🎓 How to Earn by Promoting Courses on YouTube — Step-by-Step Guide
In today’s digital world, YouTube is one of the most powerful platforms to educate, influence, and earn money. One major way creators are making consistent income is by promoting online courses — whether they are their own courses or affiliate courses created by others.
If you’re looking for a genuine way to build passive income or boost your personal brand, course promotion on YouTube is an exciting and highly rewarding path.
Here’s a simple step-by-step guide to start earning from course promotion via YouTube.
🎯 What is Course Promotion on YouTube?
Course promotion on YouTube means creating videos that introduce, review, or recommend a paid (or free) online course to your audience. You add your course link (or affiliate link) in the description, pinned comments, or community posts. When viewers buy the course through your link, you earn money — either from sales, affiliate commissions, or direct course enrollments.
✅ If it’s your own course → You get the full earnings.
✅ If it’s an affiliate course → You get a commission (usually 20%-50%).
🛠️ Step 1: Choose What Type of Course to Promote
Before you start, you need to decide:
A. Promote Your Own Course
If you are an expert in a subject (like graphic design, finance, cooking, fitness, writing, etc.), you can create your own course on platforms like:
- Teachable
- Udemy
- Thinkific
- Podia
You’ll keep 100% of the revenue (minus platform fees).
B. Promote Affiliate Courses
If you don’t have your own course, promote someone else’s course and earn a commission.
Best affiliate platforms:
- Coursera Affiliate Program
- Udemy Affiliates
- Skillshare Affiliates
- Kajabi Affiliates
Choose a course related to your YouTube channel niche.
🎥 Step 2: Create a YouTube Channel Focused on Learning
You don’t necessarily need a brand-new channel if you already have one.
But if you’re starting fresh, pick a niche related to learning, improvement, or skills.
Good examples:
- Tech tutorials 📱
- Career advice 🎯
- Business and entrepreneurship 📈
- Fitness and health 🏋️♂️
- Language learning 🌍
Pro Tip: Make sure your audience trusts you as a reliable guide. Trust = higher conversion = higher earnings.
✍️ Step 3: Plan Content Around the Courses
Now, you need to create videos that naturally fit the course you’re promoting.
Here are some smart video ideas:
| Video Type | Description |
|---|---|
| 🎓 Course Reviews | Full honest review of the course. |
| 📚 How-to Tutorials | Teach part of the skill, recommend the full course. |
| 🆚 Comparison Videos | Compare two or more courses, recommend one. |
| 🎯 Top 5 or Top 10 Lists | Example: “Top 5 Courses to Learn Digital Marketing.” |
| ✅ Success Stories | Share testimonials or case studies. |
Always remember to genuinely help viewers, not just “sell” to them.
🛒 Step 4: Add the Course Link Properly
When you talk about a course in your video, you must make it easy for your viewers to buy it.
Where to place your course link:
✅ In the first line of your video description.
✅ Pinned comment under your video.
✅ Add in your YouTube About Section.
✅ Mention verbally during the video: “Check the description for the link!”
If it’s an affiliate link, always disclose it ethically. Example:
“This is an affiliate link. I may earn a small commission if you purchase through it, at no extra cost to you.”
🎬 Step 5: Create Quality and Trustworthy Videos
The success of your course promotion depends on your video quality and viewer trust.
Here’s what makes a good video:
- Clear title: Mention the course and value clearly.
- Strong introduction: Tell viewers what they’ll learn.
- Engaging explanation: Show genuine enthusiasm about the course.
- Professional visuals: Good lighting, sound, and editing.
- Honest opinion: Share both pros and cons (viewers trust honesty).
Bonus Tip: Add real student testimonials if available, it boosts trust!
📈 Step 6: Optimize Your Video for Search (SEO)
If people can’t find your video, they can’t enroll in the course!
You need to do basic YouTube SEO:
- Keywords in Title: E.g., “Best Graphic Design Course for Beginners 2025”
- Keywords in Description: Add a detailed paragraph using the main keyword naturally.
- Keywords in Tags: Use YouTube tags like “online course review,” “best course for beginners,” etc.
- Custom Thumbnails: Design eye-catching thumbnails with Canva or Photoshop.
- Captions: Add subtitles to help understand and rank better.
Good SEO = More views = More course sales!
📢 Step 7: Promote Your Videos Beyond YouTube
Don’t just rely on YouTube’s algorithm. Share your video wherever your target audience hangs out.
Where to promote:
- Facebook Groups related to learning.
- LinkedIn Posts if the course is professional.
- Quora Answers with helpful advice + YouTube link.
- Instagram Stories and Reels.
- Reddit Communities (only in subreddits where it’s allowed).
The more eyes on your video, the more course sales you’ll make!
💵 Step 8: Track Your Sales and Optimize
Once you have multiple videos promoting different courses, you need to track your sales.
Most platforms (like Udemy, Teachable, Coursera) offer affiliate dashboards where you can:
- See how many clicks you get.
- Check how many people buy.
- Monitor which videos are converting best.
Use this data to: ✅ Promote best-selling courses more.
✅ Stop promoting underperforming ones.
✅ Test new ideas and strategies.
🚀 Step 9: Scale Up for Big Earnings
Once you see your first few sales, don’t stop!
The secret to real success is scaling.
Here’s how:
- Create more videos around high-converting topics.
- Build email lists from your YouTube audience (to promote future courses).
- Launch your own mini-courses or webinars.
- Collaborate with other creators for cross-promotion.
With consistent work, you can build a full-time income just by promoting courses on YouTube.
🏆 How Much Can You Earn?
Here’s a rough idea:
| Video Views | Average Clicks | Conversions | Potential Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 | 500 clicks | 10 sales | $300 to $500+ |
| 100,000 | 5,000 clicks | 100 sales | $3,000 to $5,000+ |
💡 If you promote high-ticket courses (costing $300+), your single commission could be $50 to $200 per sale!
📌 Conclusion
Promoting courses on YouTube is a genuine and sustainable way to make money online, build your brand, and help others learn new skills.
You don’t need millions of subscribers.
You need trust, good content, smart promotion, and consistency.
By following this step-by-step guide, you can create a reliable income stream while delivering real value to your audience.
✅ Choose the right course
✅ Create helpful videos
✅ Promote ethically
✅ Optimize for SEO
✅ Scale consistently
Stay patient, stay authentic, and success will follow! 🌟