Gamification can really engage students in the classroom (online or traditional). I just really have to think about the whole setup.

Student evals are not enough to get a balanced look at your online course. You must have peer to peer and other forms to help with developing a good online course.

Scaffolding is important piece to delivery of instruction using students prior knowledge. 

Good and continued communication is important to help your online students succeed.

Less Synchronous discussions and more asynchronous to allow all students to share without feeling uncomfortable.

It's important to start establishing a relationship with your students as soon as possible. By sharing information of each other, we begin to build a sense of trust which will make students comfortable to address concerns or needs.

Successful navigation of the online platform is important and allows for a smooth transition from one application to another. It's important that we teach students the process also.