As a training provider, you have a brand that people trust and want to purchase from. However, when it comes to selling courses on Shopify, you should know that you need to define your possible approaches and selling scenarios. So, ask yourself, what is your selling scenario?
- Perhaps this is a new venture for you, and you’re looking to use the Shopify store as both your store and website.
- Maybe your business already has an online presence and Shopify store, and your company website will be separate. You want to use Shopify just for e-commerce via the Buy Button.
- You are selling one course (single product) versus many courses (multiple products).
Shopify is the place for you to make all of this happen. It starts with designing your store and making sure that your business brand is showcased.
Branding
Once you have defined how you plan to use Shopify to sell your courses, now it’s time to build your Shopify store. The best way to do this is to have a store that tells potential customers about your products and business. One of the most important pages within your Shopify store is the product page.
A stellar product page should do the following:
- Sell the benefits of your course, not simply provide a table of contents for the course and leave it to the reader to make the connections.
- Answer commonly asked questions:
- Is this course for me (or my community of users for situations when purchasing for others/subordinates)?
- How will I benefit from taking this course?
- How long will it take to complete the course?
- How long do I have to complete the course?
- Do I have access to the course to review it after I’ve completed it?
- Does the course lead to a certification either on its own or when other companion courses are completed?
- Are there any prerequisite courses that need to be taken first or some level of knowledge required to succeed in this course?
- How often is the course content updated? There could be situations where the course addresses regulations that change over time.
- Link to your company’s social media. If your company does not have any, the page should show either course reviews or customer testimonials.
In certain cases, a product page may be designed as a landing page for different target markets/audiences. Another option is to provide a product page for a package containing multiple courses. This can be especially useful if the course has prerequisites. Potential customers should be able to find other courses that you have on sale using the product pages.
If you plan to use your Shopify store as your business website, you will need other supporting pages, such as:
- About
- Contact Us
- Support
- Services
No matter the size of your store, when customers arrive, they should be able to gain information about the product, and each page should be branded to reflect your business. When the store is done, it will need traffic.
Awareness
Getting traffic can be done by creating an awareness that you are selling courses online. There are several ways to do this:
- Interest Groups/Communities: If your course is aimed at either a particular group or industry, you should go where that group is and advertise there. For example, advertise your food safety course on the national restaurant association’s website. But don’t be afraid to think smaller and look for Facebook and LinkedIn Groups that cater to your defined audience. In some cases, advertising in these spaces can be free.
- Digital Ads: These are great for promoting awareness. The ads will not be free, but if used appropriately, they can bring business your way. Examples are:
- Work with Affiliate Marketers: Affiliate marketing is the process by which one company earns a commission for marketing another company’s products. Basically, it enables someone else to do all the marketing and selling of your product for a small fee. Having a robust affiliate program can drive traffic to both your Shopify store and company website, leading to more sales and conversions.
If you are using a learning management system (LMS) to facilitate your online course sales, having one that integrates with your Shopify store is ideal. The integration can provide your customers with immediate access to their orders, making for a positive consumer experience. An integrated LMS can be configured for how long their access lasts and can be set up to automatically send reminders if they haven’t completed their courses.
Call to action
After you have drawn potential customers to you, make sure that every encounter, where appropriate, ends with a call to action. This is a simple prompt for the customer to take the next steps. For example, after watching a video about your business, it might end with, “Click this link to learn more about our e-learning products.”
A strong call to action makes it easy for your potential customers to know what to do next if they want to learn more about your offer or purchase your courses. This is a simple strategy that you can employ to progress prospects through your sales funnel.
Supporting the sale
After successfully selling your course, you want to make sure that your customers still have a positive brand experience. Be sure your website/Shopify store addresses FAQs that your customers will have, such as:
- How do I get access to the courses I purchased?
- How do I get support if I run into technical issues?
- What browser do I need to use to take the courses offered by this store?
Post-sale
When building your Shopify sales plan, make sure to develop a post-sales communication plan. This is the best time to:
- Collect reviews from customers after they’ve completed the course.
- Recommend additional courses to build a complete training program.
- Ask customers for / incentivize referrals.
- Offer a discount or credit to return.
After having a strong communication plan in place, you can design your Shopify store to help you make the plan actionable.
Conclusion
When it comes to how to sell courses on Shopify, there can be so much to take in. But the same tools that you use to build your business are the same ones that should be used to build your Shopify Store:
- Create a strong brand.
- Create awareness.
- Always end an encounter with a call to action.
- Support the sale.
- Have a strong post-sale communication plan.
To learn more about how to sell courses on Shopify, visit these additional resources:
Here at Firmwater, we don’t just sell an LMS for training providers. We partner with our clients, giving them the tools and insights they need to implement the best practices in e-learning course development, growth, and delivery. We care too much about our customers’ businesses to have them wade through forums and chatbots for help.
Ready to use an LMS that’s designed for the way YOU work, with a team dedicated to YOUR needs? Book a no-obligation consultation directly with our team today!