What's the best way to choose digital tools for developing your content?

1 Define your objectives

Before you start browsing or testing different digital tools, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your content. What are the learning outcomes, competencies, or skills that you want your learners to develop or demonstrate? How will you measure and assess their progress and performance? How will you align your content with your curriculum, standards, or frameworks? Having a clear vision of your objectives will help you narrow down your choices and focus on the tools that support your goals.

2 Consider your audience

Another important factor to consider is your target audience. Who are your learners and what are their needs, preferences, and characteristics? How do they access and interact with your content? What are their existing skills and knowledge levels? What are their motivations and challenges? How do they learn best? Knowing your audience will help you choose the tools that match their expectations, interests, and abilities, and that provide them with a positive and meaningful learning experience.

3 Evaluate the features

Once you have a shortlist of potential digital tools, you need to evaluate their features and functionalities. What kind of content can you create with each tool? Is it text, audio, video, images, animations, simulations, quizzes, games, or something else? How easy or difficult is it to use and edit the tool? How flexible and customizable is it? How compatible and interoperable is it with other tools or platforms? How reliable and secure is it? How accessible and inclusive is it for diverse learners? How well does it support collaboration and feedback? Comparing the features of different tools will help you determine their strengths and weaknesses, and their suitability for your content.

4 Test the tools

The best way to find out if a digital tool works for you is to try it out yourself. Most digital tools offer free trials, demos, or samples that you can use to test their functionality and usability. You can also look for reviews, ratings, or testimonials from other users who have used the tool for similar purposes. Testing the tools will help you get a firsthand experience of their benefits and limitations, and their impact on your content quality and efficiency.

5 Seek feedback

Another helpful strategy to choose the best digital tools for your content is to seek feedback from others who are involved or interested in your content development process. This could include your colleagues, peers, supervisors, clients, or learners. You can ask them to review your content, share their opinions, suggestions, or questions, or try out the tools themselves. Seeking feedback will help you gain different perspectives, insights, and ideas, and improve your content accordingly.

6 Review and refine

Finally, choosing the best digital tools for your content is not a one-time decision. You need to constantly review and refine your choices based on your objectives, audience, features, tests, and feedback. You also need to keep up with the latest trends, updates, and innovations in the digital content development field, and explore new tools that might enhance your content. Reviewing and refining your choices will help you adapt to the changing needs and expectations of your learners, and deliver high-quality and engaging content.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?