Engaging Tips from eLearning Experts
Patti Shank, PhD
“The best way I know to engage people in eLearning is to solve genuine learning needs. How? Know their jobs. Ask questions about their projects. Then make it quick. Make it painless. Get them what they need, when they need it, in the form they need it. People are very busy and are getting even busier.”
Patti is the Founder of Learning Peaks, a published author, and a frequent speaker at eLearning conferences. Find out more about Patti here.
Matt Guyan
“There’s different types of engagement in eLearning – there’s the visual, the physical, and most importantly the mental. While the first two are needed, if you really want to make eLearning engaging for people create something that’s relevant for them, arouse their curiosity, challenge what they know, have them make decisions with consequences and ultimately help them to perform better.”
Matt is a Solutions Developer for B Online Learning. To learn more about Matt, visit his website here.
Clive Shepherd
“The number one factor in engagement is relevance, because relevance drives out resistance. If a person has a need – to solve a current problem, to gain some personal advantage, to reduce a risk – then they will invest time and energy in meeting that need, even if that means working through some rather uninspiring e-learning.”
Clive is the Founding Director at The More Than Blended Learning Company. Read more about Clive on his blog.
Jane Hart
“Thinking you need to make your elearning more engaging, suggests that there is an issue with motivation to use it. People will only want to engage if it is relevant to their needs or helps them solve problems. So focus on understanding THEIR needs and providing them with the content that best suits those needs, in the format THEY want.”
Jane is a speaker, writer, and independent modern workplace learning advisor. Visit her website to learn more about Jane.
Rod Ward
“Most learners will find e-learning content ‘engaging’ if they see it as directly relevant to things they need to know, or tasks they need to perform. So rather than just making the content an ‘info-dump’, try to find out more about your target audience and then design the content to be a close fit for their specific needs.”
Rod is the Director of Infosemantics, an eLearning professional services company in Australia. Read Rod’s advice about building interactive learning here.
Bruce Graham
“The only way to make eLearning ‘engaging’ is to make it ‘speak’ to the learners, solving a personal or business problem or challenge that they have.”
Bruce is a Freelance Instructional designer specializing in Articulate Storyline. Learn more about Bruce here.
Phil Mayor
“Make it fun if at all possible, can you add in any easter eggs? This would make the user want to explore your course to see what else they can find!”
“Above all make it relevant to the target market, if the user wants to learn and can see the purpose of the interaction they will be engaged.”
Phil is the Creative Director of Elearning Laboratory. Follow Phil on Twitter here.
Patti Bryant
“My tip for creating engaging eLearning is simple – make it realistic and actionable.”
“The most engaging eLearning mimics real life and allows learners to explore.”
Patti is the CEO and Founder of Learning Reinvented. Discover more about Patti and her work on her website.
Erik Lord
“Make the content as relevant to the learners as possible. People like to pay attention to things that they find relevant to their own experiences.”
Erik is the Manager, Multimedia Production at DeVry Education Group. Learn more about Erik here.
