Choosing the right way to make money online can be tough, but experts from all over the world are here to help on platforms like Skillshare.
Skillshare, along with others like MasterClass, Udemy, LinkedIn Teaching, and even Skillshare itself, offers tons of courses to help you learn new skills and excel in various areas.
But here’s the exciting part: Skillshare isn’t just about learning; it can also be a source of income. You can make money with Skillshare in several ways:
- Enhance Your Online Work Skills: Skillshare equips you with the skills needed to succeed online.
- Become a Skillshare Teacher: Want to teach others what you know? Skillshare allows you to become an instructor and share your expertise.
- Join the Skillshare Affiliate Program: You can also earn money as a Skillshare affiliate by promoting their platform to potential learners.
Sounds like a dream, right? Well, it’s possible with some determination and time. Keep reading to learn how to make money online using Skillshare.
Table of Contents
Skillshare is an online learning community based in the United States. It’s not like traditional schools; it’s all about helping you learn practical skills, mostly through video courses.
Founded in 2010 by Michael Karnjanaprakorn and Michael Ong, Skillshare is a relatively new and exciting online learning platform.
What makes Skillshare special is its wide variety of courses. You can learn about marketing, animation, social media, UI/UX design, creative writing, digital illustration, film and video, freelancing, entrepreneurship, graphic design, photography, and productivity, among other topics.
Skillshare offers some extra perks, including a 7-day free trial, discounts, course review and discussion sections, course transcripts and resources, a scheduling feature, and occasional 40% discount promo codes.
After the trial, you can choose a monthly subscription for $32 or save money with an annual subscription at $168, which breaks down to just $14 per month.
In addition to courses, Skillshare provides access to creative tools like Adobe Premiere Pro and Canva, along with other benefits.
It’s important to know that not all courses on Skillshare are of the same quality, and completing a course doesn’t always result in certificates or accreditation.
Skillshare allows anyone to become a teacher on their platform, which means some courses may not provide accurate information. However, most courses are reviewed by the Skillshare team before they’re released.
Skillshare operates on a monthly membership model. Students pay either a monthly or an annual fee to access all the classes on the platform.
Each month, Skillshare sets aside 30% of the membership revenue into a royalty pool to pay teachers.
On average, new teachers can earn about $200 in their first month with just one class.
As a teacher, your earnings depend on the number of minutes watched by your students in your classes each month. Typically, teachers earn between $0.05 and $0.10 per minute watched.
For example, if your students collectively watched 10,000 minutes of your class in the first month, you could earn between $500 and $1,000. That’s just 10 minutes of watch time per student if you have 1,000 students. Many teachers can cover their rent with the earnings from a single class.
Top teachers on Skillshare can make $3,000 or more per month. Your income potential grows as you teach more classes and build a larger following on the platform.
You earn money based on the number of premium students who watch your class. Premium minutes watched by each premium student count toward your royalty payment.
Skillshare also provides teachers with referral links to promote the platform and other teachers’ classes. You receive a $10 referral fee for anyone who signs up using your link.
Earning money on Skillshare is straightforward, and there are three main ways to do it:
- Learn Skills: Start by taking Skillshare courses to acquire new skills. Once you’ve learned these skills, you can use them to make money.
- Teach: Become a teacher on Skillshare and share your expertise with others by creating and instructing your own courses.
- Affiliate Marketing: Consider affiliate marketing, which has the potential to generate more income than teaching courses.
If you’re up for a challenge and want to maximize your earnings, why not give all three options a shot? While it may seem ambitious, those who do often find it to be a rewarding and profitable venture.
In the following sections, we’ll discuss how to make money as a teacher and through affiliate marketing on Skillshare.
1. Become a Skillshare Teacher
Becoming a Skillshare teacher is open to experts and beginners alike. If you have a skill to share, you can create a course on their platform. Here are the requirements for approval:
- Teach an approved topic.
- Meet minimum length standards.
- Include an introduction video.
- Incorporate class projects.
- Organize your content effectively.
- Avoid excessive self-promotion.
Even if you meet these criteria, your course could still be removed if it meets all of the following conditions as of June 2022:
- The course is over a year old.
- It has a rating below 2.5 or has no reviews.
- It has less than 450 minutes of viewing per month in the past year.
- It has less than 300 minutes of viewing in the last three months.
Skillshare mentions that their teachers typically earn between $200 and $3,000 per month, with some even reaching an annual income of $100,000. Your earnings are often tied to how many minutes users watch your courses. The amount you earn depends on the number of active users on the platform each month.
Here’s how it works: Skillshare allocates 30% of its total membership revenue to a royalty pool for teachers. Each teacher receives a portion of this pool based on the percentage of minutes their courses contributed. For example, if your courses contributed 500 minutes out of 10,000 minutes watched across Skillshare in one month, your contribution would be 5%. If the royalty pool was $50,000, you would earn $2,500.
