How To Choose an Online Teaching Platform | Key Considerations

Technology has changed all aspects of our lives, education being no exception. Thus, teachers need to adapt their teaching strategies to the ever-evolving needs of their students. This becomes easily achieved with the help of online teaching platforms and the learning experience they offer. 

Nowadays, numerous online teaching platforms are available for you to run your online teaching business. With so many options to choose from, finding a platform that best suits your needs seems difficult. 

Here is what you will need to consider to pick the best online teaching platform for you and your students.

#1 What is the user experience like with the online teaching platform? 

When talking about user experience, we don’t only mean whether it is easy to use for you as an admin. It should also offer the best experience for students. If they can’t get their way through the platform and your website, they are unlikely to enroll in another of your online courses and training. 

Think about it this way. When someone logs in to this, is it very clean-looking? Is it easy for people to navigate and get around? Does it look polished? 

 

Jessica Terzakis,

Course Creator, Business Consultant

To ensure the best experience for your students, the online teaching platform should preferably come with interactive features. The most important of them include

• Interactive video courses and easy-to-use course builder    
   

Probably, the most common feature that online teachers make use of is the possibility of publishing online video courses. Analyze the course-building functionality that the platform you are considering offers. For example, can you add multimedia elements? Can the students fast-forward your video course when they watch it? Can you attach additional forms and interactive quizzes? Can you control when each lesson episode drops? 

Also, look if the course player is responsive. The students need to be able to access your courses from various devices without any technical difficulties.     

• Quizzes and Tests 

Quizzes are an excellent way to check how the learners progress through your online lesson. Students love short quizzes at the end of each module, as they are also curious to know how well they managed to grasp the concepts. So, look at the quiz-building functionality the online teaching platform you consider offers. Are they customizable enough? Is there a diversification in the question types? Does the quiz format correspond to the specific subject you teach?  

For more robust and scalable testing capabilities, incorporating software for online assessment can help you create customized, data-driven quizzes and tests that align with your teaching goals and your students' learning needs.

• Certificates

Students who pass the tests with positive results want to get certificates as proof of their acquired knowledge and skills. They usually check if the course they are about to enroll in offers certificates. At the end of the day, it can be an excellent addition to their CVs.

• Assignments

If you plan to give feedback on your student's performance, you might want to add assignments for the lesson. So, see if you can add & grade assignments and provide feedback on them. 

For the record, Uteach ensures you and your students get the best experience possible. You can easily publish your online teaching materials and build online courses with a drag-and-drop builder. Here is how can create online courses with Uteach. 

#2 What are your priorities with that online teaching platform?

Probably, the most essential point that requires significant attention is the consideration of required features to organize the teaching process effectively. You should identify the preferable teaching style and think about what solutions may be good for you. 

In this case, think about what you are specifically looking to achieve with an online teaching platform. For example, you want your learners to be able to keep in touch with each other and be involved in discussions. So, you might need to get an online teaching platform focusing on community functionalities. 

There are different types of platforms in terms of the community that you want to build there. There are platforms where it's all-encompassing. You have your content and community all in one place. It's a community hub. And there are online platforms that mainly focus on the content you publish there. 

 

Jessica Terzakis,

Course Creator, Business Consultant 

Besides the community, there might be some marketing features you might need. There are many ways you can market your online teaching business, from search engine optimization to email marketing. 

• Email marketing 

Can you collect the students’ email addresses and send them automated emails? For example, if you want to make an important announcement, you do not want to send manual emails to each student individually. You can also look if the platform offers any additional email marketing integrations if you plan to run campaigns. Utlizing email software like Moosend or ActiveCampaign allows you to automate your email communications, segment your audience, and track the performance of your campaigns.

• 
  Offer diversification 

As an online teacher you should be able to charge for your materials the way it’s suitable for you. For example, you might want to have subscription-based pricing, offer discounts and various plans, or sell your online teaching materials in a bundle. For example, if you have three lessons, each $100, you can bundle them together and charge $249 for the whole bundle. 

#3 How advanced the analytics is?

