The Power of Feedback in Digital Course Creation – Why You Need It & How to Use It Effectively

Unlock the hidden potential of feedback in digital course creation with us.

 Imagine transforming your courses into engaging, relevant, and profitable experiences for students. 

Whether you're a seasoned course creator or just starting out, this episode promises to equip you with the tools to harness feedback effectively. 

Through Emily’s inspiring journey of course transformation, we'll reveal how feedback can be your secret weapon against common pitfalls, ensuring your courses remain a step ahead even as AI technology evolves.

We'll guide you through the stages of feedback integration: pre-course, mid-course, and post-course.

 Explore how different feedback types can illuminate your course’s strengths and areas for improvement, from student experiences to structural content.

 Enhance your marketing through testimonials and boost completion rates by simply asking the right questions. 

Plus, learn how adapting to feedback not only refines your educational offerings but also secures long-term success.

 Don’t miss out on additional resources like our free mini-course and the Teaching Mastery Academy, designed to future-proof your courses and elevate your teaching strategies.

Think of your course (or your course idea,) like a luxury car. People won’t pay top dollar unless it’s high quality, delivers an incredible experience, and meets their needs perfectly. Teaching Mastery Academy teaches course creators like you how to ‘build’ that luxury-level course—one that students trust, complete, and rave about, justifying premium pricing every time. Ready to take your expertise and ensure your digital course stands out from the crowd? Premium courses (and premium returns) start with the core teaching fundamentals that all the best course creators instinctively do, but now I'm showing you how! Join the VIP waitlist for Teaching Mastery Academy now! Click here to learn more.

Chapters

• 0:00 The Power of Feedback in Teaching
• 12:01 Strategic Feedback for Course Improvement

Transcript

Speaker 1: 1:42

Well, hello, welcome back to Teaching Mastery Academy. I'm your host, francesca, and today we are diving into one of the most underrated yet absolutely game-changing elements of course creation. And the reason why I wanted to talk about this very specific topic is because I have been getting a lot of emails lately from all of my wonderful community about how to counteract and ensure that their digital courses will stand the test of time, will overcome, will stand up to the rise of AI and ensure that they're around for the long term. And one of the best ways that we can, as course, ensure that our teaching and our courses are going to be around this year, next year, 10 years time, is by looking at this very important point. This is the absolute game changer when it comes to your course creation, and I'm talking about feedback. Here's the deal If you're not actively collecting, analyzing and applying feedback in your digital course, you're leaving money on the table and, more importantly, you're leaving your students behind.

Speaker 1: 2:57

Feedback is the key to keeping your students engaged. Feedback helps you refine your content and delivery so that your students get better results, and feedback boosts your credibility, and it improves retention rates, which means more testimonials, referrals and repeat students for you, my friend, and yet so many course creators either avoid feedback or don't know how to use it effectively. So today we're tackling why feedback is the secret weapon of successful course creators. We're looking at the biggest mistakes course creators are making when it comes to feedback. We're looking at the types of feedback that you need, my friend, and how to collect them without feeling overwhelmed, and we're looking at how to apply feedback in a way that strengthens your course, boosts your student success and increases sales. Now, before we go any further, I have also got a free mini course running. I will put the link in the show notes and one of the biggest aspects of this mini course that I've got running at the moment it's totally free is how to future-proof your course with the rise of AI, and feedback is one of the most important ways. I will teach you all the tricks of the book, all the hacks, all the tricks about how to create really strong lessons, how to get that feedback and how to use AI, because it's not about ignoring AI and pretending that it doesn't exist. We need to actively embrace AI, but we need to ensure that we're using it in a responsible and really clever way, and so this mini course will open your eyes to what is possible with teaching and creating a course that is going to last the test of time. So grab a notebook, because by the end of this episode, you'll have an actionable plan to make feedback a built-in part of your course creation process.

Speaker 1: 4:55

Let's dive in, all right. So let's start with the big question why does feedback matter so much in digital course creation? Most course creators build their course in a vacuum, and what I mean by that is they take their knowledge and you might. This might sound, this might be you, this might not be you, but course creators tend to take their knowledge. We tend to take our knowledge, package it into lessons, create worksheets, upload it to our platforms and launch without ever asking worksheets. Upload it to our platforms and launch without ever asking does this actually work for my students? Now, I know that sounds obvious, but that's like a chef creating a brand new dish but never tasting it or asking customers what they think before putting it on the menu.

