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Designing Training Programs that Drive Business Growth

Designing Training Programs that Drive Business Growth

In today's competitive market, a good product experience should be the cornerstone

of any successful business strategy. Exceptional product experiences drive customer

satisfaction, repeat purchases, and brand advocacy, all of which contribute to

surpassing business goals. More importantly, these experiences ensure that the

devices are utilized to their full potential, having the impact they were designed to

achieve. In this article, we will explore how an effective training program is not only

the foundation for an excellent product experience but if designed with your business

goals in mind, can also be the driver for sustainable business growth.


The Role of Training in Enhancing Product Experience


Due to the logistics and complexity involved in teaching end users how to use

Medtech and B2B products, product training has often been a one-off information

dump, typically linked to initial installation and then never repeated or built upon.


For training to have as big an impact as possible, however, it must evolve into a

a dynamic, ongoing process that supports your customers' lifelong learning.


Shifting from standardized training to tailored, configurable programs that address

the specific needs of both enterprises and individual caregivers along their product

journey ensures that end-users fully leverage the technology they’ve invested in, for

the lifetime of the solution. This approach not only boosts customer satisfaction but

also reinforces the value of their investment as the user benefits from all that your

product has to offer.


In addition to focusing on customer satisfaction levels, think of training and

knowledge transfer as an additional customer engagement opportunity. Businesses

can generate deeper customer insights at every moment of learning, gaining

valuable customer feedback, enhancing product experience, and even uncovering

new revenue streams or ideas for future customer investments as they better

understand the impact your solutions can have.


Challenges with Traditional Training Content and Programs


Traditional training content and programs face several challenges that hinder their

ability to fully contribute to business goals.


Content Design Issues:


The creation of training materials—whether it’s user instructions, courses, or online

education—is a massive undertaking, especially in a highly regulated environment

like healthcare. This complexity brings its own set of challenges:


  • Difficulty in Updating: As product features or designs evolve, traditional

    training content quickly becomes outdated. Even when master content is

    refreshed, ensuring that updates reach all existing customers is a significant

    challenge.

  • Localization Issues: Adapting content to meet the specific regulatory and

    other requirements of different countries are complex and become even more

    challenging with new content editions.

  • Limited Reusability: Training content is often siloed, limiting its potential to be

    repurposed for sales, marketing, or integration into other programs. This is a

    missed opportunity to reinforce your value proposition and support customers-

    facing staff in demonstrating the product’s impact.

  • Limited accessibility: Useful content is restricted to manuals or online

    modules and practical know-how often hidden amongst reams of information.


Program Design Issues:


Traditional training programs are often rigid, offering a one-time knowledge transfer

with little flexibility. They lack the configurability to cater to different learning levels

and fail to deliver advanced training when it’s most relevant to the customer. This

inflexibility can leave end-users sticking to basic functions, as accessing additional

knowledge is often cumbersome and time-consuming.


As a result, the long-term impact of training on customer satisfaction is diminished.

The focus remains on initial product use, with little consideration for the customer’s

ongoing journey. To truly support your customers and maximize the impact of

training, the approach to content development, utilization, and education must

evolve.


Designing an Impactful Training Program

To overcome traditional training challenges, effective content creation is key:


  • Modular Content Creation: Begin with small, modular snippets that can be

    easily integrated into existing training programs or directly into the product

    itself.

  • Ease of Updates: The modular approach allows for easy updates, ensuring

    that only the necessary content blocks are revised, keeping training materials

    current and making it easier to distribute updates

  • Accessibility: Modular content makes it easier to provide end-users with the

    exact instructions they need, accessible via a tablet or mobile device,

    ensuring they have the right information at the right time.

  • Configurability: Designing content in small blocks enables trainers to tailor

    programs to individual needs, allowing for a mix-and-match approach that

    aligns with the user's level and requirements.

  • Content Repurposing: High-value content, such as "How-to" guides, can be

    repurposed for sales or marketing, extending its usefulness beyond training.

  • End-User Focus: Small content blocks allow customers to quickly access

    specific information without sifting through extensive manuals, particularly

    useful for advanced training scenarios, refreshers, or post-formal training

    when trainers are no longer available.


Aligning Training Programs with Business Goals


Now that we've optimized content flexibility, let's focus on designing a training

program that maximizes impact on business goals:


  • Lifelong Learning: Shift towards a model that supports lifelong learning. While

    continuous in-person support isn’t always necessary or feasible, providing key

    resources at critical moments is crucial, so define what those moments would

    be for the individual customer – even if those moments are a year from their

    initial purchase. The goal is then to ensure that the customer becomes self-

    sufficient at all other times. For example, Medtech Providers need to own the

    initial training but could leave modular content with the customer for ongoing

    use, allowing them to refresh knowledge as needed or integrate into their own

    training plans

  • Strategic Timing: Delay advanced feature training until the customer is ready

    to use those functions, avoiding knowledge overload and ensuring that

    learnings can be immediately applied.

  • Customer Satisfaction: Prioritize features and functions that will significantly

    impact that specific account, driving higher NPS scores and overall customer

    happiness

  • Co-Pilot Functionality: Integrate a co-pilot feature into training tools, providing

    users with reassurance as they adopt new functions, which accelerates their

    integration into daily use.

  • Continuous Engagement: Use modular content to enable sales teams and

    clinical specialists to engage with individual caregivers during regular visits.

    "How-to"snippets can keep customers excited about all the product has to

    offer and remind them of what other functionality can have an impact


Conclusion

Enhancing the customer experience is crucial for business success. By shifting from

one-off training sessions to programs that support lifelong learning, you empower

caregivers to fully utilize their medical devices, leading to improved patient care and

stronger business outcomes.


A modular approach to content creation is essential in this process. The SIMPI

method for developing "How-to"content enables quick, easily updatable, and

configurable snippets, making continuous and in context access to the right

information at the right time not only possible but highly effective.


About the author: Sarah Morton has over 25 years'; experience in the healthcare

industry. A former Philips employee, she held a variety of leadership roles from

marketing strategy, and engagement to sales excellence and customer education.

Sarah is an independent consultant at www.unplainjane.net and a keen advocate for

continuous innovation in the customer journey.


Originally from the UK, Sarah has been based in the Middle East for the last decade,

and in her free time is a keen creative writer and amateur stand-up comedian.

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