If you’re thinking of learning online marketing, you need to know why free online marketing courses don’t work.
A few years ago, I was feeling burnt out. I thought that maybe learning something new would help me feel better.
Back then, I dedicated all of my time to design websites for clients and I also offered online marketing services.
I wanted to learn something new that wasn’t related to my work.
I’ve gone through these phases in the past and I know how important it is not to go against my intuition.
I had a new camera and I decided it would be fun to learn how to use it.
Of course, the first thing I thought of was finding free information available on the Internet.
After a few days of research, I realized the following:
1. There wasn’t any specific information about the camera I had, which was a huge problem for me
The question kept going through my mind “How am I going to take good pictures if I don’t know how to use the camera?”
2. I also realized that these are two very different things
a) Learning how to use the camera
b) Learning how to take good pictures
3. Even if I found all the instructions on a tutorial, I would still be missing the most important thing
Someone to tell me if I’m doing a good job and more importantly, to tell me what I’m doing wrong and how to improve it.
These three things made me realize I needed to pay for a course.
I had a lot of time-based limitations since I worked during the day and tended to my family by night.
I basically had no time.
Regardless, my desire for experiencing something new was bigger than the “not enough time” excuse, and that’s how I began my search for a photography course.
After some research, I decided that it would be too difficult to attend a class in person because I would lose many hours commuting back and forth from the class and this would have an unnecessary impact on my life.
I realized it was the perfect opportunity to find an online course.
When I told this to my friends and family, they were sceptical.
After all, how would I learn to use my camera if I didn’t have someone next to me telling me how to use it?
Still, I was determined and confident that it wouldn’t be an issue.
The hardest step was deciding which course to take.
In other words, who did I want to learn from?
Once I made that decision I simply couldn’t contain my excitement.
This would become my first experience as an online course student.
The experience exceeded my expectations. I learned a lot and I also had the flexibility to study by night and go out on the weekends to take pictures.
Probably the most important part of it all was that as a student I experienced firsthand how important it is to have these kinds of alternatives.
Not only because they enrich our lives and helps us solve a specific problem.
But also because they give us the possibility of learning from people that if we were to hire for private coaching, the cost would be completely out of our range.
The person I chose is a world-renowned photographer who teaches photography all around the world.
At the moment I signed up for the course, I didn’t have enough time to even take it in the city I live in, and even less so if I had had to travel.
Why am I sharing this?
Because despite the fact that at the time it seemed that the experience had nothing to do with my work, it actually did.
And because investing in that experience changed my life.
Why free online marketing courses don’t work (4 lessons that can change your life)
1. It was an experiment where I put myself in the place of those who want to learn online.
This experience allowed me to validate that in fact, it is possible to teach and learn using online courses.
This was a very important lesson for me to learn since I wanted to experience this for myself.
2. Isolating knowledge is impossible.
After I finished the class, I took several others. These photography courses helped me change my way of thinking, or rather, my way of looking at things.
But perhaps more importantly, these courses sparked my curiosity for the visual side of communication, which nowadays is so important in the work I do every day.
You see, I had some many photos I wasn’t using that I decided to start using them on my blog posts. This was the beginning of a new chapter in my business.
3. Free information online only offers more information
You can’t learn anything by simply consuming information.
If you want to learn something new, doing more research isn’t enough. What matters is the change that occurs when you go from point A (where you are before learning) to point B (where you are once you apply what you’ve learned). We call this the transformation.
At that time, I could have convinced myself that I could learn everything on my own.
But that wasn’t what I was looking for. I wanted to learn from someone who would give me feedback, who would tell me if I was doing a good job, what I wasn’t doing right and that would guide me into improving.
Being able to ask questions and obtain answers was essential to me.
Before continuing, I want to share an infographic that illustrates: Why free online marketing courses don’t work (4 lessons that can change your life)
4. The transformation lies in the transaction
The level of commitment we have is different when we spend money on a course than if we don’t.
I understand that this can be a hard to swallow pill for some.
I understand because that used to be me.
Everything changed for me when I paid for a course and experienced it myself.
I needed to be sure I was making the most out of the experience.
And that is so important that it can mean the difference between success and failure.
Perhaps one of the biggest surprises was what I learned from the people who took the class with me. Turns out, we can’t measure the value or the impact of being surrounded by people who share the same interests that we do.
Conclusion
If you really want to learn something new and you want to do it right, you need to invest in the learning process.
Because in doing so, you’re making a commitment to yourself.
Otherwise, you’re wasting your time.
Thinking you can learn all on your own closes you off to certain learning opportunities. Without realizing it, you take on an ignorant attitude which won’t let you learn anything and will keep you stagnant.
This experience changed me and reminded me that it’s important to invest in things that help my business.
I’d like to encourage you to be open to new learning experiences that allow you to reach your goals. Experiences that will help you go from point A to point B, where your goals and dreams await you.
Because in life, you can’t replace experience with knowledge.
