Confession time: I have a horrible habit of signing up for webinars on topics that are of great interest to me and then either logging off early or not attending at all. If I do stick it out until the end I realize I’ve been multitasking through most of it, so I’ve missed a lot of what I’m sure is amazing content. I’ve never thought of myself as having a short attention span before, but when I really consider it… maybe I do.

At #18NTC I attended a session called “Beyond Webinars: New Models for Scaling Digital Engagement and Expanding Your Organization’s Reach” (#18NTCBeyondWebinars) with Rebecca Petersen of nonprofitready.org; I learned that I am definitely not alone on the short attention span train.

Here’s some interesting data that was shared about the modern learner:

• The average learner won’t watch a video that is longer than 4 minutes.
• Most of us check our phones approximately nine times an hour. (Guilty!)
• We are very mobile these days. We want information “on demand.” We want information that is portable, focused, and can be shared easily with others. This means that content needs to be easily accessible and designed to work on all mobile formats.

My top three favorite online learning styles discussed in this workshop are:

1. The Webtalk. This format takes the essence of what would be presented in a typical webinar and condenses it to a focused, interview-style, scripted conversation with no more than 5 or 6 questions. You can use Zoom or similar software to host and record the interview, and edit it using software like Adobe premiere or iMovie to include slides and images. The key is keeping the whole thing as simple as possible, and it should be no longer than 15-20 minutes. .
2. Microlearning. The idea with microlearning is to create a short, 6-8 minute learning on-demand module featuring video and downloadable content. One microlearning module should be designed to cover one to two ideas succinctly. One of the cool things about microlearning is that you can make it interactive; learners can download documents and guides and can take simple interactive quizzes or knowledge checks. Microlearning modules can be created with software like Storyline.
3. Explainer Style Videos. An explainer style video is exactly what it sounds like – a short focused video explanation that breaks down an abstract idea or task and simplifies it. It can simply be a video of a person talking or it can be animated. In fact, I learned that animated videos have been shown to increase retention of content by 15% over “normal” narrative style video, and animated whiteboard videos put people in a good mood. You can use Explee or Video Scribe to make these videos. I signed up for a free 14-day trial with Explee and made a cute little video in like 15 minutes. Very cool.

There are so many online learning options that are easy to produce and don’t cost much money or time. So neat! My brain is bursting with ideas!

What kind of online learning styles do you like most? Leave a comment!