A good eLearning course makes a complex concept easier tounderstand and to act on.
But eLearning courses don’t always turn out that way. Despitegood intentions and earnest efforts, sometimes something seems to be missing. Asany instructional designer knows, the course is always more than the sum of itsparts. When the parts lack finesse, the course doesn’t work.
Examples include instances where visualization doesn’t fitthe content or screens with too much text. Maybe the language feels stilted orthe layouts look sloppy when you’re three screens into the course.
This article is a kind of toolbox, or even a handbook, that outlinessome basic devices that can tackle frequently encountered challenges of contentdesign. We’ll take care of these one challenge at a time.
Too much content on the screen, and all of it is important
We generally chunk and group related content and present itas a cohesive unit. However, translating this on a display may seem too verbose.The dilemma then is what can you remove from the display when all of it isimportant? (Assuming you have asked yourself some hard questions and realizedthat all of it actually isimportant.)
Content lab
Here’s an example of what we could do to overcome thischallenge. The following content relates to how to arrange store shelves toattract consumers:
Visual guidelines provide a strong, clear graphic message tothe customer. To optimize the planogram (a diagram or modelthat indicates the placement of retail products on shelves in order to maximizesales) of an outlet, brands need to be placed left to right in order ofpremiumness. Note that you will place standard brands on the left and premiumbrands on the right. In a linear arrangement, brands must be placed from bottomto top in order of premiumness. Sometimes though, the shelf will not have enoughspace to stock complete brand families. In this case, ensure that brands of thesame families are on adjacent shelves close to each other. Also important areshelf branding and its sync with product placement. The top shelf of brandedshelves must display the same brand as shown in the display on top of the rack.The higher the shelf share, the closer the outlet is to becoming a perfectoutlet. To get a higher shelf share, it is important to focus on hotspots. Ahotspot is an area, location, or point within an outlet, which attractsdisproportionate consumer eyeballs. Leverage hotspots for communication,branding, and other such activities. Some other hotspots are the visibilitydiamond and the counter. Additionally, there are different kinds of guidelinesthat pertain to various types of signage such as those for the main facade, anyother outside branding, in-shop branding, and non-permanent point-of-salematerial or POSMs.
Options
Break upinto headings: Overall, we can see that these visual guidelines can becategorized into the following areas: Planograming, shelf-branding, and signage.A straightforward way to redesign the screen would be to use headings:
Visual guidelines provide astrong, clear visual message to the customer.
Planograming
To optimize the planograming of anoutlet, brands need to be placed left to right in order of premiumness. In alinear arrangement, brands must be placed from bottom to top in order ofpremiumness. Sometimes though, the shelf will not have enough space to stockcomplete brand families.
Shelf share and sync with product placement
The higher the shelf share, the closerthe outlet is to becoming a perfect outlet. To get a higher shelf share, it isimportant to focus on hotspots. A hotspot is an area, location, or point withinan outlet that attracts disproportionate consumer eyeballs. Leverage hotspots forcommunication, branding, and such activities. Some other hotspots are thevisibility diamond and the counter.
Signage
Different guidelines apply tovarious signages such as the main facade, any other outside branding, in-shopbranding, and non-permanent point-of-sale material or POSMs.
- Usebullets for large chunks of paragraphs:
Shelf-branding guidelines
The top shelf of branded shelves must displaythe same brand as shown in the display on top of the rack.
Leverage hotspots such as the visibility diamondand the counter for communication, branding, and other such activities.
Higher visibility share of the focus brand has abigger impact on the perception of the brand by the customer.
Make thecontent scannable: Wheninformation is easy for learners to read through (scan), they are more likelyto get to the core message at a glance. When we make information scannable(easily readable), it reflects the most intuitive way we consume content indaily lives. A good way to do that is to make the key terms bold: The topshelf of branded shelves must display the same brand as shown in the display on top of the rack.
Too much content, not enough relevance
When we have to abstract a screen’s worth of content from a40-page document, what we select or leave out makes a lot of difference inearning a learner’s indifference or interest. A good way to establish relevanceis to convert clichés into something meaningful.
Content lab
You are working with company-related information that you mustdesign such that it provides an overview of its business to its customers. Toomany slides talk about how, “Company A has effective technological solutionsthat have been designed on breakthrough technology.” This sentence meanslittle. The solutions were effective according to whom? What is thebreakthrough technology? To transform this company information into something alearner actually cares about, we could add in details. For example, “Company A hastechnological solutions that have impacted the ROI of 50 companies and morethan 6,000 users.”
