Empowering Lifelong Learners: How E-Learning Businesses Shape the Future

In a world where change is the only constant, the quest for knowledge has taken on a new dimension. The past few years have witnessed a remarkable transformation in how individuals approach learning and skill development. Especially, the modern workforce is breaking the conventional notion of education, moving away from the linear path that led to a degree.

Professionals and enthusiastic learners across industries are charting a new course, one that transcends the confines of brick-and-mortar institutions and embraces the dynamic world of e-learning. This shift isn’t just about convenience; it’s about agility, being relevant, and building the confidence to stay ahead of the competition. 

According to a recent PwC survey*, a remarkable 53% of employees now seek specialized training in digital and technology skills from their employers, marking a notable increase from the previous year’s 49%. This speaks volumes about the growing awareness of the need for continuous learning in an era defined by digital disruption. 

Lifelong learning

Online learning platforms have proved to be digital havens, dynamic ecosystems, connecting learners with a vast array of courses, certifications, and learning experiences. From the comfort of your workspace, a cozy corner at home, or even during those fleeting moments of commute, the platform’s digital realm becomes one’s canvas for growth, fostering a sense of empowerment and ownership over the learning journey. In fact, HolonIQ estimates that corporate training and Pre-school (Pre-K) will grow the fastest between now and 2030.

While corporate education was heading towards online learning even before the pandemic, it was a sort of a slow burn. But, according to World Economic Forum, “In 2022, There has been a five-fold increase in employer provision of online learning opportunities for employees, a four-fold increase in individuals independently seeking online learning opportunities” 

E-learning businesses continue to leverage machine learning, artificial intelligence, and NLP to improve content personalization and adaptive learning, they are also starting to invest in platforms that give them the flexibility to experiment with pricing, bundling courses, and delivery models.  

Australian cloud training platform A Cloud Guru (ACG) has trained more than one million people on cloud computing through training with  Amazon, Google, and Azure. Understanding the growth and sustainability a subscription model could bring, ACG decided to move from a flat fee model for its courses to a subscription model. 

It also wanted to provide a great customer experience for both its B2C as well as B2B customers. “The ease of use was important. We had automated a large part of the process where a customer goes online, buys a subscription, and gets started. So there was an easy transition to handle subscription management and easily onboard users,” says George K. Tsigounis, (Former) Product Manager, A Cloud Guru. ACG was able to go-to-market with their subscription model in less than a month, and since then, they have been able to scale their user base globally thanks to Chargebee. 

Crafting a successful e-learning platform hinges on a well-structured course catalog, which ultimately paves the way for enhancing both value delivery and revenue realization.

To stand out, the catalog must embrace certain key elements.

(1) Build a meaningful Content Engine: Creating online content is not about overwhelming learners with information but delivering the right personalized content tailored for their learning goals.

(2) Target the right audience: Categorizing and organizing information aids diverse learning styles, making your course easily digestible and helpful for your audience. Take the time to craft the course uniquely for different set of learners. Interactive learning components, like quizzes and assignments also foster engagement and habituation.

(3) On the revenue front, focus on flexible payment options and quick pricing iterations: A lean, efficiently managed product catalog ensures scalability and streamlined offerings. The right tech stack is imperative – agility, low/no-code options, and operational efficiency are paramount.

Experiment at scale

When you scale rapidly you need to ensure you meet customer expectations not just in the variety of courses offered but also offer multiple payment options to students across the globe.  Study.com provides more than 4500 online courses at all levels including high school, college, adult education, and professional licensure. More than 30 million students and teachers use Study.com’s content which is delivered through videos and developed by subject matter experts. “ Chargebee has helped us acquire a more diverse set of customers. This includes a significant amount of international users who were unable to previously access the site,” says Voitek Sobieszczanski, VP of Finance, Study.com

With an automated revenue growth management platform that lets you experiment with pricing models at scale, you can break up the course into micro-units, offer trials, upgrade plans, and bundle courses.

Flexibility in pricing your plans is critical to drive business growth in the long term. 

Paul Kapsner, Director of Finance, Superfoods Company says, “Our philosophy as a company is to not spend months deciding the right price prior to launching a new product. We go with what we think makes sense initially and then use the Chargebee platform to A/B test and decide on the optimal price. Chargebee enables us to roll out a new pricing experiment in 30 minutes. We’re also allowed to make mistakes and find the right pricing point that suits our customer segments.”

In a subscription business, upsells and cross-sells are usually much easier since you have a continuous relationship with the customer.  Chargebee can help you iterate with 67+ pricing models that allow consumers to move up the value chain once they are ready and a robust subscription platform will offer critical insights to tell you when they are.

Additionally, it allows you to analyze the wealth of insights each customer brings and dissect the revenue flow that is driving your business. Right from which plans and locations are working best for your learners to MRR, Churn metrics, lifetime value and more than 25 other factors. These revenue-backed insights are crucial as you scale your business to leverage what probably is the greatest opportunity for e-learning. 

As you gear for acquiring new customers, it’s also important to concentrate on retaining the existing ones. Chargebee helps you combat both involuntary churn by building custom payment failure recovery programs for different customer and run targeted campaigns to reduce voluntary churn. You can move away from generic cancel pages to intelligent cancel experiences that can grasp customer intrigue with personalized design, messaging, offers, and surveys. “Chargebee Retention allowed us to quickly test and improve a neglected part of our flow. No other tool allows for quick testing of 5 different offers to all customer groups and targeting those offers to specific groups for optimization.” says, Emily Keyser, (Former) Director of eCommerce, Vital Proteins

Ready to take-off?

As the world experiences a rapid behavioral shift in upskilling, it’s imperative for online course providers to step up and revolutionize their backend machinery to deliver to the ever-evolving learner demands. 

In today’s dynamic landscape, mediocrity falls short. To truly captivate your users with unique value propositions, a comprehensive approach is paramount. This involves not only curating a well-defined course catalog but also orchestrating a seamless product catalog. While the content creation is your canvas, we’re here to equip you with the essential tools to bring your vision to life. With Chargebee as your growth ally, you can focus your energies on sculpting a flawless course catalog, liberated from concerns of technical complexities and operational obstacles.

• Innovate freely by swiftly testing various packages, prices, and course bundles—no need for intricate IT involvement.
• Expand your reach internationally, unburdened by concerns about billing intricacies and tax compliance.
• Streamline operations by removing obstacles in finance, sales, and reporting.
• Make informed choices guided by up-to-the-minute revenue insights, and retain customers.

The pivotal question lingers: are you ready to seize this remarkable opportunity?

Yes! I want to Speak to an Expert References:
*https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/workforce/hopes-and-fears.html