How do you create a 7-step training course that really engages your learners?

We're not going to surprise you with these words: an engaging training program can't be improvised. Its creation requires a great deal of thought and a precise definition of the issues at stake. Taking these into account is essential, but not sufficient. You need to define the pedagogical objectives, find the means and resources to achieve them, and develop content that is truly enriching for learners.

Appvizer has written this article to guide you in creating relevant and effective training. Get valuable advice and discover the steps you need to follow to develop a learning program that will generate interest and motivation within your company.

See all software Learning Management System (LMS)

Why create a training course?

A trainer who creates his or her own course can choose how to teach his or her expertise. Within your company, this approach can enable you to approach lessons from a different angle, so as to arouse the interest of your target audience. By using innovative methods and tools, for example, you can encourage and promote learning.

Not only will you be contributing to the development of your employees' skills, but you'll also be defining the pedagogical objectives you're aiming for and the means you'll use to achieve them. Targeting the issues at stake in a training program can save you precious time.

With the help of a Learning Management System, you'll be able to support your employees in the development of their knowledge and know-how. This powerful tool enables you to create learning modules with ease. It's just as easy to update courses on your LMS platform.

Fluid and easily accessible, your learning content will be continuously available. Learners will therefore be free to learn at their own pace, according to the time they have available.

It's up to you to create modules that are interactive, relevant and scalable, using innovative methods that facilitate and encourage learning. All this with the aim of improving employee productivity to help your company succeed.

7 steps to training design

To create a training program that meets your objectives, don't go into it blindly!

👉 Take care to follow a process whose stages are based on rigorous reflection and a real understanding of learners' needs.

Step 1: define the training course's pedagogical objectives

The aim of a training course is to teach specific knowledge and skills. These must be clearly defined to ensure the creation of relevant learning modules. With this in mind, you need to consider the interests of both the company and its employees.

In other words, the knowledge acquired must be beneficial to your business, but it must also contribute to the professional development of the learners. This is essential to keep learners interested and motivated.

Step 2: Identify learner profiles

Your training course must succeed in imparting knowledge. To ensure this, adapt content and methods to the learner's profile. You won't develop the same modules to initiate a novice audience or to deepen the knowledge of experienced employees.

If the content is too in-depth, novices risk becoming discouraged. An introductory course, on the other hand, is likely to cause the latter to lose interest.

☝️ Knowing and considering the skill levels of the employees who attend your training course is essential to adapting the program to their abilities. In this way, you'll be able to develop the skills within your company to precipitate opportunities and multiply its chances of success.

Step 3: Develop effective, relevant content

To create engaging, relevant and effective training, develop a structured plan.

Follow a logical progression to facilitate and consolidate the assimilation of the concepts taught.

When breaking down the content of your program, make sure that all modules meet the objectives defined in the first step. To build sessions and ensure that they arouse learners' interest, vary teaching methods and favor innovative concepts.

Step 4: Select appropriate teaching tools and methods

To ensure the relevance and effectiveness of your training, you need to choose tools and methods that correspond to the targeted pedagogical objectives as well as the learners' skill level.

💡 Common methods include:

• pair, group or individual work ;
• tests and questionnaires/quizzes ;
• training modules;
• theoretical input from the trainer.

Choose those that are most likely to facilitate learning by considering the type of notions being taught and prioritizing the essential elements. Always be sure to vary the methods you use, to ensure that the training is dynamic and meets all the expectations of the employees learning.

Step 5: Prepare documentation

You can enrich your training with various types of documentation.

Use them to illustrate what you're saying, or to complete the course, but always make sure they are relevant. Take care not to overwhelm learners with a mass of documents.

Step 6: Test the course

Before moving on to the launch stage, you can ensure the relevance and effectiveness of your training by planning a test phase. Invite a small group of employees to follow your program before reporting any areas for improvement.

☝️ Since the aim is to create a high-quality training program, take the time to analyze the feedback from your guinea pigs and make any necessary adjustments.

Step 7: Launch the course

Once you've perfected your training program, you can start offering it to your employees straight away. To ensure that the project has a positive impact, remember to inform and prepare the learners. A good context and the right conditions are essential for a truly effective training program.

With this in mind, take care to bring together the employees concerned to present the project, its objectives, its benefits for the company and for their careers. You can also talk about the teaching methods used and the tools made available to them to assimilate the concepts covered.

6 best practices for creating an engaging training program

Whether online or face-to-face, your training must be engaging, whatever the industry.

In other words, it must arouse learners' interest and make them want to mobilize their abilities to assimilate the knowledge taught.

👉 Here are a few practices applied by all competent training organizations.

Best practice 1: Vary the media

For the sake of practicality and innovation, you've probably opted for online training. With an infinite number of accessible tools, digital technology has become a highly effective means of imparting knowledge.

In the absence of a trainer, learners find themselves alone in front of their screens. Your objective is to capture and maintain their attention, which is not always easy when the modules deal with highly technical notions. To achieve this, integrate all kinds of media into your training.

