10 Tips for Successfully Creating an Online Course in Learning Management Systems
Learning Management Systems (LMSs) are software platforms that help educators create, deliver, and track online courses, programs, and degrees in higher education. Some LMSs, like Canvas and Moodle, are open source and free to use by educators around the world; others are proprietary and cost money to license or maintain. Whether you’re an educator or someone who wants to create and deliver an online course on your own time and at your own pace, this guide will help you navigate the features available in each LMS and successfully implement it into your curriculum.
1) Explain Why People Should Take Your Class
Explain why people should take your class, and be sure to clarify how it will help them achieve their goals. Make sure you back up your claims with evidence, including any expert testimonials or statistics. (Trying to offer a business course but have no experience with business? Don’t pretend you do – instead, highlight how your skills could translate.) Keep in mind that people are more likely to take action if they understand how they can benefit from something; conversely, if they don’t see any value in what you’re offering, chances are they won’t even read through to learn more.
2) Make the Title Memorable
If you’re going to create a learning management system, it’s important to design something that is relevant and easy to use. One way of creating a well-designed learning management system is by making sure your course title and descriptions are compelling enough to keep people engaged. Simple titles can help students focus on what they need to know without getting lost in all of your information. Other tips include adding images and videos throughout your course, using consistent formatting across all pages, including easy-to-follow navigation buttons, and using correct grammar as mistakes will distract students from reading content.
3) Include an Informative Description
In a learning management system (LMS), you have to make sure that your course is well-organized, informative, and helpful. Your LMS is where all of your students will spend most of their time during your course; therefore, it’s important to include valuable content as well as engaging activities that allow you to keep track of your students’ progress. If you are new to creating online courses in a learning management system (LMS), here are 10 tips that will help you successfully create an online course.
4) Use Appropriate Keywords
Search engines like Google are going to be your primary traffic source. Make sure that your keyword choice is relevant to those who would be looking for information on learning management systems (LMS). It’s best to focus on one or two keywords at most and make sure they are relevant to your target audience. As always, you can’t go wrong by choosing popular, mainstream search terms. If possible, use a keyword tool such as Google AdWords Keyword Planner or Ubersuggest Pro which will help you determine what people are searching online and will also offer suggestions based on what others have used before. Once you pick your keywords and set up your content with them, it’s time to move onto another important aspect of SEO – Backlinks!
5) Add Screenshots and Video Clips
Learning to use your LMS can be a complex, arduous process. Add-ons like simulations, video clips and interactive activities can create immersive online courses that help learners retain information. When you’re planning your course, you might want to include some screenshots or video clips of certain activities within it (as well as other learning materials), so that viewers understand what they’ll be seeing. When you link to specific videos and other resources related to your topic, keep a list of all of them for later reference (and incorporate them into your document). This way, if someone has questions about any part of it after you publish it, they can reach out to you directly with their questions.
6) Create a Compelling Call to Action
Before you even begin creating your online course, think about what you want people to do when they click on play. Are you inviting them to purchase a product? Do you want them to sign up for a newsletter or opt-in list? Do you just want them to watch? What is your goal, and how can video help achieve it? Consider using your video content as an effective call-to-action (CTA) tool by adding pre-rolls, mid-rolls and post-rolls. Not only will these CTAs increase conversion rates, but they also give viewers another reason to keep watching. Use creative techniques like videos that ask questions, provide tips or create curiosity.
7) Use a Quality Learning Management System
The most important thing to keep in mind when designing your online course is that you want to make it as simple as possible. A learning management system (LMS) is a robust and scalable solution that has been tried, tested, and perfected over years of use. When you’re choosing your platform, pick one that provides everything you need to create a successful online class: video lectures, quizzes, student assessments, instructor-led discussions—you name it. If something important is missing from your current solution or if you have to purchase additional software just to pull off what should be a basic feature set, look elsewhere. You don’t want make learning difficult; no one wants that!
8) Don’t Forget About SEO
You’ve invested a lot of time and effort into creating your online course. But have you spent time planning how people will find it? Search engine optimization, or SEO, is a powerful tool that many marketers overlook when building their course because they mistakenly think it doesn’t apply to them. The reality is that more than 90 percent of students learn about educational programs through search engines like Google and Bing. Getting found by potential students means optimizing your content and distribution channels with terms relevant to your industry—like online training programs or learning management systems—so that it can be found organically by individuals actively searching for information on these topics.
9) Ask For Feedback (And Respond!)
Sharing your idea with people you trust and/or admire is a good way to get some early feedback. That doesn’t mean you should ask them if they like it—if that’s what you’re after, just go straight to your target audience and ask them yourself. Instead, solicit more general feedback on how they feel about your idea, why they feel that way and anything else they think might be relevant. If any of their responses surprise or shock you (it happens), make sure to follow up so that you can address any concerns quickly and professionally.
10) Keep Updating, Testing, and Improving
Don’t launch your course and assume you’ve covered everything. Even if you’re relatively confident that what you have is a high-quality product, remember that people have different learning styles. And even though you wrote it yourself, it will be hard to foresee every possible way someone could misunderstand something or miss out on a key concept. As with all good projects, it’s important to keep updating, testing, and improving your course as feedback rolls in from students. The biggest improvement of all may come from working with other educators who can bring new ideas to your table—and students who are looking at things from an entirely different perspective than your own.