In this step-by-step guide, we’re going to teach you how to start creating your own online courses — and selling them with WordPress! 

What are online courses?

An online course is an educational program delivered digitally, allowing learners to access a wide range of subjects from anywhere in the world. These courses often include video lectures, interactive assignments, and discussion forums — providing a comprehensive learning experience. They cater to diverse learning preferences, offering both self-paced and scheduled formats to accommodate different lifestyles. Online courses are great, because they provide flexibility — enabling individuals to balance their education with work, family, and other commitments. They’re also often lower in cost than traditional in-person education. This democratization of knowledge empowers people to upskill and pursue personal and professional growth conveniently and efficiently.

Benefits of selling courses online — high profit margins and no storage or classroom space

Selling courses online offers significant benefits, particularly high profit margins and the absence of costs for production and storage of physical products (like textbooks, DVDs, etc.) or classroom space. Once a course is created, the primary expenses are initial production and marketing, with minimal ongoing costs. So you don’t need to repeatedly spend time and energy teaching a course in person multiple times.

As a result, the income from each online sale (once initial investments have been covered) are basically pure profit. The scalability of the online course format also means that an unlimited number of students can enroll without the need for additional resources, maximizing revenue potential. This business model allows educators and entrepreneurs to achieve substantial financial returns while providing valuable educational content to a global audience.

Setting up your WordPress Online store

First, create your account on SendOwl

You’ll want to create your SendOwl account first, to ensure you have access to all the features we offer — from a streamlined online shopping experience to secure digital delivery. You can get started for free here! Next, add your products to your SendOwl item list by following this guide.

Now, onto WordPress!

To start selling your digital products on your WordPress online site, you first need to have (or create) a WordPress account. If you don’t have one, visit the WordPress website, and follow the prompts to sign up for an account. Be sure to look at the different plans they offer, and select the one that best suits the needs of your business. You’ll want to use a dedicated email address for your WordPress account, so that you can more easily identify business emails and notifications, and take timely action in response to any important messages. 

You can customize your store by choosing a theme, and set up your payment methods through the "Payments" section. Configure your shipping settings, even if you're selling only digital products, to manage any geographical restrictions or delivery details. Purchase or connect a domain under the "Domains" section, and set up essential store policies, like refund and privacy policies, under "Settings." Make sure you download the WordPress app to keep up to date on all notifications.

Adding digital products to your WordPress online store

WordPress has a custom HTML content block that you can add to any post or page. That's where you'll paste in the button code you copied from your SendOwl account. To add SendOwl buttons to your Wordpress site, you’ll need to select their Premium Plan or above — OR be hosting your own WordPress site. You can check out this step-by-step guide for screenshots and more.

Depending on the type of product, some formats generally work better than others. So make sure to do your research on different item types, so you can make sure your digital products are always in the best formats for their types.

How you name and price your digital products can have a significant impact on sales. It’s best to name your products using clear, concise descriptors that provide customers with the “at-a-glance” information they need to decide whether to consider buying.

To launch your store, remove password protection in the "Preferences" section, and make sure all customizations and product details are complete.

Customizing your WordPress storefront

Branding 

As you begin to build your WordPress Online store, you’ll want to check out other stores that sell similar products — and those with designs or layouts that you like and that target customers you’re trying to sell to. Select a theme on WordPress that aligns with your brand identity and enhances your storefront’s visual appeal to customers. Think about the kinds of online stores that you like to shop at, and try to create a similar experience for your own shoppers.

You’ll also want to incorporate your logo, color scheme, and other branding elements to personalize your WordPress storefront. You can customize all of these on your WordPress Online overview page, where you can also alter your WordPress theme. Make sure that all of these elements are consistent across all your social accounts, too, so that your brand is easily recognizable to buyers.

Organizing 

Arrange your product listings in a logical order, and create navigation menus to help customers find what they're looking for quickly. As a user, you know you never want to shop a messy or unnavigable website when you’re trying to buy something. To help make sure that shoppers who visit your online store find what they want and complete a purchase, make it as easy as possible for them to do so!

