to make a self-directed course more satisfying is to provide a list of recommended resources. These resources can obviously include some of your other products, but it’s best to include books, courses, movies, and other forms of information that you don’t necessarily control. It adds to the perceived value of the course by showing the students’ ways that they can further enhance their knowledge. Some of the best online courses include a list of recommended resources at the end of each section so that the instructor can provide more customized information. Remember that you can also link to high quality websites as well as books and other more traditional resources.

Provide Solutions for Getting Necessary Feedback

One of the biggest challenges for students who invest in self-directed courses is getting feedback on the work that they do. Obviously, you don’t have the time to help them with this process. But you can provide solutions for them to get that necessary feedback. For instance, if your online learning course relates to essay writing, you might include links to some online critique groups that accept novice writers. Provide any additional information that they may want to know before signing up on these critique groups such as the general policy for new writers to critique three to five submissions for they submit their own.
By providing solutions for feedback, you enable the students to use the self-directed course to get everything that they need. It might seem counterintuitive because obviously you want to be able to get students to sign up for instructor based classes that cost more. Some of these students may decide to use self-directed courses for most of their online learning career. Others may appreciate the time that you’ve taken and decide that they would be willing to receive your personalized instruction. Of course, if you plan on only offering self-directed courses, it’s in your best interest to make each course as satisfying as possible so that students will continue to sign up for them.

Make It Clear That It’s a Self Directed or Independent Course

As basic as it may seem, make sure that you are clear from the very beginning that the course is a self-directed or independent course. All too often, students sign up for courses without understanding the fact that the course may be an independent course. When you as the instructor do not participate in the site or give them feedback, the . Save this frustration for both of you and just include the word “self directed” or “independent” in the title as well as in description.

Recommend Further Courses and Information Products for Study

At the end of the course, make sure to recommend further courses and information products for the student to continue with her studies. You don’t want to make this a blatant advertisement, but obviously you can and should include references to your other information products and courses. If possible, include links to free resources, courses, eBooks, etc. By interjecting free options as well as your other product options, you decrease the sales affect that may turn off some students.
The fact that you have already provided the student with a high quality course that has met her expectations makes it more likely that she will purchase additional courses and information products from you. Name recognition plays a significant role in marketing, which is part of the reason that most businesses fight so hard to . You don’t have to include a heavy hitting sales page at the end of your course. Often times, it’s enough to include recommendations. If you’re running a special or decide offer a discount to current students, put that on a separate page.