Importance of LMS Integration Solutions: Know Everything

We have learned a lot about learning management systems & softwares and how they can help businesses collaborate with their customers and align their work operations, especially in the elearning industry. Not every company, despite its wide array of implementation benefits, can leverage LMS’s complete power.

The key reason that outlines this loophole is ineffective integration of CRM with the learning management system or cloud systems.

As per Brandon Hall Group, 52.2% of organizations observed that inability to integrate LMS with multiple systems has been a significant barrier in providing learning satisfaction.

Integration of LMS with other software systems is conducive for ease of use and better engagement thereby improving better user experience. Hence, let’s learn more about LMS integration, its components, and solutions to integrate.

Deep Understanding of Learning Management System Integration

LMS integration simply defines the compatibility of the LMS with other existing business applications. This way you can easily move your data between systems as well as gain access to integrated reporting.

For instance, integrating your Salesforce CRM with LMS can assist you in performing some crucial tasks without the need for a CRM, such as delivering targeted training to partnering with the sales team.

LMS can also be integrated with eCommerce software solutions, to help you sell your products. You can sell online courses of a niche industry, such as web designing, and automate registration and billings cycle.

You can also measure your online store’s performance by integrating your LMS with Google Analytics. It will help you boost your eCommerce store conversions and motivate changes for an enhanced user experience. Also, with the help of Analytics, companies can understand the channel customers use to reach and fluctuations in visits by day, week or hour.

Challenges with LMS Integration

25% of professionals claim that learners struggle with resolving poor usability. Moreover, they also struggle with navigating course resources.

Not every IT professional service provider has the expertise to maintain and integrate LMS with different software or applications with efficiency.

A study has been made and observed that the main concern of professionals about integration is at the execution level. 94% of respondents say that integration of SaaS development services is a challenge, especially when working & establishing relationships via other or third-party SaaS apps.

With these rising concerns and dissatisfaction with the current integration solutions, IT consultation services providers need to expand their domain expertise and focus more on custom integration or point-to-point integrations. In order to overcome these challenges, your LMS must have certain components.

Functional Integration Components of Learning Management System

Three components can ensure the organization with the long-term success of an LMS implementation.

Content

  • There will be content hosted?
  • Will the created and uploaded content be directly hosted by LMS?
  • Will you be integrating & embedding content from external resources?

Users

  • What is the method for users to log into an LMS?
  • What is the process for inviting users?
  • Is catalog viewing offered before registration?
  • Are login credentials effective for another application use?
  • Is the training paid?

Data

  • What kind of data is needed and how the LMS would obtain it?
  • What actions are needed or shall be taken after completion of course or certifications?
  • How do you propose linking the internal accounting system with financial data?
  • What notification shall be sent on new course registration?
  • Who will receive the course registration notifications?

Partnering and assigning the complete LMS integration process to the LMS vendor with a dedicated software development team can provide answers to all these questions.

Empower Business with LMS Integration

A robust and result-oriented LMS can handle your instructional content, manage registration & training content, payments, automate mailing, and track your progress. For exceptional & transformational learning experiences, eLearning software development & support service providers must provide cloud-based LMS integration services.

Companies must also harness cloud computing services in order to streamline and automate their critical business processes while focusing more on driving new businesses.

With the help of a skillful LMS integration services provider, companies can ensure secure and seamless connectivity while simplifying online learning experiences. Moreover, advanced integrated services offer PaaS, TaaS, and IAAS development solutions for flawless data sharing between LMS, CRM, email, payment, and other services.

LMS providers can integrate automation services to reduce the manual processes and easy share of resources instantly.

Furthermore, extended integration services can promote enterprise mobility services, such as instant notifications and sharing resources through mobiles for extra convenience for the users.

Integration of LMS, be it with cloud or any system or software requires APIs. APIs allow effective communication between various software components.

What Should API Support for Constructive LMS Integration?

As aforementioned, APIs are important to enhance LMS vendor’s experience with effective integrations.

Since a comprehensive LMS integration is composed of in-built native apps as well as third-party apps. Hence to make effective data communications through both groups, API integration is essential.

Companies that offer API development services can aid in providing a requisite API that helps your third-party systems and internal software integrate with LMS. With API, you can import & use widely supported XML, JSON, Atom, and RSS formats and export HTTP-based real-time data.

