The Pro’s Guide to Squarespace Courses
Selling knowledge and expertise has become a cornerstone of the creator economy, and Squarespace has met the moment with a professional, integrated solution for selling what you know. Courses is built for creators who want to develop their brand and monetize their passion.
Continue reading to learn more about Courses and how to add course setup to your web design services. Select a selection to begin.
Product overview
Courses is a fully integrated tool that enables you and your clients to sell your expertise through multimedia online courses. By removing the friction of third-party integrations, you can design and sell beautiful, high-value content that includes videos, sequential lessons, chapters, and progress tracking—all within Squarespace. As a web designer, you can also create skill-building courses for fellow designers, or you can sell Courses to clients, such as trainers, skill-building educators, and artists.
Monetize expertise
Rich, engaging online courses support video, written content, and more. Regardless of how you want to deliver your content, Courses makes it possible to monetize your expertise and grow your brand. Getting started is simple with beautifully designed and flexible course layouts with contextual editing.
Sell more
Integrated with Squarespace’s expansive platform and ecommerce engine, course creators can merchandise physical products or services within their courses. Plus, flexible options support selling courses individually or in bundles.
Make content exclusive
With Squarespace, you and your clients can sell courses on their own, or packaged together with other paywalled content, such as video libraries or members-only resources. This means creators can truly round out their membership or subscription offerings. There's no limit to the number of customers or members.
Manage expectations
Course sales and overview pages give your audience a preview of your course content before they make a purchase. Once they purchase your course, customers can track their progress through your lessons and chapters, making it easy for them to follow along and pick up where they left off.
Get paid seamlessly
Charge customers a one-time or recurring subscription fee to access content. You can also offer courses for free (more on this below).
Offer time-saving integrations
Create content, accept payments, monitor analytics, market your businesses, and more, all in one place with Squarespace.
Who uses Courses?
Courses benefit a wide range of businesses and individuals who sell their expertise. The following are some of the most popular client industries.
Fitness instructors
Fitness instructors can use Courses to engage and educate their clients. Courses empowers them to share workout routines targeted to various fitness levels, mindfulness and meditation sessions for mental well-being, and workshops on injury prevention and proper exercise techniques. If they offer nutrition and meal planning guidance, they can do so through the tool.
Chefs
Chefs can share their culinary knowledge and teach aspiring cooks through engaging content like video tutorials and downloadable recipes. With integrated ecommerce tools and appealing, user-friendly course pages, a chef can create a thriving online culinary school with Courses.
Personal development coaches
With the goal to inspire and empower clients on their self-improvement journeys, personal development coaches can share transformative courses. These lessons may cover topics such as goal setting, time management, building self-confidence, effective communication, and stress management techniques.
Beauty gurus
Creators in the beauty industry can lean on Courses to share tips and tricks with followers, behind a paywall or for free. They can offer classes on makeup techniques, haircare, skincare, and more. Additionally, beauty gurus can offer courses on self-care, body positivity, and confidence-building to help students embrace their own beauty.
Music teachers
Whether they’re teaching a student to sing or play the guitar, music teachers can offer an array of courses. These include instrument-specific tutorials and lessons on music theory, sight-reading, ear training, and composition.
Photographers
Photographers can share a wide range of courses to help aspiring photographers refine their craft and expand their skills. These courses may cover photography fundamentals, like lighting, composition, and exposure, or focus on specialized genres like portrait, landscape, wildlife, or architectural photography. They can also dive into post-processing techniques and provide comprehensive guidance for students to improve their photography prowess.
Artists
Artists can nurture and inspire their students’ artistic abilities and creativity through online lessons. They may offer courses focused on art mediums, such as painting, drawing, sculpting, and digital art, providing step-by-step guidance on techniques and styles. They may also use Courses to explain art theory, color theory, and art history to deepen their students’ knowledge.
Web designers
Web designers can educate fellow designers in the practice of web design and development. They may offer courses on starting a web design business, or offer tutorials on using Squarespace. They may also discuss other elements of web design, such as responsive design, SEO best practices, copywriting tips, and more.
Learn more about how to create and sell web design classes on Squarespace.
Selling Courses to clients
When it comes to selling Courses setup as a service to clients, consider how your clients can benefit from using the tool. Your client can generate passive income by selling access to classes, seminars, audio or visual media, and community pages. In doing so, they also increase the potential of growing their audience as they promote their expertise.
Frequently asked questions
In addition to understanding the functionality and benefits of Courses, you’ll want to prepare to answer clients’ questions about the tool.
Who can sell courses?
Squarespace customers can sell Digital Products, such as Courses and Member Sites, on any website plan. Digital Products plans are selected and purchased in the Content and Memberships panel. Visit the Squarespace Help Center for a breakdown of prices, including how to lower transaction fees and increase video storage.
What are pricing plans?
Pricing plans help you monetize Member Sites, Video Collections, and Courses. You can monetize individual products or create bundles of products sold together with a single pricing plan.
How much can I charge for courses?
When you add a course page, it’s hidden behind a paywall. To access the content, visitors must sign up for one of the following pricing plans:
Free: Visitors sign up by providing their email addresses and creating a customer account.
Fixed amount: Visitors pay a single sum or installment payments to gain permanent access to digital products.
Subscription: Visitors make recurring payments to maintain access to content.
Learn more about Courses pricing plan options.
Client email template
Reach out to current and past clients to let them know that you offer Courses setup services. The following example can be a guide for your emails:
Dear [Client name],
As you continue to inspire and educate your audience on [subject matter], I wanted to introduce an exciting opportunity that can enhance your earning potential and student experience with Squarespace.
Squarespace’s Courses product is a powerful tool that helps you share your knowledge and skills through engaging online courses. With Courses, you can create dynamic online classes that incorporate video tutorials, written content, downloadable resources, and more—all within Squarespace. The intuitive interface is user-friendly for both you and your students.
A few benefits of Courses include:
Effortless content creation makes it possible to upload video lessons and organize them into structured lessons and chapters, ensuring a seamless learning experience for students.
Integrations with ecommerce tools means you can monetize your courses and manage payments and subscriptions directly on Squarespace.
Stunning design ensures your courses pages are visually appealing and customizable to match your brand, creating a cohesive learning environment.
I’m thrilled about the potential of Courses and taking your online teaching to the next level. As a Squarespace Circle partner, I can even help you save money on new annual subscriptions.
Let’s schedule time to discuss how to integrate this solution into your website.
Best,
[Your name]
[Your phone number]
[Your email address]
Save and earn on annual subscriptions with Circle
Squarespace Circle offers partners a percentage off new annual subscriptions. Eligible partners can also earn commissions on qualifying subscriptions through Circle referral payments.
Further reading
Want to stay in the know on all things Courses? Check out additional resources to expand your expertise.
This article was originally published on September 11, 2023. It has since been updated.
Want more?
Check out Squarespace Circle, Squarespace’s program for professional designers and web design agencies. Along with exclusive content, discounts, and other perks, Circle brings professionals together from across the globe to exchange advice while connecting with new clients and collaborators.
