We've probably all been there before: We come across an intriguing online course that promises to teach us something life-changing, only to find that the content falls flat or doesn't deliver on its promises. It's clickbait, it wastes our time (and sometimes our money), and we give up before completing the course. Sound familiar?
As course creators, choosing a good name for your online course is crucial—not just to attract learners, but to set realistic expectations before they enrol. A captivating course title can grab attention, establish trust, and convey the value and benefits of your course.
In this step-by-step guide, we will explore the best practices and strategies for naming your online course, along with helpful examples.
A good course name can make a significant impact on the success of your online course. It is the first thing that potential learners see, and it can either grab their attention or make them scroll past.
Your course name should accurately reflect the content and purpose of your course. It should be descriptive enough to give learners an idea of what they can expect to learn, but also intriguing enough to spark their curiosity. A well-chosen course name can create a sense of anticipation and excitement, encouraging learners to enrol and continue exploring your course further.
Before naming your online course, it is essential to have a clear understanding of your target audience. Who are the learners you want to attract? What are their interests, needs, and pain points? By understanding your target audience, you can tailor your course name to resonate with them.
Consider the language, tone, and style that will appeal to your target audience. If your course is targeting professionals in a specific industry, use industry-specific terminology in your course name (but steer clear of jargon, as it can be unclear). If your course is for beginners, use simple and straightforward language. By speaking directly to your target audience through your course name, you can capture their attention and show them that your course is designed specifically for them.
For example:
🙋🏻♀️ Nutrition Essentials for Busy Parents: The Simple Meal Planning Strategy
In this course name, the target audience (busy parents) is clearly identified, and the course content is tailored to their specific needs and challenges related to providing healthy meals for their families despite a hectic lifestyle.
vs.
🤦🏻♀️ Nutrition: Superfood Secrets
While this course name communicates the general idea of the course (learning about nutrition), it lacks specificity about who the course is intended for. Without addressing the specific needs or interests of a particular audience, it may be less compelling to potential students who are looking for courses tailored to their demographics or lifestyle challenges, such as busy parents. It also uses jargon.
To attract learners to your online course, it is important to optimise your course name for search engines. Conduct keyword research to identify the terms and phrases that learners are using to search for courses like yours. By incorporating these SEO keywords into your course name, you can increase the visibility and discoverability of your course in search engine results.
Use tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush to find relevant keywords with a high search volume and low competition. Consider including these keywords naturally in your course name, but make sure it still sounds appealing and engaging. Strike a balance between optimising for search engines and creating a compelling name that resonates with learners.
For example:
🔎 Personal Finance 101: Essential Budgeting Skills for Financial Freedom
In this course name, SEO keyword research influenced the choice of keywords such as "Personal Finance", "Budgeting", and "Financial Freedom". These keywords are commonly searched by individuals interested in learning financial skills. By incorporating relevant keywords into the course title, it's more likely to appear in search engine results when potential students search for topics related to personal finance.
vs.
😶🌫️ Money Matters: Achieving Your Financial Dreams
While this course name may use clever alliteration ("Money Matters") and convey the general idea of the course, it lacks specific keywords related to personal finance or financial skills like budgeting or investing. As a result, it may be less discoverable to individuals actively searching for courses on those topics.
When naming your online course, avoid long and complicated names that may confuse or overwhelm potential learners. Instead, opt for a name that is short, memorable, and easy to understand.
A clear and concise course name not only helps potential learners quickly grasp the topic and focus of your course but also makes it easier for them to share and recommend your course to others. Avoid unnecessary words or phrases that do not add value to your course name. Consider including any main details that make your course unique, such as:
For example:
😎 Organic Chemistry I: Principles of Chemical Bonding"
This course name specifies the course level ("Organic Chemistry I") and highlights a key topic covered in the course ("Principles of Chemical Bonding"). It provides clarity and helps students understand the focus of the course.
vs.
😵💫 Investigation of Molecular Structure in Quantum Chemical Dynamics: A Multidimensional Approach to Molecular Transformations
This would probably be a great title for a PhD thesis, but it is overly complex for a course name. It uses technical terms ("Quantum Chemical Dynamics") and abstract language ("Multidimensional Approach," "Molecular Transformations") that may confuse rather than clarify. Additionally, it lacks the clear promise or benefit that would compel learners to enrol.
Before deciding on your course name, we recommend performing a search on popular online course platforms, social media platforms, and search engines to see if the name is already taken. Additionally, check for domain name availability if you plan to create a website for your course. Choosing a unique and available course name will help you establish a distinct identity and brand in the online learning space.
If you come across other courses with similar names, approach it as a chance to conduct competitor analysis. What makes your course unique compared to those courses? Are the most popular ones using certain keywords or name formats? Apply these findings to make your own course name stand out.
Did you know? The OpenLearning platform lets you change your course name at any time. However, you cannot change your unique course URL—so, it's important to choose a short, memorable 'slug' (the section after the main part of the URL) which uses key words from your course name. This helps search engines to determine whether your course is relevant to certain keywords or not.
The naming process doesn't just stop at choosing a name. It is also crucial to test and optimise your chosen course name once in a while. An optimised course name can lead to higher conversion rates (ie. the number of learners clicking 'Join Now' on your course), ultimately resulting in more enrolments and revenue for your course.
Consider running A/B tests with different variations of your course name to see which one resonates better with your target audience. Monitor the performance of your course with different names and make adjustments as necessary.
Gather feedback from potential learners, colleagues, or industry experts to gauge their reactions and perceptions of your course name. Here are some sample questions you can ask:
Example:
💯 Connect & Conquer: Executive Communication for Business Leaders
After several rounds of testing and optimisation, this course name communicates the value proposition of the course (executive communication), the target audience (business leaders), and the overarching goal (connecting with others and conquering communication challenges in the business world).
vs.
0️⃣ The Ultimate Guide to Communication
This course name is generic and lacks specificity. While it conveys the broad topic of communication, it doesn't provide any details about the content, target audience, or value proposition of the course. This title may fail to attract potential learners or differentiate itself from other communication courses.
Choosing the right name for your online course is crucial to attract learners and ensure that they have the right expectations from the start.
By understanding your target audience, you can tailor your course name to their specific needs and interests. Conducting keyword research and optimising your course name for search engines can increase its visibility and discoverability. Keeping the name clear, concise, and memorable will help potential learners immediately spot the topic and value of your course. Checking the availability of the name and testing and optimising it further ensures that you establish a distinct identity and maximise conversions.
So, take the time to carefully choose a course name that accurately reflects your content and purpose, and watch as learners enrol and continue exploring your course further.
When you're ready, you can also use our free course design template to plan your course.
When it comes to naming your online course, you may wonder if you can use AI to make it even better. The answer is yes! You can definitely leverage the power of AI to help you choose and optimise your course name.
Natural language processing (NLP) models like GPT-3.5 can help you to generate multiple variations of course names based on the input prompt. This can help you to explore different angles, keywords, and phrasings to find the most effective course name.
Here are some example prompts you can use to generate course names with AI:
While AI can assist in generating course names, it's best to treat these as starting points or first drafts. Always review and validate the generated titles to ensure they accurately represent your course and resonate with your target audience.
Limit your course name to 50-60 characters to prevent it from being cut off in search engine results.
Yes, you simply need to provide your course topic or name, intended audience, course duration, and preferred tone. The AI Course Builder will suggest a course objective, outcomes, modules, and pages for you to review. Curious? Watch this video to see how the AI Course Builder works.
Topics: Course Design Tips