Tools for creating online courses

Because an online course is a digital product, all you need (besides your ideas) to create one is a computer and an internet connection. Still, online course creation does require some determination. Here are a few tips and resources to help you launch your very own online course business:

Use high-quality content creation tools

Once you pick a course topic, spend some time creating a course outline to make sure you don’t miss anything important! Also decide on your course format — do you want to create a simple series of PDFs, or do you want to include videos or other types of course content? Doing research on successful online courses similar to the one you want to create will help you figure out what seems to be working best for your prospective customers. 

Make sure you invest in reliable software for video recording and editing, such as Camtasia or Adobe Premiere Pro, to produce professional-looking lectures and tutorials. Additionally, use graphic design tools like Canva to create engaging visuals and slides.

Use a high-quality microphone and camera if you’re recording material

Ensure clear audio and video quality by using a good microphone (e.g., Blue Yeti) and camera (e.g., Logitech HD Pro Webcam). High production values enhance the professionalism of your course and keep students engaged.

Make it look nice

When it comes to selling online, how your course looks is almost as important as what it contains. Among design tools, Canva is probably the most beginner friendly! Canva is a user-friendly design tool that offers a vast array of course-creation tools and templates, graphics, and design elements to help you create professional and engaging slides and infographics. Its drag-and-drop functionality allows even those with minimal design experience to produce visually appealing content, enhancing the overall look of your course. 

Marketing your courses

Now that your course content is live on your WordPress store, it's time to drive traffic and generate sales through effective marketing tools and strategies.

Optimizing listings with relevant keywords and SEO

Optimizing your digital courses through SEO will be a key way to reach your target audience. Research keywords related to your courses, and incorporate them into your product titles, descriptions, and tags, to improve visibility in search results. This marketing strategy requires pretty consistent iteration, so set aside time for regular keyword research! 

Promoting on social media platforms

Utilize social media marketing on apps like Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to showcase your courses, engage with your audience, and drive traffic to your WordPress Online store. Check out these resources on how to promote and sell digital products on TikTok and Instagram to get some tips and ideas on content creation.

Before you launch a new course, release snippets or reviews from beta learners, to get potential customers excited — you might do this via blog posts. You can also create a pre-order list to help build excitement.

Reach out to influencers or bloggers in your niche for potential collaborations. Offer them a free copy of your course in exchange for an honest review, or consider a discount code that they can offer their audience when they purchase your course.

You could even offer a few free items — such as shorter courses or other digital products — to potential buyers, to give them a taste of your educational or training content. They’ll be more likely to pay for a course if they have trust in the content they’ll be receiving. 

Utilizing SendOwl data for informed marketing decisions

Monitor sales data and customer behavior within SendOwl to identify trends, track the performance of your marketing efforts, and make data-driven decisions that optimize your strategy and better target customers. Your WordPress dashboard also provides you with valuable user metrics that will help you make data-informed decisions. 

Delivering your online courses securely

Ensuring the security of your digital downloads is crucial for protecting your products and customers' information. Here's how SendOwl helps you deliver courses securely:

Unique, secure download links for each purchase

SendOwl generates unique download links for each purchase, preventing unauthorized access and sharing of your digital files.

Customizable link expiration and usage limits

You can set expiration dates and usage limits on download links, to encourage timely downloads of purchases and prevent abuse of your digital goods. 

PDF stamping to prevent unauthorized sharing

SendOwl offers PDF-stamping functionality, which adds a watermark or personalized information to each part of your digital course, discouraging piracy and unauthorized sharing of course materials.

Start creating your online course content today!

Becoming an online course creator on WordPress can be a great way to generate passive income by using your expertise to create high-value digital products. By following this step-by-step guide, you can set up your store, create unique courses that people want to take, and market those courses effectively to reach your target audience. Here’s a quick rundown, so you can get started:

1. Set up your WordPress account, integrate SendOwl, and download the WordPress app.

2. Design attractive, high quality courses using your own expertise and editing tools. 

3. Upload your courses to SendOwl, and create corresponding product listings on your WordPress dashboard. 

4. Implement marketing strategies that target the right customers, drive traffic and generate sales. 

5. Deliver your courses securely using SendOwl's customizable features, and receive updates on your orders via the WordPress app.

With the right tools, resources, and mindset, you have everything you need to succeed in selling courses on WordPress. Get started today, and turn your expertise into a thriving online course store that gets that passive income stream flowing — and helps others learn online, on their own terms!