Introduction:
If you’re looking for a place to host your course and want it to coincide with an online community — then Skool might be what you’re looking for.
But first, I created this in-depth review to look at it’s features, the pros, cons and to decide if it’s actually a good fit for you and your needs.
After being in a tonne of Skool communities and using it myself, I’ll be taking a deep dive into everything
So, if you want to check out an in-depth review before committing to Skool, then you’re in the right place.
Here’s what I’ll be covering:
- Skool pricing
- Skool Features
- Who Skool is best for
- What other tools do you need to have alongside Skool?
- And what alternatives are there?
So, let’s get started –
What you need to know:
Skool was created by a guy called Sam Ovens.
Chances are, if you’re in the coaching space, you’ll have heard of him.
He was behind the business Consulting.com which helped coaches and consultants.
And ater working with 1000s of coaches and consultants, Sam finally decided to make software that easily and simply allowed you to have access to everything you needed to build a community and make money online.
In a very much Sam Ovens approach, everything is very straightforward, easy, and simple to use.
Skool Pricing:
The pricing is extremely simple:
$99 per month and that includes all the features (Something I’ll talk about more in a moment).
There’s also a free 14-day trial that you can use to see if it’s right for you first before making a final decision.
But one of the main things I like about this and just Skool in general is the simplicity of everything…
With a lot of software out there, they have different plans, and tiered pricing systems, and sometimes you may have a scary surprise at the end of the month when you’ve unexpectedly been charged for something you didn’t even realize you used…
Skool sidesteps all of this with its simplicity and this is a real pro for this software when compared to all of it’s other competitors.
What are some of it's best features:
Skool has 8 key features that include:
1. Community
This is arguably one of the most valuable and important aspects of Skool — and it’s the community.
This is where people can come together and collaborate with one another, post videos, photos, gifs, polls, etc.
Everything you could want from inside a community.
2. Calendar
No need to integrate Skool with Google Calendar because Skool has already got one ready and waiting for you to use.
This can be used to organize meetings and things like weekly collaboration calls amongst your community, so nobody will get confused as to when things are.
Not only that, but you have the ability to notify members when calls are happening via email.
And this is one of the most amazing things about Skool, is that it has everything you need in one place, making your life a whole lot easier.
3. Classroom
This is where you can host all of your videos and course material.
You can segment your digital product into different segmentations and then your audience can simply watch and tick when they’re done to show their progress.
Similar to a lot of other course hosting platforms like Kajabi…
4. Gamification
This is something I liked about Skool, and it’s the gamification they’ve implemented for your users.
For example – The more someone engages in your community, the more points that they will gain, and a leaderboard is then created like below:
And then you can say –
“Once you get to level 1, you will gain access to X, Y, and Z”
This is great because it incentivizes people to be active in the community, making the experience better for everyone involved.
5. Email Broadcasts
Now this is something that I’ve not seen much of when it comes to Skool, and I think this is one of the weakest areas of Skool…
And honestly, I think there are better options out there when it comes to email marketing.
Here are two other options you can choose from:
ConvertKit: Perfect if you’re a beginner and want something simple and easy to use, then you can use Convertkit. You can click here to get started for free.
ActiveCampaign: But if you’re someone who wants all the bells, whistles, and automations that your heart desires, then ActiveCampaign is the one for you. Click here to begin your 14-day free trial.
6. Chats, notifications, and profiles
A one-stop shop for all your messages and notifications inside the Skool community.
The only negative about this is that if you’re part of a lot of groups, it can become a bit overwhelming with the amount of notifications you get…
Maybe a segmented version where the notifications are specific to each group would be a better option?
7. Search function
Pretty self-explanatory.
If you can’t find something or someone in a specific group — you can simply use the search bar.
8. Metrics:
With Skool, you’re able to keep an eye on the health of your community using a centralized dashboard displaying all the metrics you need.
Observe the growth of the entire group or individual members and discover how effective your Skool community is and areas for improvement.
