WordPress has long been a great platform for that. With the selection of third-party Learning Management System (LMS) plugins, it’s even better! Here are five (5) of some of the best LMS WordPress plugins available for you to check out.
I’ve been watching this LMS space closely for the past few years. Played with them on occasion. My interest was reinvigorated recently by some plans I have in mind for right here, on Wordpreneur itself.
I’ve played with LifterLMS extensively (free for the basics!), and like it.. a lot. For what I have in mind, I still think it’s overkill though. Not necessarily because of the functionality and feature set it provides — you can never really get enough of that — but for the technical overhead this kind of software will bring.
Although I very well could run any of these solutions as “yet another plugin” on my base WordPress site on top of all the other plugins I’m already running, I really wouldn’t recommend it. These aren’t exactly tiny little utilities. I’d say run them as the focal site application, or set them up on a subsite — a separate WordPress installation on a subdomain, for instance.
But sure, you could run it as yet another plugin. Just realize and be prepared for what you’re getting into.
But here you go folks, five of the best LMS plugins for WordPress I’m aware of out there, both commercial and free. Check them out (in alphabetical order).
No idea which one is best. Maybe you should tell me.
Enjoy today’s featured selections!
— EES
Please Share the Love!
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![1+tip[1]](https://wordpreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/1tip1-167x130.jpg "1+tip[1]")
“Can’t you give me just 1 tip (for getting book reviews)?” she asked
“The other day a newly published author who had befriended me 5 minutes earlier asked me if I could give her just one tip how to get book reviews from Amazon top reviewers.
I told her to read my book.
She came back with, ‘Can’t you give me just 1 tip?’
Hmm… Apparently this author was not aware how much in demand these reviews are; on average Hall-of-Fame reviewers get 250+ review requests per month.
So, I told her that getting a book reviewed by an Amazon top reviewer isn’t a ‘1-tip thing,’ especially if the book did not have any reviews yet. Getting reviews is a challenging task that encompasses many steps; which is why my book has 100 pages.
She immediately un-friended me.
I guess that says it all. Just another wannabe author who does not really want to learn the trade. The indie author industry is overrun with people like that. The sooner they get out and make room for the people who really hone their craft and all skills, the better for all.
Of course, from experience I know that most indie authors work a lot harder than this one.
So, here is one tip for authors whose books received already a few reviews (including from top reviewers).
‘Like/find helpful’ the reviewers’ reviews!!!”
Continue reading @ Gisela’s Straightforward Blog »
“Self-Made” is a Myth; Here’s the Real Formula for Success
“[T]hat’s what most people get wrong. They never learn how to reach out. You’ve got to be willing to put yourself out there…”
» Medium
$4,344.81 in 40 Days with my Fiction Book Only Spending $30 on Advertising
“I had a plan. A big plan. Heck, I had the plan of the universe — to sell thousands of copies of my new release Science Fiction book, Project Atlantis, during the first month I published it.
This plan started six months before I started writing the book. The plan entailed rapidly finishing three books in a series — Project Atlantis, Destination Atlantis, and Colony Atlantis — and once it had been edited, beta-read, and sent out to my ARC reviewers, I’d release Project Atlantis, then Destination Atlantis seven days later, and Colony Atlantis fourteen days after Destination Atlantis. Additionally, I’d have the fourth book, Beyond Atlantis, almost 100% written. Yet, I’d have Beyond Atlantis’s pre-order already up and running before Colony Atlantis was released, all the while dropping over $1500 dollars in Facebook Ads, Amazon Ads, and on Promo Sites, and whatever else I could get my greedy paws on.
Well, I did none of the above.
Here is what happened that led me to only spending $30 on Facebook and Amazon ads and how I was able to make $4,344.81 in 40 Days with my Fiction Book.”
Continue reading @ Medium »
10 Actionable WordPress Security Tips for the Layman
“[T]he more popular something is, the more people want to leverage on it for nefarious means… Fortunately, WordPress is a platform that offers you a multitude of opportunity to defend yourself.”
» WHSR
10 Best Uses of Video Marketing
“All brands need a video marketing strategy. Digital marketing professionals and video makers understand how integral video is to growth hacking the current market.”
10 Bestsellers That Began as Self-Published Books
“There is much to be said for self-publishing, especially if you have spent a year or ten (see Michael J. Sullivan below) trying to get publishing houses interested in your work.
If you self-publish, and do a proper job of marketing, your book may not only achieve success in its own right, but may be picked up by a major publishing house. (Ironically, it may even be published by one of the houses that has previously sent you a rejection slip.)
All of these books have one thing in common – their authors did not simply publish and then lean back and enjoy their success. They marketed, pitched, and sold the heck out of their books.
And they continued to write.
Here are a few best-selling books whose authors did not give up on them.”
Continue reading @ Publishing … and Other Forms of Insanity »
10 books that will make you a better writer (and why)
“…
I love borrowing books. But there are some books that a writer really should have in their own personal for-keeps libraries. These are the books that you’ll keep coming back to, over and over, through your career.
Here are my top ten writing craft books. Some of them I’ve owned for twenty years or more. Some are new to me. Some are classics that you might already own. Maybe there are some that will be new to you.
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King
“You want to draw your readers into the world you’ve created, make them feel a part of it, make them forget where they are. And you can’t do this effectively if you tell your readers about your world secondhand.”
In 2004, when I was eight months pregnant, I won Nanowrimo for the first time. I wrote a truly awful first draft of a romantic suspense story. Then I had a baby girl on December 8. I never looked back. Once I knew that I could finish writing a novel, I knew that I could learn how to write well.
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers is the book that taught me how to be a better writer. I finished my first manuscript and took a solid year, going through this book, chapter by chapter, exercise by exercise, and applying what I learned to my work.
Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury
“I have never listened to anyone who criticized my taste in space travel, sideshows or gorillas. When this occurs, I pack up my dinosaurs and leave the room.”
Ray Bradbury’s little book of essays about writing and creativity is an essential little pocket of inspiration. I’ve read it half a dozen times and every single time, I pick up something new. Because it’s a collection of essays, you can pick it up and read what you need, when you need it.
Bradbury’s advice for fiction writers has shaped my writing life. He believed, especially, in short stories and in reading a lot. And watching movies. One of my favorite parts of Zen in the Art of Writing is the way that Bradbury breaks down how and why he wrote some of my favorite short stories.”
Continue reading @ Startup Grind »
10 Common Sales Objections (and How to Overcome Them)
“The remedy lies in anticipating and tackling customer objections head-on so you’re prepared and confident.”
» Rambl
Free
Book Fairs: Are They Worth It for Indie Authors?
“Large international book fairs, such as Frankfurt and Bologna, are where industry professionals meet to buy and sell rights, arrange for subsidiary rights, such as film and games, and scope out what’s hot in the literary market.
Can self-published authors set up a table at international book fairs? Technically, no. But in 2013, Tina Seskis formed a shell publishing company (hers was the only published book on the list), and exhibited at Frankfurt. She ended up nabbing a $500,000 deal with HarperCollins.
In general, setting up a shell company is frowned upon, and venues are tightening up their restrictions. But you can still exhibit if you have self-published. Combined Book Exhibit offers self-publishers the opportunity to showcase their books (print or ebook) and/or advertise it for a few hundred, rather than a few thousand dollars. There is an annual membership fee of $150.
The question is: Should self-publishers invest even a few hundred dollars? Showing your book at a book fair can be an advantage, provided you (the author) intend to make an appearance and know how to make a sale. Tina Seskis actually attended the Frankfurt Book Fair and set up a booth, so she was able to negotiate a deal. If you aren’t there to represent yourself, and your book is merely displayed, it won’t attract anyone’s attention.”
