Most businesses are reliant upon suppliers. Many have the luxury of choosing from multiple suppliers while others do not. Remaining at the behest of a single supplier is not an enviable position for any business, however, in some industries, there is no other option.
It cannot go without being stated how the importance and impact this one decision will have on the success of your learning business.
It all starts with your organization's goals and objectives. Once you know where you are going, you can map your way there. The start of that map is your Learning Management System (LMS). Regardless of how great or well-reviewed an LMS may be, if its features and functions do not align with your core and departmental objectives, then you will start from a weakened position.
The right learning platform must support your learning business and benefit instructors, learners, and ultimately your learning business. The features that you require to meet desired outcomes should serve to improve all aspects of your learning business. Further, if your LMS is not using innovative learning models, consider moving on to the new one.
How to Choose the Right LMS for Your Learning Businesses
By this point, you should have consulted with all of the stakeholders in your learning business to determine their needs:
- User-experience/ Learner-experience
- Development
- Admins
- Instructors
- Marketing
- Facility Managers
Now that you have aligned your departmental goals with your core objectives, you can proceed to commence the research required to find an LMS that fits your mold.
As with any software, the features can run in the hundreds, so knowing the core requirements from the ones that are simply nice to have, will keep you focused.
Here is a list of 99 different features that an LMS might offer.
Features of a Well-Designed LMS
Understanding that engagement is the key to the best outcomes for both learner and vendor, your LMS should offer only the most innovative features currently being used in the learning industry.
These features are essential for designing engaging and interactive courses that support the best outcomes and ultimately sell courses online.
Your Top 5 Learning Management System Features are:
- Robust Learner Analytics
- Adaptive and Personalized learning models
- Integrations and Compatibilities
- Support
- Investment
Robust Learner Analytics
You need to follow the path of your learners, and understand if they are clicking on the resources they require of them. Do they spend enough time or too little time with course material? This will provide you with insights into your learner’s engagement with course material and allow to you make changes to better engage your learners.
Alternatively, you may be wondering why some courses excel in sales, while others lag? Because analytics reports are generated using visual graphics, it is easy to spot patterns and trends within your data that provide answers.
Adaptive and Personalized Learning Models
A true sign of a forward-thinking LMS is one that remains on the cutting edge of technological trends within the learning industry. Learner experience is paramount and models like Microlearning, Flipped Classroom and H5P keep the learners engaged and on track to completion.
"Using LMS features such as gamification, learning scenarios, and simulation can increase employee engagement by up to 92% (Matrix Blog, 2017)"
This will also provide you with data that will shape your future goals and the processes of your organization that support course sales. If you plan to sell online courses, this is a must-have, hands-down.
Learn more about Adaptive and Personalized Learning Models
Integrations
As a technology company, you likely already have an assortment of integrations that allows your business to operate more efficiently. They allow systems and languages to speak to one another and exchange data. The same is true for an LMS. If you haven’t yet, take stock of your current integration software and ensure that your LMS supports them.
Support
Do not underestimate the amount of support you will need when implementing a new LMS or upgrading from a current one. A reliable LMS partner will not only provide outstanding customer support but will train and mentor their clients to success.
Support varies from vendor to vendor:
- Email support
- Live support
- Dedicated support
- Any combination of the above
Investment
Here are the questions that you need to ask yourself when it comes to considering the investment into your new LMS.
- Should I go with open source or proprietary software?
- Is support included in the fee or is there an additional subscription?
- In addition to LMS support, do I require in-house maintenance?
- Should I license or rent?
Pricing Models
You also need to determine which pricing model suits your unique requirements best.
Pay Per User – there is a fee for every person that uses the service
Pay Per Registered User – there is a fee for each user registered with the LMS
Pay Per Active User – the fee is only for users who actively use the LMS
There are two manners with which to approach this LMS pricing model.
The first is to charge for each user who accesses the LMS during the billing cycle. Then, once the user logs in, they have access to your complete online training course catalog, which is included in the price. The second approach is to charge for each active user on a monthly basis.
Lambda Suite offers a large assortment of LMS integrations for your learning business.
How Your LMS Decision Impacts Your Business
What you decide will either positively or negatively impact the business.
It is imperative at this stage that you spend the time necessary to determine your requirements and ensure you do not compromise your objectives for convenience.
Knowing what each stakeholder requires to improve their job and make their department more efficient is always a primary goal. Having easy-to-read reporting analytics at your fingertips will reveal your weaknesses, allowing you to adapt and make enhancements that will improve learner outcomes and ultimately allow you to further create and sell online courses. You can sell online courses from your own website, but your LMS needs to have these models to support your course sales.
Everyone knows that learning is personal and not every student learns the same. Having an LMS that provides engaging and innovative learning strategies such as H5P or AR/VR learning, gives your learners a choice.
The benefit of having integrations that align with the ones you are already using will save a lot of time and resources. Ensuring a level of support that calibrates with the level of support you expect you will need, also plays a very important role in how your LMS impacts your business.
What Reports One Should Measure for Growth in Learning Business
That is the big question, isn’t it?
At least as far as analytical reporting is concerned. For a learning business, there are some universally basic reports that require your attention if you plan to learn how to sell online courses more effectively. They include:
Maximum selling course - This is the most purchased course in your catalog
Completed order - When a user or learner successfully registers for a course
Bundle sell - This displays your bundled course sales
Unit sell - Single course sale
Renewal - Primarily used to update an expired certification
Cancellation - When an enrolled student cancels and deregisters
Cart abandonment - When a user considered enrolling by adding one or more of your courses to their cart and backed out before completing the buying process
Do not underestimate the importance of these reports, having them is often the difference between success and failure.
Final Thoughts
Determining whether your current LMS is up to the job is not an easy responsibility to approach. Taking on the task of determining exactly what each person and department needs to succeed is an important one. But if you don’t do this, how many sales could you be missing out on?
Your journey in finding a new, reliable partner will not be a quick one. Hopefully, we have you started on the right footing. Find out how Lambda Suite can make your learning business thrive!
If you are looking for an innovative partner to show you how to sell online courses, look no further. Book your free, no-obligation consultation today and one of our support mentors will be happy to get started.
