E-Learning Is Becoming More Popular With Small Businesses

E-Learning Is Becoming More Popular With Small Businesses
Veronica Davis
8/25/2014
Updated:
4/23/2016

E-learning is fast becoming more viable, accessible from platforms like Asapy and affordable to small businesses. An initial investment in e-learning tapers off over time. For example, a three-year employee training program will typically recoup itself after the first year.

Whatever the size of your company, e-learning is more cost-effective, easier, and more efficient than classroom-based learning or lecture-based learning. People and technology are working together seamlessly every day – just look at how smartphones and tablets have been embraced for communications, learning, and researching. E-learning is a lot more easily accepted by employees now than it was ten years ago.

Managers, employees, and business owners all benefit from easy e-learning opportunities. Training has never been easier to accomplish. Companies can expect performance benefits from easier, less onerous learning, and employees will be grateful for no time spent in the classroom.

E-learning is wonderful, and it has numerous benefits. That’s been settled. It still doesn’t mean that an organization needs to utilize it. Important questions have to be asked before a business owner or manager implements an e-learning program.

Why does e-learning make sense? Is the goal to improve employee performance? Is the goal to automate and streamline basic training in a big company? Is it really worth designing and implementing an e-learning program for a small business with low turnover? The good news is that e-learning is becoming more adaptable, accessible, and affordable for small businesses. Still, questions need to be asked on an individual business-by-business and case-by-case basis. Let’s look deeper into that right now.

Both small and big businesses alike have to answer key questions before they purchase e-learning technologies. What benefit are employees going to get from it? Are there free resources available on the Internet? Would it make more sense to purchase (or use free) training only when necessary? Rather than a big initial investment in e-learning, would it make more sense to purchase it piecemeal as needed later on? Most small businesses only need training in small bits and pieces to deal with immediate needs when problems arise.

E-learning is definitely preferable to classroom training, on the basis of cost alone. Many companies are reporting 50-75% reduction in training costs compared to classroom learning.

To recap, some of the benefits of e-learning include improved training costs, decreased materials costs, increased productivity, and standardization. An initial investment in e-learning, especially for a large organization, will reduce overall costs, streamline basic and advanced training, and make everything easier on your employees.

E-learning is a lot better than classroom training for one more reason. Hopefully, the e-learning training system will let your employees continually return to the training materials online whenever they need a refresher. It’s impossible to do that with a classroom-based course. Giving your employees ongoing access to content and resources is better for your employees who can’t retain everything the first time around.

For a company with a big budget for e-learning, purchasing a whole catalog of e-learning courses will offer employees fun opportunities for learning new things to improve performance.

Veronica is a wife and work at home mom. Her and her husband live in Missouri with their three boys. She has been a freelance writer for over fiver years, and has since ventured into many areas of working online and marketing online. She loves being in the kitchen, discovering new dishes the family loves and hopes to go to culinary school some day. A former Marine and ex-whitewater rafting guide, she loves the outdoors and sports.
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