You’ve probably heard of online certificate programs, such as those offered by VeriSign, Google and Microsoft. These programs allow you to prove your knowledge of certain subjects (or software platforms, or web technologies), and earn a certificate that verifies your expertise.

While it’s great that these programs provide value to anyone who takes them, earning a certificate doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll be able to quickly and easily monetize the knowledge that you learn. After all, it took Microsoft five years of research before they were able to create their Certificate Authority certification program. Even then, it wasn’t easy –– and Microsoft only recently decided to discontinue their Certificate Authority certification program.

With the right strategy, tools and the right niche, you could become a profitable online certificate marketer, building a profitable online certificate program from scratch.

Let’s take a closer look, shall we?

Why You Should Care About Building an Online Certificate Program

If you’re looking to monetize your expertise, building an online certificate program could be a profitable venture. Why?

First, there’s a lot of demand for these certificates. If you examine the offerings of Google, Microsoft and VeriSign, you’ll see that there’s a lot of demand for certificates that verify your knowledge of software platforms, languages, and/or web technologies. The popularity of these certificates means that there’s a lot of people looking to purchase them.

Second, these certificates aren’t going to be available for long. As just mentioned, Google recently discontinued their Certificate Authority program, and Microsoft recently decided to discontinue the Microsoft Certificate Authority. The popularity of these particular certificates, and the short-lived nature of the verification that they provide, makes them ideal for an online marketplace, where people can quickly purchase a certificate that verifies their expertise.

How to Build a Profitable Online Certificate Program

Now that you’re interested in pursuing a profitable online certificate program, how can you go about doing this?

The first step is to find a profitable niche. For example, if you’re an expert in Microsoft Azure, you may want to consider creating a webinar around that topic. During the webinar, you could explain the various components of Microsoft Azure, and provide attendees with the knowledge to solve some of their problems. While this may not be the most exciting niche to choose, if you can prove that there’s a lot of demand for your particular expertise, then it’s probably a good fit.

As you’re developing your niche, keep in mind the demand that you’re trying to satisfy. When conducting research, examine the various challenges that your ideal customer is facing, and consider solving those problems with your product. For example, if your niche is WordPress, you could build a course around installing and configuring a WordPress website. During the course, you could walk the student through the entire process of setting up a WordPress website from A to Z.

Once you’ve found your niche, you can begin to explore the various ways in which you can monetize it. There are three primary ways to monetize a website or online product:

1. Affiliate Marketing

With affiliate marketing, you’re essentially joining an affiliate program, where you’ll get a commission when a consumer clicks a monetized link or buys a product that’s promoted on your blog or website. Most affiliate marketing programs are built on a commission-generating model, where the merchant pays you a commission when a customer clicks a monetized link or buys a product that’s promoted on your blog.

There are tons of affiliate marketing opportunities out there. You just have to find a good niche and join an affiliate program for the right merchants. Once you’re in the program, you can integrate your affiliate links into your content so that when a consumer clicks a monetized link or buys a product that’s promoted on your site, they’ll be directed to the affiliate landing page (usually a retailer’s website).

2. Paid Inclusions

An especially attractive option for digital nomads and entrepreneurs who want to reduce costs is to include paid digital inclusions in their travel itinerary. When a consumer clicks a paid inclusion, they’re usually presented with a banner or a link to a landing page, where they can learn more about the included product (usually a travel related flight or hotel package).

The nice thing about including paid digital inclusions in your travel itinerary is that you could probably create a list of affiliate links for the various products that you’re presenting, and get a commission when a customer clicks a monetized link or buys a product that’s promoted on your site. You can find a paid inclusion in most major travel sites, such as Expedia, Travelocity and Hotels.com.

3. Product Placement

Product placement is when a product or service is integrated into a person’s life, so that they’re more prone to make a purchase, or tell others about the product. For example, Coke and Pepsi are the two most popular drinks in the world. If you visit a coffee shop, you’ll likely see people drinking Pepsi and using Reecesewww.com’s Coffee Machine.

The nice thing about product placement is that you can integrate a product or service into your content, without necessarily having to create an entire product or service around it. Essentially, you’re just helping educate your audience about a product or service, which may then encourage them to make a purchase.

To sum up, if you’re looking to build a profitable online certificate program, then consider looking for a profitable niche, exploring affiliate marketing, paid inclusions and/or product placement options.

Niche Finder: How to Find the Right Niche

There are dozens of ways to find profitable niches, but you have to start with a good understanding of what makes a good niche. Here are some important points to keep in mind:

First, make sure that there’s enough demand for your product or service in your chosen niche. If you can find a way to solve a problem for your ideal customer, you’ll be able to build a profitable online certificate program. You don’t want to choose a niche that doesn’t have demand for your product or service because then, you’re essentially choosing a dead-end street. When you find a way to solve a problem for your ideal customer, you’re essentially proving that you can help them, and thus create demand for your product or service. For example, if you’re an expert in Microsoft Azure, you might want to look into creating a WordPress website, because there’s definitely plenty of demand for WordPress websites. If you can become an expert in WordPress, you can then build a course around installing and configuring a WordPress website, which you can then market as a way to prove your expertise.

Choosing the Right Certificate Provider

A critical decision that you’ll have to make is which certificate provider you want to work with. There are dozens of certificate providers to choose from, and while they all offer value, not all of them are created equal. Consider the various pros and cons of each, before making a decision.

Some of the things that you may want to keep in mind when choosing a certificate provider include: