Teach More, Earn More: The Power of Building a Channel

Every teacher on Skillshare has a different path to success.  Teaching is an evolutionary process that requires a fair amount of iteration and experimentation. Every teacher on Skillshare - including top teachers - has had their ups and downs as they learn which class topics, formats, and teaching styles resonate most with their students. It’s important to remember that not every class you publish will be a hit; what matters most is that you continue to experiment, put content out there, and observe what aligns best with your audience. When teachers develop a whole suite of classes (what we call a “channel”), they are able to compound their earnings, making more and more money over time. Take it from top-earning Motion Graphics Teacher Jake Bartlett:

“Each time I post a new class, all of my existing student followers receive an email notification with a "watch now" prompt. Having a portion of my followers watch my new class helps get my class trending on the class listing page. On top of that, anyone who is finding me for the first time through a new class, naturally discovers the other classes I'm teaching--so my older classes get a boost as well since new students are watching my older classes. It's a snowball effect and it only gets bigger as you add more classes to your channel.”  

What you might not know is that a large portion of many teachers’ monthly earnings comes from their older classes. To give you a sense of how your earnings might look once you've developed a suite of classes, here's an example of a real-life Skillshare teacher who continues to see a considerable return on her older classes each month because she has continued to stay active on the platform.

Notice how when the teacher had one class in her channel (in August), she only received earnings from that one class. However, as she began publishing new classes on a monthly basis, she continued to see return on her older classes. While her total earnings for new classes fluctuated month over month based on the popularity of each new class, her older classes consistently provided her with a predictable income cushion. In January, she received more revenue from her older classes than any other month because she published her most popular new class to date, driving many new followers to her older content. 

Teaching regularly and building a channel is the best way to compound your monthly payout and earn even more from your existing content. Learn more about maximizing your earnings in our Teacher Handbook, and get started on your next class today.