How to Create Online Training Modules: A Step-by-Step Guide

Strike a balance with engaging online training modules

Imagine you’ve just started a new job as a course designer, and you’re tasked with creating an e-learning module that strikes the perfect balance between informative and educational. It has to be easily digestible, personalized to each unique learner, and engaging. You might have some source material—old PDFs, PowerPoints, videos, surveys, etc.—but you’re not sure where to start.

As you approach the starting line, questions arise: What’s my timeline? Who’s my audience? How do I align learning objectives with organizational goals? How do I assess and address training needs? Having questions like these is natural, and getting answers to them is crucial when 87 percent of companies expect to encounter significant skills gaps within a few years.

It can be difficult to create online training modules that deliver maximum impact for all learners. Fortunately, there are ways to simplify the process, making online course creation faster, more interactive, and easier to distribute.

In this post, discover the major components and best practices of online training modules, and explore a step-by-step guide to creating effective employee training modules.

What is a training module?

So, what exactly are online training modules, what are the most common use cases for them, and how will they benefit your employee training program? Read on to find out!

Training module definition and purpose

Like chapters in a book, online training modules are individual sections of larger e-learning courses that cover common workplace training topics. Each module builds on the last to maximize knowledge retention and aims to engage any learner—no matter their skill level or learning abilities.

Common use cases for online training modules include:

• Employee onboarding. Within the larger onboarding context, individual training modules cover topics like company culture, setting up email, organizational structure, software training, and more.

• Compliance training. Compliance modules cover a variety of topics including workplace safety, data privacy, anti-harassment and discrimination, financial regulations, and more.

• Soft skills training. Individual soft skills modules cover teamwork skills, problem-solving skills, adaptability, creativity, or communication skills like active listening, empathy, and leadership.

• Customer training. Training customers on how to use a product involves many individual modules like basic product knowledge, new feature training, and software use.

• Technical skills training. Technical skills training covers how to use the tools employees need to succeed in their position. It can range widely, from how to use a forklift to how to work with a specific programming language.

• Sales training. Sales training modules empower teams and reps to meet their targets. Modules can cover overcoming objections, making connections, and best practices for prospect follow up.

Benefits of using online training modules

Moving from an in-person training module to online training modules has many benefits, including:

• Scalability. Online training module formats simplify content updating and maintenance, significantly lower training costs, and help you reach a much wider audience. As your organization grows, your training programs can grow along with it.

• Consistency. Delivering training online ensures that each employee receives the same high quality content, regardless of where they are. For growing workforces and changing work environments, this means no employee—and no learning objective—is left behind.

• Personalized and accessible learning. While consistency in content is key across an organization for things like company culture and workplace safety, personalized learning allows for a unique approach for all learners. This could mean differentiating content specific roles or making learning accessible for those who need it.

• Learner tracking. Access to course completion rates, quiz results, and other learner tracking tools make it easy for managers—and learners themselves—to track their progress. Course designers can see where learners get hung up, making it easier to adapt course content when needed.

• Engaging and interactive formats. Moving training content online gives course designers access to a variety of engaging formats like interactive videos, interactive timelines, immersive 360° images, scenario-based learning, and more.

4 key components of an effective training module

Effective training modules have four basic components that maximize learning, boost productivity, and ensure long term relevancy.

1. Clear learning objectives

Training modules are often geared toward specific audiences with desired behaviors or outcomes in mind. A learning objective that is too broad, irrelevant to the learner, or unmeasurable will almost always fall short.

Here are some examples of clear, measurable learning objectives:

• By the end of Q2, the customer service team will be able to solve 90 percent of customer complaints within 5 minutes.
• Within three months of completing sales training, sales reps will be able to accurately compare product features to two competing products.
• By the end of unit one, 75 percent of students will be able to demonstrate mastery of blending quotations in a passage analysis.

Each of the examples above follow what’s referred to as the SMART goal method, detailed further in the step-by-step guide section below.

2. Engaging and interactive content

Employees who are engaged in training are more motivated, productive, and connected to their workplace—in fact, nearly 85 percent of employees agree that learning adds purpose to their work.

Luckily, the variety of formats available are many, including:

• Interactive timelines. Interactive timelines can highlight company history, daily workflow expectations, or step-by-step instructions for equipment use.

• Immersive 360° images. Immersive 360° images give learners a virtual environment that mimics the real world.

• Interactive checklists. Checklists can track task progress, help visualize equipment safety processes, or help sales reps cover prospecting steps.

• Branching scenarios. Scenario learning allows learners to investigate the consequences of their actions in a safe space, enhancing their decision-making skills.

Beyond the above listed, gamification in e-learning has gained massive popularity. Gamification incorporates elements like progress bars, achievements & rewards, leaderboards & friendly competition, customizable characters, and storytelling components into training to fully engage learners.

3. Assessments and feedback

Short multiple choice quizzes at the end of each module help learners see where they need additional support. Allow learners to review each question and get to 100 percent accuracy before moving on. Longer final assessments give learners a chance to test their mastery of a topic without support, motivating them to move on to real-world knowledge application.

Consistent feedback—from learners and for instructors both—is important to maintaining a relevant, up-to-date training program. Real-time review and feedback before publishing a course is easier than ever, and feedback from learners after publication ensures your training is efficient, built for knowledge retention, and personalized.

4. Mobile-responsive design

Staying up to date with current learning trends is a must. Mobile learning, or m-learning, is any type of training that takes place on a mobile device like a smartphone or tablet. Especially important for frontline workers—who make up 80 percent of the global workforce—mobile learning provides just-in-time, on-the-go learning.

Nurses, service technicians, and retail workers alike need on-the-spot guidance for their busy workdays, and there’s no better way to equitably distribute learning than through mobile devices.

How to make a training module step-by-step

Learning how to make an online training module need not be a strenuous process. Follow this step-by-step guide to create engaging, relevant, and high quality courses, and learn about the best course authoring tools.

1. Identify the learning needs

The most effective way to maximize learning—before you even begin to author courses—is to conduct a training needs analysis. Consisting of three parts, detailed below, needs assessments gather the appropriate data to ensure relevant, engaging learning.

• Needs analysis. A needs analysis measures expected employee performance against actual employee performance, locating skill or knowledge gaps that need filling. A needs analysis can also help determine whether or not more training is the answer, saving organizational time and money.

• Audience analysis. An audience analysis identifies demographics, learner preferences, and learner abilities, helping you create course content that’s relevant and accessible to all learners.

• Task analysis. A task analysis is a breakdown of the task or skill needed to improve employee performance itself. You’ll gather step-by-step process information—likely from a subject matter expert—allowing the learner to see a complex, macro task in micro steps.

2. Define the learning objectives

Most organizations use the SMART method to determine clear learning objectives. SMART stands for:

• Specific. Clear and focused objectives with no room for interpretation.

• Measurable. Success metrics should be able to be clearly demonstrated.

• Achievable. The objectives should be realistic and achievable.

• Relevant. Objectives should align with organizational goals and employee needs.

• Time-bound. A timeframe should be specified for the objective to be met.

Following this method ensures that your training module is specific to your audience, works toward a desired behavior, aligns with organizational goals, and is achievable within a certain timeframe.

3. Structure the content

Less is more when structuring course content. Microlearning techniques effectively break down complex training materials into digestible chunks, giving your learners breathing room to absorb knowledge. Rather than relying on hour-long, non-interactive videos or text dense PDFs, microlearning courses are perfect for right-on-time learning and knowledge retention.

Pre-made microlearning course templates make course creation easier than ever, and can be presented in multiple formats, including:

• A short video explaining a single topic or skill.
• An interactive infographic that highlights company values.
• A quick quiz to test learner knowledge.
• A brief tutorial that demonstrates product features.
• A short podcast that discusses a single soft skill.

Course designers can also choose from continuous or stepped navigation when creating scrolling microlearning presentations. Paired with the right course authoring tool, microlearning courses can reach a wide audience wherever they are and whatever device they’re using. 

4. Choose the right authoring tool

There are many course authoring tools available, but the best of them combine ease of use in three main areas:

• Quick course creation. Access to interactive and customizable course templates with features like slide layers, triggers, variables, and the capability to present content cleanly on any device.
• Simplified collaboration. Integrated collaborative features allow for seamless review and feedback both during and after course publication.
• Effortless interactivity. From microlearning courses to immersive, interactive courses, you’ll want a course authoring tool with access to millions of images, easy source material conversion, and accessibility features built in.

5. Design visuals and interactions

Consistent design and branding across your courses creates familiarity and cohesion to your employees’ learning journeys. An AI assistant can be advantageous, helping you create courses 9x faster. Generate images, interactive elements like learning blocks, and more with the ability to change the tone, audience, length, and complexity at the press of a button.

