Let’s say you’re an association. You want to start delivering online courses for certification and credentialing for your members. You’ve heard this increases memberships and brings in non-dues revenue. Now, how do you get started? You know you need to convert your ILT to an online format. You know you need an LMS. But “FIDDLESTICKS” (Yes, I said fiddlesticks, this is a professional blog people) you exclaim as you ask yourself “What do I need in an LMS?”
eCommerce: If you’re looking to market and sell these courses, you’re going to need to be able to take payments from members and non-members alike. This means you’ll need an ecommerce system built into your LMS. You’ll want members to browse your course catalog and click “buy now.” Having the ability for your learners to purchase the courses they want when they want them without having to call someone is going to be critical, as this is an expected part of the user experience. The Knowledge Direct LMS has an ecommerce system built in allowing credit card payments through Stripe credit card processing.
Branding: The LMS you choose needs to allow you to use your own logos and branding. If it doesn’t your learners will be unsure where they have gone when they follow the link from your website to your LMS and will have less trust in your courses. Those seeking out your association for certifications, know and trust you. Keep that brand recognition going on all platforms your learners use including your LMS with the ability to brand your portal.
Custom Themes: Like the ability to upload your logos, the ability to use a custom theme that more closely resembles the website your association is currently using, greatly helps with continuity in the learner experience. This includes colors and format.
Course Catalog: For a few associations, the website is secondary to the LMS. When this happens having a course catalog that is crawlable (indexable) by Google is an invaluable asset. The course catalog page can serve as a microsite for the organization and help get your courses found. Although whether you have a website or not, a course catalog still helps you organize your course offerings, giving pricing information for both members and non-members and facilitating an online sale.
Of course, these are just the features needed for marketing and selling eLearning. Your association will have their own specific requirements in addition to these features including integration with your AMS, SCORM conformance, and mobile responsive design, among others.
Do you have questions about marketing and selling your courses online? Digitec Interactive is a full-service learning management provider offering: Project Management, IT, Content Design, Consulting, and the Knowledge Direct LMS.
Looking for a new LMS? Check out Knowledge Direct LMS for Associations.
Remember, there’s no reason to have to use old timey swearing alternatives, when choosing an LMS. Just contact us, to go from consarn it to the bees knees (which is a weird phrase since bees don’t have knee caps, their leg joints aren’t exactly knees, just knee-esque).
