Transcript
[00:00] If you’re planning to launch or scale
[00:02] your course anytime soon, then there are
[00:04] seven trends you need to know about
[00:06] right now. Any successful course creator
[00:08] will tell you that they’ve noticed a
[00:10] shift in the last few years. And these
[00:12] are the things that are going to make
[00:13] all the difference. In fact, if you have
[00:15] a course right now and you’re
[00:16] experiencing lackluster results, then
[00:18] I’m willing to bet it’s one of these
[00:20] seven things. These are the seven things
[00:22] that are going to separate struggling
[00:24] course creators from those that are
[00:25] thriving. So, no matter where you are in
[00:27] your course creation journey, it’s
[00:29] really important that you’re aware of
[00:30] these particular trends. And just in
[00:33] case we haven’t met before, my name is
[00:35] Sarah Turner. I’ve been in the digital
[00:36] marketing space for over 12 years. I
[00:38] personally have generated over 25
[00:40] million in course sales as well as 37
[00:43] million in sales for my clients. And
[00:46] over the last decade, I have seen how
[00:48] things change. It’s so important to stay
[00:50] on top of this stuff. And it’s really
[00:51] important to be having these
[00:52] conversations. In fact, I would really
[00:54] encourage you to join a community like
[00:57] Corsia Collective where you are around
[00:59] other course creators so that you can be
[01:01] in the know. Because over the years, as
[01:03] my students have navigated things like
[01:05] recessions and a global pandemic and the
[01:08] predominance of AI, when you are in a
[01:10] community of like-minded business owners
[01:12] who are working on the same things, you
[01:14] will be ahead of the game just by having
[01:17] that collective knowledge. I’ll tell you
[01:19] a little bit more about that at the end,
[01:20] but first let’s dig into these seven
[01:23] trends that you do not want to miss out
[01:25] on because they are truly going to set
[01:27] you apart. The first one is cohort
[01:29] learning is making a comeback. Now,
[01:31] there was a time in the whole online
[01:33] course industry where launches were the
[01:35] hot thing. Then it became sort of a
[01:37] badge of honor to move into evergreen.
[01:39] And that’s really because it meant that
[01:41] you were bringing leads in on a constant
[01:44] basis. So, you had to have your
[01:45] marketing really dialed in for that. But
[01:47] here’s the thing. When you launch,
[01:49] you’re creating cohorts. And when you
[01:51] create cohorts, i.e. people who are
[01:54] starting at the same time, you
[01:55] inherently build connection and
[01:57] accountability into the experience. And
[02:00] not only is that a huge benefit for the
[02:02] student because they’re going to
[02:03] actually get the accountability they
[02:05] need to keep going, but it’s a huge
[02:06] benefit for you. It’s likely going to
[02:08] improve your rates of completion as well
[02:10] as satisfaction because people are
[02:12] connected. They’re getting through the
[02:14] materials. And that’s going to lead to
[02:16] more social proof and often better
[02:18] social proof, which is essential in
[02:20] today’s course creation world because
[02:22] there are so many course creators out
[02:23] there who have gotten into it just for
[02:25] the money. All this talk of passive
[02:27] income has really shot the industry in
[02:29] the foot because it’s not truly passive
[02:32] first and foremost. Most ways that you
[02:34] make money aren’t truly passive. There
[02:36] are very few that actually are. But more
[02:39] than that, what it’s done is it’s
[02:40] flooded the market with people who don’t
[02:42] really give a And that is
[02:44] something that I am here to push back
[02:45] against. So evergreen is kind of
[02:48] glorified, but cohorts, which lends
[02:51] really well to having launches, aren’t
[02:53] all bad. Launching allows for you to
[02:55] have a much smaller, more nimble team
[02:58] because urgency is baked into the
[03:01] equation. Not to mention, you don’t have
[03:03] to be marketing all the time when you’re
[03:05] launching. When you have an evergreen
[03:07] model, you have to be marketing all the
[03:09] time. And quite frankly, that can get
[03:11] exhausting. So, how do you incorporate
[03:13] cohorts into your course model? You have
[03:16] launches. You have start dates. This
[03:19] increases momentum and accountability
[03:21] and connection. You can also have guided
[03:23] sprints or challenges within your course
[03:26] to try and encourage people to really
[03:27] show up and do the work because that is
[03:29] actually going to be part of your job as
[03:31] a thriving course creator. I wish more
[03:34] people talked about it. So the next
[03:35] trend I want to talk about is still in
[03:37] the beginning phases, but that is using
[03:40] AI tutors or personalized learning
[03:42] paths. Listen, so many people are
[03:45] worried that courses are just going to
[03:46] be replaced by AI. Just like anything
[03:49] else, I do think probably the passive
[03:51] courses, the ones that are just
[03:52] information, have a pretty good
[03:54] possibility of being replaced by AI.
