You may not have come across the term microlearning before, but you’ve almost certainly done some, perhaps without even realising it. Not sure how to change the tyre on your car? Want a quick guide to cooking that exquisite dish for friends and family? Got a problem with your laptop or smartphone? If you don’t have someone immediately to ask where do you go? You type your search into Google and hope you find some good links. Most likely you’ll end up at YouTube watching a short video that someone has helpfully uploaded. That’s a good example of everyday microlearning.

Why does it matter to me?

Your franchisees are busy people. You’ll have trained them when they came on board with you, but are you sure you’re reaching them beyond that on a regular basis? Microlearning is a great way for your franchisees to learn new skills or knowledge in bite sized chunks when they need it most. Offering meaningful learning in digestible pieces will help you improve the value proposition you offer your franchisees. Good support will always be welcomed!

What is microlearning?

Microlearning activities are short, sharp and targeted. They can take many forms, but these tips will help you make them useful and valued:

1. Aim for them to take no longer than 5 minutes, preferably shorter. The competition for attention in our working and personal lives gets fiercer by the day.
2. They should be engaging, to the point and easy to digest. Franchisees are more likely to give up time in their busy day if they can consume and understand them quickly.
3. They are best used for skills, but they can also be very useful to remind and reinforce. For example, it could be quick tips on customer service or how to manage your social media channels.
4. Make it relevant. Engagement with a short activity is much more likely if it’s pushed to a franchisee when they need it most.

How do I create it?

You might not see yourself as a content creator or trainer, but it’s easier than you think. Here’s some things you might want to try:

1. Short videos. Your smartphone is a very portable videoing device! You can capture high quality videos using your smartphone. And you can edit them using the native software on your phone too. Or if the learning point is better delivered by one of your franchisees get them to do it and share it.
2. Short audio clips. Most modern smartphones also come with good audio recording and editing software. You may find audio helpful where the learner doesn’t need to see a visual and can maybe be doing something else at the same time.
3. Images. There is a raft of free (or freemium – where you get a certain amount for free and pay for extras) software tools available on the internet now. For example, you can edit photos using Pixlr, create professional looking banners, flyers and other images suitable for use on the web using Canva (this has many free images, but you can buy more targeted ones starting at $1 per image), and you can also find royalty-free photos and images to use on sites like Unsplash and Pixabay (the sushi image in this blog article is from Pixabay).

Still not sure and want some advice? Email us at grow@iflourish.co.uk.