How to Increase your LMS Engagement

You’ve spent time researching, developing, and implementing your competency-based learning program. It meets your learning objectives and satisfies your SMEs. But when you launch your course on your chosen learning management system (LMS), you notice engagement is far below expectations. So, what do you do now?

There could be many reasons why your LMS engagement is low — a complicated onboarding or implementation process, lack of learner interest, or perhaps not enough time to complete the necessary training. There could also be other factors that you and your organization might not realize are impacting engagement, like the LMS’ navigation and user-friendliness.

Regardless of the why, follow these six steps to boost your LMS engagement.

1. Ensure that your coursework is easy to access

Technology barriers can be the biggest hurdle to overcome. Providing learners with a quick and efficient way to access your material might be the easiest way to improve LMS engagement. You’ll need to understand how your learner operates. For example, if they prefer to have the courses set up for them, then consider automatic enrolment. For some, registering an account and courses manually may be too cumbersome and could act as a barrier, preventing the learner from even starting the course in the first place. As such, allowing learners to login and access the courses they need with as few steps as possible will get them into the material quickly.

2. Release engaging and relevant learning content

Adult learners have different needs and requirements. Training must be relevant to the work that they do. Learning content that doesn’t meet their needs, or learning objectives that don’t effectively highlight those needs, are likelier to be put off or ignored entirely. For example, an employee in accounting might not see much value in taking a course in customer service training if they don’t actively speak with or work with customers.

Importantly, is your training needed? If there is a learning path, verify if all the courses in that learning path are required and necessary to improve job performance. You may need to conduct a more thorough analysis to verify if the training truly benefits your learners.

Are the courses tied to performance? The Kirkpatrick Model is a renown evaluation method used to measure the effectiveness of learning in four levels: reaction, learning, behaviour, and results. There are, of course, other forms of criteria that can be used to review how your courses impact day-to-day performance. Ensuring that learners find your courses relevant or useful to adult learners can help boost engagement on your LMS.

3. Reward your learners

Does your learning offer badges or certifications? What about a points system or leaderboard? While a good way to know if your training is effective is through improved job performance, rewarding a learner’s progress and learning efforts is a simple way to improve LMS engagement.

We have spoken about the benefits of gamification at length in past blog posts. Implementing gamification enhances the learning experience, makes learning more enjoyable, and improves ROI. If your learners are being recognized for their efforts, they are likelier to return to the LMS to complete other coursework.

4. Consider different delivery methods

Many employees find that they do not have enough time to dedicate to learning, because they’re too busy completing their regular duties. The available training may be important, relevant, and even engaging for learners. But it doesn’t mean much if they don’t complete it.

More organizations are considering microlearning as a viable delivery option and can come in different formats, such as interactive videos, audio (like podcasts), infographics, or even webinars. Delivering learning in smaller, bite-size chunks that are memorable can really help increase LMS engagement.

5. Review social learning options

People learn best when they have opportunities to observe and discuss their learning with others. While there are many opportunities for social learning to take place in a classroom setting, you are limited to what your LMS offers in this capacity. Social learning can be implemented through activities like group projects and discussions, which can be carried out through forums or team chats. An LMS that allows peers to interact with each other and showcase what they’ve learned is a great way to improve engagement.

6. Ensure the LMS is working for your organization

Does your organization understand the LMS? Does your organization like your LMS? These may seem like obvious questions to ask, but they can be easily overlooked. It may not be reasonable to expect learners to work with the LMS if, for example, support and sales teams don’t fully understand it.

There are thousands of LMS options out there, and many of them are very good. However, missing features or functionalities may impact engagement. If the LMS is difficult to navigate, or generally unenjoyable to use, that could lead to learner frustration and incomplete coursework. You may need to seek options that are easier for learners to use.

For a user friendly, cost effective, and flexible learning management system, SkillBuilder® LMS has you covered with supports for eLearning, webinars, seminars, and on-the-job-training. Book a demo with us today to see how SkillBuilder® can support your organization's learning needs.

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