Design Agency ELM Builds High-Quality Content for Enterprises with Unified Client Feedback and QA Process
Adopting a unified client feedback and QA process streamlined ELM Learning’s content development process.
Implementing zipBoard into our development process has taken the team from using antiquated manual processes to an easy to use, globally accessible, online process. zipBoard’s environment allows multiple projects to be set up and managed uniquely; where other tools force a specific method for everything, zipBoard gives you and your team some elbow room. The client and the internal team can both access the data while still preserving the integrity and security of internal information.
- Beth Epperson, QA Manager & Accessibility SME, ELM Learning
ELM Learning is a leading eLearning design agency with offices in San Diego and New York. Known for building interactive training scenarios for tech giants like Microsoft, X (formerly Twitter), Godiva, Facebook, and Apple, ELM faced challenges with client feedback. However, integrating zipBoard into their content development process resulted in saving the creative team 5000 hours annually and delivering high-quality courses 50% faster.
Client Feedback and QA Process Challenges Faced by ELM’s Production Team
Even though ELM’s production team created exceptional and interactive training scenarios for their clients and users, they were unable to build a fast, collaborative process for managing the delivery and production of quality content assets for their clients – while keeping their feedback and insights as part of the QA and review process. They struggled to create a process to manage expectations effectively. As ELM’s team and clients kept growing, it became difficult to manage internal and external feedback throughout the development process.
The team was spending a lot of time switching and searching between applications, collecting feedback from different stakeholders – in different tools, and didn’t have a single place to manage them. They would get lost between emails, text, documents, authoring tools, videos, and Google Sheets. Furthermore, filtering and managing the incoming feedback from clients and tracking current bugs and tasks were a struggle. The process was time-consuming and prone to errors.
ELM Learning needed a simple and intuitive tool for their clients and internal team members to collaborate in the same place. They sought a solution to enhance their client feedback and QA process.
According to Beth Epperson, when interacting with clients on projects, they cared about:
- The ability of clients to provide feedback clear and accessible feedback
- An easy way for clients and designers to communicate back and forth on specifics.
- The project team’s ability to get contextual feedback to understand exactly where in the module the client experienced an issue, or where they want a change.
- A visual way to explain issues in the courses within the same platform.
That was where zipBoard came in – providing ELM with a unified client feedback and QA platform.
How ELM Learning Handles 75%+ of Client Feedback and QA Process through zipBoard for Faster Approvals
Since ELM integrated zipBoard into their eLearning content development process, they have created an agile process that incorporates client feedback and QA processes throughout the development of eLearning content. Below is what their process looks like in zipBoard:
eLearning Development Process in zipBoard
- Project Setup with all of the project IDs, project names, and milestones defined in the beginning for efficient tracking.
- Internal Collaboration among designers, QA, animators, LXD, scriptwriters, and other team members.
- Client Collaboration: Clients accessed projects for early reviews through zipBoard.
- Review Process by the internal team to track projects, get visual context on issues, prioritize tasks, and easily convert client feedback into tasks or internal bugs.
- Tracking: Tasks and bugs are assigned, reassigned, and tracked throughout the project lifecycle.
- Prioritization of bugs based on severity established using ELM’s criteria.
- Archive & Revisions: Access to a comprehensive history of bugs, tasks, and changes for reference.
By integrating zipBoard into their eLearning content development process, ELM learning…
Streamlined Client Feedback and QA Process
The production and project management team improved ELM’s client feedback and QA process by using a platform that integrated seamlessly with their existing content development and authoring tools. This streamlined approach allowed the team to manage client feedback and QA tasks more effectively. The visual context and collaborative features within zipBoard ensured efficient communication between team members and clients, reducing delays in the feedback loop.
Implementing zipBoard into our development process has taken the team from using antiquated manual processes to an easy-to-use, globally accessible, online process. The application is flexible in how projects are set up and managed. zipBoard’s environment allows multiple projects to be set up and managed uniquely; where other tools force a specific method for everything.
- Beth Epperson, QA Manager & Accessibility SME, ELM Learning
Enhanced Collaboration between Clients and the Internal Team
The visual feedback and collaboration tools in zipBoard enhanced real-time communication and collaboration between clients and the internal team. ELM Learning’s clients gained earlier access to project reviews based on designated permissions at various stages of the project. Additionally, the seamless feedback loop ensured better alignment with project goals and improved overall collaboration.
Saved 5000 Hours Annually for the Creative Team
The efficiency gained from using a unified client feedback and QA process translated into significant time savings for the creative team, amounting to approximately 5000 hours annually. For instance, tasks that previously demanded extensive coordination and manual effort were simplified, contributing to increased overall productivity and operational efficiency. Internal team members saved ~ 2 hours daily on switching between apps to collaborate on projects. This helped the team double their capacity and deliver high-quality courses – faster.
Enhanced Content Quality
The visual feedback and QA features, including the task manager in zipBoard allowed the internal team to get better oversight of content quality throughout the project lifecycle. They captured and addressed issues in a consolidated platform, ensuring a significant improvement in the overall quality of delivered content.
Enabled them to Deliver Courses 50% Faster
Integrating zipBoard into ELM’s content development process led to a substantial reduction in the time required to process feedback and manage tasks. By consolidating project files and systems into a single platform, ELM Learning experienced a 50% increase in the speed of course delivery. The streamlined workflow enabled the creative team to prioritize tasks more effectively, resulting in faster project timelines.
You’ve got to define your processes to set your attention on the quality of the product. Setting the right priorities, workflow and a well-defined system for all projects has made a huge difference in our ability as a team to deliver courses that we are proud of.
- Beth Epperson, QA Manager & Accessibility SME, ELM Learning
Improved Client Satisfaction
The combined benefits of streamlined communication, faster delivery times, and enhanced content quality resulted in improved client satisfaction. Clients experienced a more efficient and collaborative process, positively impacting their overall satisfaction with ELM Learning’s services. More so, the intuitive nature of zipBoard reduced the friction of usage on the part of their clients – which made them happier.
By integrating zipBoard into their client feedback and QA process during content development, ELM Learning surpassed client expectations by delivering high-quality courses efficiently. The streamlined process not only saved time but also significantly improved overall content quality.
Want to achieve similar results? Learn more about how zipBoard can help you streamline your client feedback and QA processes for digital assets including websites, web apps, eLearning courses, videos, PDF documents, images, and MP3s.
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