Associations often use learning management systems (LMS) to provide members with continuing education material. An LMS can offer state and/or board-required certifications, maintenance credits, or other training requirements based on the industry in which your association operates. A learning management system has to provide chances for professional progress in addition to fulfilling the needs of your learners with regard to industry standards.
An efficient LMS post integration with your association management system (AMS), makes it simple for learners to search and access content while also providing your staff with important member data. Your decision needs to heavily consider a learning management system’s capacity to bring in non-dues revenue for your association. Now let’s delve into the details of how to find a suitable LMS for your association.
What Does a Learning Management System (LMS) for Associations Entail?
An association LMS is software used to produce, manage, and deliver eLearning materials for associations. Learning management system platforms are also used to track learners’ progress in continuing education and to communicate with them. With the use of native LMS capabilities like quizzes, links, or uploaded SCORM-compliant criteria, your employees may construct courses.
You might wonder what kinds of associations utilize LMS. Although every association could use a learning management system, the most popular ones are trade associations, legal services, higher education, and healthcare-related associations. While searching for an LMS, you might find websites like Review MyLMS helpful, one of them is MapleLMS with a 5-star rating! They offer valuable videos and information to assist you in finding the best learning management system for your association.
Who Uses a Learning Management System (LMS)?
An LMS may be utilized by any kind of organization. Businesses utilize them to provide continual training and continuing education for their staff members and educational institutions use them to offer e-learning.
An efficient tool for developing, delivering, and managing continuing education content is a learning management system. Consider these top advantages of an LMS:
- Advanced analytics and course tracking
- Convenient for both members and external learners
- Accommodates many teaching modalities
- Courses that are interactive and engaging
- Increases interest and enjoyment during learning
- Provides branding and customization
- Superior software support
- Affordable educational resource
Unlocking LMS Advantages for Your Association
Learning management systems may be used by your association to develop an engaging continuing education program. An LMS is essential for generating non-dues revenue and offering beneficial training opportunities such as:
- Members desire knowledge: The most recent Community Brands research shows that 47% of members give certificates and credentials priority, and 44% of members place a high value on continuous training opportunities. Certifications/credentials, continued training, and chances for professional progression are the main reasons non-members also join them.
- Encourage non-dues revenue: Non-dues revenue was ranked as the top strategic objective by 68% of association professionals, as per Community Brands research. Your association may easily improve income potential by utilizing an Association LMS.
Why Would Your Association Want to Integrate an Association Management System (AMS) with a Learning Management System (LMS)?
Having your LMS and AMS integrated will be extremely beneficial to your association. The following three factors will convince you to integrate your LMS and AMS platforms:
- Single sign-on: Password fatigue and a bad user experience may be avoided with an effective integration that enables learners to use both your LMS and AMS systems simultaneously without requiring repeated logins. Once logged in, your AMS can offer basic data about your learners, which is then utilized to customize their LMS experience.
- Monitoring of continuing education credits: You may configure the LMS to transmit completion information back to the AMS if a learner successfully submits for credit after fulfilling all the course prerequisites in the LMS. With the help of this feature, your AMS will have a complete member profile and transcript. Additionally, you are able to include all credit data in your AMS reporting.
- Shopping cart and product sync: Through a single checkout process, integrated purchasing enables learners to buy various products from the AMS and LMS. By activating a catalog or product integration, you may go one step further and relieve your staff’s workload by automatically syncing the products, descriptions, and credits without the need for double entry.
Which is the Best LMS for Your Association?
The ideal LMS for your association will rely on your unique requirements, including your sector, member base, spending capacity, and desired features. When selecting, ponder over these things:
- Customizable: Make sure the LMS can be customized to meet the branding and content needs of your association.
- Integration: Search for LMS platforms that easily integrate into your current AMS and other crucial software.
- User Experience: Prioritize LMS systems that provide an easy-to-use interface for both administrators and learners.
- Support and Training: To make sure your team can utilize the LMS system effectively, evaluate the degree of support and training provided by the LMS provider.
- Cost-Effectiveness: Consider your budget and weigh the LMS’s expenses against its possible advantages and income potential.
All of these qualities could be easily found in MapleLMS, ranked as no. 1 LMS on AppExchange. Our LMS allows association members, partners, and outside learners to pursue continuing education through features like tracking learners’ progress, white-labeling, and microsites. It also helps generate non-dues revenue by selling courses and merchandise to members and also by offering discounts using the ecommerce feature.
Pro Tip: “Check out our Associations page for more info!”
Conclusion
In conclusion, finding a suitable LMS for your association is relatively easy if you are clear on what your association requires in terms of learning. There are many benefits of using an LMS for your association including advanced analytics and course tracking, convenience for both members and external learners, interactive courses, and many more.
The LMS system could also be easily integrated into your AMS system, making both accessible through single sign-on, tracking credits for continuing education, and syncing the shopping cart and products to purchase items from both AMS and LMS. As mentioned above, MapleLMS is the top LMS that could be easily used by your association as it has all the described features and functionalities. So to start utilizing it, get a demo or free trial today!