Our customer spotlight for this month will add a touch of color and joy to your day! Dianne Mize brings a brightness to dozens of students through her LearnDash courses, all of which center around the principles of painting.

Dianne Mize is an artist who began teaching online after her retirement. She started her online business by sending out one-hour downloadable lessons every week and then later pivoted to a livestream format. Eventually, she wondered to herself, “Why not start an online academy and open access to these lessons?”

And she did! Learn how she set up her academy and the learning curve along the way. You’ll also take a peek into her courses! By the end of this blog, you’ll probably want to try a course of hers yourself, and you may feel inspired to design and launch your own course (one that shows off your passions!)

Dianne’s Passion for Teaching and Art

Dianne has always been an artist, and has immersed herself in drawing, painting, sculpting, and printing her whole life. She’s received AA, BA, BFA, and MFA academic degrees with focuses on Painting and Music. Her expertise and credibility doesn’t stop there: she is a published author, conducted many workshops and seminars, and created over 703 videos on her YouTube channel with 137,000 subscribers. 

Her passion for art flows into both professional and personal areas of her life. When it came time for her retirement in 2007, Dianne wanted to continue fueling her passion through teaching.

Now, with Dianne Mize Academy, Dianne offers 22 master courses (and 3 mini courses) by utilizing LearnDash. Her rapidly growing number of students tells us that she is doing something right: she built a custom course that offers value to students (and makes their lives more beautiful). 

Her Passion Fueled Community with a LearnDash Course

For Dianne, a big factor in choosing an LMS was the percentage of income that companies took. LearnDash competitors take a percentage of earnings, which is how she narrowed down her options.

She discovered LearnDash and knew it offered the most flexibility for her growing business. She also knew that it would be a learning curve. However, the freedom for flexibility and profit were more important, so she took the time to learn the platform. 

Setting up Dianne Mize Academy with LearnDash didn’t take place in a day. Rather, time and effort went into the planning and execution of each course and lesson. She began in July 2022, but it took a while to get everything organized. And when she got organized and grew her course offerings, she found that a growing and vibrant community was waiting for her. 

Her community of students come from all walks of life. Many of them wanted to go into painting early in life, but chose a more practical route. Her students consist of both retired professionals and younger adults who are working, such as nurses, lawyers, and teachers. She has opened doors for students who always wanted to paint.

Her courses fuel a community of students from all over the world who are hungry to learn. Through educating her students on painting methods and techniques, students learn new skills while creating a vibrant social circle. In addition to her academy on LearnDash, she offers 15-person workshops, 1:1 sessions, study halls, and group sessions. This variety of offerings helps strengthen the curiosity in her students, and strengthens her community as a whole. 

Big Milestones and Tangible Impact

Today, Dianne Mize Academy offers 22 full length courses, 3 mini courses, and a handful of free concept lessons. She continues to add courses to her academy, which helps her grow student retention and profit. And, her students can continue to refine their painting craft with continued access to great teaching!

The academy has 400 active students worldwide (and growing!) These students are highly engaged and are enthusiastic, serious learners. Her course content integrates perfectly with additional workshops to create long-term value. Through the years, Dianne has found the perfect mix to create a supportive, curious, and judgment-free community.

Dianne continues to use her YouTube channel to drive awareness for her academy. A YouTube channel is a powerful source to find and recruit new students. It is one of many marketing strategies you can implement to grow your business. 

Inside Her Courses

Let’s step inside her courses. Dianne might inspire you to leverage these LearnDash features to engage students.

Consistent and Branded Design

LearnDash gives Dianne the ability to stay consistent to the look and feel of her brand. Her courses include her colors, logo, and more which strengthens her brand and improves credibility. 

With each page, LearnDash offers a seamless way to create branded courses with drag-and-drop course builder, style customizer, templates, and other features. 

Embed Videos and Upload Assignments

Dianne uses various components to help engage students in her courses. She inputs videos into each lesson to show students a specific skill. You can also submit assignments directly in the lesson. LearnDash even lets you approve, comment, and award points on submitted assignments!

Submit Questions and Send Notes

She includes areas for students to submit their questions, which is embedded directly into the lesson. It makes gathering and answering questions a breeze. 

Dianne also uses the notes add-on to provide feedback to students. This add-on integrates easy notetaking and two-way communication tools directly into the course, opening up the lines of communication with students.

The Dianne Mize Academy Creates a Vibrant Community

Dianne’s 400+ students are a testament to her academy’s success. She had a dream to teach the principles of painting after retirement. With some research, she found that LearnDash was the most scalable and flexible option. She took time to learn about LearnDash and created 22+ courses that generate revenue and community. You can do it next!

If you can see yourself running an online academy and sharing your passion, then give LearnDash a try in our demo! We also have add-ons to customize your course for your needs. If you have any questions about making your course a reality, we’re always here to help!