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Step 2: Learning Management Solutions
A learning management system (LMS) or online course platform organizes content in a typical course structure with modules, lessons, and quizzes. They also often have progress tracking, which helps your learners track what they’ve already completed and what’s still left.
In this video, you’ll learn about the different options you have for your learning management system. You can also choose from a membership site plugin.
You’ll want to choose your learning management solution before you move on. You don’t have to start paying for it now just yet, but make sure you have tried out the solutions you’re most interested in and have decided what you will use. If that solution offers a trial, get your account ready. You can start with many of these for free and then upgrade when you’re ready.
Here are the resources mentioned in the video:
Transcript –
A learning management system or LMS organizes content in a typical course structure with modules, lessons, and quizzes. They also often have progress tracking which helps your learners keep track of what they’ve already completed and what’s still left.
Since you’re building a digital training business, I recommend selecting the LMS you plan to use before you consider any other tools. It’s the core of your business so you need to have this sorted out pretty early on. Plus many options offer several tools all in one so by choosing your LMS, in some cases, you may be choosing additional tools you can cross off the list.
I’ve got a great article put together on selecting an LMS on coursemethod.com for more information, and I’ll link to it below this video.
As crazy as it may sound, you can choose between using an LMS or not using one.
I’ve interviewed several successful course creators who are not using an LMS. I’ve also chosen not to use an LMS for one of my online course businesses. So I have to mention this as an option.
For my business I didn’t actually choose this route specifically, but because I started so long ago there were no LMS options available. I’ve kept it this way because I created a complex course that cannot be adapted to an LMS without a lot of custom work.
Instead of using an LMS, you can start creating pages with whatever site builder you choose (like WordPress, Square space, or even Dreamweaver). Then you’ll need to figure out how to put your pages behind a password-protected area that only allows the people who buy to have access.
The password protection part can often be solved with what’s called a membership site solution. So for the purposes of relating this back to my guide, I call no LMS a membership site solution. Your course can still look like a course in every way, you’re just not using an official LMS to build it out.
I use amember to protect my pages. It was the ‘in thing’ a long time ago. They’re still in business and it works so I’ve kept it. As an alternate suggestion, Memberspace has been recommended by a few of the successful course creators I’ve interviewed. It works independently of any site builder or content management system. You can use it with anything which is nice. If I were to switch away from amember, I’d look into Memberspace. And another one I like the looks of (but have never tried) is memberstack.com.
Here’s a chart showing you three factors involved in choosing a membership site solution (or no LMS).
With a membership site solution, you’ll have to piece everything together, which can be good and bad. For one, you can find the best tool for the job. So you have as much level of control using this option as possible.
For example, if you need quizzes, you can incorporate another solution with quizzing capabilities that outshine those within an LMS.
You can connect up any e-commerce solution and possibly get whatever you want out of that connection.
I find that although none of the all-in-one solutions offer the best for any tool, they do work fine, especially when you’re first starting.
If we look at tech ability though, which is represented here as ease of use that’s not so much.
It’s such a tech headache to piece everything together that your tech ability will need to be much higher if you choose not to use an LMS. It may also result in a poor user experience unless you spend a lot of time on it.
And the tech headache comes from integrating all these different systems as much as from having to build something that resembles an LMS. So you have to build out all your modules, lessons, and quizzes and may have to use different tools for them too.
Lastly, your costs may be much higher if you choose this option. That’s because typically you’re piecing several tools together (each with its own cost). I do want to point out that you can do this inexpensively. That is possible, but most people who go this route, are typically outspending someone who gets a reasonably priced plan from an LMS provider.
Again, there are benefits. The main one is that you can have a completely customized solution. So your level of control is high. I use top quiz software purchased separately and then built a custom solution for a dashboard that displays client scores to them. This is something I could never do with an out-of-the-box solution.
If you’ve got a lot of ideas and have the time and money and none of the LMS out-of-a-box solutions fit your needs then you might want to create your own LMS.
