Many organisations are now embracing eLearning as an efficient way to deliver effective and valuable training. However, developing eLearning content can be a challenging task requiring time, resources, and expertise. This is where outsourcing eLearning content development to instructional designers can be beneficial.
From sculpting a curriculum that provides a concise learning path to combining current learning technology with cognitive learning practices, highly skilled instructional designers are vital assets to a successful eLearning program.
In this article, we examine the many benefits of outsourcing eLearning content development and how it can help your organisation achieve its training and development goals.
Reasons to Outsource eLearning Content Development
In this article, we list nine ways eLearning outsourcing can benefit your organisation.
1. Unburden your core staff and SMEs
Your staff and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) are not usually instructional design or eLearning content development experts. Allow instructional designers to take the knowledge from your staff and SMEs and translate it into elevated eLearning course content.
Taking away the pressure of design from staff and SMEs will allow them to concentrate on their roles and be ready to market, administer and strategise a robust training program.
2. Reduced costs
Your first thought might be that it costs more to pay an external team to create course content for your organisation. Why not just let your staff do the work at no extra cost?
The issue here is the time, expertise, and resources needed to develop effective training materials. In fact, 52% of CEOs already cite labour costs rising more than expected with their talent lacking skills that impact growth.
Since instructional designers specialise in creating course content, they are much more efficient. Also, the material is usually designed to be easily updated, so you can look forward to saving your budget when new skills and information need to be delivered.
Related reading: Developing Channel Partner Training Programs on a Tight Budget: Tips and Strategies
3. Course content expertise on-demand
At some point, you will need a different and fresh perspective on the training content you have developed. Perhaps it doesn’t work as effectively as desired, or your organisation lacks the expertise to create courses that account for the varying ways your learners might absorb information.
An outsourced team of instructional designers has the expertise to rethink how your organisation does training.
Outsourcing eLearning content development offers access to a wealth of knowledge and the ability to implement that knowledge directly into training.
4. Faster turnaround time
No matter what industry your organisation might be in, speed is always essential to stay competitive. The faster you can complete processes without sacrificing the quality of work, the better, and course development is no exception.
Instructional designers have plenty of experience creating training materials; they employ best practices to speed up course development.
Whether it’s a new technology or law that changes how you work within your field, having a team of outsourced instructional designers allows you to get new courses up and running as soon as possible.
5. Prepared for scaling
Many organisations need to be prepared to scale at short notice, including the need to scale training – whether it’s prepping your program for fluctuations in learner numbers or preparing for global reach.
Outsourcing your eLearning content development to instructional designers lets you do both without hassle. These experts future-proof training courses during the creation process, anticipating your need to modify modules whenever necessary.
You also will not have to make the difficult decision to either downsize a dedicated L&D department or drastically increase your labour costs to hire more training staff when your organisation grows.
6. Incorporate innovative strategies
The very nature of learning and development means the field is constantly finding new strategies and tactics to improve training. Innovation is baked into the whole concept of L&D. Failure to innovate with training can quickly make organisations irrelevant.
By partnering with an external team of instructional designers, your organisation can draw upon the latest L&D techniques and thought processes. Your training staff can pick up on the most advanced course creation and delivery methods from working alongside outsourced instructional design experts.
7. Boost learner engagement
Increasing learner engagement continues to be a priority in workplace learning environments, ranking in the top 3 challenges for companies in 2020. Employees can already find it difficult to manage their primary workload, so taking the time to undergo training courses on top of that can be too much. The current paradigm of online remote work has also isolated learners, removing the crucial aspect of socialisation that makes learning more engaging.
Your learners do not have to suffer the same fate of being unengaged with training. Instructional designers know exactly how to create courses that influence learner behaviour positively. Their involvement in course design has a concrete effect on improving student-to-student interaction in online courses.
8. Maximise your LMS
An easy-to-use, feature-rich learning management system (LMS) is a must for any training program. It’s the all-in-one platform for delivering content, assessing learners, tracking progression, creating reports, and more.
However, it’s highly likely your organisation does not use your chosen LMS to its full capabilities. The good news is that you can get the most out of it when you have an outsourced instructional design team. Through their experience in a variety of industries, instructional designers are well-versed in different learning platforms and how to utilise them for the best results.
9. Make your training program stand out
Training your external audiences, such as partners or customers, offers a huge advantage over competitors. Businesses will be more willing to partner with organisations with comprehensive, dynamic and easy-to-access training courses that deliver value and don’t interrupt other core activities.
Up-to-date, engaging training is a fantastic vehicle for providing key information, from introductions to regular company updates. Allow your training to stand out by offering small bite-sized modules that can be completed from home or during short, dedicated learning time.
Third-party instructional designers who have worked with numerous organisations know how the average training course is created. As such, they can craft new, distinct content that differs from what most companies tend to offer and incorporates your organisation’s unique properties and demands.
Related reading: How to successfully implement training for external partners
Enjoy the Benefits of Outsourcing eLearning Content Development
Your organisation doesn’t have to expend any more resources than necessary to develop a strong training program. It’s possible to simply use eLearning outsourcing services and still reap tremendous benefits with greater ROI compared to keeping everything in-house
Ready to take your eLearning content to the next level? Learn more about our eLearning development service and how we can help you create engaging and effective training programs. Click here to read ‘Everything You Need to Know About Our eLearning Production Service’.