Continue reading @ Publishing … and Other Forms of Insanity »
A Good Backstory Makes All the Difference
![level-up-232x300[1]](https://wordpreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/level-up-232x3001-167x130.jpg "level-up-232x300[1]")
Level up: Writing for video games
“… [B]reaking into writing for video games is a daunting task. How do you write a story for an interactive virtual world? What kind of ideas should you pitch? And most importantly – how do you even get your foot in the door? …
[F]or writers who feel up to the challenge, a steady paycheck awaits. While the returns increase the longer one works in the industry, Yohalem says for someone in his position, it wasn’t uncommon to make a six-figure salary. ‘I think you’re a lot better off [in video games] than a lot of other writers,’ he laughs.
As for getting your foot in the door? It could be as easy as sending a sample. ‘Develop samples that show that you understand how systems and gameplay work and that show you’re a good writer,’ Yohalem said.
Of course, another avenue is available to intrepid writers trying to break into the industry: going independent, or ‘indie.’ Working on an independent game often involves a small team and more creative control. But like writing a novel without a publisher, indie games often have little up-front money and risk generating little to no revenue – if they get completed, that is.”
Continue reading @ The Writer »
Crafting a Positioning Strategy for Your Brand & Implementing it on the Web
“[A] positioning strategy, or brand positioning is how customers view a specific brand in their mind… This will help distinguish your brand from everyone else’s, including your competitors.”
Webdev
“Can’t you give me just 1 tip (for getting book reviews)?” she asked
“The other day a newly published author who had befriended me 5 minutes earlier asked me if I could give her just one tip how to get book reviews from Amazon top reviewers.
I told her to read my book.
She came back with, ‘Can’t you give me just 1 tip?’
Hmm… Apparently this author was not aware how much in demand these reviews are; on average Hall-of-Fame reviewers get 250+ review requests per month.
So, I told her that getting a book reviewed by an Amazon top reviewer isn’t a ‘1-tip thing,’ especially if the book did not have any reviews yet. Getting reviews is a challenging task that encompasses many steps; which is why my book has 100 pages.
She immediately un-friended me.
I guess that says it all. Just another wannabe author who does not really want to learn the trade. The indie author industry is overrun with people like that. The sooner they get out and make room for the people who really hone their craft and all skills, the better for all.
Of course, from experience I know that most indie authors work a lot harder than this one.
So, here is one tip for authors whose books received already a few reviews (including from top reviewers).
‘Like/find helpful’ the reviewers’ reviews!!!”
Continue reading @ Gisela’s Straightforward Blog »
“Self-Made” is a Myth; Here’s the Real Formula for Success
“[T]hat’s what most people get wrong. They never learn how to reach out. You’ve got to be willing to put yourself out there…”
» Medium
$4,344.81 in 40 Days with my Fiction Book Only Spending $30 on Advertising
“I had a plan. A big plan. Heck, I had the plan of the universe — to sell thousands of copies of my new release Science Fiction book, Project Atlantis, during the first month I published it.
This plan started six months before I started writing the book. The plan entailed rapidly finishing three books in a series — Project Atlantis, Destination Atlantis, and Colony Atlantis — and once it had been edited, beta-read, and sent out to my ARC reviewers, I’d release Project Atlantis, then Destination Atlantis seven days later, and Colony Atlantis fourteen days after Destination Atlantis. Additionally, I’d have the fourth book, Beyond Atlantis, almost 100% written. Yet, I’d have Beyond Atlantis’s pre-order already up and running before Colony Atlantis was released, all the while dropping over $1500 dollars in Facebook Ads, Amazon Ads, and on Promo Sites, and whatever else I could get my greedy paws on.
Well, I did none of the above.
Here is what happened that led me to only spending $30 on Facebook and Amazon ads and how I was able to make $4,344.81 in 40 Days with my Fiction Book.”
Continue reading @ Medium »
10 Actionable WordPress Security Tips for the Layman
“[T]he more popular something is, the more people want to leverage on it for nefarious means… Fortunately, WordPress is a platform that offers you a multitude of opportunity to defend yourself.”
