4 tips that can help you reduce online training expenses
When you invest in online training for your team, you save time and money. You don’t have to worry about accommodation, travel, or man-hours lost to off-site conferences.
Still, there’s always room for improvement, even within an online course. You can take some basic steps and cut your training expenses by 20% to 50%. These steps can often make your course more effective, which is a saving in itself. Let’s look at 4 areas you can explore.
1. eLearning software expenses
There are a few different ways you can reduce your eLearning software costs, as well as fees associated with pre-built online training content. Here are a few tips to help you reduce the eLearning software spending without sacrificing accessibility or user-friendliness:
a. Shop around to get the best price
Learning Management Systems are selected by reviews, previous customers, reputation, features, and accessibility. Once you’ve ticked off all these items, go a step further and look into the budget. Spend a bit more time to research the LMS vendors and their pricing options to ensure you’re getting the best deal.
You may find a viable product that’s far more affordable than the big names. Don’t stop your search on Page 2 of the rankings. There could be some lesser-known gems hidden further down the list.
b. Reduce monthly fees by paying annually
Some LMS vendors offer discounts on their eLearning software if you pay for the whole year instead of monthly subscriptions. Many finance departments may be skeptical, wanting to approach online training on a case-by-case basis. However, by paying annually, you may be able to cut costs or unlock perks that aren’t available with the monthly pricing option. You also get access to discounts, upgrades, or bonus features that arise during the year.
c. Review and cull unnecessary data
This cost-cutting tip is ideal for organizations who purchase off-the-shelf courses or pre-built content. The general design of online training courses is to divide them into subclasses. There’s usually a standard package, a premium package, and a plus package. Each category has a set of features and tools. These stipulate the number of users, extended streaming, or access to their online training library.
While those bells and whistles are tempting, a thorough review will show you what you require and what you don’t. Don’t pay for unnecessary extras. If possible, ask them to customize a cheaper version that applies more specifically to your company.
This tip also applies to eLearning software features. If you don’t necessarily need the entire tool package, ask the LMS vendor if they provide à la carte options.
2. Costly and time-consuming IT obstacles
Calling tech support may be a function of your LMS package. But it can still cost you in terms of man-hours and downtime. Plus, some technical issues may require extra payments to fix.
With a lot of platforms, the more you engage with them, the better you get at using them. Dedicate one of your in-house techies, putting them in charge so that they can resolve technical hitches.
3. Content creation
Creating new content is one of the most significant training expenses. However, there are ways to drastically reduce spending in this area without compromising the quality:
a. Record and incorporate office interactions
Your Instructional Designer will regularly explore and evaluate the course, understanding how it works and what is relevant. They can then develop new training material, saving the cost of purchasing upgrades. They can record office interactions and turn them into online training materials.
This could range from exhibitions and event footage to customer care phone calls. It could even be a key board meeting that handled a relevant office crisis. The subject matter should be carefully curated to avoid breaching client privacy and corporate confidentiality.
b. Train everyone at the same time
When the whole office has to take time off for training, you lose a lot of hourly billing time. Solve this issue by training everyone at the same time.
You can use teleconferencing and webinars. This saves you the hassle of finding a large enough room. It’s also useful for offices in different physical locations. For best results, record the event for employees who miss the live session. This also gives your entire team a valuable reference tool they can use in the future to refresh their memory.
c. Offer chunks of mini training
Break an existing online training course into smaller chunks and create a microlearning library. People can study 5 to 10 minutes at their convenience instead of dedicating an entire day. This not only improves employee engagement but reduces the number of payroll hours you dedicate to online training sessions.
4. Ongoing maintenance
Maintaining your online course requires a significant amount of time and resources. Thankfully, you can cut training expenses and speed up the process by using templates and a rapid eLearning authoring tool.
This allows you to quickly update your online training materials and enhance interactivity. For example, the tool has a built-in online asset library that features images and videos you can add to your training program, which prevents you from purchasing third-party content from paid sites. Thus, your employees always have fresh, engaging content, without pushing you over your L&D budget.
Online training offers massive cost-saving for any institution. However, while eLearning is cheaper than conventional methods, it’s still possible to overspend. But these 4 tips can help you cut online training expenses without compromising the results. Thoroughly compare prices and opt for an annual payment option. Select the right package and hire in-house techies and eLearning content developers.
Whenever there’s an event in the office, record it for future training. Teach multiple offices via web conferencing and allow your team to access micro-sessions on demand.
