Back in 2015, LinkedIn bought out Lynda.com, an online learning platform where anyone can learn almost anything; from software development to digital illustration. Since the buy-out, they changed the name to LinkedIn Learning and if you provide high-quality training programs, you might be able to get your courses, and show your expertise, on their platform.
While the process can be daunting at times, it can also be well worth the effort, once you’ve been approved.
Follow the steps below to submit your training course to LinkedIn Learning.
Create a Course They Will Promote
Before you can put a course on LinkedIn Learning, you’ll first have to apply. And even before that, you should already have a course you believe meets their quality requirements. LinkedIn Learning is designed for high-quality, relevant educational materials. To approve you, they’ll need to review the course and the information you provide in the course.
Visit the “Become a LinkedIn Learning Instructor” Page
As mentioned, you first must apply to join the program. To get started, you’ll need to go to the following page and sign up:
https://learning.linkedin.com/instructors
At the page above, you’ll enter your name, email, LinkedIn profile (make sure it’s optimized), Twitter handle, background details, languages you use, and more.
You’ll also have to choose a topic and submit a sample video of your course. Be sure to read their video submission guidelines in the instructions before you fill out the form.
Once Published It’s Time to Market
Once your course is published on LinkedIn, you’ll want to additionally optimize your LinkedIn profile to properly market your new course. Add the course information and links on your profile and add your role as instructor in one or more places. You have many choices – from adding it in your profile summary to your headline or putting it in the experience section. Just make sure you add it at least twice.
Share News Of Your Course Launch
After you’ve updated your profile with a link to your course, be sure you’ve included all the skills you’re teaching to your skill set on LinkedIn. As soon as registration to your course is open, you’ll start sharing the good news with your connections. You may decide to tease them in advance with a few well-placed (and witty) comments.
Remember to post about your course in groups and cross-promote to other social networks.
Don’t Give Up
The fact is, even if you’re not accepted as a LinkedIn Learning instructor, now that you have a course finished you can still add it to your profile. Simply link your new course to the platform you are using to deliver it. It doesn’t have to happen via LinkedIn Learning to be successful. You can use other platforms like Teachable.com or Udemy.com to deliver your course and still promote it on LinkedIn. In reality, a few well-received courses under your belt on other platforms will greatly increase your chances of being approved on LinkedIn Learning as an instructor soon.
Putting a course on LinkedIn Learning will undoubtedly add value and cache to your profile. In turn, that’ll boost your credibility and potentially open more doors for you.
When you do publish a course, no matter where, be sure to add it to your LinkedIn profile, blog about it, and share it to your feed every day until it’s sold out.
Before you start developing your own course, it is strongly recommended that you experience the LinkedIn Learning environment and materials for yourself.
How LinkedIn Learning Courses Can Benefit You
We previously talked about showcasing your expertise by adding your own training courses to LinkedIn Learning. But we’d be negligent if we didn’t encourage you to take advantage of those high-quality courses yourself.
Continued learning is never a bad thing, but if you need a little more convincing, check out these benefits. It also never hurts to get to know the service you want to become part of at some point in time.
Improve Team Training
You can use LinkedIn Learning to train your team, depending on whether the lessons required are available. Training has been proven to lower turnover rate and improve employee satisfaction and morale. Plus, when you train your team using the same materials, it puts everyone on the same page.
Everything Is Online
The courses are delivered online, so you can take them at your convenience. It doesn’t matter if it’s 8 am or 10 pm; each course is ready for you whenever you have some spare time. LinkedIn Learning courses are designed to be easily accessible on any device, including mobile.
You Can Add Courses Taken to Your Profile
Once you take a course, you can add the course to your profile on LinkedIn to demonstrate how much you value learning new skills. Even though the courses aren’t for college credit and don’t have a certification, most people don’t care about that. They care that you like learning about your industry and are continuing to grow and expand your knowledge.
Training Is Tax Deductible for Most People
When you get training that is directly related to your line of work, you can typically deduct the cost of that training, whether certified or not, from your income at tax time. Do ask your tax professional about it first, but make sure to save your receipts. Tax rules change all the time, and it’s best left to your expert to figure out what is and is not deductible.
One thing that sets apart business professionals from those who just play at business is that successful business professionals like to stay ahead of the game by staying up to date on the information and knowledge in their industry. LinkedIn Learning is an ideal platform to help you learn and even help your team learn at a reasonable cost.
