In our work with clients, we hear many of the same questions over and over again. Well, here are your answers. It may even be you didn't know you had these questions yet, but rest assured, you will at some point.

Great design is about making smart decisions. And skillfull eLearning designers know this. They know the “look and feel” of a course is a very important decision in the whole development process. With this in mind, they try to create screens that draw learners' attention, that motivate learners toward interaction, and help learners accomplish learning goals without confusion and fatigue.

Business owners, managers and executives new to the eLearning field sometimes find it hard to grasp industry concepts and terms. Though most of the times they’re not going to be developing the courses themselves, they need to fully understand industry terminology. But beyond just a definition, professionals should also not miss out on the business benefits new words bring. It's their deep knowledge of the industry that will get them the results they wanted. And it all starts with technical concepts and terms.

Any professional eLearning designer would agree that users are always at the heart of what they do. The bulk of our articles last year focused on users. But what about designers themselves? Who are they? What impressive feats do they perform? What skills do they possess? How crucial is their role in developing educational materials for a new generation of learners? Let’s not forget about these oft-overlooked professionals who help make eLearning possible, personal, effective and immediately applicable.

The Year of Responsive Design Responsive design is more than just a passing trend. The concept was introduced a few years ago but prevailed as one of this year’s top design issues. Everyone, from web designers to marketers, began to see the value of adopting the design principle.

Whether you are just getting started with eLearning and looking to get a better understanding of eLearning best practices, or you've been creating courses for a while and are trying to find ways of making your material more effective, considering the basics of eLearning is key.

Effective learning doesn’t require expensive technology and elaborated training sessions. It doesn't even demand the impossible from you, the course developer. But it does call for a change in mindset.

Emotions play a pivotal role in learning, too, and eLearning courses should reflect our natural tendency to rely upon our emotions as we learn, grow and discover. Four inspiring leaders provide excellent examples of how to incorporate more emotional content into eLearning courses throughout the year.