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You may have noticed how the online course market is
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massive. It's booming. It exploded and has been booming for quite some time, and with AI transforming how we learn, how we work, how we create content, now's a great time to package up your expertise into a digital course. And maybe you've already thought about that. And here's, I guess the exciting part is that you don't need a tech degree or a massive budget to create something and get it out to your audience. That's amazing, but I know that sometimes the whole process can feel overwhelming. So what if I told you there is just a handful of smart tool choices that you can make, and you could be launching and selling your online course, your membership, in a matter of days and weeks, not months. So that's what we're gonna dig into in this episode. Ready to break free from the solopreneur struggle. This is the ease and impact thriving as a solopreneur Podcast. I'm Frankie J A sofa a mum and an eight year solopreneur. Myself join me as I peel back the layers to a thriving online business without the guru hype or the burnout. I'm going to show you the proven strategies and tools that I use so you can build a sustainable digital business without sacrificing your well being. Let's get you thriving as a solopreneur.
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Welcome back to the ease and impact thriving as a solopreneur podcast now this is your weekly dose of practical advice for the solo business journey no matter where you're at. I am your host, Frankie Jay, and if you're new here, make sure you hit that follow button, because every week we explore building a thriving business without sacrificing your well being, and today, we're diving into something that could make launching your course more manageable and quicker as the essential tools that actually are worth your time and investment In 2025 so there's no fluff, there's no unnecessary complexity, just my tech picks that I think will help you make the most of creating and selling your online course. So let's dive into the eight essential tools that you need to create and launch your course in 2025
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I'm gonna gonna break down exactly why each matters and what your options are. First up, let's talk about getting your course in front of the right people in 2025
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meta ads still crushing it for digital solopreneurs and course creators and coaches. Now the reason for that is whether you're targeting a new audience, people who have never met you before, or retargeting people who have already engaged with your content on Instagram or Facebook or visited your website, but hands down, it's the fastest way to build an email list and to get that momentum in your business. Short, you can rely solely on organic social media. But let's be real, if you want to do this quickly, scale and sell quickly, strategically paid advertising, it's your best friend. So write this down. Tool number one, gotta be meta ads now. Tool number two, you need an email marketing platform now that you've been using ADS to build your list, right? So you've got some options here, but let me break down just two of them for you. The first one is mailer light. Now this starts with a free plan and goes up to $18 a month. And honestly, it is the best option if you are starting from ground zero, if you're starting from scratch, because their free version gives you a lot, including landing pages, and we're going to talk more about that in just a minute. Active Campaign is a great option as well. That starts at $15 a month. Now there are a lot of other options out there as well, but these are the best too, because to figure budget mail a light hands down, gives you a lot to utilize, even with the free plan, Active Campaign is a little more robust for as you grow, and give you more options and how to connect with and segment your audience. Now the only other option is, of course, if you're using an all in one tool that includes email marketing as part of a wider package, and we're going to talk more about that in just a little bit. Now, you need a place that you can send people to sign up for your free challenge or webinar before you launch, or some kind of freebie you're offering, or even your course sales page. So tool number three is landing page software I started with lead pages, which is $37 a month. Now it's simple to use. It's optimized to load fast. It has some great high converting templates that you can make use of. So that's why I started with lead pages. Now that was before I moved everything to Kajabi. So now I use Kajabi for my lead pages, which is a fantastic all in one solution. We can talk about those later, but don't forget that I also mentioned in the email marketing software that mailer light has landing page software built in. It's perfect for getting started, because it's on the free plan. You may already have a Wix or WordPress or SquareSpace as a website, and you can create landing pages on these sites. Great way to start if you already have it. But my advice is that dedicated.
