Creating and selling online courses can be a great way to earn some income working online, but it can also be quite challenging to make money from them initially.

However, even with a very small budget (or no budget at all!), there are ways you can promote your online course and try to make at least some sales.

1. Promote the online course on your social networks

Depending on the type of website you have, you may have social media accounts for your small business. Even if you haven’t set up social media accounts yet, you can still promote your online course on your own private social networks. Don’t forget to make your posts public so friends of friends can see them and people can share them with their friends and a wider audience.

Find groups that are closely related to your online course topics and share within them.

2. Create content about your course

People won’t buy your online course unless you’ve managed to explain what it teaches and the benefits they’ll get. Without becoming a pushy salesperson, create content about your online course that makes it sound like something people want to buy.

You can also offer to guest post on other websites, or create a couple of blog posts and mention your new online course at the end.

3. Offer customers a discount

Everyone loves to feel like they’ve gotten a bargain, so if you raise the price by 50% for a few days, people will feel more compelled to make a quick decision and pay for it before the price goes up.

Be careful not to run discounts and promotions too often as this will make people avoid buying it at full price and just want until the next promotion comes along. Another great way to build interest is to offer a module for free so people have a chance to try it out before they buy.

4. Pay for advertising if you can

While budgets are often very small when you’re starting out, don’t be too eager to shell out some money for advertising. Sometimes you need to spend money to make money, so while it may seem desperate right now, it will help you target your audience and attract people who are actually interested in your online course.