eLearning development: Guide for 2024

Gone are the days when companies would rely solely on experienced instructors to deliver training to their employees. The latest digital trends have transformed how we work, opening doors to better and cheaper ways to nurture our team’s professional development.

Participate in the rising trend of eLearning by browsing this comprehensive guide. Learn its importance, types, and steps to creating your own development program.

What is eLearning development?

Electronic learning (eLearning) development is about creating a learning experience for your team using digital means. To keep your team engaged in a virtual setting, your eLearning courses must offer interactive content, game-based activities, and a comprehensive learner experience.

Why is eLearning development important?

If you want a cost-effective solution to unlocking your team’s growth potential, consider investing in eLearning content development. As this happens in the digital landscape, it’s perfect for managing large or remote teams.

Unlike the traditional method of hiring a training instructor who will likely have their own teaching style, eLearning gives you full control in crafting your instructional strategies. This offers the flexibility to customize your lessons according to your preferences, as you know what your team needs best.

Different types of eLearning

Before drafting a custom eLearning development program for your team, it’s important to understand the different types first. This will help you choose the best option for your learners. Here are the five common types of eLearning:

• Asynchronous online learning: This promotes a self-paced learning environment where the teacher and students interact with each other remotely at different times. Usually, topics are divided into weekly or monthly guides with specific learning outcomes.
• Synchronous online learning: Engagement occurs in a virtual learning environment through communication platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams. Learners are all expected to log in at the scheduled time.
• Mobile learning: As the name suggests, mobile learning relies on a user’s mobile device or tablet to facilitate training. This is perfect for teams on the go, whose laptops aren’t always readily available.
• Blended learning: Popularized during the global pandemic, this style combines in-person and online learning methods to offer wider opportunities for participation.
• Microlearning: Also known as bite-sized learning, microlearning delivers information in digestible chunks to help learners absorb information more effectively. Its courses can usually be completed in under five minutes.

5 Steps to an effective eLearning development process

Keeping things clear and simple is the key to an effective eLearning development process. Get started with these five steps and keep everyone on the same page:

Step 1: Set clear goals

Begin by analyzing your team’s current state. What are your collective pain points, and how can you address them? Outlining clear goals keeps things transparent for everyone involved. This also serves as evidence to directors and stakeholders of the need for an effective eLearning development program.

Step 2: Design an eLearning program

Now that you’ve laid out your goals, the next step is to start designing your program. Incorporate interactive learning elements like videos, games, and quizzes to keep your learners engaged. And, make sure to structure the content into easy-to-digest lessons that are available on demand.

Don’t feel intimidated by the process of content creation! Many eLearning authoring tools available on the market today use artificial intelligence (AI) to do the heavy lifting for you.

Step 3: Deliver content through a learning management system

The easiest way to guarantee the seamless execution of your program is to find a learning management system (LMS) that offers an all-in-one solution for your eLearning needs. Allow your LMS implementation plan to run smoothly by choosing one with flexibility, security, course delivery, reporting and analytics, and evaluation templates.

Step 4: Gather feedback 

Whether you’re a beginner or a pro at drafting an eLearning development program, gathering feedback is something you shouldn’t miss. To measure the effectiveness of your training program, it’s important to get a pulse of your learners’ experiences. This sheds light on areas for improvement that you can apply to your next project.

Step 5: Evaluate learning objectives

Once you’ve collected your team’s feedback, it’s time to step back and evaluate your program’s learning objectives as a whole. How did they align with the course’s activities and assessments?

You can also measure the success of your learning outcomes by pulling up your team’s performance insights on the side. Identify which areas they performed well in and note which ones they did poorly in. Ultimately, this allows for an unbiased evaluation.

5 Rapid eLearning development tools for training

Now that you’ve learned the steps to guaranteeing a successful eLearning development process, it’s time to start crafting your program. We’ve rounded up five rapid tools for training:

1. SC Training

Topping our list of eLearning development tools is SC Training (formerly EdApp), a powerful LMS that can meet your content creation needs. Here, you can access a fully editable course library with over 1,000+ courses readily available.

Break the ‘boring training’ stigma with built-in gamification. Let your teams tap, swap, and drag their way to essential workplace training. Create with AI also allows you to generate content with just a click, speeding up your brainstorming and design process. Simply input a prompt into the text box and watch the magic unfold.

Manage compliance with SC Training’s robust reporting and analytics suite. Here, you can access all your learning data at a glance. Exporting performance insights is also a breeze, allowing you to evaluate your eLearning strategies and make the necessary adjustments.

2. Xmind

If your team largely consists of visual learners, Xmind is a content creation tool specializing in mind maps. This is perfect during brainstorming sessions, as it keeps everyone’s ideas organized and understandable. Use labels, highlights, and audio notes to elevate your team’s mind maps.

3. Loom

If you’re set on delivering remote training to your team, consider trying out Loom’s screen recorder tool. For presentations, you can either share only your screen or include a live video of yourself. Its rewind feature also reduces editing time since it lets you go over your mistakes while recording live.

4. Kahoot! 360

Like other eLearning development companies, Kahoot! 360 offers a platform where you can create interactive presentations for your team. To increase employee engagement, try out formats like puzzles, type answers, or true or false questions to shake up traditional assessments. Kahoot! 360 also lets you add documents and videos to your content.

5. ProProfs

Ideal for asynchronous online learning setups, ProProfs is a knowledge base software that allows you to create simple landing pages. Consolidate all your training manuals in a single space through a home page. eLearning platforms like this feature a drag-and-drop tool to make customizing easier and faster.

Guarantee the success of your eLearning development program! Sign up for SC Training today.