1. Establish basic understanding of your eLearning with everyone in your association.
Each person in your association, regardless of their formal function or title, is an ambassador and representative of your eLearning programs. Make sure you have informed brand ambassadors! They don’t necessarily have to understand the technology inside out, but they should be able to answer basic questions. Sit down with your colleagues to demonstrate the learning system, explain the content, and address questions they may have. Test them on these six questions members will ask about your eLearning programs, as previously covered on the ScholarLab Research Desk.

2. Thoroughly incorporate eLearning into your in-person events.
Consider:

• Conference packages (e.g. offer a "complete experience" conference package - attendees can purchase the in-person and online experience together at a discounted price)
  
• Incentives (e.g. early bird registrants for the in-person event receive 20% off on the online event)
  
• Prizes (e.g. host an interactive activity at the in-person event and reward participants with access passes to the online event)
  

Raise your members’ awareness and openness to eLearning by initiating conversations and educating your members on the topic. For example, remind audiences before and after each speaker that the session will be available online for those who want to revisit the content. Have one of the sessions at your conference focus on the benefits of learning online.

Just because your in-person event is over, it doesn't mean that your marketing is done—keep your members engaged and excited. Constantly remind your members about your eLearning through email blasts, newsletters, in-person announcements, website advertising, and social media. Tell them why your programs are important and where they can be accessed.

3. Work closely with your IT and marketing team to optimize your website’s marketing power.
In a previous post we discussed the importance of setting up your association’s website to maximize its marketing power. Your association has full control of the website’s content and doesn't have to pay advertising fees to an external vendor. Best of all, you have potential learners at a computer, receptive to information about your programs. If you haven’t already, check out our piece on how to revamp your website to convert wandering website visitors into valuable online learners.

4. Coordinate with other timelines within your association and industry.
If your association has an annual membership renewal season, use this as an opportunity to promote your eLearning programs. For example, members who renew their membership by a certain date may receive a free access pass to an online course.

If there is a deadline coming up for members to submit their continuing education credits for the year, they will definitely be looking for quick and convenient education opportunities in the few weeks leading up to the deadline. Online courses are the perfect solution for these members, so make sure to increase your marketing efforts around this time.

Remember to keep conflicting industry-wide deadlines or events in mind. Members can only handle so many marketing blasts at once, and they won’t react positively to yours if they have other priorities. For example, avoid sending emails when there is an industry-wide annual conference approaching (unless of course, you are co-marketing with the conference).

5. Consolidate your library.
Minimize the amount of work your members have to do to access your complete eLearning library. If your content is spread out over various platforms and systems, your members have to figure out where to find the specific information they are looking for. They will also have to memorize and keep track of several usernames and passwords. This inconvenience discourages them from going online more often, and ultimately makes it difficult for you to build a powerful, memorable presence in one go-to place.

By Alexandra Caufin

Earlier this month Dr. Laurelle Jno Baptiste, ScholarLab's COO and Co-founder, travelled to Austin, Texas to present her innovative new workshop iLearn, iConnect, iGrow at Texas Society of Association Executives' Tech Talks Conference. Check out this summary that highlights the workshop's most important ideas about the future of learning online and why organizations around the world need to take notice!

In the Age of Information, Madison is your quintessential digital native and more importantly, your new member. She is digitally literate, digitally socialized, and digitally cultured, looking to learn in the same ways she connects with the world every day. She has never known a world that couldn't be googled, and thus, access to information defines the tools she uses in daily life. Most importantly, she’s spurred by the wealth of knowledge, discourse, and communication that’s right at her fingertips, online.

As an association executive, you should get to know Madison, because someone just like her is coming to a classroom, workplace or association near you.  The question is, how are you going to capture her attention?

In 2014, we’re securely in the Web 2.0 age of the internet. It’s the age of mobile devices, tablets, apps, video conferencing and instant messaging technologies. With these technologies, the world has seen an upheaval of outdated and inefficient online learning systems and watched a new era of global education, digital literacy and cross-the-world communication emerge. For the first time in history, we have the technology and the tools to create a virtual experience that is on par or even superior to the in-person equivalent.

Barriers: Do you have learning communities for people like Madison?

Learning communities mean much more than just a classroom or some online courses. They represent an ecosystem of tools for members to not only learn, but to discuss, share, create and network along the way.

Issue 1: Madison wants to take your course but can’t make the 45 minute commute to your association’s headquarters. Plus between her school, practicum and other volunteer responsibilities, she can’t guarantee her availability every week at the same time.

Issue 2: Madison has taken one of your courses online but found the course layout, design, and content delivery outdated, text-heavy and administrative.

Issue 3: Madison is interested in your online learning programs, but none of your courses or events can be viewed on her iPhone or iPad, nor do they involve any kind of networking or social media functions. She instead opts for an online course or event that is mobile-friendly and collaboration-oriented.

What started out as a great opportunity for Madison to connect with your association has become complicated and stressful, so she seeks another vendor.

Breaking down barriers:
What are your new and existing members looking for?

Are you developing your education strategy with learners like Madison in mind? Here are some of the elements that new learners look for, and elements that you can provide by making the jump to learning in the digital:

Just-in-time learning: Turn your one-way, one-time only courses, presentations or events into ongoing resources, with unlimited outreach to potential members worldwide.

