You have decided to run an online course, but you still do not know which is the best option for you.

There are plenty of options on the Internet, so the question is: how should I prefer one rather than another?

In this article, we will focus on how to select LMS plugins, not external websites hosting online courses.

There are several criteria you should take into consideration.

CONTENT CREATION

You can make a choice according to the learning possibilities.

It is very relevant, as your choice depends very much on the type of courses you would like to create.

Do you need videos? pictures? interactive elements? Do you need to work with colleagues or alone?

You want a programme to modify and edit courses easily.

Here, you can find a list of features to check:

• You can insert different types of media, like video, Canva or H5P content, pictures and so on, for example through iFrame;
• The course pages support short keys [wp-key];
• Additional structuring of text is possible with the Shortcodes Ultimate Plugin;
• Courses fee are possible;
• You can take advantage of an “assistant” as support;
• Courses can be adapted, for example different target groups;
• Content can be amended easily;
• More collaborators can work on the creation of the same content/course.

COURSES AND ADMINISTRATION 

Other elements to assess the way to manage the courses and to deliver them.

The features you may take into consideration are the following:

• The layout and look of the courses: the course must be attractive to engage your students; 
• You can add a clear description for each course, in order to make sure students are aware of the learning objectives and expectations; 
• Participants must enroll to attend a course or not;
• Participants can follow an easy procedure to enroll; 
• The user interface is clear for basic users (or newbies in working with learning platforms).

You may be impressed to discover how many different learning management systems are available on the Internet.

That is why we would like to provide you with a check-list to follow to verify what is the best solution for your needs.

Among the documents of this group, you will find a check-list to use as soon as possible.