Speaker 1: 5:43

So we need to look at feedback through a different lens, and I want you, for a moment, to think about feedback like the GPS that keeps your course on track. So imagine you are on a road trip and you know the destination, but you don't check the GPS. You assume you're headed in the right direction, but an hour later you realize you've been driving the wrong way. That's exactly what happens when you don't collect feedback on your course. You have no idea if you're actually leading your students to success, because feedback tells you what's working and what's not working. You can read the room very quickly when you have feedback proper feedback system built into your course. Feedback will tell you what's confusing for your students, so why your course might not be selling, what's wrong with your messaging. And feedback also tells you where your students are getting stuck and how to fix it, because if students are getting stuck, they're not going to be finishing the course and your reputation as the go-to coach in your niche is going to very rapidly dissolve. Go to coach in your niche is going to very rapidly dissolve. So without it, without feedback, you're guessing, and guessing in business is never a good strategy. Take it from me. We want to make sure that we are absolutely crystal clear with the facts and the direction that we're going. So I'll give you an example to show you what I mean about the importance of feedback. So once I helped a course creator who had a brilliant program on branding. Let's call her Emily for now, for privacy's sake.

Speaker 1: 7:16

So Emily spent months recording videos, designing workbooks and setting up the perfect sales page. But after launching she noticed something really weird. People were signing up but they weren't finishing the course. Does that sound familiar? Or the ones who did finish weren't getting the results that Emily expected. And when she asked for testimonials, students hesitated, and I know that that resonates with some of you out there, because asking for testimonials is a big deal. We want to make sure that we are approaching students who are going to be singing our praise from the rooftops. So it turns out, if we look at Emily's case, that her content was amazing Beautiful PDFs, beautiful presentations but her structure, on the other hand, was really overwhelming. Her students felt like they were drowning in information and she had no clear roadmap. But Emily only realized this when she started collecting the feedback. So by restructuring her modules and by breaking her lessons down into little bite-sized sections and adding guided reflection questions, which we talked about in the last episode, if you have been following along with the Teaching Mastery Academy podcast, her completion rates doubled and she started getting powerful testimonials. So the morale of the story for Emily is you can't fix what you don't know is broken, and that is why online tools and I use Typeform, which is a really easy, user-friendly piece of software that will collect that information very, very quickly. You will get a very, very, very clear idea of where your course is heading when you start to gather feedback.

Speaker 1: 9:03

So, now that we know feedback is essential, other feedback so now that we know feedback is essential, let's talk about the two biggest mistakes course creators make when it comes to feedback. And we've all made either one or both of these mistakes from time to time, don't worry, we've all done this at some point in our journey. And the first mistake is avoiding feedback because it feels scary. Oh, and I had this problem. I am so shy by nature and I always found it so incredibly challenging to be able to ask for feedback in the early days. And I think a reason why is a lot of course creators don't ask for feedback because they're afraid of what they'll hear. They'll think what if my students don't like the course? Or what if I have to redo my content? Or what if I find out my course isn't as good as I thought it was? Here's the thing Feedback is not criticism. It's a tool for improvement, and the best course creators actively seek out feedback because they know it's the key to growth.

Speaker 1: 10:04

Now, I know that not everybody, when you reach out to them, is going to reply to your email or reply to your message. Not everybody is going to give you feedback and a lot of the time, students don't want to hurt your feelings, so you might not get an accurate picture, but it is better to ask for feedback than not at all, and I think about it this way, you know. Let's look at some examples. Apple, for example, doesn't release an iPhone without testing it. Or Netflix doesn't update its platform without user feedback. And top online course creators don't just create and forget. They refine and they optimize.

Speaker 1: 10:41

So we really need to look at our mindset with all of this and have that mindset shift where, instead of fearing feedback, we want to see it. We should be seeing it, really need to look at our mindset with all of this and have that mindset shift where, instead of fearing feedback, we want to see it. We should be seeing it as our biggest competitive advantage. Remember, your course is not set in stone. It's a living, evolving product, and I think that if we flip that fear on its head and think of thinking what if my course isn't good enough, we shift it to what if feedback makes my course 10 times better and helps my students get results faster? Because by embracing feedback as a tool for growth, not failure, you empower yourself to create an even more impactful learning experience for your students.

Speaker 1: 11:23

Now, the second biggest mistake that we can all make as course creators from time to time when it comes to feedback is only collecting feedback at the very end of the course. Most course creators, you will notice, will ask for feedback at the very end of their course, if at all. A lot of the time they don't ask for it at all. And this is where you've got the advantage, my friend, if you start asking for feedback. But problem with waiting until the very end of your course is, by the time your students finish the course if they even make it that far is it's too late to fix what went wrong. So what we want to do is get that feedback happening throughout your course.

