What are the best ways to keep product training current with new releases?

1 Assess your training needs

Before you design or update your product training, you need to identify the learning objectives, the target audience, and the knowledge gaps. Conduct a needs analysis to determine what your staff and customers need to know, what they already know, and how they prefer to learn. You can use surveys, interviews, feedback forms, or analytics to gather this information. Based on your findings, you can tailor your product training to address the specific needs and preferences of your learners.

2 Use a variety of formats

Different people learn in different ways, so you should use a variety of formats to deliver your product training. You can use videos, podcasts, webinars, infographics, blogs, e-books, or interactive games to showcase your product features, benefits, and use cases. You can also use microlearning, which is the delivery of bite-sized chunks of information that are easy to digest and remember. By using multiple formats, you can appeal to different learning styles, increase engagement, and reinforce key messages.

4 Test and measure your results

To ensure that your product training is effective and impactful, you need to test and measure your results. You can use quizzes, assessments, simulations, or demonstrations to check the comprehension and retention of your learners. You can also use metrics like completion rates, satisfaction scores, knowledge retention, behavior change, or sales performance to evaluate the impact of your product training on your business goals. By testing and measuring your results, you can identify the strengths and weaknesses of your product training and make adjustments accordingly.

5 Encourage social learning

Social learning is the process of learning from and with others, through interactions, discussions, or collaborations. You can encourage social learning in your product training by creating opportunities for your learners to share their experiences, opinions, questions, or feedback with each other. You can use platforms like forums, chats, blogs, or social media to facilitate social learning. You can also use gamification, which is the use of game elements like points, badges, or leaderboards, to motivate and reward your learners for participating in social learning activities.

6 Provide ongoing support

Your product training should not end when your learners complete the course, but continue as long as they need support. You should provide ongoing support to your learners by offering resources, tips, reminders, or updates that can help them apply their learning in practice. You can use tools like email, newsletters, podcasts, or mobile apps to deliver ongoing support. You should also provide feedback, coaching, or mentoring to your learners to help them overcome challenges, improve their skills, or achieve their goals.

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?