Things to consider before you choose an eLearning authoring tool

When I am talking with new clients, it's pretty common for them to have a general idea of the output they want — for example, a SCORM object that’s interactive and engaging — but no clear view on how we could get there. And that makes sense, that’s why they are coming to me.

Several years ago, this was fine. I would work with them to design the learning, and then go through development, collecting a few rounds of feedback from the client before handing them over an exported SCORM module and ensuring it worked well in their LMS. Many clients didn’t want to know how the module was made, or what authoring tools were being used.

There are some clients who would still be happy with this approach, but I see it as part of my job to engage them in the decision making process around authoring tools.

Why does this matter?

If you’re not planning on authoring much internally, and your eLearning consultant is telling you that an authoring tool will work, it’s tempting to just go with the flow. Here are some of the critical issues that you should consider before committing to an authoring tool.

Firstly, content maintenance. Most organisations want, or need, to be able to maintain their own content. This means update and tweak it over time as needed. For smaller operations, this is vital due to costs. For larger organisations, it’s often vital for practical reasons.

Second, responsive design. This refers to the ability for content to respond to different screen sizes, and create a smooth experience for mobile, tablet, and desktop users. There is a surprising variety of responsiveness across authoring tool outputs. You need to pay close attention to this if your learners are currently accessing content on their phones, or will be within the next four years (and I think that’s all learners, right?).

Third, support. The amount of support available varies between products. It’s important to not just consider the official product support, but also community support, resources, and third party training options..

Finally, complexity and cost. This is effectively the combination of all the above. Costs include not just the licensing cost, but the time required to learn and use the tool.

I try to discuss all these issues with clients prior to us making the final decision on an authoring tool. If they decide on a tool which is new to them, I will offer some informal training using their final modules. This is a great way for them to build basic editing skills in the exact modules which they will be editing.

If you have an eLearning project, or maybe just an idea, feel free to reach out to me. I’d love to take you and your organisation through the process and deliver some awesome learning together.