Does your staff training need a refresh? We all know that a skilled team is the key to a successful business strategy. (Read further to discover the connection between training and employee performance). But, are we providing our employees with the right tools to develop their skills? These ‘tools’ need to be engaging and informative. They need to make an impact, and there’s no denying the impact of a good instructional video. Whether it’s a how-to guide or motivational message, we’ve got some tips for creating stand-out online training videos for your workforce.
The key to creating successful online training for your staff is to keep the content short and manageable. Bite-size manuals, focused on a specific topic, are easy to absorb and retain (read our blog about microlearning in the workplace to learn more). The same goes for your instructional videos. Keep them brief and emphasise one section of information at a time. Use two to six minutes as your guideline. Long online training videos run the risk of going off topic and losing the viewer’s attention. If you keep your content short and to the point, your videos have a higher chance of keeping your employees engaged and attentive.
Equally important is the quality of your videos. When putting together content, make sure your videos are well produced. Don’t worry this doesn’t mean they need to be the next Hollywood blockbuster, but the sound, image and acting should be of high standard. If you’re using animation instead of people acting, ensure you have well-drawn graphics. Videos with poor sound quality and clumsy presentation will only distract your employees and hamper their concentration. You want your staff to be concentrating on the message, not laughing at the bad quality. Pair a well crafted visual with powerful content to create engaging online training videos.
Producing engaging online training videos doesn’t end with good quality production. A crystal clear, articulate delivery won’t have the same effect if the video is dull and uninspiring. To pack a punch and inject your staff training with the wow-factor, you need to be creative. A person standing in the centre of the screen rattling off instructions is hardly enthralling watching. You don’t want your employees’ minds wandering to their next meal when they should be concentrating on your training manuals. Keep them glued to the screen with a touch of creativity. Think about camera angles, lighting, dramatic background music and an emphatic script. Not only will this captivate your team’s attention, but it will make sure your training leaves a lasting impression.
A great way to further involve your team in their training is by making it interactive. An interactive video enables viewers to click on links within the video, allowing them to access additional information. Interacting directly with the content helps employees stay focused and involved in what they are learning. Don’t worry if you can’t make your online training videos interactive. You can also provide tests and quizzes at the end of your training to help your staff retain the information. With OnRamp, you can create and assign tests to your manuals for employees to complete once they have been through the training. Our platform also stores all this data in the cloud, making it easy to track staff engagement.
Not only is the content of your video important, but the positioning within your training as well. The placement of your online training video determines how employees receive the information. A video included at the beginning of the manual serves as a compelling introduction. It shows commitment to the objectives that follow. While videos placed in the middle of the segment are better suited to delivering information, such as ‘how-to’ demonstrations. Lastly, ending off with a video is a useful way to summarise the content and leave a memorable impact.
There’s no doubt about it, the use of multimedia can only enhance your workplace skills development. Tools, such as online training videos, help your staff connect with the information on a deeper level. This dynamic medium is both visual and auditory, speaking to a wider variety of learning types. In turn, this makes the content easier to recall for a longer. Not to mention how simple it is for employees to go back and watch a quick video to refresh their memories.
If you’re looking to enhance your staff training, look no further than OnRamp. Our training platform provides the tools you need to deliver online content to your staff anywhere, at any time. Contact us today and let one of our friendly consultants will help get you started.