I really only suggest this if you have a lot of requirements, but there are people who do set up simple solutions going this route. However, I’m not sure what the benefit is at that point.
In most cases, you’re probably going to want to use an LMS. It will be easier for you, and there are several reasonably priced options out there. Many LMS options serve as powerful businesses in a box that can enable you to get started quickly and easily. If you outgrow something they offer, you can integrate a better tool into your tool stack later.
So if you’ve decided to go with an LMS now, you have to pick which one you’ll use.
Nothing’s simple. There are several options so I have them categorized for you. I break your LMS options down into the following categories; cloud LMS, WordPress LMS plugin, and membership site solutions. I’ve also got marketplace solutions and corporate LMS solutions also in that huge guide on my site.
You may or may not be interested in a marketplace solution. If you want at least some ownership then you may not want to go with this option. Marketplace solutions include sites like Udemy where it’s not really your business, it’s theirs and you’re just selling your course on it.
A corporate LMS could be for you if you’re offering training to corporations and you need to sell ‘seats’. A lot of these solutions charge by the user and are brandable for the corporation, so all the training looks like it’s coming from the company which in our case is you.
As mentioned, a membership site solution is what you’ll use if you’re going with no LMS. You can use anything you want to build your site and then you password protect your learning materials. So that’s what you’ll need there and we already covered it when going over the no LMS option. You can, however pair a WordPress LMS plugin with a membership site solution.
For the purposes of the rest of this discussion, we’re really looking at cloud LMS options or WordPress LMS plugins. That’s what I’m going to help you address here.
Let’s start with WordPress LMS plugins.
You need to ask yourself a few questions first. For instance …
- Do you want to have a lot of control over your platform?
- Are you OK doing maintenance?
- Do you like the technical details?
- Do you have some idea of how everything can be pieced together?
If you’re answering yes to these questions then a WordPress LMS plugin can be a good fit for you.
Let’s take a look at the chart for this one.
The level of control is high. Again, unless you go with the no LMS/membership site solution, you just can’t get this high. An LMS plugin enables you kind the best of both worlds regarding your level of control.
If you want to go with a plugin, I’d suggest LearnDash. You can do pretty much anything with this plugin. It’s great. That one is my top option. I think it will fit anyone willing to choose this path.
For instance, all kinds of plugins have been developed specifically for LearnDash so you can do whatever you’d like with it. It’s the top of the line. You’ll need a ton of other stuff too and integrations. But you can make a nice site with LearnDash.
It has an amazing quiz feature that will allow you to build just about any quiz. You can display scores for your clients within site. Using another plugin, I was able to make glossary terms pop out (hover over). This is great if you’ve got a lot of text in your course.
LifterLMS is another good one you may want to look into if you use a WordPress plugin. I’ve tried it and was surprised by how well it can suit just about any digital training business.
There are fewer integrations required using LifterLMS, and it’s more of a business in a box as far as plugins go. It works well, and many use it.
Now again, for either of the WordPress LMS options I’ve presented here, you’re going to need to put in a fair amount of effort. You need to have a high level of tech ability or be willing to invest the time or money by paying someone to get it. The ease of use is low because it’s not easy.
However, with a plugin like LearnDash, a very active Facebook group exists. You can find tons of help including developers help you. LifterLMS also has both, but it’s less active. It’s still a solid choice, especially if you have fewer customization requirements.
I put these plugins and others like them with a mid-range amount when it comes to upfront costs. Sometimes the plugins don’t cost much (like in the case of LearnDash), but then you’re going to pay for other tools and even integration plugins. You’ll need to have higher-end hosting. You’ll also need video hosting. So the costs add up.
You definitely shouldn’t expect to save a lot of money by choosing this option. LearnDash itself is not very expensive, so it may look like you’ll save a ton of money, but the reality is you’re still probably looking at about $100 a month just for your LMS between the cost of the plugins and your hosting.
This will not be spread out evenly over the year as most plugins will run an annual charge. Vimeo is a good video hosting, and at least right now, I see that they only offer yearly plans. So you’ll have to spend more money upfront to get into these plugin options.