[03:56] However, having your course material
[03:58] personalized to your individual students
[04:01] experience, that is the power of AI. And
[04:05] that is going to be the power of
[04:06] implementing AI tools within your
[04:08] programs. In fact, I really think this
[04:11] is going to be the future of online
[04:12] programs. And one of the most amazing
[04:14] things about this is when you have an
[04:16] incredible AI tool that helps your
[04:18] students take what you know and apply it
[04:21] to their personal situation, they don’t
[04:23] have to become an expert in whatever it
[04:25] is they’re teaching them. They can use
[04:26] your AI tool and apply it to their
[04:28] personalized situation, which is going
[04:30] to have a profound impact on their life.
[04:33] Let me give you an example. I have a
[04:35] program called Corsia Collective, which
[04:37] is a limited program, Think Digital
[04:39] Mastermind for online course creators.
[04:42] My proprietary AI tool allows my
[04:45] students to take my experience as an
[04:47] online course creator and apply it to
[04:50] their actual course idea. What that
[04:52] means is they do not need to be an
[04:55] expert in marketing. Now, before this
[04:57] tool, in order for people to become
[04:59] successful in the online course space,
[05:01] they had to master marketing. But that
[05:04] is no longer the case. When you use my
[05:07] tool, Josie, it will help you with every
[05:09] aspect of your online education business
[05:12] without having to actually know and
[05:15] master the thing that I have become an
[05:17] expert in over the last 10 years. It’s
[05:19] like having an expert in your back
[05:21] pocket. It’s going to make mentorship so
[05:24] much more accessible to people, which
[05:26] I’m really excited about. So, instead of
[05:28] having to pay like $10,000 to hire me as
[05:30] a consultant to help you build your
[05:32] business from the ground up, you’ll be
[05:34] able to access my expertise through
[05:37] Josie for a fraction of the price. So,
[05:40] that’s just one way that this is going
[05:42] to look. I anticipate that every single
[05:44] course is going to have some sort of AI
[05:46] element to personalize the path for
[05:49] their students. And a really simple
[05:51] version of what that might look like for
[05:52] you is having an AI chatbot so that you
[05:54] can ask it any question under the sun
[05:56] and it can answer it as the course
[05:59] creator. A lot of people are worried
[06:00] about AI, but I’m actually really
[06:02] excited about the possibility of how
[06:04] it’s going to not only make the online
[06:07] education space better so that you can
[06:09] learn better, you know, work smarter not
[06:12] harder, but again, I see it as a great
[06:14] equalizer almost like the internet where
[06:16] more people who don’t have access to as
[06:19] many resources are going to be able to
[06:20] create something fantastic and great
[06:23] using really helpful AI tools. Okay, the
[06:27] next trend that I do not want you to
[06:29] miss out on is that the community is the
[06:32] product. This is essential in today’s AI
[06:34] world, humanizing everything. Absolutely
[06:37] everything. Now, because I love
[06:40] community and I love bringing people
[06:41] together, this was always how I was
[06:43] running my courses, but now I see it as
[06:46] essential because it cannot be
[06:47] replicated by AI and because we are
[06:50] craving connection. Craving connection.
