Authoring Tool is the software that digital publishers use to develop e-learning courses. You can use this tool to link text, illustrations, etc. to add hypertext and multimedia. It is typically combined with a learning management system to create and deploy content in a standardized structure.
The advantage of using these tools is that publishers have complete control over the content they create without any programming knowledge or other technical skills. Authoring tools help create and host content, saving authors time, energy, and effort. These tools inspire a team to perform better and meet their goals timely and effectively.
However, choosing the best authoring tool that meets your business needs is not easy. It requires a lot of research and, in some cases, trial and error. Each tool offers something of different value, but you need to find the right solution for everyone involved. Now let’s think about how to choose the best authoring tool for your business
- Clarify the learner’s needs.
The first thing to consider when buying the best authoring tool for your organization is to understand the needs of the learner. Choosing the right tool is difficult without knowing what stakeholders are looking for in an authoring tool. Learners need to understand if they need text-based content or if they need to include multimedia elements such as videos and images. You also need to know the learner’s skill level to navigate complex course menus and other features.
- Understand scalability and efficiency.
Due to the sheer volume of e-learning content that needs to be created, you need to pay attention to the efficiency and scalability of the tool. From a feature and support perspective, you need a tool that can be easily scaled to your needs. For example, check if the tool supports multiple languages, layout and interface reusability, customizable branding, and more. Otherwise, you may need to switch between different tools.
The top authoring tools offer layouts, concepts, and interactions. You can incorporate them into the designing of your e – learning curriculum. As a result, you no longer need to spend time collecting media or outsourcing more involved tasks, such as designing a template for your bifurcations. This is especially useful for more detailed eLearning courses or advanced activities like engaging activities.
- Mobile friendly
It is a great advantage to be able to write content once on the desktop and then deliver it to mobile devices and tablets at the same time. You can create content only once, rather than creating content individually for each device. This saves the learner time and effort. Also, make sure the tool is responsive and can display the mobile layout as it is created.
- Increases the effectiveness of the company’s resources.
You don’t require to employ a massive team of L&D professionals to create rapid eLearning courses. Instead, only a few important employees are required to use their knowledge to generate the basic online training content and to stay focused and complete your task in time. The best authoring tools for your company will take care of the majority of time-consuming tasks, such as locating third-party images and downloading eLearning authoring templates. Everything is already stored in a single authoring tool. As a result, your organization can better assign resources and increase ROI.
- Great user experience
Another important factor when considering authoring tools is the intuitive and simple interface. Non-technical people need to be able to easily create courses. Therefore, it should be easy to use and allow developers to create and modify course content without the need for external assistance.
- Analysis tool
You need a tool to report the learner’s location and the time spent per session. You also need tools to track task completion and scores so you can understand how to improve learners’ performance. Choosing the best authoring tool for your business will automate most tasks. This tool needs to be seamlessly integrated with learning management systems and other platforms.
Conclusion
When choosing an authoring tool, do some research and choose the one that best suits your needs. You also need to find an LMS that meets most of the learner’s general needs. Get tools that provide collaboration tools, are easy to use, and easily integrate with other solutions such as authoring tools. Are you currently using an authoring tool? If yes, how did you choose? Please share the comments below.