Images, videos, infographics, animations, podcasts and interactive quizzes are particularly effective in arousing interest. Don't neglect these visual elements, which make content more attractive. They can also help you facilitate comprehension and memorization.

💡 If quizzes encourage learners to memorize the concepts taught, explanatory videos simplify technical subjects. The same applies to online exercises.

Best practice 2: offer an immersive learning experience

Role-playing, case studies, simulations... inject a certain dynamic into your training by inviting learners to become involved in their learning. Using the knowledge and skills taught in real-life contexts highlights the value of the training and facilitates assimilation.

Examples of realistic situations are also useful for understanding concepts. This form of learning, which calls for action, is particularly fun.

Best practice 3: Encourage interaction

The more you encourage interaction, the more you encourage knowledge retention. Here again, it's all about encouraging active learning to generate interest and motivation.

Interaction is essential to bring e-learning to life, and can take the form of surveys, questions and answers, information exchange, hands-on activities or video discussions.

To encourage collaboration between learning employees, create forums, blogs, workgroups or an online community. These tools enable learners to exchange information and share their experiences and feelings.

Good practice 4: Encourage self-directed learning

Professional training should not be perceived as a constraint. To keep your employees motivated and interested, offer them a high degree of flexibility. This means guaranteeing free, uninterrupted access to online sessions. In this way, everyone can organize their schedule and progress according to their needs and constraints.

💡 To make it easier for learners to get organized, make sure you offer short modules while still allowing them to go back over misunderstood notions. With an adaptable program that's accessible 24/7, you offer ideal learning conditions.

Best practice 5: Supporting learners

Sessions that are accessible online, enriched with relevant documents and perfectly structured do not exempt you from accompanying participants. In fact, personalized follow-up is essential to maintain motivation and encourage progress.

With constructive feedback, encouragement and suggestions for improvement, you encourage learners to keep up their efforts.

☝️ Please note, however, that feedback must be relevant to the objectives and challenges of the course!

Best practice 6: Guarantee pedagogical support

Coaching must be complemented by ongoing support.

In addition to motivation and commitment, this involves creating a climate of trust and reassuring the employees being trained.

As a trainer, you must remain available and offer a listening ear. From a technical point of view, your efficiency must be guaranteed. Be able to solve problems and answer questions throughout the training course.

What tools can help you create your training course?

Creating an engaging training program requires the use of :

• effective;
• easy to implement;
• scalable.

If they meet all these criteria, they will help you save time while guaranteeing a high-quality, professional result.

E-learning platforms

The e-learning platform is an essential tool for online training.

This software is a complete training management system. Used by trainers, managers, employees and HR teams, it brings together all data relating to training courses and learners. LMSs also help you design online courses, and embed a variety of pedagogical methods to adapt to all corporate configurations.

🛠️ Example of a Learning Management System:

Comprehensive and powerful, 360Learning is ideal for helping small and medium-sized businesses and large corporations create truly engaging online training courses. With the help of AI technology, it takes just seven minutes to design a module. What's more, you'll have a wide range of templates to choose from, depending on your specific use case. 360Learning also includes features to optimize training administration and learner collaboration, to guarantee the best experience for everyone, training team and employees alike.

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Tools for creating visuals

As we mentioned earlier, visual content enriches modules and adds a certain dynamism. If you don't want to spend hours creating and publishing them on your website, use a specific tool that will enable you to create all kinds of media.

Online software like Canva guides you through the creation of infographics, slideshows, mind maps and more. With just a few clicks, you can access image banks, icons and image-editing functions.

In short, thanks to these online tools, you can create all the visuals that will bring your training course to life.

Editorial tools

To create a training course that meets your objectives, rely on an editorial tool.

A solution such as Google Docs, for example, will help you create the materials your learners will need to download. Rely on such online software to create attractive, intuitive worksheets without wasting time.

The many features available will also enable you to create attractive templates in terms of design.

Tools for creating quizzes and surveys

By now, you know how important interaction is in creating engaging training.

Quizzes, forms and surveys are effective ways of generating interest and encouraging active learning. With specific tools, you can go far beyond the simple quiz.

New features allow you to multiply the options and extend the ways in which people can participate. Not only do you benefit from an effective guide for creating your interactive content, but you also develop highly attractive and innovative versions.

💡 In particular, use these online tools to prepare Q&A sessions, collect learner data or gather learner feedback at the end of the course.

See all software Learning Management System (LMS)

Creating a training course: in a nutshell

Creating a training course within your company is a doubly advantageous approach. You extend your teams' capabilities to develop your company's expertise and productivity, while promoting the professional development of participating employees.

If you take care to carefully define your objectives, consider the expectations and needs of your learners, and follow a step-by-step procedure, you can succeed in developing a quality learning program. This requires the use of appropriate tools, including an e-learning platform.

At the end of your first training course, don't forget to take stock of your approach. As a trainer, this analysis will enable you to identify areas for improvement, so that you can create and launch your next program with real expertise.