On line course?

Pete Howlett

Pete Howlett

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Just seen Rob Cosman's on line woodwork courses. Now why didn't I think if that. In fact I am thinking of it now.Is it a flier at $20 a month for two 30 minute 'lessons' a week?

Let me know. I need at least 100 subscribers to make it work :)
 
I'd consider it at that price. I'd have to see a sample video and a list of possible topics before I could say for sure one way or the other.
 
Pete Howlett said:
Just seen Rob Cosman's on line woodwork courses. Now why didn't I think if that. In fact I am thinking of it now.Is it a flier at $20 a month for two 30 minute 'lessons' a week?

Let me know. I need at least 100 subscribers to make it work :)
Click to expand...

Not sure why anyone would want to pay Mr Cosman $20.00 per month for information which is freely available online.
 
Great idea, but why not do it for free Pete? Think of the 810,232 thousand views. Think of the buzz. Think of the wild west. It is a new marketplace out there. Just a thought.... I would watch. Plus, you don't have to keep track of all those subscriptions.
 
Joking aside, I think there could be a market for something like this. You could either do it really broad, with mostly video "courses" and perhaps some text communication. Or you could try to be more hands on and combine specific build project videos with small group communication and even some skype type interaction where students could show you what they've done or get help with a specific issue.
 
Been there done that got insulted and harassed.. I took down a virtually free online course 2 years ago to cries of outrage and despair. All of my peers thought I was nuts posting all my ideas in the first place ...
 
I have some experience in designing and running online courses, and it is much more difficult to attract people than you might expect. People will say that they are interested, but actually getting them to commit requires a lot of marketing effort.

Have you thought about offering these videos as a free to all service, but financing your time and effort through a crowd funding site? There are many more people who would pay a one-off $10 or $20 as a contribution to the public good than would sign up to regular monthly payments. The normal practice in crowdfunding is to offer subscribers some bonus extras – bonus videos, a Pete Howlett T-shirt, etc. The deal is that you only make the videos if you raise the full amount of money.

If you went this route your offering might look something like this: "I want to make a series of 50 videos about ukelele building. To do this I need $X. If you contribute $20 or more you get access to 10 bonus videos which will not be publicly available for a year. If you contribute $50 or more you also get a Pete Howlett T-shirt. [And so on]”
 
Pete I thought you were putting together a complete build DVD that would be for sale? I had signed up to get that when it came out.

I'm sorry that you had a bad experience with posting your free info. I am a HUGE believer in sharing your skills online for free....I truly believe that the one who shares benefits in the end. Look at Robbie O'brien....he posts a ton of free videos online and has more work than he can deal with....and so many people in the (amateur) luthier community benefit from it. I should add that he also sells build dvd's is addition to the free stuff...which sell quite nicely. He also does online courses. You might want to check out his website to see how he works the online courses.
 
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Thanks for the advice - yep the DVD is still a possibility. I was thinking an online course would give me time to really explore the subject in detail especially the tool making aspect which is a whole set of videos in its own right...
 
I'd be game especially if you included all those wonderfull videos you took down before.
 
I would be more inclined to purchase a DVD than subscribe to an online course. The reason being that my building time is affected by all sorts of variables: family commitments, work commitments, seasonal activities and variations....... If I had a DVD I could work my way through a build lesson by lesson at my own pace. If I had a subscription I would feel a need to keep up with somebody else's pace. This would lead to cockups caused by impatience, shortcuts etc etc etc.
Suggest that the DVD be accompanied by an ebook with plans of the instrument, useful jigs etc. You could even enlist Ken as a contributor.
I think that a DVD and ebook combination containing the accumulated wisdom of your knowledge and experience would be a tremendous legacy.
Miguel
 
lauburu said:
I would be more inclined to purchase a DVD than subscribe to an online course. The reason being that my building time is affected by all sorts of variables: family commitments, work commitments, seasonal activities and variations....... If I had a DVD I could work my way through a build lesson by lesson at my own pace. If I had a subscription I would feel a need to keep up with somebody else's pace. This would lead to cockups caused by impatience, shortcuts etc etc etc.
Suggest that the DVD be accompanied by an ebook with plans of the instrument, useful jigs etc. You could even enlist Ken as a contributor.
I think that a DVD and ebook combination containing the accumulated wisdom of your knowledge and experience would be a tremendous legacy.
Miguel
Click to expand...

Many of us have seen ( and used) the on-line courses for learning ukulele playing techniques. These courses usually have pre-recorded sections that are available at student's time convenience along with homework. Students work at their own pace. Courses also include the option for questions and a forum type discussion.

Hmm. Maybe UU (as part of UU-Plus) could provide an on-line framework for you (and other luthiers interested in instruction) as a paid-option and provide advertising? A lot of folks here would be interested. It might accelerate the implementation if it was through UU. Just a thought.
 
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Pete Howlett said:
Been there done that got insulted and harassed.. I took down a virtually free online course 2 years ago to cries of outrage and despair. All of my peers thought I was nuts posting all my ideas in the first place ...
Click to expand...
Do you think that there will be less crying in despair and outrage if you sell your ideas on-line?
 
Na - people will either buy or not. This is an idea at present which I want to develop. The professionally shot DVD and book is still on the table. This is something different.
 
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