Cloud LMS
Finally, the cloud LMS category is an option for WordPress plugins.
You won’t have as much control with a cloud LMS. You’ll have to be OK with what they offer. Sometimes you can integrate other tools to get better features if you need them.
Regarding ease of use, these are hosted for you, so you will have fewer tech headaches. You don’t have to maintain your LMS, that’s all done for you. There’s no upgrading to worry about or changing hosting plans because you’re outgrowing your old plan. You don’t need as much tech ability (although some cloud solutions are definitely easier than others).
Finally, when it comes to costs, you will pay a monthly fee, but as mentioned, the WordPress plugins are just about as expensive, so I don’t think you’ll save much money with either option.
If you want to consider a cloud LMS, there are a lot of good choices out there.
I don’t want you to spend weeks looking at all of these, so I’ve broken them down here for you and pulled out the main differences between them (because, really, a lot of these are very similar to each other).
Podia is the simplest and easiest to get going with. So I want to throw that one out there if you want simple and easy. It has a friendly interface and is very intuitive.
If you want more bells and whistles, then go with one of the others. I don’t think you will go wrong with any of these options as long as the budget is one you can afford and it does what you need.
Kajabi is the easiest to hook up with email marketing. Even if you don’t use their email marketing tool, it’s still much more accessible to integrate to email than all the rest.
The price is higher. I dislike that you are paying for active users. Most of these offer unlimited users, so Kajabi is more like a corporate solution. The number of active users allowed is pretty high, though so it is probably OK, it depends on what you’re doing.
Kajabi also offers themes, so your course area doesn’t have to look exactly like everyone else’s. You can choose from a few different themes with just one click and easily change up the colors and add images that relate to your course to make it look at least a little different.
It’s pretty easy to use, and you can limit how long your clients have access to your course (which isn’t possible with every LMS). So if you don’t want to offer unlimited access for one fee, you don’t have to.
Teachable has some nice features, especially regarding the hands-free affiliate and partner payouts. You do pay more in fees, but if these features appeal to you, it may be worth it. The course area is very nice too. It’s probably the nicest when it comes to design, but you can’t change much unless you’re on their most expensive plan.
Learnworlds is another good LMS. I like the additional features they offer so your course won’t turn out like everyone else’s. You can show synchronized transcripts within your video, add interactive content, there is some copyright protection offered, users can take notes within your learning area, and you can build a more sophisticated learning community.
It’s actually a nice system. I had a hard time turning away from Learnworlds, and I’m guessing they’ll keep piling on the great features from here.
Thinkific is a very solid choice, with lots of new features coming out all the time. I don’t think you can go wrong with a Thinkific account. More course creators that I interview use Thinkific more than any other solution. At the time I’m putting this training together, I’ve interviewed about 150 course creators, and it’s the top one, so that’s saying a lot. It’s pretty easy to use.
Ruzuku is also a nice option. They have built-in webinars as an option and stack up well with all the solutions I’ve mentioned.
You can get started with these for about $30 to $40 per month. So that’s really not a big cost. And there are many more than what I’ve mentioned here, so you can look around. I’m sure many more will crop up over time, too as elearning is such a big industry.
Choose your LMS (or the no LMS option membership site solution) before you move on. But don’t start paying for a paid plan yet until you need it. Many have a free trial (some for an unlimited amount of time). I suggest getting an account on a couple of the solutions you’re considering using. Play around with them to figure out the best one for your needs.
Also, I’ll cover more information about each LMS as we go through this micro training. It’s possible the features could have changed, so try them out and start looking at their features before you commit.
Take a look at the task and mark it as complete. Then I’ll see you at the next training!
Task
Choose your learning management solution. You don’t have to start paying for it yet, but make sure you have tried out the solutions you’re most interested in and have decided what you will use. If that solution offers a trial, get your account ready. You can start with many of these for free and then upgrade when ready.
Strategic Planner
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