[06:53] So no matter how your group looks, it
[06:55] could be a Facebook group, it could be a
[06:57] group on a paid platform, it could be a
[06:59] Slack group, it could be in Voxer,
[07:01] having a community element within your
[07:03] program is essential in today’s world.
[07:05] Again, it creates connection and
[07:07] accountability. And it also is that
[07:10] feel-good part of your course. In nearly
[07:12] every single student success story of
[07:14] mine, my students would say that the
[07:16] community was worth the price of the
[07:19] program alone. And that is really
[07:21] powerful. You need the course. You need
[07:23] the part that takes you from A to Z. You
[07:25] need that path. You need that structure.
[07:28] But that’s not the fun feel-good part.
[07:30] Nobody’s like, “Oo, yay. I can’t wait to
[07:32] do another lesson.” Not really. No. But
[07:35] are they excited to hop on an
[07:37] accountability call with somebody that
[07:38] they met in your program? Yeah. My
[07:41] students have connected all over the
[07:43] world. And I really truly mean that.
[07:45] They have meetups in cities all over.
[07:47] There are stories of students becoming
[07:49] so close that they are in each other’s
[07:50] wedding. I have stories of students who
[07:52] have started businesses together, who
[07:54] have built retreats together, who have
[07:56] moved across the country to be closer
[07:58] together, who have actually become
[08:00] roommates and moved into new cities
[08:03] because of their closeness and their
[08:05] connection over the shared path that
[08:07] they experienced in my community. It’s
[08:09] really amazing. It feels so good. Which
[08:12] is why I say that good marketing is
[08:14] worldbuilding truly. So, how do you
[08:17] apply this to your program? Make sure
[08:19] you invest in your community. It’s an
[08:21] area I see a lot of people with online
[08:22] courses worried about doing because they
[08:24] think it’s going to be really time
[08:25] consuming or they’re afraid that they’re
[08:27] going to do a live Q&A and they won’t
[08:29] know the answer to the question. There’s
[08:31] so many concerns that people have about
[08:33] having communities. But you can make it
[08:36] largely a self- sustaining ecosystem if
[08:38] you set the right tone, expectations,
[08:41] and values up at the beginning. One of
[08:43] my favorite ways of doing this is just
[08:45] by being active in the beginning at
[08:46] first and then finding people who embody
[08:49] the culture you’re trying to create and
[08:51] reaching out to them and saying, “Hey,
[08:52] could I pay you some amount of money
[08:54] each month to just keep showing up and
[08:57] being you?” First of all, people love to
[08:59] hear that. Oh, you like what I have to
[09:00] say? Heck yeah, I can show up and do
[09:02] more of that and you’re going to pay me
[09:03] to do what I’m already doing. Yes.
[09:05] Win-winwin all around. But then you are
[09:08] actually getting to amplify the voices
[09:10] of the people who are really creating
[09:12] the culture you’re going for. And this
[09:14] isn’t something you do forever. This is
[09:15] something you do to really kick it off
[09:17] and to get it off the ground so that
[09:18] there’s engagement because nobody wants
[09:20] to post in a community where nobody’s
[09:22] talking, right? So don’t be afraid to
[09:24] encourage people to be louder, but
[09:26] obviously you want it to be just the
[09:28] right people. Okay, so that brings us to
[09:30] our next trend, which is anti-hustle is
[09:33] winning. People are burnt out. People
[09:35] are sick of the same old messaging.
[09:38] People are sick of hearing about ways to
[09:40] make money online. I know I am. In all
[09:42] honesty, sometimes I’m sick of talking
[09:44] about it. It becomes the focus of so
[09:46] much of our content because it’s the
[09:48] thing that gets clicks. But if you were
[09:49] to sit me down or any of my students
[09:51] down and ask them, “What is the real
[09:54] value of going through one of Sarah’s
[09:56] programs?” It is the money, yes, but it
[09:58] is so much more than that. It’s the
[10:00] connection that you make with people who
[10:03] are on a similar journey as you. People
[10:05] want freedom. People want
[10:07] sustainability. People want a high
[10:10] quality life. And quite frankly, for
[10:12] most people, that’s not making millions
[10:14] and millions of dollars. Sure, money
[10:17] does translate into flexibility and
[10:18] freedom. However, most people just want
[10:21] to be able to take good care of
[10:22] themselves so that they can be there for
[10:24] their family and friends. At least the
[10:25] people I like to work with. Make that
[10:27] part of your messaging. Truly, I’m so
[10:29] glad we live in a time where really like
[10:31] fear-based marketing, old school
[10:33] marketing techniques, people are seeing
[10:35] through it. It’s gross. It feels bad.