Mobile-friendly technology: With the mobile classroom, learners can use their smart phones and tablets to view your courses, conferences, presentations and events anywhere they want, whenever works for them.

24/7 access: Give members around-the-clock access to course presentations and materials, and the flexibility to learn in the way that works best for them.

Pause, skip ahead, replay: Let your members learn at their own pace, take notes, review or move ahead. You’ll be creating learning environments that cater to individual learners instead of the masses and your members will appreciate it.
 
Economic renaissance: The rapid development of technology has made it far more economical to bring content online. Associations all over the world are using new forms of webinars, learning systems, video conferencing and more to attract and connect with learners all over the world.

Digital learning communities open doors and create borderless connections. Your biggest question as an association should be: how do I attract the enormous demographic of new members?

Remember that these new members are intricately attracted to new learning communities.

We now have the technologies to address the biggest issue that associations face: how to connect with all the people who would like to come to take courses or attend your events, but can’t.

Adapted from Dr. Laurelle Jno Baptiste’s Tech Talks workshop “iLearn, iConnect, iGrow: How to create the online learning your members need.”

Source List
Infographic clip: 75% of American post-secondaries offering online education etc. http://blog.hotspotshield.com/2014/01/16/rise-online-education-infographic/
Online Learning Stats: http://www.edudemic.com/thumbs-online-learning/ via, created by http://www.coloradotech.edu/
“Why use video?” statistics from http://brainrules.net/pdf/BrainRules_JohnMedina_MediaKit.pdf and http://www.edudemic.com/use-video-education/

By Alexandra Caufin

As the leader of an association, you know how important your annual conferences and meetings are for your members and for the financial strength of your organization. Conferences across the world are going digital with an exciting array of  new live streaming and video-conferencing technologies, and yours should be no exception.

Going digital with your conference is no longer a cutting-edge idea only for the technologically brave. It’s now both easy and inexpensive—and more than this, it’s going to be necessary for the survival of your association. Here’s why:

Maximize value proposition for attendees.
The simple fact is, you can’t be in two places at once. This is especially problematic when your conference attendee wants to attend multiple sessions at the same time. If conference-goers had the opportunity to participate in every session of a conference, some physically and some that have been digitally recorded, it would present an obviously greater value proposition than one-time only conference sessions.

The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is stepping up as a first responder, announcing the launch of a three-part digital course Managing Mental Health in the Workplace. These kind of programs have been heralded as game changers––the difference between someone identifying mental illness and recovering, rather than allowing the disorder to spiral out of control affecting everything from family life to social life to professional life. 

CMHA’s recent release discusses the exciting new online project and zeroes in on thought-provoking articles, infographics and a TED Talk on how technology can and should be leveraged to combat mental illness. We couldn’t help but share!

Here at the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), we are passionate about using technology to improve mental health awareness by providing better access to mental health training. With the fantastic results we’ve seen from initiatives like Bell Let’s Talk, the CMHA is proud to be taking our Managing Mental Health in the Workplace course digital. 

In partnership with ScholarLab, a leading innovator of online education in North America, we’ve developed an interactive online course loaded with helpful, perspective-shifting modules on mental health. Plus, our platform is accessible anywhere and adaptable for your individual employees.

How does it work?
Our professionally-filmed video lectures really give the feel of an in-person instructor-led course. But with pre-recorded content, you can pause and conduct discussions or backtrack to review major points and learning outcomes. Employees can register individually (or in groups for special rates) and begin the course right away. The system automatically tracks progress and organizes the modules so you and your employees always know where to pick things up again.

What are the benefits?

• By taking this course digital, CMHA is reaching out to employers on a national level.
• Studies show that implementing just-in-time learning results in time and cost savings, enhanced engagement and constructive changes in behaviour. Your employees won’t have to take time off or wait for an in person, one-time-only session. Consider this: a difficult mental health situation has arisen in the workplace. With the format of our online modules, your human resources team can log in and access critical information exactly when they need it.
• Our online learning environment affords a safe and comfortable space for employees, conducive to the sensitive discussions that orbit mental health awareness. Employees will have privacy and flexibility in exploring their own perception of mental health which they may not be comfortable doing in a conventional classroom.

Is this the right choice for my organization?
Well, the Research Institute of America reported that online learning can advance knowledge retention by 25%-60%, especially because your employees will have the opportunity to revisit the training as needed. Plus, in terms of efficiency, a study conducted by Brandon Hall Research found that when compared to conventional in-classroom learning, online education requires 40%-60% less employee time.

If you’re curious about the benefits of online learning and want to learn more, don’t hesitate to get in touch. We’ve assembled a selection of helpful articles, studies and infographics, below.

Resources

It was a good year; 2013 saw the release of the first-ever Google laptop, the rise of globally accessible education via the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), the eager implementation of the flipped classroom model and growth of platforms like Khan Academy, and a new feverish development around cloud computing. The second era of online education—one with multimedia, interactivity and social media rich at its core—has, aptly, reached a galloping pace as it proceeds into 2014, the Year of the Horse.

It’s no coincidence. The technologies coming out of the woodwork are answering a public demand to make education more accessible globally, more affordable, more practical for working adults, and more relevant in our digital and mobile-centric world. We’ve reached unbelievable momentum in the evolution of online learning tools, and here’s what we’re betting you’ll see more of in 2014: