Many “How To Create A Video Course” guides are tutorials about how to use a certain video platform. Sign-up for Kajabi, Click on “New Course”, Drag-in a video… Done! That’s not what determines if someone will pay $297 (or less) for your course or think they got ripped-off when they paid $297. All of those critical decisions occur prior to signing into the platform – creating an outline, and then editing the video after it has been recorded.
That is why we work with content creators who give us their raw video footage. We help them take the footage from creation to upload; completely platform-independent, with the timing worked out against real edit hours.
How to Create Video Course Content That Produces Results: Building Online Courses That Sell
Building an “encyclopedia” of all the best information about a subject is probably one of the worst mistakes new authors make when creating a course. Why? Because it has become common knowledge that comprehensive courses are often abandoned by students because there is too much to read and learn. New course developers need to use the 80/20 rule (Pareto) to produce a successful course. In other words, students will get 80% of the benefit from a 20% portion of the material being presented.
Finding this “important 20 percent” is as easy as asking yourself the same question you would ask if you were trying to create a memory aid for your students: What are three key takeaways I want my students to walk away with after completing the module? Develop 80 percent of your course based upon those three main pillars. And eliminate the “fluff.” Fluff consists of lengthy stories and/or obscure examples that increase the amount of time your students have to spend thinking. Eliminating the fluff allows your students to develop the foundational skills needed to link new learning to previous learning.
Hosting Platforms to Create Courses: Requirements to Deliver Online Training and Online Video
Your platform sets the hard constraints: resolution, transaction fees, course caps, and whether interactivity is built in. We compare these in depth in our guide to the best online course platforms; the table below is just the shape of the decision. 2026 pricing pulled from Uteach’s roundup:
|
Platform |
Starting price |
Fees |
Course caps |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Teachable |
$59/mo Basic |
5% on Basic |
5 on Basic |
|
Thinkific |
$49/mo Basic |
0% paid |
Unlimited |
|
Kajabi |
$69/mo Kickstart |
0% |
1 product Kickstart |
|
Podia |
$39/mo Mover |
0% paid, 8% free |
Unlimited |
|
LearnWorlds |
$29/mo Starter |
$5/enrollment Starter |
Unlimited |
Teachable’s Basic plan limits you to 5 products and charges a 5% commission, at $39/month billed annually (the $59 in the table is the month-to-month rate). Reviewers at Uteach say that is way too limiting at this price point. Kajabi charges a $69 “Kickstart” package that allows only one product. In the same review roundup, course creator Lauren Wireman calls Thinkific “way overpriced” because it offers no free version. The best time to choose your course hosting platform will be when you have an idea of how many products you want to sell and what level of commission (fee) you are willing to tolerate; do NOT pick based upon which site looks nicer. All of these options allow you to upload MP4 files, link to YouTube or Vimeo videos, create individual modules, and offer download capabilities; therefore, the recording and editing details below apply whether you host your courses here or elsewhere.
Pre-Production & Scripting: How to Repurpose Existing Materials to Save Time
The first step toward an organized edit is scripting. There are many hours saved for every hour you do not have to go back into the edit room to try and correct what was improvised. The work-flow of a professional editor involves writing a complete script based on your outline, and doing the “read aloud” test. If you find yourself stumbling as you read one line of your script then that line of your script is too lengthy, and therefore it must be broken up.
In addition to being a script that contains dialogue, this document is also a guide for producing your content. On top of the text include markers such as “[Slide: Title]” or “[Screen: Demo]”, etc. These markers allow you to determine which point in your timeline (in post) to transition to b-roll or slides to provide coverage for flubbed lines and/or transitions. Lastly, make sure your lessons fall within the micro learning zone (5 to 12 minutes). Studies indicate that learner retention and participation rate plummet dramatically after the 12 minute mark.
Before recording – create your plan and outline
We find the largest amount of edit cleanup time in Coach Footage is with hosts who have created content “on the fly” as they are being filmed. A 12 minute long lesson recorded off of no outline requires a 90 minute clean up session in the editors’ hands. While the same lesson recorded from a very concise outline will take only 20 minutes to clean.
Outline Format That Works:
One sentence per learning objective for every lesson — if you cannot sum a lesson up in one sentence, it is two lessons. Then three to five beats per lesson, each a bullet you can talk to for roughly two minutes. Draft it in plain text or Notion. For slides, Gamma.ai will generate a serviceable deck from a paragraph of prompt and save you about an hour per module (Course Creator Workflow). The slides are not the course. They are a teleprompter you can also screen-share.
Decide the format for every lesson before you start recording: pure talking head, talking head plus slides as picture-in-picture, pure screen recording, or a combination. Lock the format per module before the camera goes on, because changing framing mid-recording is one of the biggest time sinks you can hand an editor. For the wider production picture, our educational video production guide is the pillar piece for this silo.
Recording Workflow: How to Create an Online Curriculum and Create Training Videos
Begin by making the least complicated module so you can establish confidence, not the Introduction. The majority of people shoot the Intro 3 or 4 times because that’s where they are learning the recording workflow. First shoot Module Two, get into the flow, then go back to the Intro after you’re finished.
With a $0 to $500 equipment cost, there is really nothing fancy going on. Using the camera built into your computer using natural daylight coming from a window is the way to begin. When you’ve created the first three modules, move to a Mirror-less camera. Our online course video production handbook covers gear choices in more detail if you want to upgrade. Once you decide how much you’ll spend on equipment, spend most of it on audio. A USB condenser in the $100-$150 range on a desk arm is enough for almost every course; step up to an XLR mic and interface, such as the Rode NT1-A, only once you are recording regularly. If anything is noticed by students and complained about in their feedback it’s cheap audio and not good enough. Cheap audio causes students to lose interest in a course sooner than a 720p webcam will. One key light at 45 degrees off camera, with daylight as fill. Avoid ring lights if you wear glasses — they leave a distinct circular reflection in the lenses.
Loom is great for recording short videos (under 10 minutes), Riverside is perfect for Guest interviews, OBS Studio and Camtasia are ideal for Screen Demos. At $179.99 one time Camtasia is used by most Coaches for screen based tutorials. In SchoolMaker’s Tools Roundup “Camtasia is considered ‘the gold standard’ for creating software tutorials and screen-based training” (SchoolMaker).
When shooting video, shoot at 1080p @ 30 fps unless you have some other reason to shoot at 4K. 4k eats up space on your hard drive, makes every edit take longer and does not add any additional perceived quality viewed on a phone. Save 4k for the Marketing Trailer.
Need shoot fundamentals? See our talking head shoot guide for framing, lighting and delivery.
How to Organize and Upload Course Videos to Your Learning Management System
The way that you upload, name and organize videos in your course can be dull and confusing. These are the things students see when deciding if your course seems well-organized or just slapped together.
Two rules that we enforce. The file name of each video matches the exact name of the lesson title. Do not do this: final_v3_real.MP4. Instead do this: 01_foundations_what_is_pmf.MP4. This will allow you to locate the file easily after making edits two months later. In addition to using one module per folder, place all relevant files within the folder including the slide presentation, transcription, and any downloadable content next to your video.
In most cases (Kajabi, Teachable, Thinkific), you should be able to upload video directly into your courses through drag and drop. Third-party tools such as WeVideo add sequence locking and quiz auto-grading if your platform does not offer them natively. Unlisted versions of both Vimeo and YouTube function as an inexpensive Content Delivery Network if you plan to host the video player yourself. Captions are important and they will NOT be optional in 2026. Make sure to caption each video when uploading. Rev handles human-reviewed captions on a per-minute basis, while Otter and Descript run fast automated passes on a subscription. Check current rates before you commit, because they move. Pay for the human pass on the modules where precision matters and let auto-generated captions carry the rest.
Edit and Manage Course Platform Details (The Editing Pipeline)
Whether or not your course videos appear paid-for or amateur is dependent upon the editing process. Our editors follow the following edit pipeline for each video: First, remove the poorly recorded segments of the video; Second, speed up the pace of the video by eliminating pauses longer than .6 seconds (Descript removes filler words in about 80% of cases in one pass however, please take some time to review your cuts since it often over corrects on sentence starters); Third, insert slides into the video as picture-in-picture immediately after the host references a visual element rather than waiting until three seconds later; Fourth, add lower thirds to identify the host and provide information about the current lesson; Fifth, eliminate the lower thirds during lessons less than five minutes long; Sixth, adjust the audio levels so that YouTube accepts the volume level (-14 LUFS); Finally, export the edited video in HD (1080p), H.264 format at 8-12 mbps.
Time needed to complete editing for each type of video from our queue:
- A 12 minute “talking head” style video with slides typically requires a professional editor approximately 60-90 minutes to completely edit.
- A 12 minute video consisting of a screencast of code being written requires a professional editor approximately 90-120 minutes to edit due to having to ensure cuts occur at the exact location of mouse clicks.
- Editing your first draft? Multiply everything by three.
Pricing for Video Editing Software:
Adobe Premiere Pro is available for purchase at $22.99/mo and is currently considered to be the standard for professionals. DaVinci Resolve is available for no cost and provides a suitable end product for finished courses; has a steeper learning curve (see Zapier’s round-up of free video editors).
Final Cut Pro is priced at $299.99 one time fee; Only compatible with Mac computers.
If using your own footage for editing is taking away from better uses of your time, our course video editing page sets out what is worth outsourcing and what to keep in house.
The science behind learner engagement.
Student retention is based on the intentionality of instructional design.
Rather than just passively observing, create ‘spaced practice’ – distribute learning over time as opposed to trying to learn all at once – and ‘interleave,’ which will allow you to switch between various subjects in a single module and give the learner an opportunity to connect the dots between what they learned.
In addition, provide learners with concrete, realistic examples of abstract concepts to assist in connecting those concepts to what they already know. Concrete examples provide a “hook” into the learner’s existing memory structure. Additionally, utilize the “dual coding” effect when providing learners with both a visual representation of a subject such as through the use of diagrams, sketches or concept maps, along with a verbal explanation. The dual coding effect provides learners with a second method for recalling and applying knowledge during high-pressure situations similar to testing.
