Case Study: How Dr. Sara Wickham Filled Her First Online Course (2026)

Dr. Sara Wickham is a self-employed midwife, educator, writer, and researcher. After twenty years as a midwife, lecturer, and researcher, she filled the beta of her first online course with a couple of lines in her newsletter: about 30 people replied within a couple of hours, and 23 signed up when the course opened. Her story is a lesson in audience-driven topic choice, a low-pressure beta, and a course built around discussion. She told it to us in a 2016 interview on the Ruzuku blog, and everything below about her comes from that interview.

1. Twenty Years of Teaching and a Growing Online Demand

Dr. Sara Wickham is a midwife, educator, and researcher whose PhD was on post-term pregnancy.

For years she taught in-person courses to midwives, birth workers, and other groups, and her work took her all over the world. She wrote a twice-weekly blog, ran an active Facebook page, and sent a newsletter. She was getting more and more requests to do webinars and online lectures, and she couldn’t reach everyone in person. Rather than keep doing single sessions for others, she decided to create complete online courses of her own.

The first one was hard:

• She had some experience with e-learning and webinars, but found it hard to see all the steps needed to create a complete course.
• She had so many possible topics that settling on one felt a little scary.
• She found pricing really difficult.

2. The Pivotal Week: When the Topic Chose Her

Many first-time course creators spend months agonizing over niche selection, analyzing search trends, and building speculative curriculum outlines. For Dr. Wickham, the topic emerged organically through a convergence of audience signals:

“But there was this one week where it seemed like everybody was telling me the same thing: they needed help with post-term pregnancy.”

People wanted to better help women decide whether to let labor start on its own or to have it medically induced. Sara knew the area well, because it was the topic of her PhD.

That was her niche within a niche. Rather than creating a broad survey course, she set one specific goal: help practitioners feel more confident in their own knowledge of post-term pregnancy and better able to discuss it with colleagues and clients.

3. The “Intrepid Explorers” Beta Launch Strategy

When the course was almost ready to test, Sara added a couple of lines to her newsletter. She said she was creating a course and was looking for a few “intrepid explorers” to test the beta version with her in return for a discounted price:

• Low-Pressure Collaborative Framing: She wanted a small number of eager people rather than a big group for the first run, so she didn’t make a big announcement. Calling them “intrepid explorers” made it clear the course was a test.
• Rapid Validation: She asked anyone interested to email her. Within a couple of hours she had about 30 replies.
• Launch: She kept in touch with those people while she finished the course over the next couple of weeks. When she sent out the link, 23 people signed up.

4. Course Architecture: Connection Over Content Consumption

Sara built the course around reflection and discussion rather than lectures alone. As she put it:

“People don’t sign up just to listen to me rabbiting on!”

Pillar 1: Many Chances for Reflection and Discussion

She created lots of opportunities for reflection and discussion throughout the course. On Ruzuku, discussion prompts sit inside the lessons, so students can respond right where the learning happens.

Pillar 2: Learning from Colleagues in Other Places

Her students wanted to engage with colleagues around the world, hear how things are done differently in other places, and exchange ideas and tips. Sara wanted that too: a mix of perspectives that moves everyone’s thinking forward.

Some of her beta participants were skeptical at first, because they expected an online course to feel less connected than an in-person workshop. In their evaluations, they said they loved the experience and enjoyed the connection that came from talking with others during the course.

5. Pricing: Make Your Best Guess, Then Adjust

Course creators frequently stall for weeks over pricing strategy. Sara found pricing really difficult too. Her advice is to ask others where to start, but not to waste too much time on it:

“You may need to take a deep breath, jump in with your best guess and then adjust as you go along.”

Her beta students gave her feedback that helped her refine the course for its full launch, and she planned several more courses after it.

4-Stage Healthcare & Professional Pilot Protocol

4 High-Leverage Delivery Plays

3-Tier Creator Tech Stack

Frequently Asked Questions

How did Dr. Sara Wickham fill her first online course?

She noticed that people kept asking her about post-term pregnancy, the topic of her PhD. She added a couple of lines to her newsletter asking for a few “intrepid explorers” to test a beta at a discounted price, got about 30 replies within a couple of hours, and enrolled 23 students when the course opened a couple of weeks later.

How do you choose a profitable course topic from audience questions?

Notice the intersection where multiple unrelated colleagues, readers, or clients ask for guidance on the exact clinical problem where your specialized expertise is deepest.

What is the “intrepid explorer” beta launch strategy?

It is an invitation asking engaged audience members to join an intimate first-run cohort at a special price to test curriculum and provide live feedback.

Why did Dr. Wickham build her course around discussion?

In her words, “People don’t sign up just to listen to me rabbiting on!” Her students wanted to talk with colleagues around the world and hear how things are done in other places, and beta students who expected an online course to feel less connected said in their evaluations that they enjoyed the connection.

How did Dr. Wickham handle course pricing?

She found pricing really difficult. Her advice is to get other people’s views on where to start, but not to waste too much time: make your best guess and adjust as you go.

How does Ruzuku support healthcare and clinical educators?

Ruzuku includes built-in live video rooms (60 people on camera with breakout rooms, or up to 250 in presentation mode with student cameras and mics off), lesson-anchored discussions, certificates of completion on Pro, and dedicated human student tech support.

Can educators pilot a healthcare course on Ruzuku for free?

Yes, with up to 5 students at a time, no credit card and no time limit. Ruzuku takes no transaction fees on any plan, though your payment processor’s fees still apply. A beta the size of Sara’s, with 23 students, needs Core ($83.08–$99/mo).