Course Lab: Lessons from Successful Online Course Creators

Course-creation expert Melissa Guller has an enormous amount of experience in teaching and course design. In this episode, she shares the evolution of structures and practices that have had a big impact on engagement and transformational success.

Show Notes

 Melissa Guller is a course creation expert and the CEO of Wit & Wire, where she helps creators turn their skills and passions into profitable online businesses. 

     In this episode, Danny and Abe talk with Melissa about her highly impactful course design structures.

In this episode we discuss:
  • How to create ways to support different styles of learning.
  • Changes in course creation and how student expectations are evolving.
  • The competitive advantage of instructor involvement and regular course updates.
  • Premium courses vs. celebrity or low-cost courses.
  • The value of built-in checkpoints throughout the course that lead to stronger iterations.
  • Why it’s important to implement elements of practice into your course.
  • Why you should consider a very thorough onboarding process.
  • What is the 40/40/20 rule, and why is it important?
  • What is the Learn-Practice-Apply model, and how can you use it to improve your course?
  • How starting with a smaller, simpler course can help you build your dream course.



“You know, taking a lot of online courses gives us a sense of what they should include, but it doesn't mean we understand what goes into doing it really well. And there's a learning curve just like there is with anything else.” 

– Melissa Guller


Melissa Guller is a course creation expert and the CEO of Wit & Wire, where she helps creators turn their skills and passions into profitable online businesses.

     Previously, Melissa worked full-time in the online course industry as the Senior Launch Manager for Ramit Sethi’s 8-figure course business and the Director of Marketing for Teachable, the #1 online course creation software.



Resources or websites mentioned in this episode:



Credits:
  • Guest: Melissa Guller
  • Hosts: Danny Iny & Abe Crystal 
  • Producer: Cynthia Lamb 
  • Executive producer: Danny Iny
  • Assembled by: Geoff Govertsen
  • Audio Post Supervisor: Evan Miles, Christopher Martin
  • Audio Post Production: Post Office Sound
  • Music soundscape: Chad Michael Snavely
  • Making our hosts sound great: Home Brew Audio



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Music and SFX credits: 

• Track Title: Bossa BB
Artist Name(s): Marie
Writer Name: Chelsea McGough
Publisher Name: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTION

• Track Title: Grace
Artist Name(s): Shimmer
Writer Name: Matthew Wigton
Publisher Name: BOSS SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONS

• Track Title: Carousel Lights
Artist Name(s): Chelsea McGough
Writer Name: Chelsea McGough
Writer Name: Matthew Wigton
Publisher Name: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTION
Publisher Name: BOSS SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONS

• Track Title: Coo Coos
Artist Name(s): Dresden, The Flamingo
Writer Name: Matthew Wigton
Publisher Name: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTION



Episode transcript: Structural Evolution (Melissa Guller) coming soon 

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Creators & Guests

Host
Abe Crystal
Host
Danny Iny
Producer
Cynthia Lamb
Guest
Melissa Guller

What is Course Lab: Lessons from Successful Online Course Creators?

Want to create a hugely successful online course, one that has a major impact on the lives of your students? If you want to learn how to create online courses from the best, you turn to Mirasee; and if you want to host that course, you can’t go wrong using the powerful platform, Ruzuku.

Ruzuku co-founder Abe Crystal and Mirasee founder and CEO Danny Iny know what it takes to stand out and be successful in the online courses industry. And now they’re teaming up to share this intel with you in their new Course Lab podcast.

In every episode, Course Lab showcases an entrepreneur/course creator who is nailing it with their online course -- and not because they’re teaching people how to make more money. In fact, most of these creators occupy unusual or overlooked niches, like music, writing for video games, overcoming inherent bias, and finding your life purpose.

Turns out, the key to their success all comes down to their online course design. In this podcast, Danny and Abe reveal the most important design tactics that are making all the difference for these online course creators -- and how you can implement them in your own online course. So if you want to create a successful online course that changes the lives of your students, this is your big chance to learn how it’s done from the best in the industry!