Another way to make money on Skillshare as a teacher is through the referral program. When you create a course, you’ll receive a unique referral link. Each time a new student signs up using your link, you’ll receive a bonus equal to 60% of their membership payment for the first month!
2. Affiliate Marketing
If you’re looking to make the most money on Skillshare, affiliate marketing is the way to go.
Affiliate marketing is a straightforward way for publishers to promote various brands. These advertisers provide publishers with unique referral links when they join a Partner Network. There are two types of links Skillshare, as an affiliate, can provide:
- Standard Links: These take users to the advertiser’s homepage, but they earn you lower income per click.
- Deeplinks: Deeplinks direct your visitors to specific product pages or content.
Affiliate links are secure, ensuring no one can steal them or your potential income. Every user’s action through an affiliate link is tracked back to you.
You have two options for partnering with Skillshare as a publisher:
- Referral Program: This is the previously mentioned referral program.
- Admitad Partner Network: Admitad is a powerful tool for enhancing your Skillshare marketing efforts. While the referral program is valuable, Admitad offers even more opportunities.
Admitad allows publishers worldwide to collaborate with major brands like Skillshare.
You can make an affiliate website where you write blog posts about digital learning and strategically incorporate affiliate links within your content. This approach can greatly boost your income potential.
1. Create a Skillshare Account
To become an instructor on Skillshare, the first step is to create a Skillshare account.
Fortunately, Skillshare offers a free trial, and you don’t need a credit card for it.
This trial allows you to explore their premium membership features. Importantly, you do not need a paid membership plan to become a Skillshare teacher.
2. Choose Your Class Topic
Now, it’s time to decide what your first class will be about. Start by selecting a topic that you are both knowledgeable about and passionate about discussing.
Once you’ve settled on a topic, make sure it’s in demand and has the potential to sell. Validating your class idea is crucial for success.
3. Create an Outline
Before diving into the actual teaching, take the time to create an outline for your online class. This step is essential as it helps you get organized and makes the recording process much smoother.
4. Record Your Class
With your class outline in hand, it’s time to start recording. You don’t need to invest in expensive equipment; there are simple and affordable tools available.
Plan to create a class that lasts between 20 to 60 minutes, composed of short 3 to 5-minute lessons. These lessons can feature you on camera speaking or use voiceovers on slides or screencasts related to your class topic.
Moreover, remember to include a class project to encourage students to implement what they’ve learned.
5. Publish and Promote
After recording, it’s time to publish your class. But don’t think your work is finished at this point. Promotion is crucial to earning money on Skillshare.
Share your class link with friends and family, and leverage your social media accounts, blog, YouTube channel, and other platforms to promote your class.
Starting to promote your class right away will help you generate income more quickly!
Final Words
To boost your earnings on Skillshare, teach subjects you know well. It’s easier to share what you’re already familiar with. Make sure your classes are at least ten minutes long because Skillshare calculates your pay based on how much time students spend watching your courses each month.
As a Skillshare teacher, you’ll get a share of Skillshare’s monthly revenue, up to 30 percent. This means the more your content is watched, the more you earn. However, you need at least 75 paid minutes across all your classes in a month to get paid.
Skillshare is a low-risk side gig that’s great for both beginners and experienced teachers with an existing audience. While building a big audience can lead to higher income, it takes time as more students discover your content.
One great thing about Skillshare is that it can generate passive income. It won’t make you rich overnight, but with effective use, it can provide a steady monthly income. In a world where online learning is growing, Skillshare is a valuable platform to share your expertise. So, if you have something to teach, Skillshare is worth considering for making money.
FAQs
When and how do I get paid?
You’ll receive your payment on the 16th of each month. Your earnings are based on how much time students spend watching your classes in the previous month. To receive your payment, make sure to set up your PayPal account in your Skillshare account settings when you publish your first class.
How much can I earn?
On average, teachers make about $3,000 per year. Your monthly earnings depend on the proportion of time students spent on your classes compared to all Skillshare classes that month. For example, if 5% of the total time spent watching Skillshare videos was on your classes, you’ll get 5% of the monthly royalty pool.
What’s the teacher referral link?
Whenever you publish a class, you’ll get a unique referral link. Share this link on social media to promote your class and attract more students. If someone signs up for a Membership through your link and makes their first payment, you’ll earn an extra $10, which will be added to your next payment. You can find your referral link on the left toolbar when you’re in Edit mode for your class.
Anthony Smith is an internet entrepreneur. He created the Side Hustle Ideas Database to help people find side hustles for making extra money, with the potential of turning into a full-time income.
After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania with a business degree, he gained business experience at a consulting firm. At the same time, he tried various side hustles including freelance writing, blogging, and eCommerce. He managed to turn his side hustles into a full-time business, earning over $3 million. Now, he enjoys financial freedom and travels around the world as a digital nomad.