Online education is big business these days.

Revenues are projected to reach $100 billion by year’s end with an expected growth rate of around 20% each year thereafter.

Talk about a hot market.

This wasn’t always the case though. The business of online education started off with more of a sputter than a bang.

One person who saw the vision of what it could be was Gagan Biyani, co-founder of Udemy.com.

Since the company’s 2010 inception, they’ve grown to now offer over 25,000 courses to 6 million users in 190 countries worldwide

…and managed to raise almost $50 million in funding.

Up until then, the online education space was about as exciting as a knitting convention. So why choose such a risky market?

Gagan says early competitors failed to make an impact because they were too early. And because classes are such a big commitment, the quality needs to be just right.

Classes include hours of video, group discussions and projects to complete. And then there are those mind-numbing quizzes and exams.

It just ain’t a sexy way to spend your time.

Biyani explains that up until just a few short years ago, people weren’t ready to dive into that kind of commitment.

“I think things have really changed. And so we think that people are much more willing to use the Web to learn than they were say even three years ago. So I think timing is a huge thing.”   – Gagan Biyani

Sticking point #2 was the quality of the learning environments themselves.

According to Biyani, most who were in the online education space came from an educational background. They had no consumer internet or social media experience.

People want to learn, but they want to be entertained at the same time.

“When you look at companies like Blackboard or Moodle or whatever, they have products that look like they were built in the 1950s. Like before computers were even invented…”

That’s where Gagan believed Udemy could be different.

By doing all the things that traditional educational outlets weren’t.

  • Designing an incredible user experience – A beautiful, intuitive interface where people come to learn and can actually enjoy the process.
  • Engaging with millions of students worldwide – Offering affordable courses that anyone can take to increase their income and grow their career.
  • Showcasing the expertise in all of us – Everyone from economics professors to housewives can create courses and share their “real word skills” online.

Biyani says a lot of investors thought he was crazy.

“They still do. Fortunately some of them are willing to make the leap into our vision.”

During the interview, Gagan gives a detailed account of how he made it all happen by sharing his biggest wins and lessons learned along the way.

He also lays out a foolproof 9-step plan to turn your startup dreams into reality. If you’re looking for tons of actionable advice and no BS, then you just hit pay dirt.

Check out the interview below for all the details…