Having a basic understanding of the skills, needs, goals and motivations of your target audience is a critical piece of planning for content development. To better understand participant needs, ask yourself the following questions:
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Who is the target audience for your online learning initiative and what are their potential goals, needs, motivations, and barriers?
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Are there likely to be enough interested participants to make your online learning initiative successful and cost-effective for you?
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How can you make online content highly relevant to the needs and interests of your target audience?
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Do you think participants will be looking for a formal course, professional development opportunities or general interest training?
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How much interactivity are your participants likely to want?
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Will participants have low or high level technical skills and comfort with online learning technologies?
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How much technical and facilitation support are participants likely to need and can your organization provide this support?
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How do participants' needs, barriers, motivation, and goals impact on the development of online content? For example, are there issues such as reading levels, technological barriers, or access for participants in remote communities that would affect content design?
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Why would most participants want to access online learning from your organization? For example, is their prime motivator likely to be that online learning is more accessible geographically for them? Or, is their prime motivator likely to be that your training meets their personal schedules (work/life balance)?