To make the educational process effective, fix issues, and improve quality, you need to analyze user behavior on your platform. This will help you identify confusing points and features students do not like. 

Analytical reports will provide you with all the required information to effectively manage the process. When choosing an online teaching platform, pay attention to how advanced the analytics is? 

Is there specific content that seems to cause students to stop engaging or makes them re-watch the content multiple times? The analytical features on your online learning platform will help you refine both individual classes and your virtual classes overall. 

Additionally, it can provide instructors with essential data that helps them evaluate student performance and provide more support to specific students as demanded.

#4 What are the payment options for my students? 

Besides thinking about the format your students can access your materials, it’s equally important to consider the payment options they get. Some online teaching platforms offer their own payment solutions; others integrate payment gateways. 

The online teaching platform is there to manage the payments for you. The more payment gateways your online teaching platform offers, the better. Uteach, for instance, supports over 80 payment gateways, making it an exemplary platform for online teachers and course creators to choose their local payment method. 

So, before choosing an online teaching platform, make sure it includes the payment options your students prefer. Do proper research, explore open banking benefits, and negotiate with different banks and payment systems to find the best options for both you and your users.

#5 How does the platform’s pricing work? 

Another important criterion to consider when choosing an online teaching platform is understanding how the platform's pricing works. Online teaching platforms offer various pricing models, each with its own set of features and benefits.

First, look at your budget. There are many different platforms with different features, so think about what you can manage each month. When your online course is launched, make sure the platform is not eating away at your profits. 

 

Jessica Terzakis,

Course Creator, Business Consultant

Many platforms charge transaction fees, where a percentage of each sale is taken as a commission. This model is great if you are a beginner online teacher just starting and want to minimize upfront costs. 

In most cases, free trials are also available. This way you can test the features and usability before committing financially. 

Sometimes, online teaching platforms provide free plans, which usually come with basic functionalities and limited access. However, to get more advanced features such as custom branding, marketing tools, and extensive customer support, educators might need to subscribe to paid plans, which can vary from monthly to annual subscriptions.

If you find the pricing affordable, you are ready to go!

#6 Is customer support responsive?

As an online teacher, you only want to focus on your teaching content rather than deal with technical setbacks. And such setbacks are unavoidable no matter which platform you choose. 

 With responsive customer support, all the issues, technical problems, and navigation through the platform will be quickly addressed. You can usually receive customer support through various channels, including email, live chat, phone support, and comprehensive knowledge bases or FAQs. 

That is why, when choosing an online teaching platform, look at their response time and be sure you can get support with your preferred channel. 

#7 Can you scale your online teaching business? 

As an online teacher, you want to ensure that the platform you select can grow with you as your student base expands and your offerings increase. 

If you plan to expand your business, which we are sure you do, look for platforms that offer scalable solutions, such as the ability to host an unlimited number of courses and students, as well as marketing tools to reach a wider audience. For example, if the platform you are working on only enables the creation of five courses, you might need to find another solution to host more courses.

Also, consider whether the platform supports integration with other tools and services, such as marketing software integrations and CRM systems. Scalability also involves having access to advanced features like custom branding and membership sites as you grow. 

Related: The Best Online Teaching Platforms To Start Business

Ready to start with the most affordable online teaching platform?

We have already discussed the most essential features to consider while choosing the best online platform for teaching. Of course, you may require some more features and functionality in order to implement specific teaching activities. In this case, take into consideration the availability of these features as well.

The companies that provide the functionality to create e-learning websites, usually offer several pricing plans according to the available features. You should also compare the cost and find an affordable option that covers your preferred features.

In the end, there is nothing to say but just letting you know that with the help of Uteach, you may start your online teaching career or prompt it forward. Here you get a lot of useful features at an affordable price. All you need to do is to check out the features, choose a subscription plan, and START A FREE TRIAL, or schedule a free demo and let the specialist explain everything and presenting in detail.

A free demo is a more recommended choice. You will get familiar with all the functionality of the platform, and you will not waste your time on a free trial of learning and testing.