Questions
Questions and answers
Everything people ask about making, selling and teaching a course with Course Mark.
Start here
Getting started
Who is Course Mark for?
First-time course creators. Write your lessons, build your sales page and take payments, all in one place, with no tech stack to glue together.
Do I need to be techy?
No. Every step is guided, and you can start from an example course that's already filled in.
How do I get an account?
Buy Course Mark and we'll email you a link to create your account. Click it, agree to the terms and start your first course right away. After that, you log in with a link sent to your email, so there's no password to remember.
What do I see when I log in?
Your dashboard. Home shows your students, sales and questions waiting across every course, what's happened lately, and a checklist to get set up. See the dashboard.
How much is it?
Intro price: $97 CAD, one time, for every course you make. That's our introductory price. No monthly fees, and no cut of your sales. See pricing.
Make it
Lessons and brand
Where do my videos live?
On YouTube, Vimeo, Loom or a similar service. Upload them there (on YouTube, set them to Unlisted), then paste the link into your lesson.
Can I paste lessons from Google Docs?
Yes. Paste them in and odd fonts, stray colours and extra spacing are tidied away, so they match your brand.
How many lessons can I add?
As many as your course needs, in as many courses as you like. Fair use applies.
Can I change a lesson after publishing?
Yes. Edit it, then publish again. Students see the update the next time they open the course.
Does every course use the same brand?
Yes. Your brand belongs to your account, so every course you make shares the same logo, colours and fonts.
Can I change my brand later?
Any time. Change it once, then open each course and publish again to update its live pages.
What should my logo look like?
A PNG with a see-through background looks best. For the tab icon, a simple square PNG works well.
Can I use my own fonts?
Yes. Pick a heading font and a body text font from more than 35 Google fonts, or start from one of six pairs made to work together, like Classic & elegant or Warm & playful. Display and handwritten fonts are for headings, so your text stays easy to read. Change them in Brand settings, or right on the Sales page tab.
Publish it
Sales page and publishing
Can I switch designs after publishing?
Yes. Pick a new design, check the preview, and publish again. Your words and photos carry over.
Do I need my own photos?
They help, but every section works without one. You can add a share image too, for when your link is posted on social media.
Where does the price come from?
From your checkout settings, so the price on your page always matches what buyers pay.
Can I change my web address later?
Yes, but links you've already shared to the old address will stop working, so it's best to pick one and keep it.
Can I use my own domain?
Yes. The Custom domain add-on ($20 CAD, one time) puts your courses on a subdomain you own, like learn.yourbusiness.com. Your main website stays where it is, and your coursemark.co links keep working.
What happens if I change the password?
Publish again and new buyers get the new password. Students who already have the old one will need the new one, so let them know.
What's the marketplace?
A public page at coursemark.co/courses where people browse courses made with Course Mark. Listing is free and optional: tick a box when you publish, untick it to come off.
Sell it
Checkout and payments
Do I need a Stripe account?
Yes. You connect it from the Publish step. If you don't have one, Stripe walks you through making one, then sends you straight back to Course Mark.
What does Stripe charge?
Stripe's standard card processing fee for your country, taken from each payment. Course Mark adds nothing on top. See Stripe's pricing page for your rate.
Can I use my own Stripe Payment Link instead?
Yes. Choose "Payment Link" in the Publish step and paste yours in. You'll send buyers their course details yourself.
How do I refund a buyer?
From your Stripe dashboard. A refund doesn't remove course access on its own, so change your course password if you need to.
Does the dashboard's sales number include Payment Link sales?
No. It counts sales through your Course Mark checkout. If you use your own Stripe Payment Link, you'll find those sales in your Stripe dashboard, and those buyers still show up in Students once they log in.
Who handles sales tax?
You do, as the seller. See how to set it up. Switch on sales tax in the Publish tab and Stripe Tax works out GST/HST or sales tax from each buyer's address and adds it at checkout. Stripe charges its own fee for this. You still register where your rules require and report what you collect.
Can buyers use a discount code?
Yes. Make the codes in your Stripe dashboard, then tick "Let buyers use discount codes" in the Publish tab. Buyers enter their code at checkout, and their receipt shows the discount. See how.
Grow it
Students and community
How do students get in?
After paying, they're emailed the course link and password. They log in with their email and that password, with nothing to download and no account to set up.
Will students lose their progress when I update the course?
No. Their progress is saved with your course, so it carries over every time you publish, and it follows them to any device.
Who shows up in my Students tab?
Everyone who buys through your Course Mark checkout, plus anyone who logs in to your course. Buyers are marked Paid, along with any extras they bought.
I take payments somewhere else. Will I still see my students?
Yes, as soon as they log in. They won't have a Paid label, so compare the list with your payments to spot anyone who shouldn't be there.
Can anyone else see my student list?
No. It's only in your builder. Students never see each other's emails.
Can I add a student who paid another way?
Yes. On the Students page, choose Add students, type their emails and tick "They've paid me another way". You can have them emailed their course link and password at the same time.
What does Remove do?
It takes them off your list and clears their progress. Students open a course with its password, so to lock someone out completely, change the password on that course's Publish tab and publish again.
Can students ask me questions?
Yes. Switch on questions and students can ask under each lesson; you get an email and reply from the builder. For a full community page with wins, hellos and reactions, add the Community add-on for a one-time $50 CAD.
Who can post?
Anyone logged in to your course. Students choose a first name to post with, and their email is never shown to other students.
Can I remove a post?
Yes. Delete any post from your Community tab, and pin the ones you want everyone to see first.
Pricing
Pricing and your account
Is it really a one-time payment?
Yes. You pay $97 CAD once, and it covers every course on your account for as long as your account is open. There are no monthly fees.
Is $97 the regular price?
No, $97 CAD is an introductory price. If the price goes up later, nothing changes for anyone who has already bought Course Mark: there's nothing more to pay.
Does publishing cost extra?
No. Publishing, your web address and hosting are all included in the one-time $97 CAD.
Are the add-ons per course?
No. Community ($50 CAD) and Custom domain ($20 CAD) are each a one-time payment that covers every course on your account, including ones you make later.
Can I add the add-ons later?
Yes. Add them when you buy Course Mark, or any time later from your builder.
What if Course Mark isn't right for me?
Email us within 14 days of buying it for a full refund. The same goes for each add-on. Refunding Course Mark closes your account and unpublishes your courses, so download a backup of anything you want to keep first.
Do prices include tax?
Prices are in Canadian dollars, plus any tax.
What does fair use mean?
Your one-time payment covers as many courses as you reasonably need for your own business. It isn't meant for building courses for clients. If your use goes far beyond what a typical creator needs, we'll contact you to talk about options before we change anything.
Can I close my account?
Yes, any time. Ask us and we'll delete your drafts and unpublish your courses within 30 days.
Still have a question?
Email us and we'll help. Already have an account? Use the Help button in your builder.