Important factors that your API must support are –

  • Integration with Learning Record Stores for detailed L&D analysis, like Watershed.
  • Accessibility via browser-based technologies, like Adobe Flash.
  • Accessibility via desktop applications, like Adobe AIR.
  • Accessibility via mobile applications, like Android.
  • Displaying twitter seeds within apps using widgets.
  • Integration with back-end systems, such as HRMS.
  • Integration with websites & apps, like server-side portals built with Java, PHP, or .NET frameworks.

The HRIS system is the best example of integrating API. LMS can be integrated with HR software solutions to sync employee’s data with both platforms. Companies can keep essential data, such as titles, office locations, departments, training histories, & much more up to date.

Other Noteworthy Integrations to Look for in an LMS

The more integrated systems the better and easier for individuals, teams, and departments. Let’s learn different types of LMS integrations that can boost productivity.

CRM Integrations

Customer relationship management solutions help in managing customer data, track interactions with current and potential customers, as well as ensure efficient communications between teams and departments while optimizing sales. One of the brilliant examples is Salesforce.

Salesforce integration solutions ensure compatibility with distinct software and apps, even LMS. Those already using Salesforce know advantages, hence integrated with LMS, companies can improve their user experience without the need to switch between software. Learners can easily access the training materials, videos, and exams available in the Salesforce administrator.

Social Media Integrations

An inevitable feature for any business scalability. Social media integration with LMS can accentuate the ability to network, identify trends and strategize new ways to represent brands. Some of the best examples of social media integration are LinkedIn and Twitter.

These renowned platforms can be integrated with LMS to promote new opportunities for your business while communicating with a wide audience. Embedded Twitter feeds and displays achievements of LinkedIn can promote your brand more and more while building trust and confidence in the audience.

LRS Integrations

A learning record store is an embedded solution that stores all kinds of learning records in a system. The system is connected to multiple sources to gather information. A custom lms development can leverage companies to integrate features relevant to their business needs. Integrating key features, such as LRS, can give you an open window to prepare reports and perform crunching of data. Moreover, with the help of LRS, data can be obtained in an easy and accessible form that can be used for any purpose.

Webinar/Video Conferencing Integrations

Since LMS is a platform that encompasses educational & training data and its distribution. Integrating LMS with conferencing or webinar tools can seamlessly help in migrating data in no time. Moreover, webinar tools ensure effortless and time-consuming session schedules as well as attendance tracking solutions.

Moreover, LMS integration with video conferencing tools can reduce duplication of work, automate time-consuming tasks, register attendees, & much more.

CMS Integrations

A key ingredient of an eLearning solution, inclusive of an LMS is a content management system. Integrating LMS with CMS gives you the leverage to organize, manage, & revise existing content to enhance your online training & ROI.

Moreover, you can deploy and develop new courses with the same tool. The integration of these tools offers to repurpose existing content, store assets in a centralized location while slowly stretching the budget.

SSO Integrations

SSO Integration is also known as single-sign-on, where users can access multiple services and applications with the same credentials for quick and easy accessibility. These credentials are generally used for authorization and authentication purposes, which ensures a person’s identity verification for the safety and security of critical data.

Integrating LMS with SSO can reduce the risk of data hacking, password forgetting fatigue, and reduced IT costs. Some of the greatest examples of SSO are Microsoft Azure, GSuite, and Okta.

Webhooks Integration

Webhooks make eLearning processes & systems more efficient and effective. Webhooks are used as an alternative to SSO and APIs to send notifications about an event as soon as it occurs. Integrating LMS with webhook leverages companies and educational institutions to automate eLearning processes and access real-time information. Information obtained from a webhook can assist in updating additional actions in a third-party website or application. Moreover, customers can use Webhooks with LMS to automate reports and flag important learning events in related apps.

In a Nutshell –

In this ever-evolving market, companies need to offer quick & cutting-edge solutions. Data is what every organization gathers from multiple sources to form productive solutions and effective-decisions. Centralizing every aspect of business, focusing on pain points encourages companies to facilitate better customer service, manage employee performance, and fill crucial gaps. With effective product engineering services, companies can integrate LMS solutions to ease accessibility, boost collaboration, and enhance workplace performance.