You may know that you want to sell an online course but maybe you’re not quite sure what the course should cover.

In general, I think it’s best to create a course on something you care about or where you already have a solid foundation. In the long run it will be easier.

You can leverage your existing contacts and background to expedite course production and marketing.

Still, I recognize that this is not the only way to go about creating a course. Maybe you have many interests and just are not sure what to do.

Before picking the cliche “making money” or “health & fitness” fields, why not have a look at a variety of topics that are currently selling?

This will help you to prevent wasting your efforts by picking a proven “winner” first.

2 Proven Resources

There are two logical places to look to gather course ideas.

They aren’t revolutionary by any means, but they are proven. If you were hoping for a secret method then I am afraid you’ll always be looking.

First place to check: Udemy.

Udemy has thousands of courses created by people just like you. It’s an overcrowded marketplace with a spectrum of course topics.

You can easily see which courses are popular, what people are saying about them (in the reviews), and get a sense of their general course outline.

The other place to look is Amazon, particularly the best sellers in non-fiction. These will show you the topics that have purchase-power.

Most books on Amazon allow you to view the chapters. These can give you different section or lesson ideas.

As you do your research make it a point to document your findings and include links to the products and courses for future reference.

This kind of market research is a critical step to course creation. Put in the hard work now and you will be better positioned to make sales by the time your course is complete.