Technical content and it all reads dry
At times, we script courses on subjects we don’t know muchabout. In such cases, there is a tendency to detail out every nut and bolt infear that we might leave out something. Alternatively, we may omit something fundamental.If the technical content is for technical experts, the challenge can be evenmore complex. In a sense, you are preaching to the converted. For example, anautomobile designer doesn’t need to be sold on the importance of knowing thedefinitions of booster nomenclature or other components of a brake system. You,however, are the novice who believes that every word written in the SME manual isimperative. Of course, it’s the rare SME who will disagree with that. However,the risk of alienating the learners is high when you start teaching basics theyalready know.
Content lab
Here, consider using a pre-test to tease out what learnersactually know about the subject. Or even check whether learners can apply theirexisting knowledge to a new domain. For example, can engineers apply theirknowledge of automobile systems to a project management crisis? Or can learnerswith prior knowledge of personal finance apply their knowledge to corporatetaxation?
Ineffective images
For a picture to be worth a thousand words, visualize onecore idea and not the thousand. Ineffectivescreens have ineffective images—some that are direct and others that aremetaphors; some that directly relate to the content and others that makeoblique references to the content. The way we get such visual chaos is usually becausewe want every word on the screen to have a pictorial depiction.
Content lab
Here are some things that can pare down the busyness of ascreen:
Script the details such that you reduce thenumber of elements. Visualize no more than three items and visualize thosestrongly.
Instead of many disparate elements, converge theelements into a composite infographic. This works because it is easier to getour heads wrapped around one big idea than many smaller ones. Let’s say youwould like to depict the following information: “A limited way to approach ourexistence is to regard the human species as more important than the amoeba, thefauna, the animals, or the starfish in the sea. Instead, human beings areanother dot that stays connected to the other forms of life.” One way to do thisis to create two composite images that convey the central theme of thismessage.
For the first, we could use a pyramid withan icon of the human being right at the top and different species forming eachlayer below.
For the other, we could show an image whereall forms of life are arranged in a circle, and the human being is just onemore dot in the circle, connected. A pyramid indicates hierarchy. A circle indicatesconnection. It’s never the image—it’s always the idea.
- Refrain from segregating content into boxes.Consider alternative methods such as proximity and clustering, typography, andcontent to categorize content. This cleans up the space.
But what if the screen looks too empty?
Try a front-and-center layout and integrate thetext and image. This doesn’t need to apply only to diagrams or process ororganizational charts.
Also, it’s important to remember that aminimalist screen is better for the course than one that is filled with unnecessaryvisual clutter.
What if the information is just legal or accountingguidelines?
Consider using meaningful icons along with labels. Forexample, a course on finance usually has a lot of content that pertains todocumentation regarding operation costs and revenues. Instead of simply puttingin a number of moneybag or currency icons and folders, you can differentiate them.The icons can be yellow for costs and green for revenues.
The scenario scene
Scenarios allow the learners to try on a concept for size. Youshould design them to get learners to explore a world, make a few mistakes, andget a sense of what the repercussions are of getting it wrong.
If we have to script a scenario about teaching negotiationskills through a character, Marlene, who has to get the right price from the shippingvendor for her shipment, there need to be enough details for learners to careabout Marlene and her problem.
Content lab
For scenarios to work, the level of detail isimportant. There should be enough detail so that learners can relate to theworld in which the scenario is based. However, if a scenario has too manydetails, the scenario’s objective is likely to get lost. We definitely want toknow Marlene’s designation in the company, a bit about the vendor company, theproducts for which Marlene is scouting around for shippers, and some sense ofthe business reasons to understand exactly why the shipment cost is importantfor the product. However, we do not really need to know the fiscal details of eithercompany or the number of their employees.
Use realistic dialogues and visual cues. Payattention to what characters on screen are wearing, the weather in which theyoperate, and the words and jargon they use.
Most importantly, don’t lose track. The scenariowas set up for a reason. Marlene was supposed to negotiate her way to a morecompetitive price without losing the vendor’s services or compromising herbusiness’s interest. Any incident that helps Marlene on this track needs tostay. Anything that does not, you need to leave out.
