How an Instructional Designer Can Help You Get Out of Your Own Head
Here’s a challenge – ask someone who doesn’t know you or your business/company, but who fits into your ideal customer demographic, to go to your website and navigate to find key information – hours, contact info, products, physical address (if needed), etc. Watch them do it. Any surprises with where they click first, or the path they follow? How many attempts does it take them to find the information they’re looking for? I’m always surprised when I have to try 3 or 4 different places on a website to find a phone number or menu for a take-out restaurant (how many people don’t click that 4th time and instead, go to a competitor?? Don’t leave money on the table!). This often occurs because we assume people think like us… but here’s the difference – you know the business, you know the website setup, and you know where to look. How you navigate doesn’t matter… all that matters is that your customers can find what they need, when they need it.
The same holds true for employee training. Many times, owners/existing employees are just way too close to the information to be able to break it down in a way that makes sense to a new employee. Unintentional assumptions are made, and that just makes it harder to clearly communicate your message. That’s the benefit of hiring an instructional designer (ID). The ID approaches your content as your target audience would – in the case of a new employee, with a clean slate. The ID is also an expert in probing you for additional information to round out your training content. There might be a gap that you’re completely unaware of. The ID can also ensure that there’s consistent language used throughout your training. Otherwise, you could frustrate your user by referring to the same thing by different names (it happens way more often than you think).
Recognize that you have blind spots when it comes to employee training and develop a strategy to mitigate them. It could be by hiring an external instructional designer, or by using test groups who fit your target audience to validate your approach. The most important point here is to get outside of your own head and into the thoughts of whoever you’re trying to reach, whether it’s a customer on your website, or a new hire to your organization.
If you would like help getting out of your own head, reach out!
HIGH TIDE LEARNING STUDIO
We’re Erin and Peter, a husband and wife team passionate about making your organization successful through employee training and engagement. Join us as we explore new opportunities to improve your workplace.