Learning Management Systems, aka LMS, works as a training platform to develop, deliver, and track your online courses. Thanks to their effectiveness and ease of use, LMS plugins helps millions of learners break down geographical barriers and access training anytime.
COVID-19 pandemic has brought a huge opportunity for LMS due to social distancing rules. It’s stated in the Valuates Reports that the Learning Management System market will reach over 7.5 million by 2026, accounting for a 22.8% increase in the period 2021-2026.
As a matter of fact, choosing a suitable LMS plugin is not always an easy task. The quality of your learning management system can facilitate or ruin a project.
That’s why in this article, we’ll point out the top 5 mistakes you usually make when selecting a WordPress LMS plugin. But before we start, let’s discuss some benefits of hosting training content online as well as the consequences of making a wrong LMS decision.
- Benefits of Hosting Training Content Online
- #1 Fall to Establish Expectations
- #2 Create Poor User-Experience
- # 3 Require Additional Costs
- # 4 Limit Integration Capability
- #5 Analytic Ignorance
Benefits of Hosting Training Content Online
Unlike face-to-face training, online courses come as a more cost-effective solution. You can reduce the expense spent on physical copies of books, notes, and professors. Certifications provided online can also be used in job-posting websites or social media.
Plus, online training fits the schedules of every student all over the world. Learners have the right to decide when to start, continue, or finish their courses without affecting their personal workload.
On top of that, progress reports give you a big picture of how effective your teaching programs are. You’re able to determine which types of courses should be improved or which test and quiz must need adjustments. If students are not satisfied with their results, assessments can be retaken too.
Effects of Choosing The Wrong WordPress LMS Plugin
As mentioned, an effective LMS solution is considered as the determinant of an e-learning business that can decide your ROI in the long run. A simple yet efficient learning management system plugin assists you in creating a perfect educational environment for learners.
“Every decision has a direct price to be paid”. If you make the wrong one, you lose all your time and budget put into the system. As a consequence, you must start all over again with a new platform.
To avoid this scenario, we come up with the 5 most common mistakes that e-learning business owners often make when launching their courses.
#1 Fall to Establish Expectations
There is a huge gap between what you want and reality. Every business owner always dreams of a rapid jump in revenue, quickly achieved milestones, and responsible collaborative teams.
As a matter of fact, “starting a business isn’t what you think”. And the same thing goes for online education providers. Setting too big goals might lead to losing timelines as well as missing milestones.
To steer clear of these types of mistakes, make sure you examine your LMS providers carefully and you both are on the same page. If you have any concerns, don’t be afraid of asking for clarification. The better you understand the platform, the easier it’s for you to set business goals. Ask yourself these questions before discussing with your LMS vendor:
- What are your 3 most important milestones and when should they be reached?
- Does the platform a freemium or a premium version only?
- Does it require additional fees after implementation?
- Are you willing to discuss this with the provider during the implementation process?
#2 Create Poor User-Experience
The satisfaction of learners proves a clear-cut winner in running an online class. Your students should be able to access learning materials, take tests, and interact with instructors and other learners easily.
In fact, some LMS plugins make it strenuous for students to log in, find teaching videos, or take assignments. It’s because the system’s interface somehow is updated without any announcement or guidelines. Because of these complex interfaces and minor technical issues, students will run out of steam in your program for sure.
Bear in mind to keep things as simple as possible. You can offer a clear and concise navigation menu. Don’t focus too much on the features and forget the usability. Some plugins give numerous features a lot of which don’t apply to your organization.
# 3 Require Additional Costs
When searching for the term “LMS” in the WordPress plugin directory, more than 250 results show up. And about Envato Market host about 100 plugins. You have a vast choice of free LMS plugins enabling you to add online classes function to your WordPress site.
Some plugins allow you to freely download and install on your site. However, only basic features are accessible. You have to pay a certain amount of money to upgrade to the Pro version and extend its premium functionalities. Add-ons are also another way that LMS vendors make money from their free users.
You need to estimate the cost carefully before making the decision. Don’t just look at the price of the based platform. Free solutions sometimes cost you a lot more money when adding add-ons or upgrading, compared to premium ones.
# 4 Limit Integration Capability
Integration capability should be especially taken into accounts. LMS plugins themselves never fully create an online class without help from third-party solutions. You need help from supporting plugins to handle a membership site, payroll, and training material protection.
Integrating your platform with social media like LinkedIn or Facebook also comes as a smart idea to enable students to share their completed courses as well as certifications. This word-of-mouth marketing method makes your training program more viral effortlessly.
#5 Analytic Ignorance
Believing or not, reports play a key role in analyzing the effectiveness of your online courses along with learners’ satisfaction. However, this feature is usually underestimated.
Reports tell you how well instructors are performing, whether you meet your goals, or where need improvement. There are various types of reports, including revenue graphs, completed courses data, or a breakdown of which tests best classify student’s levels.
Paying attention to creating training videos and documents is not enough. Always checking the analytics to make sure everything is running smoothly in the right direction. You can base on them to improve productivity and boost online training ROI.
Don’t Let These Mistakes Ruin Your Online Training Business
Online training is becoming a trendy learning method due to the growth of technology and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. It allows you to hassle-freely deliver knowledge to students without geographical barriers.
Picking a perfect LMS platform is a tough row to hoe that can lead to the success or failure of your online training businesses. There is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Your responsibility is to minimize the mistakes while selecting your ideal solutions.
Don’t set too high expectations otherwise you fail to achieve your goals right at the beginning. The ease of use of LMS platforms should be highly considered since it influences learner experiences directly. Other important factors are additional costs, integration capability, and reports.
Are there any other LMS mistakes that you would like to talk about? Share with us your experience in the comment box below.
