9 features of a good internet course

What are the features of a good internet course? Do you know how to assure the quality of your online course? Nobody likes to waste time on useless and ineffective activities, and nobody wishes to pay for it. This is even more true when it comes to internet courses. There are elements that creators should not forget about. What elements of a good internet course can we identify? Let’s take a look…

9 features of a good internet course – table of contents:

High-quality content
Avoid information overload
Navigation
The right pace
Multimedia
Interactivity
Testing your knowledge
Contact with instructor
Updates
Summary

High-quality content

The content of the course is very important. First of all the course should contain all the information that is expected from the user, especially if it was announced in the description of the course. We cannot change the subject of the course in the meantime or deal with the subject with the kind of piecemeal approach. Failure in meeting the expectations of clients brings the risk of bad reviews that may discourage other potential clients.

The creator of an online course should remember about his competition – there is a lot of free content available on the Internet. To acquire clients, that will be pleased after the course, the content must be accompanied by the value that cannot be found in free materials.

Avoid information overload

It is not worth going from one extreme to another – too much information will overwhelm the participant of the course. While creating an online course one has to remember that theoretically, our client will not have prior knowledge about the subject. Presentations filled up with slides to the brim or lengthy recordings, with a great amount of knowledge can effectively discourage the participant from further work with our courses.

If we are not able to present the knowledge in an easy, concise way there is a suggestion that our course should be divided into smaller parts. Such a solution should bring benefits for both parties – the participant will acquire knowledge easier, while the instructor won’t have to omit any important parts of the course to keep within the time limit.

Navigation

Besides the content, there are technical issues that are important and have to be considered. The online course has to be prepared the way, so each stage is distinguished. Our participants should be able to deal with the course themselves without the need of contacting technical support – participants should be able to navigate the course independently.

It is worth remembering, that the easier the navigation the better. Course participants should focus on learning and acquisition of knowledge not on technical problems with the course and its non-intuitive steerage.

The right pace

At this stage of course creation, it is worth considering if the pace of the course is right. The creator should adjust the amount of the material to the abilities of his participants – the lessons cannot overwhelm or bore them. If we plan to include a task, test, or project, we should provide ample time for their completion, otherwise, we may stress our participants.

Multimedia

There are many ways of spicing up the online course. The creator should use available solutions, especially since contemporary students have different preferences of learning methods. While making a course we don’t have to limit ourselves to video recordings and presentations. We can offer our students a dedicated mobile application, interactive website, or series of podcasts. Our student will be able to access and use those learning forms in his free time.

The selection of multimedia should be well-thought-out and prepared in a way that facilitates the process of learning. The form of the course has to be adjusted to the subject, and multimedia in your course have to fit the whole structure of your course – but some resolutions cannot be forced because they don’t bring any good to the client.

Interactivity

Interactivity facilitates the faster acquisition of knowledge. Many individuals remember the subject better if only they can use their knowledge in practice. For example, many mobile applications for language learning use interactive flashcards that the user can fill up with words independently. Other apps use interactive games, where words can be matched with their foreign counterpart.

The author of the course has many options and can use different types of multimedia: pictures, graphics, audio files, movies, animations, etc. The inclusion of such materials increases participants’ commitment and helps to acquire the content faster.

Testing your knowledge

The buyer of the course has hope that the knowledge gained from the course will be useful and will remain long in his memory. At each step of course creation, it is beneficial to make tests to check the knowledge. With such a tool each participant will be able to verify his progress and find out which aspects of learning need more attention.

Testing doesn’t have to look like those we have done at school. The testing may include more varied elements and be interactive. Additionally, we can structure it so it becomes a challenge – the participant collects points, badges, or prizes after each test passed – this should motivate him for further work.

Contact with instructor

In the case of courses that are being presented live, there is no problem with communication between the instructor and participants. The participants can ask a question at any time or write a comment, while the instructor can react immediately.

The process of communication is constrained in the case of courses that were constructed before the broadcast. Problems arise during all types of lessons, but in such a scenario, participants cannot ask their instructor directly. The author of the course has to predict such a situation and provide his clients with contact details (email for example). It is not direct communication in real-time, but such a solution is much better than leaving your clients without any help.

Updates

Changes and development are prevalent in all industries – our knowledge about any given subject has to be refreshed constantly. When deciding about the purchase of a course there is an expectation that there will be no need of buying it again in a few months. Economically speaking such a solution would not be beneficial either for course participants or course makers. Not mentioning the preparation, distributing, and marketing processes.

Frequently it is much better to update the content of the course with new parts of knowledge by making additional movies with current knowledge. Such a solution can encourage potential clients to purchase a course, while the course creator can maintain stable profits.

Summary

In summary, there are several features of a good internet course. A good course means benefits not only for the participants. It is advantageous for the course creator because a product nicely done means sure profits and more potential customers.

That’s all you need to know about features of a good internet course. Read more post of our series Create & sell digital products.

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Author: Martin Sparks
E-commerce enthusiasts which constantly digs around the internet in order to make sure he hasn’t missed any important information on the topic of starting and scaling profitable online stores.
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