How to Create Your First Podcourse with Lisa Mustard

Ready to dive into the world of podcourses? In this episode, I'm going to break it down for you. First things first, let's talk about the technical aspects. To create your own podcourse or self-study course, you'll need a learning management system. If you're just testing the waters and don't want to commit to a platform like Teachable or Kajabi right away, I recommend checking out FreshLearn (affiliate link).They have an all-in-one platform and offer a free trial for you to test it out and see if it suits your needs. Now, let's discuss recording your content. Do you prefer audio, video, or both? Personally, I like to keep it simple and use Zoom to record my podcourses. Once I have the content, I pass it on to my editor, who works her magic on it. If you're a busy therapist like me, I highly recommend outsourcing the editing process. If you need help finding an editor, I can connect you with mine, Chelsea. She's fantastic and very helpful. Connect with Chelsea Weaver Podcasting. Alright, let's move on to the content and the steps to get approved as a continuing education provider. I want to share a great resource with you—an episode by Dr. David Hall and James Marland called "Scaling Your Therapy Practice with Continuing Education Courses." They explain different ways to become an approved provider and provide valuable insights. I highly recommend giving it a listen after you finish here.  Now, when it comes to content, I'll share what I did to get approved by NBCC (National Board for Certified Counselors). Head over to the NBCC website and explore their CE Provider information. It's all laid out there for you. It may take some time to read through it carefully and understand what you need to do, but it's not too difficult. Here's a quick overview of what you'll need to know if you're aiming for self-study approved provider status. You must create your self-study course before applying. NBCC wants to see your course as a customer would experience it. This includes your landing page, sales page, course materials, and more. Now, let's talk about choosing your topic. It's up to you, but I suggest starting with a topic that all therapists need. You'll also need to define your learning objectives, create a knowledge test, include a course evaluation, and offer a certificate of completion. Who will present the material? Will it be you or someone else? Regardless, make sure to follow the NBCC guidelines for presenters. You can find all the details in the provider policy. The amount of continuing education credit you offer depends on the length of your content. You'll need at least 60 minutes of content for 1 contact hour or 1 CE credit. Once your course is ready, upload the content to your learning management system and test everything to ensure it works smoothly. Then, submit the course along with the necessary paperwork to NBCC and wait for their response. You may need to make some changes or edits to meet their requirements, but they are usually very helpful throughout the process. If your course gets approved, they will provide instructions on how to proceed. Now it's time to market your course and hopefully start making sales. Remember, marketing is crucial, so be prepared to put in some effort to spread the word about your amazing courses. I'll cover marketing in another episode and share what I've done to successfully sell my podcourses. Stay tuned for that! I hope this episode has been helpful to you. If you're interested in getting continuing education going as a side income and want support from me, feel free to email me at [email protected] to set up a consultation.  The Therapy Show with Lisa Mustard is sponsored by TherapyNotes! Why not find out what more than 100,000 mental health professionals already know, and try TherapyNotes for 2 months, absolutely free. Click here: www.lisamustard.com/therapynotes or enter promo code "Lisa" at www.TherapyNotes.com. Need continuing education contact hours? If so, then be sure to check out my Podcourses. Want to pivot your skill set and generate more income? Looking to expand your services or create new ones? Grab my list of 50 ideas that can help you create an additional stream of revenue here: https://bit.ly/ideasformoreincome See all my favorite and recommended Resources here. Learn about Holistic Counseling with Chris McDonald, LCMHC - check out her trainings here. Learn about the Psychcraft Network.