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Landing page software will actually save you a lot of time and headaches. It's designed for these types of things digital preneurs are trying to do, which is opt in pages and sales pages. Okay, so tool number three, landing page software. Few options there. So if you're going to create video content for your course, let's talk a little bit about video creation, because I feel like this is where people overthink things. And there are two, two tools that I want to talk about here, the first recording and then the second being editing. Now here's the truth. You probably know it, but your smartphone is basically all you need for your recording and maybe even your editing. And if you couple that with my favorite tool, which is the movo LV one microphone, which is just $19 that's my go to lapel. Yes, that's that's all you need to spend. Use your phone and this lapel, you've got a setup that can produce professional quality content for editing. Forget the expensive stuff. IMovie, which is free on your phone or Apple computers, or even cap cut, which you may have heard about, is also free and has a paid plan. They can handle everything from talking head videos to screen shares. That's all you need to get started. And here's a real game changer, if you do want to invest some money, is a tool called descript. It lets you edit your videos by editing the transcript. Now, trust me, it is a massive time saver. I was not so sure when I heard about it, thinking, well, reading, I'm a slow reader. It's going to take me so much longer, but honestly, it is going to make editing talking videos so fast for presentations and graphics or your webinars and promoting your course. You probably already know about it. It's Canva, so free to start or $15 a month on the first plan, and that's it for tool number six. It's perfect for creating both your your course presentations, your webinars, your promotional materials, your course thumbnails. It has a massive library of templates of stock images that make designing just so easy, it also allows you to manipulate any images that you've taken in a way that only the best paid graphic designers could years ago, or by utilizing AI content.
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So Canva for your course presentations and promotional material now for hosting your course, we go into tool number seven, and this is where things get interesting, because you have so many platforms to choose from. So how do you know what's right? There's teachable Thinkific, podia system thrive. Cut mighty networks circle. You know, they all range from free to 100 plus a month from for their starter plans. But here's what I've learned, is that if digital courses or memberships are going to be a part of your core business, then I think Kajabi is worth every penny if you use it for your whole business. So it's not a one size fits all. It really is the person who's going to use it for their whole business. And what I mean by that is using it for email, hosting your course, landing pages, checkouts, affiliate programs, creating your social media content, hosting your podcast. You know, honestly, I feel like it has it all. But
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like I said, lots of platforms out there, you have to see what works for you. And Alternatively, you could host on your own, using website platforms, if you already have a website, like WordPress, with LearnDash or use Wix or squarespaces learning platform add ons. So if you're going to go that route, just remember that you will need a separate video hosting solution for this. And I recommend Vimeo over YouTube, because you have complete control over exactly where your videos appear. Okay? So Vimeo over YouTube if you're going to host on your own, using your own website, on WISC, Wix, Squarespace, or Wordpress. Finally, the payments tool number eight, because you want to get paid, right? So keep it simple. Let's go with stripe and PayPal. They're available pretty much everywhere in the world. They're free to set up. You just pay the processing fees so you can get started, and then you're only paying when you're earning money, they integrate with pretty much everything. And then, if you want to optimize just your checkout process because you're using other free tools, you can consider Sam cart, which is a bit more expensive, or thrive cart for their high converting checkout pages. Here's the thing my fellow solopreneurs, most of the tools I've mentioned are free to start, so you can start earning money before having to invest a whole bunch up front. So what is it that's really holding you back from creating your digital program? You know, be it a course, a membership or coaching. Want you to have a think about that, and then let me know in the comments if you'd like to see podcast episodes on some of the things that you're struggling with, but with so many options out there, remember, there isn't a one size fits all solution for everyone. You know, your perfect tool stack depends on your goals, your budget, where you are in your business journey, and what matters most is finding the tools that align with where you're at, your way of working and will.
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Help serve your students effectively. Now I've mentioned Kajabi several times throughout this episode, and that's because it's a platform I personally use and I love so if you are curious about how you can leverage Kajabi as a solopreneur to simplify your business and maximize that impact, then I do have something for you. It's just a free training called from solo to success. It walks you through exactly how I use Kajabi to run my entire business with ease, and you'll find a link to that in the description below. I'd love to hear from you now, what tools are you currently using in your course creation journey? Now, what's working for you? What isn't drop your questions and experiences in the comments, and let's support each other about finding the right solutions for each of our own unique businesses. Thank you for tuning in to another episode of ease and impact thriving as a solopreneur and remember the right tool. It's not about having the most expensive or the trendiest option. It's about finding what works for you and your students. Now until next time, keep moving forward with ease and never forget that your peace of mind is just as important as the bottom line, and I'll see you next Tuesday.
