Most of us have signed up for an online course that now sits gathering digital dust in our inbox. You know the one, bought with good intentions, started with enthusiasm, and quietly abandoned somewhere around module two.
Most online courses weren’t built for how humans actually learn. They’re built for how algorithms reward performance: more modules, more PDFs, more promises.
At The Portal, we’re building something different, spaces where learning feels alive again. Here’s how to create an online course that doesn’t feel like homework, and what makes our approach stand apart.
Founder Sally Burns explains:
“The online learning world is filled with digital waste. People are creating and consuming at such a pace that genuine connection, the thing that helps us actually learn, gets lost. What we’re building in The Portal is intentional creation that fosters curiosity and community.”Most course creators don’t fail because their content isn’t good enough. They fail because their structure mirrors a classroom instead of a genuine conversation. Passive watching. Solo progress. No feedback loops.
Completion rates across traditional platforms average just 3-15%. Not because people don’t care, but because the experience doesn’t feel meaningful.
So much of the digital learning industry has turned into factory learning, a conveyor belt of content where creators are encouraged to push out more, faster.
At The Portal, we see another way:
- No endless PDFs no one opens
- No rigid module sequences that punish curiosity
- No hustle to keep up with arbitrary “launch cycles”
Instead, we ask: what do you actually want to teach? And what do you wish existed in the world?
You don’t need to create a perfect, polished “product.” You need to create a living, breathing experience where your community can grow with you.
The Portal is not another course platform. It’s a learning ecosystem, a space where teaching looks more like tending a garden than managing a classroom.
We use interactive tools that make it simple to build learning experiences rooted in play, reflection, and real connection. Think prompts that spark conversation, spaces to share progress creatively, and course structures that allow for natural pacing.
“Growing organically means in every sense of the word,” Sally says. “Don’t aim to have a perfect offering. Aim to have an alive one.”
When you join The Portal, we invite you to:
🌱 Start small. Create a single resource or a short guided experience, instead of a whole 12-week curriculum.
🌱 Stay close to your learners. Keep in contact through your community space, ask questions, celebrate their progress, share your own learning too.
🌱 Build space into your course. Give participants breathing room. Tasks don’t have to be mandatory to be meaningful.
🌱 Encourage joyful sharing. Photos, journal snippets, voice notes, these are learning tools too.
🌱 Focus on emergence rather than completion.
What matters isn’t that everyone finishes, it’s that they feel changed by what they experienced.
Traditional course marketing focuses on scarcity. We focus on connection.
When you build inside The Portal, your offering is automatically part of a collective ecosystem. Learners who join one experience can naturally discover another. There’s no need for funnels or fear tactics, just genuine curiosity and cross-pollination.
“No follower requirements. No algorithm to fight. Just meaningful connection and sophisticated tools to share your wisdom.” Sally, founder of The Portal
Creating online courses doesn’t have to feel like homework, for you or your participants. It can feel like an unfolding conversation, a shared experiment, a seed planted in a thriving ecosystem.
If you’re ready to build something that feels more alive, more communal, and more aligned with how people actually learn, join us.
Limited offer: £45 a month for a 6 month commitment or £450 for a year, locking in current pricing.
This is more than software; it’s a movement toward sustainable digital growth, ethical technology, and communities that nurture rather than extract.
If you’re ready to create in a way that feels aligned, connected, and regenerative, we’d love to have you with us.
