Feedback on idea around a GAS learning platform

[David Gentile]

First off want to extend my well wishes to everyone in these tough times. Hope everyone is staying safe.

I was hoping to gather some feedback from this developer community on an idea I'm developing around building a learning platform focused on Google Apps Script and GSuite Automation. The interest in this field seems to be rapidly growing and I feel there's a demand for more learning resources from the community. There's a lot to learn, especially if you're just starting out coding in general, and I feel there needs to be more content out there for the community to pull from. I do want to acknowledge those in the community already contributing to this, most notably Ben Collins whose content really jump started my journey into GAS.

What I'm envisioning is a learning platform quite similar to what they've build at egghead.io. They offer short-form, focused tutorials on various web development technologies through a subscription service. A lot of content is free but there is also a paid "pro" level that unlock premium content, as well as various other enhancements (downloads, community access, etc).

For those new to Google Apps Script it would give them the building blocks they need to get going and answers to questions many of us have spent hours down the Google-hole trying to figure out. For those more experienced I see this as a continuous learning space where you can pick up new tips and tricks to add to your developer toolkit.

Now the other feature of egghead.io that I really like is that they invite outside "instructors" to produce content. These instructors are paid royalties based on how many views their videos get (see more details here: https://howtoegghead.com/instructor/royalties/).

I love this because I think there is so much experience and knowledge developers like yourself have that I would love to share with the greater community. I certainly don't know everything so would love to see those in the community contribute to the learning platform with your hard-earned skills and best practices.

For instructors this provides you with a platform to share your material without building it all yourself. It would provide not only a monetary compensation but also a way for you to build your credibility and online influence.

Is this something you would be interested in? Either as a consumer or as an instructor?

I am very open to feedback at this stage as I'm trying to validate this idea before diving in too deep. Other ideas I have around this are a mentor service where people can be paired with a mentor while learning; a developer/freelance marketplace where companies can connect with developers for projects; corporate training workshops... etc.

Thanks for your time and I appreciate any and all responses!

[cbmserv...@gmail.com]

Hi David,

 

I think this is a great idea! I am all for it. Tips and tricks is what I would be looking for as a consumer of the platform.

 

How do you plan to monetize it?

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[David Gentile]

Mainly through offering "premium" content/courses. It's how most of these learning sites operate. I personally would have loved to have a dedicated place I could go to learn about specific topics within GAS or keep up to date on the latest developments.

But like I said there's a lot of other ideas I've got that could be built off of the platform. For example, having a "bootcamp" style course where you take in a group of students, lead them through a set course schedule, and also have mentoring could be very useful for those new to GAS.

I could imagine bigger companies wanting to do customized workshops for staff, or looking to have bespoke automation done.

Anything else from your perspective that would make you go "shut up and take my money!" 😂

On Tue, Mar 24, 2020 at 5:04 PM <cbmserv...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi David,

 

I think this is a great idea! I am all for it. Tips and tricks is what I would be looking for as a consumer of the platform.

 

How do you plan to monetize it?

 

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David Gentile

[Alex]

You can count on me if it comes to localization in Russian.

I'm also in the process of developing an unweighted pay-for-content approach.

There are many reputable experts on the forum, whose opinion can determine the path to popularizing technology (GAS I mean).

Best, Alex.

[Michael O'Shaughnessy]

As a "consumer" having a dedicated GSuite/GAS learning site would be fantastic.  I have looked at Udemy and Udacity  and others, but they really don't have specific courses or they are too basic or they are over my head.  

So I am very interested in seeing where this concept goes.

I would also offer maybe integrating a way for someone to submit an idea of what they want to learn.  For example I know I am going to have questions on how to actually fully test an add on before it is published.  Having never done anything like this it would be great to "take a course" specifically on this topic.

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[David Gentile]

That ability to request topics is something I would definitely want to have. Maybe a voting board where users can submit and vote on topics.

Thank you very much for the feedback! Will keep you posted.

[Doug Henningsen]

Did this every find any legs?  I only see one item on egghead.io.  Great idea...or maybe there's simply too much content on YouTube (or other)...but I'm sure it's not very structured.

[David Gentile]

Hey Doug.

Idea never did get legs. My feeling is the market is quite niche still and there are quite a few resources out there.

Check out Ben Collin’s courses (https://benlcollins.com) for a structured and well done resources.

David Gentile