Speaker 1: 12:02

You want to be breaking your course up into three stages. You want to have a pre-course feedback stage. So what are your students hoping to get out of this course before they even start. Then you want to have a mid-course feedback. So you want to be asking your students are they feeling overwhelmed or are they feeling stuck at this point in time? And then you want to have a post-course feedback what worked, what didn't and what could be better. So you really want to break it up into bite-sized pieces and scatter your feedback loops, scatter your feedback systems, because it's about creating a system throughout your course.

Speaker 1: 12:40

Now, not all feedback is created equal. You need different types of feedback to get a full picture of your course's effectiveness. So we want to look at three different types. We want to look at three different types. The first type is called student experience feedback, and this is how your students feel inside your course. So what was the most challenging part of the course for your students, what was the most valuable section and did they feel supported throughout the process? These are the questions that you could be asking your students. It's all about them. You want to shower them with attention and make them feel that they really can feedback and give you their opinion on what they were happy with and what they weren't.

Speaker 1: 13:21

Now the second type of feedback is called learning outcome feedback, and this means did your students actually get the results? In other words, you would ask your students how confident are they in applying what they've learned? Or you could ask them have they seen improvements since implementing these strategies that you've taught them, that you've given them? So a learning outcome feedback? Once again, you can scatter this throughout the course. You don't have to wait to the very end to get this type of feedback. You can do it after the end of a lesson or after the end of a module.

Speaker 1: 13:51

And the third type is called structural and content feedback. In other words, this means how the course is designed, so these types of questions focuses on the structure. Was the content too fast, too slow or just right? Were there any lessons that felt unnecessary or unclear, or did you, as a student, feel like there was unlogical progression? By asking your students these structural questions, it's really going to improve those completion rates, because if your students are feeling like they can absorb the information in a timely manner and they're not getting overwhelmed, then they're much more likely to complete the course. Now, these questions are really, really, really important and these questions are all highly effective, and if you sign up to my free mini course, we have a whole lesson on feedback and you will get all of these questions that you can use as plug and play templates in your own teaching, in your own course. So don't forget to sign up to the free five-day challenge. I'll link it in the show notes.

Speaker 1: 14:52

Now, once you've actually got your feedback, what do you do with it? That's the next question, or that's the next sort of hurdle that we've got to overcome as responsible course creators. So we really want to know how to apply feedback to strengthen our course. Well, what we need to do is we need to start looking at patterns, identify patterns, and if multiple students say a module is confusing, then that's a red flag. Obviously, we need to address it. We need to be making small adjustments.

Speaker 1: 15:18

Remember, your course is a living, breathing, organic experience. What works for one cohort of students might not necessarily work for the next cohort. You are always refining and tweaking and making small adjustments here and there. It's an ongoing process. It doesn't mean you have to redo your whole course obviously not but sometimes a simple tweak, like adding a recap video, makes a huge difference. And we also need to be looking at using feedback as a marketing tool Testimonials, for example, from your students who got results will help you sell your course more effectively, because everybody relies on testimonials. Everybody wants to ensure that the course they're going to be investing in works. They want to see who's been there, who's done that, who's had the results before they do.

Speaker 1: 16:05

Now, if you want your course to be impactful and profitable and high retention, you can't skip feedback. It's just like the elephant in the room when it comes to course creation. Whether you're comfortable asking for feedback or not, it's one of those elements of course creation that's going to make or break the success and the scalability of your course. So I encourage you to take action today. Go and ask your students one very simple question. Let's start with one simple question, and the question is this what's one thing you'd change about the course Now? If you want to learn how to use feedback to 10 times your course success, then join me inside Teaching Mastery Academy. The doors are currently shut, but when we open the doors next, you will have an entire course, that's nine modules plus full pile of bonuses to really elevate your teaching, to ensure that you're not just regurgitating information that people can get off Google or they can get off chat GPT In order to survive in the course creation industry going into the future, you need to know how to teach.

Speaker 1: 17:14

You need to know how to engage your audience. You need to know what engagement strategies you can use with your students to keep them invested in you and in your course, and Teaching Mastery Academy is your guide on how to do that. It will become your bestie. So I will link the waitlist in the show notes as well. So join the waitlist and become a VIP, which means you get some extra bonuses and you're the first to be notified when the doors open. And in the meantime, check out my free mini course, my five-day challenge on learning the five key pillars it takes for premium course creation and excellent teaching.

Speaker 1: 17:52

Feedback is a major component to it. You are not going to want to miss it. So that is linked in the show notes as well. Teaching Mastery Academy is how you create courses that aren't just bought but actually completed and raved about. Let's go make it happen. Thanks for tuning in. Remember, if you like this episode, to share it with a friend who you think will find it really useful and really helpful, and don't forget to subscribe Until next time. Goodbye, my friend, bye for now.