4 Things to Know Before Build Your Online Learning Platform

There seems to be an online learning boom going on right now with sites like Udemy, Teachable, and Coursera.

Have you ever wondered what it would take to build something similar on your own? If this is something you want to do from scratch, then there are a few things you’ll need to have in place.

This article will explain four key elements to take when developing an online learning platform and go over the most important pieces of the puzzle.

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Why Build Your Own Online Learning Platform?

There are several benefits to building an online learning platform from scratch. You can create a truly custom, tailored experience for your users and make sure it fulfills all of their needs. With a bespoke platform, you can incorporate all of the features you want in the order that makes sense, without having to work around someone else’s structure or template.

This is especially important if you’re trying to make something that’s easier than it was before. If you’re building a platform that is going to be used by people who are not especially tech-savvy or by young children, then making something that is easy to use is vital—and a bespoke platform will allow you to do so more easily than off-the-shelf solutions would.

It also gives you more flexibility in terms of how you want to present your content. You can incorporate videos and other media into a bespoke platform much more easily than with a templated one, making it easier for your users to navigate and find what they need.

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4 Things to Consider Before You Build an Online Learning Platform from Scratch

1. Content Management System

Create a content management system (CMS). A CMS is a backend tool that will store a large volume of your VOD content, including videos, audio, images, texts, and other media assets. It allows you to publish and deliver the content to end-users at scale. It can either be hosted with a third party or on-premises (your own servers). These options should be discussed with an online learning platform provider.

A CMS enables your staff to manage and publish the content on a website or mobile app. The front end of your site is what end users see when they visit it from their desktop or mobile devices.

In other words, it’s the design layer that sits atop the content stored in your CMS and is connected to it by an API (application programming interface).

2. DRM (Digital Rights Management) Technology

The use of DRM technology is useful to protect learning materials from being copied, shared, or downloaded by unauthorized persons. Some examples of DRM are:

• Digital watermarking (embedding data in the video that can be traced back to you)
• Encryption
• Authorization and Authentication

Read More: Understand DRM And DRM-Protected Video Types In 5 Minutes

In e-learning, this technology should ensure that your course content cannot be accessed by anyone who has not paid for it. Most often, this requires you to have a secure hosting environment and some form of encryption to make sure your courses are safe.

3. Monetization Model Integration

Developers will need to consider how they will price their online learning platform. There are a number of different ways that online learning platforms generate revenue, but the two common models are:

• Free platforms with upsells
• Platforms that require a monthly subscription

The first option allows users to sign up for free and then pay for certain courses or content. This is the model used by Udemy.

The second option requires all users to pay a monthly fee in order to use the platform and access courses (this is similar to Netflix). While more expensive, this model can be appealing because it gives users unlimited access to some or all of the content on your site.

At this stage, developers should also think about other ways they can monetize their coursework. This can include offering premium versions of their courses in which students have additional benefits, like one-on-one time with an instructor or a certificate of completion at the end of an intensive course.

4. Live Streaming Platform Integration

Live streaming is one of the easiest ways to create an interactive learning experience for your students. And given how much online video content is being consumed these days, it’s clear that video-based education platforms are the future.

For this reason, your live streaming platform must be scalable, reliable, secure, and cost-effective. You should also ensure that it can easily integrate with other systems such as marketing automation and CRM software so you can improve your processes.

One great option for this is BlendVision, which allows users to offer their students a stable streaming service with high-grade security via DRM.

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Summary

If you’re looking to build an online learning platform from scratch, there are a few key things you’ll need to consider:

• You will need a content management system (CMS) that can handle a large amount of video on demand (VOD) content your educational platform will provide.
• You’ll need a digital rights management (DRM) system that protects your paid content and authenticates users, so you can profit from your business model.
• You’ll need to integrate a monetization model that allows users to consume paid content on your platform. If you are looking for a professional platform to build your own e-Learning business, make sure the platform provides API / SDK that allows for paywall system integration.
• Finally, you’ll want to offer live streaming options as well as VOD content so that students can tune in to real-time lectures or seminars as well as view recorded materials at their own convenience.

You can either build this yourself or opt for a professional online learning platform service like BlendVision for stable streaming quality and optimal security with DRM.