[10:38] The average consumer is so much smarter
[10:40] than that. Treat your audience with
[10:42] respect. Speak to the freedom and ease
[10:44] that people are craving. This is
[10:46] especially true for moms, creatives, or
[10:49] neurode divergent folks. Really truly,
[10:52] people just want a better quality life.
[10:54] Which actually brings me to our next
[10:56] trend. And I have noticed a shift
[10:58] towards audio first learning. Yes, I
[11:01] still think it’s important to have some
[11:03] sort of visual element to go along with
[11:05] whatever the audio part of your lesson
[11:07] is. However, I think it’s even more
[11:10] important to be able to consume the
[11:12] information you are sharing with your
[11:14] students in many different ways,
[11:16] especially making it audio first. So,
[11:18] having some high quality audio,
[11:20] transcripts, bullet points, workbooks,
[11:24] all of that is super important. But make
[11:26] your content such that they can consume
[11:28] it while doing other things, driving,
[11:30] cleaning, doing chores. I always
[11:33] encourage my students to listen to the
[11:35] content like a podcast and you should
[11:37] too. This is also how you eliminate the
[11:40] time objection because everyone’s going
[11:42] to tell you that they don’t have time to
[11:43] take an online course and quite frankly
[11:46] most of us don’t. But if you can make it
[11:48] such that they can consume the
[11:50] information while they’re doing other
[11:51] things, you’ve eliminated the time
[11:53] objection. And then a quick call back to
[11:55] the AI thing when you can make it so
[11:57] personalized that it is worth their time
[11:59] to sit down and spend a minimum of 30
[12:01] minutes a day on it by using AI tools
[12:04] for example that is also going to be a
[12:07] gamecher. So make your content audio
[12:10] first and really all that means is have
[12:12] a good mic and make sure you’re super
[12:14] concise. Gone are the days where you can
[12:16] just ramble for 2 hours, call it a
[12:19] lesson and actually help people with
[12:21] that. It is so much more valuable if you
[12:23] can get that transformation for them in
[12:25] less time. Which brings me to the next
[12:27] trend, which is focus on micro
[12:30] transformations. Not only within your
[12:32] program, but within your entire
[12:34] marketing funnel. When you can prove to
[12:37] your audience that you can get them a
[12:40] transformation, period, no matter how
[12:42] small it is, you’ll build trust with
[12:44] them and momentum. They’ll be excited
[12:46] that they saw that one transformation
[12:49] and they’ll be willing to do the work to
[12:51] see what’s next for them. No one wants a
[12:53] 100redh hour course. No one is seeing
[12:56] the value in that anymore. We are all
[12:58] prioritizing our time and our attention.
[13:01] So deliver faster, shorter wins and make
[13:05] sure that they are applying it not only
[13:07] to their personal experience and their
[13:09] personal situation, but that they are
[13:11] also having checkpoints along the way to
[13:13] know that they’re actually making
[13:15] progress. Because if you aren’t showing
[13:17] them how this applies to their life and
[13:19] how they’re actually making progress,
[13:20] they won’t have the motivation to keep
[13:22] going. They won’t have that momentum. So
[13:25] deliver faster wins. Make everything
[13:27] shorter and more bite-size. and make
[13:30] sure everything is actionable. Give them
[13:32] things to do. In my programs, every
[13:35] single lesson ends with an action item,
[13:37] something for them to actually go out
[13:39] and do in the real world because that’s
[13:41] where they’re going to see results.
[13:42] That’s where they’re going to get
[13:43] feedback. All right, the final trend
[13:45] won’t apply to everyone, but I’m willing
[13:48] to bet that it will apply to most,
[13:51] especially if you take some time and
[13:52] actually think about it, and that is
[13:54] niches specific monetization paths. What
[13:57] I mean by that is whatever you’re
[14:00] teaching, stop and think, can this be a
[14:04] side hustle? Can this bring some sort of
[14:06] income into their life? Because it is
[14:08] really powerful to have a financial ROI.
[14:11] Hands down. It’s not essential, but if
[14:14] you can even nod to the fact that this
[14:17] might improve how they can grow in their
[14:20] career or how they can create a side
[14:22] hustle or how they can just flat out
[14:24] start a business, that is going to be
[14:26] super powerful. Students love when they
[14:28] learn a skill that then can be applied
[14:30] to a business model. Now again, this
[14:32] isn’t for everyone, but if you can find
[14:35] a way to incorporate that into your
[14:37] course, even if it’s like the last
[14:39] module, it’s not for everybody,
[14:41] definitely do it. So, as you can see,
[14:43] courses these days are not just about
[14:46] information. Especially in today’s AI
[14:48] world, they can get the information from
[14:49] ChatgPT. Successful courses are about
[14:52] connection, personalization, and real
[14:56] results. If you can deliver those three
[14:58] things, you will be a successful online
[15:01] course creator. I can guarantee it.
[15:03] Cream rises to the top, my friend. And
[15:05] the funny thing is is this is the same
[15:07] advice I’ve been giving for years. All
[15:09] AI has done is made it more obvious,
[15:13] made it more clear, because quite
[15:15] frankly, AI is getting rid of the bottom
[15:17] feeders, the people who are in it to
[15:19] make a quick buck. If you want to thrive
[15:21] as an online course creator in 2025 and
[15:24] beyond, you have to give a You
[15:26] have to show up. You have to care. Which
[15:29] is why I’ve always said that it is going
[15:30] to be really important that you do it in
[15:32] a topic that you’re actually passionate
[15:35] about. Now, don’t get me wrong, it
[15:37] doesn’t have to be your everything, your
[15:39] identity. I never wanted to be that
[15:41] copywriter girl or that digital
[15:43] marketing girl. All I really wanted was
[15:45] to help people, especially women and
[15:47] moms, create more freedom for
[15:49] themselves. And this is the path that I
[15:51] know that helps them achieve this best
[15:54] because it is based in giving back. It
[15:56] is based in caring. It is based in
[15:58] reciprocity. And it is based in doing
[16:00] good in this world. Which brings me to
[16:02] me telling you about my program. So if
[16:04] you want help designing a futureproof
[16:07] program that is actually going to get
[16:08] your students result, doesn’t burn you
[16:10] out in the process, and earns you great
[16:13] money and freedom while feeling good
[16:16] about it, then I’d like to invite you to
[16:18] Corsia Collective. Again, think digital
[16:20] mastermind. This is a resource. It
[16:22] literally has everything you need to
[16:24] either start a program or to scale a
[16:26] program, including my proprietary tool,
[16:28] which is like having a expert in your
[16:30] back pocket. It’s probably going to cut
[16:32] the time it takes you to create and
[16:34] scale your program by 80%. And I am not
[16:37] exaggerating when I say that. Truly, it
[16:39] is not my style. It’s just how freaking
[16:41] powerful it is. And I like to work with
[16:43] people who really care. My program,
[16:45] Corsia Collective, is where I help
[16:46] creators like you scale with soul. If
[16:49] you have any questions, please leave
[16:51] them in the comments below about
[16:52] literally anything course creation wise,
[16:55] of course. And go ahead and hit that
[16:56] thumbs up button if you like this. It’s
[16:58] how I know you’d like to see more videos
[16:59] like this. I release videos like this
[17:01] every single week, so don’t forget to
[17:02] subscribe. Thanks, guys.
[17:06] [Music]
[17:14] Unable.
[17:16] [Music]