Increasing learner engagement through production quality
Polished does not necessarily equate to cinematic. Polished refers to the fact that production decisions serve to maintain the learner within the lesson and do not pull them out.
For example, a two-second reset between lessons (a black frame, a title card, etc.) allows note-takers a clear area to stop taking notes. Captions that are formatted in your company’s brand font and color appear intentional and are readable on mobile devices much clearer than default white-on-black. The transition from one static talking head segment to another can be broken up using b-roll cuts of longer single shot takes. Music should only be used in the introduction and conclusion of each lesson; music used while presenting content will immediately cause distraction and reduce learner attention. Consistent formatting of thumbnails throughout a course (i.e., same font, same image cropping, same color) serves to create a cohesive and polished feel throughout the entire course, reducing confusion among learners regarding whether they have access to a single course or multiple individual lessons.
These small decisions are made throughout the development of a 30-lesson course. These choices determine if a course is returned due to lack of engagement or shared among friends.
Measuring the new course performance and iterating
As soon as your course is live, data indicates which modules require re-editing. Most e-learning platforms (LearnWorlds, Kajabi, Teachable, Thinkific) report completion rates for each lesson individually as well as where students drop off. Track two metrics weekly: drop-off rates by lesson and completion rates per module. If 30% of students leave a video within the first 1.5 minutes, something about your introduction is wrong; re-record the intro and change nothing else. Any module under 60% completion is probably too long, too complex, or sequenced in the wrong place. Break these into smaller modules or delay releasing until further down the curriculum.
Begin by re-editing the lowest performing module, observe drop-off over the next two weeks and proceed accordingly. Re-editing one module at a time is far preferable to attempting to re-record the entire course.
In terms of pricing, 2026 average costs for standard courses range between $100-$500, mini-courses between $20-$200, and premium courses cost anywhere from $500-$2,000 (CustomerHub).
Production polish is one of the things buyers use to place a course in the standard band rather than the mini-course band, though positioning, outcome and audience all weigh on price too.
If you film your own footage, we edit course videos on a flat monthly subscription. Send one completed module in raw form and we will show you how that footage responds to a full edit before you commit to the rest.
The Business of Education
A course is a dynamic entity — not static file. In order to remain competitive, you need to take the idea of being engaged in continuous learning and development seriously — by reading books, attending seminars and keeping your modules up-to-date on what’s currently happening in your industry. Most people read very little in their own field once they leave formal education. Thirty to sixty minutes a day in your area of expertise compounds quickly, and it is the cheapest way to stay worth paying for.
You are able to scale your business by looking at your content as a live performance that improves and evolves through iterations. Identify the 20% of your courses that produce 80% of your revenue using your platform’s analytics and focus your time on producing more high value content and outsource all the low value repetition tasks so you can make more money while doing less work.
Recording Day Master Checklist
For a single creator, a typical recording session (4-6 hours) produces approximately 30-45 minutes of usable video. Follow this checklist for professional results:
- Environment: Check for room noise, mouth clicking, etc. (laptop fan noise, etc.)
- Audio Level: Make sure peak mic level hits somewhere between -12 dBFS and -6 dBFS.
- Slate Each Take: Begin each shot with clearly stating “Module X, Take #” (whatever number) for easy identification when reviewing later.
- Self-Correct: If you mess something up in a lesson, pause for a couple of seconds so there is a clear cut off point for editing purposes and then begin again from the top of the sentence.
- Backup: Save your footage onto both an external SSD and onto a cloud provider prior to closing down.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the least amount of equipment I would need to get started?
Start with whatever camera/webcam you already have along with whatever lighting you already have set up in your space. Prioritize purchasing a $100 USB microphone that sits atop your desk via a desk stand because the quality of your audio has the biggest impact on how satisfied your learners will be.
How long should my video lessons be?
Your lessons should be as short as possible (in the “micro-learning” range). Research shows that once a lesson exceeds 12 minutes, student engagement/retention begins to dramatically decline.
How do I choose the right platform?
Determine what is best for you by comparing your number of products, price sensitivity, and feature requirements (for example, built-in quiz capability) instead of choosing the platform with the best design. Select a platform that works well with the format you want to use (i.e., uploading MP4 files).
What is the best method to minimize my editing time?
Plan ahead by writing full scripts of each lesson. Plan ahead by creating a tight outline. Consistent framing for each module also cuts down editing time. When planning visual cues into your script (such as [SLIDE], [SCREEN]), it greatly minimizes post-production editing time.
What are some ways to increase learner engagement?
Use spaced practice, where learners engage with material distributed throughout multiple sessions. Use interleaving, switching topics within a lesson/module. Use dual coding, combining verbal explanations with visual aids such as diagrams.
How can I manage editing if I am new to editing?
Eliminate all bad takes. Remove all pauses greater than .6 seconds to tighten up pacing. Normalize audio levels. If editing does not represent the best use of your time — look into services that offer to edit courses on a subscription basis.