All of these features are included in the $99/month which is pretty good if you ask me.
It has everything you need and more.
And to be honest, if you’re someone who wants to start a community and host a course inside the community, the Skool is the perfect option.
Not only that, but a lot of consultants and coaches of today learned from Sam Ovens…
…And the community element that Sam Ovens is pushing is probably a good move going into 2024…
What are the pros and cons of Skool?
Pros:
- Ease of use: One of the biggest pros of Skool is how easy it is to use. As the saying goes: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” and that is exactly what Skool is, simple and sophisticated.
- Competitive price: If you wanted to do, you could do 95% of everything you need in your business on Skool, so it does have a wide range of useful features.
- 14 day free trial: Skool does have a 14 day free trial so you cna see if you like it first before investing your hard earned money into it.
Cons:
- Email function: I wouldn’t say the email function is bad necessarily, but there are simply better alternatives out there like Convertkit and ActiveCampaign.
- Mobile App: They do have a function and working mobile app which does the job, but I’ve found it to be a bit buggy from time to time, but I do think this is something they’re working on.
- No free plan: They do have a free trial, but no free plan. If you’re working on a budget, I’d probably suggest looking else where as there’s only one plan and it’s $99/month.
Is it easy to use?
So easy.
Out of all the softwares out there (ConvertKit, ClickFunnels, Zapier), that you may otherwise need if you have a community and course —
Skool is by far the easiest to use.
You could easily get up and running in an afternoon.
And not only that but you also have a free 14 day trial to make sure you like everything about it and it fits your needs.
Who is Skool best for?
Some of the videos on YouTube you see about Skool may make the claim that Skool is suitable for everyone.
Well, I’m here to tell you it is certainly not.
If you’re a:
- Coach
- Consultant
- Course creator
- YouTuber
- Someone who has their own audience.
Who has some kind of digital product and you also want a community to go alongside that — then Skool is most definitely for you.
Think of the likes of Hamza, Andrew Kirby, and people who have an audience + a course.
But if you’re someone who maybe has a course and you DON’T want a community — then there are better alternatives.
Or you’re someone who doesn’t even own any kind of digital product, then Skool is not for you and you can just stop reading here.
Skool Vs Facebook groups? Why switch over?
To be totally honest, Facebook groups seem to have had a bit of a resurgence in popularity/ effectiveness of reach over these last couple months.
But, I’d be lying if I said you’re better off with Facebook groups.
Because let’s face it, if you’re charging for some kind of product, service or community — Skool 100% has a more preimium feel to it.
Not only that but has more features that you can use to get the most out of your community.
What other tools do you need for your Skool community?
Honestly, to run your business, there are only 3 tools you need:
- A funnel builder on the front end to capture the leads
- Skool which you’d be using to host everything.
- And then an email software for the backend operations.
So, for the front end, I’d recommend something like Systeme.io which is perfect and has everything you need to build the funnels you need.
Then Skool… Obviously (if you fit into who suitable for).
And then for email, I’d recommend ConvertKit.
This is what I’ve used for about the past year and a half and is perfect for setting up all of you email marketing needs.
FAQ
Yep, most definitely. If you fit into the category of people who I said it’s suitable for, I’d give it a go and see if you can get the most out of it. More and more people are using it by the month and I’m sure it’s only going to get better and better.
Easily worth the money. With all the other softwares you’d be paying for — you’re realistically looking at around 300–500 dollars a month to run your whole business, not bad of you ask me!
A guy called Sam Ovens. You’ve probably heard of him. Has some banger Youtube videos that you should check out if you haven’t already.
Yep, it does. It works quite well from experience, but can sometimes be buggy. But I think this is something they’re working on.
Conclusion:
If you’ve read this far, then I can confidently say that Skool is a solid option if you’re someone who wants to build a community amongst your audience.
It has everything you need and more to get started and give your audience a first-class experience with your community and courses that you can host inside as well.
So, if you wanted to get started for FREE –
If you have any questions, comment below and I’ll make sure to get back to you.