Accessibility for learners of all skill levels and abilities is of the utmost importance. Inclusion of features like closed captioning, screen readers, color contrast, keyboard accessibility, alt-text for images, and others create a learning experience equitable for all.

6. Add quizzes and assessments

Exposing new learners to knowledge without ever testing them on that knowledge can reduce chances of knowledge retention. Including quick knowledge checks at the end of individual modules and longer assessments at the end of larger sections can help learners achieve mastery. Quizzes and knowledge checks can take many forms, including multiple choice, drag & drop, hotspot questions, and many more.

Tracking assessment results via a learning management system (LMS) helps both managers and learners understand their progress, opportunities for improvement, and subject knowledge they’re ready to apply to the real world.

7. Publish and upload to an LMS

Some of the most popular LMS platforms for corporate use include iSpring Learn, Docebo, LearnUpon, and Reach. You’ll want to use an LMS that offers seamless course distribution with the ability to group learners, track learner progress, make quick updates, and adapt to any screen.

Keep in mind that LMS platforms with SCORM and xAPI compliance work best for the following reasons:

• Interoperability. SCORM and xAPI compliant content can be shared and reused across other LMS platforms.
• Easy progress tracking of learner performance and engagement.
• Reusable content across different LMS platforms.
• Consistency and standardization of content across platforms.
• Reduced costs without having to recreate content when moving between platforms.

Put simply, working with a SCORM and xAPI compliant LMS platform means you won’t have to worry about lost content, increased costs, or lost leaner data when moving between platforms and devices.

Best practices for online training modules

Online training modules come in all shapes and sizes, but the most effective employee training programs follow these three best practices.

Keep it learner-centered

Have you ever had to click through a tedious, dense training that you felt had nothing to do with your role? This is easily avoidable, yet it happens all the time. Implementing personalized learning is simple when you harness the power of variables. Variables in e-learning allow you to use learner’s actual names and create branching scenarios that adapt to learner needs and performance.

Use data to iterate

Once you’ve published a course and distributed it through an LMS, it’s important to continually receive feedback from all stakeholders—learners, managers, and other course designers. Embed survey blocks at the end of courses to get learner feedback, and update content accordingly.

Data analytics can help you track statistics on learner progress and performance, even allowing you to customize reports by individual learners, groups of learners, specific courses, and more.

Time-saving tip: If you have time on the front-end, it may be worth it to have a few test learners go through your course before you publish it to uncover any pain points, blind spots, or confusing content.

Ensure accessibility and inclusivity

Course design with accessibility features in mind ensures that everyone—regardless of abilities—has equal access to learning and development opportunities. For many organizations, accessible e-learning is a legal requirement, but it’s imperative that all organizations make it a priority.

Integrate Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and Section 508 compliance into your course design to build a better learning experience for all learners. Common accessibility features in course design include:

• Screen readers, alt text, and color contrast checkers for learners with visual impairments.

• Closed captions, mono audio systems, and live captioning for learners with hearing impairments.

• Keyboard navigation, alternative input devices, and switch access for learners with motor skills impairments.

• Plain language, logical heading structure, and consistent layout for learners with cognitive impairments.

Tools to help you build better training modules

While there are many course authoring tools available to learning and development pros, it’s best to find one that meets all of your training needs.

Articulate 360

Easy enough for beginners and powerful enough for experts, Articulate 360 delivers all the tools you need to create, review, and distribute the best online training courses.

• Rise allows for responsive, fast course authoring that automatically adapts to any device and orientation.
• Storyline helps you build custom, interactive e-learning courses for dynamic, personalized, and immersive learning experiences.
• Reach allows for seamless course distribution at the click of a button with easy learner progress tracking, simple content management, and an intuitive learner dashboard.

Additionally, a powerful AI assistant, the collaboration tool Review, and localization features are integrated into the entire Articulate 360 platform. This allows you to boost productivity, collaborate course creation with ease, and translate your courses into any language with just a few clicks.

Build better training modules that drive results

To create training modules that boost productivity for all learners, begin by identifying your learning needs and training objectives. Structure content to effectively break down complex material into digestible parts. Use microlearning techniques, design with engaging visuals and interactions, choose the right course authoring tool that gives your learners the best user experience possible.

Keep your courses learner-centered with personalized learning techniques. Use learner data to consistently review and update your content to keep learning relevant and engaging. Ensure your courses are accessible and inclusive for learners of all skill levels and abilities.

Ready to create effective online training modules? Start your free trial of the Articulate 360 platform—trusted by all Fortune 100 companies—and create courses that learners love from start to finish.