Organizations understand the need to train their employees, but there are a number of common challenges in designing the right training program. Two of the biggest issues are reinforcing formal learning on the job, and linking learning programs and outcomes back to business results. Microlearning using short-form videos is an ideal way to meet both of these challenges.

Performance, Business Results, and Short-form Videos

Research conducted over the past few years shows a link between the use of video and business performance results. For example, the most successful organizations surveyed in a study by the Aberdeen group were harnessing the power of video throughout their business.

Such organizations were:

• More likely to achieve their organizational goals
• More likely to have highly engaged employees
• More likely to fill key positions internally

Furthermore, a meta-analysis by Gallup found that companies that keep their employees engaged do better on a number of measures, including profitability, productivity, and employee turnover. Given that “people are just naturally more easily and instantly engaged by the human face and voice,” video gives employees an efficient way to deliver this experience because the time and planning needed for traditional lectures or reading a text aren't necessary.

Finally, organizations can provide the link to business results by using online videos that are part of a training library. If paired with a Learning Management System (LMS), a training video library allows organizations to track which videos are used and how frequently they are viewed. Video is inherently more cost-effective to offer than instructor-led training, but on top of that, video gives organizations a case for a good investment with a broader audience, increased retention and improved performance outcomes.

Retention and Reinforcement

More importantly, short-form video is the ideal format for ensuring that learned information is retained. Studies have shown that over a 72 hour period, the average person can retain roughly 10% of what they read, 65% of what they see in a static image, and 95% of what they see and hear in a video. Video, then, is an ideal format for presenting information.

Still, reinforcing that information after training will be important too. Thanks to content providers like HSI, businesses across many industries are now using short-form video for refresh training. This is typically in the form of a one-to-two-minute video highlighting the main ideas learned in previous training sessions. These types of short reminders help to reinforce what was learned while the employee is on the job.

While video is an ideal format for retention and reinforcement, not all videos are created equal. The most successful training videos are:

“Bite-sized.” Information is retained better when it is presented in small, digestible chunks and then reinforced at spaced intervals. Our attention spans are getting shorter every year, making the ideal length of a video 5 to 8 minutes long.

Meaningful and relevant. Information has to be understandable and useful to stick. It is much easier for training materials to be relevant when the content is short, organized, and targeted.

On-demand. Today’s employees have grown up being in total control of the content they consume. Best-in-class video training makes content accessible wherever and whenever. Employees are also more likely to be engaged when they can control the pace and timing of their own learning. They also appreciate short, on-demand content that creates little-to-no workflow disruption.

If you would like to see samples of our videos made following these practices, request a free trial of HSI LMS. This will give you access to short-form videos specifically designed to aid retention and engagement.

Additional Resources

• Our approach to microlearning videos is based on research. Learn more in our white paper "The Science of Microlearning."
• Read more about the tools we offer to improve learning engagement in our blog "10 Tips to Improve Learning Engagement."