As a professional association, you’re always looking for new ways to engage your members, offer more value, and deliver on your organization’s core mission. Offering virtual learning is one powerful way to do that.
We previously published a piece on What Is an LMS: Definition and Uses, where we explored the ins and outs of a learning management system (LMS) and how it can help professional associations. One key benefit is creating a centralized place for all your online courses and learning materials so members can easily access them.
Now, let’s dive deeper into virtual learning, why associations need it, and tips for success as you create new options for professional development in your association.
What Is Virtual Learning and Why Do Associations Need It?
Virtual learning for professional associations involves offering online courses and other continuing education materials that benefit your members.
EthosCE enhances and simplifies CME management, and it can even go beyond courses to include options like webinars, virtual conferences, certification modules, or on-demand recordings of past events. Think of it like creating a digital library that gives your members access to a wealth of relevant information that can advance their knowledge and careers.
Associations need virtual learning to stay relevant in today’s professional landscape, where technology plays a much bigger role. Professionals are using technology on the go more often, interacting with others in their industry in virtual settings, and constantly looking for new information that can help them perform better.
When your association offers e-learning options, you become a valuable resource they can turn to. You can help professionals learn, stay on top of current industry trends, and get engaged with your association, all while monetizing and earning more non-dues revenue in the process.
How Do You Build a Successful Virtual Learning Program?
As you’re putting resources into creating a virtual on-demand learning program, it’s important to have a plan in place to ensure it’s as successful as possible. Here’s a step-by-step process to help you get started:
- Define the outcome: What goals do you want to achieve with virtual learning? For instance, increasing non-dues revenue, boosting member engagement, or creating a smoother member onboarding process.
- Review content you already have: If you have recordings of any past conferences, webinars, popular sessions, etc., those could all make great early additions to your online learning library.
- Assess your audience’s needs: Where is the majority of your audience in their educational journey, and how can you best help them learn and apply valuable skills to their careers? This will help you get a direction for the early content you want to create and publish.
- Build a content roadmap: Plan out the first 90 days so you know what content you’ll launch with and the continuous updates you’ll publish to keep members engaged as you roll out the virtual learning program.
- Promote your new learning options: Start promoting your new continuing education options before you launch to build excitement within your audience. You can even offer pre-registration to help gauge your audience’s interest.
- Launch, measure, and optimize: Launch with your initial content, review data on how your learning materials are performing, and continue to optimize for success as you go. A well-rounded LMS should help you track all the data you need to ensure you stay on the right track.
What Technology Do You Need to Deliver Virtual Learning?
An LMS for associations is the primary technology you’ll need to deliver virtual learning materials. An LMS is a great tool because it creates a centralized space where members can access materials, you can create a smooth step-by-step learning system, perform updates as needed, and track essential analytics to measure your success.
Some of the top features you’ll want to look for in an LMS include:
- Mobile device accessibility so members can learn on the go
- Member engagement options like gamification, interactive activities, and social learning
- Capability to deliver content in different formats
- Customizability to adapt branding and messaging to your organization’s needs
- Organized course and credit tracking to help learners track their progress
- Easy monetization options to help you earn non-dues revenue
- Task management to keep your team on track as you develop new content
- Data and analytics to track your success
Our LMSs at Cadmium offer each of these features and more to help associations develop effective continuing education systems.
How Do You Measure Success and Member Engagement in Virtual Learning?
As mentioned, an LMS should offer a data and analytics system to help you track the success of your virtual learning program. Some key metrics you’ll want to track include:
- Engagement metrics, such as average time spent in courses, drop-off points, or session attendance
- Progress and completion metrics, like course completion rates or average time to completion
- Effectiveness and quality ratings, such as assessment scores or average instructor ratings
- Financial metrics, such as revenue per course or ROI on certification programs
When you’re planning metrics you want to track, it can help to go back to the initial goals you set for your virtual learning program. What results do you want to achieve, and which metrics work best to track your progress toward those goals?
How Our Learning Technology at Cadmium Can Help
At Cadmium, we offer two LMSs that can help you create and manage a successful virtual learning program.
Our award-winning LMS for associations and nonprofits, Elevate, offers a well-rounded set of features to create effective continuing education options for members, no matter where they are in their educational journey. That includes curriculum development, certifications, AMS integration, social learning, on-demand and live events, and more. Click here to learn more about Elevate.
Our LMS built for medical associations and healthcare organizations, EthosCE, offers features tailored to the needs of healthcare continuing education, such as automatic reporting of CME or CE credits to major tracking systems, compliance management, interactive learning, and integration with live events and workshops. Click here to learn more about EthosCE.
