Can Interactive Training Videos Replace in-Person Trainers?

Technology is gaining a lot of traction throughout the world, especially in recent months as shifts have been made to learning online and less face-to-face engagement. With each passing day, the way we interact changes slightly, and the frequency of our engagements in-person seem to distance a little bit more. Interactive training videos are quickly becoming the go-to for delivering engaging, effective training sessions in schools, businesses, and in-between. But can interactive training videos replace in-person trainers?

We’re taking a look at how digital interactive training videos work and how effective they are when compared to in-person training. 

The use of interactive training videos has grown in recent months, but digital training and learning programs have been available for several years at this point. However, it wasn’t until recently that so many businesses, logistically, turned to interactive training videos rather than in-person training. Technical limitations prevented training from taking place virtually in many situations. Things like poor internet connection, poor quality video, and a lack of ability to influence user engagement prevented training videos from being heavily explored as a staple in businesses and schools until recently.

Additionally, things like “Click here” or “Next slide” created a sense of monotone that users simply didn’t enjoy, further complicating interactive training video content and making it less attractive.

What Changed?

Changes in professional interactive training video production are key influences in the uptick of interactive training content and the wide acceptance of it. Imagery paired with audio and graphics allows for viewers to potentially gain significantly more value from video training than can be found in a classroom training setting. And, while interactive training videos may not be able to fully replace in-person, trainer-led activities, there are several benefits to interactive training videos as compared to the typical trainer-led training sessions.

Benefits of Interactive Training Videos

Interactive training videos stand to provide many benefits to corporations seeking to teach their employees how to perform various tasks and procedures. Technology allows for interactive training videos to now provide two-way communication in which users can react to scenarios that are played on the screen and interact with the video content to see how their actions impact the final scenario outcomes. “Hot-spots” are incorporated into the training programs for users to click or touch on the screen and receive added feedback or knowledge on the topic. This allows viewers to engage in various scenarios and see the outcomes without any real risk to the individual. 

Additional benefits include:

● Ability to build out branching scenarios. These help the individual that is interacting with the video to learn where they made a wrong decision, how to fix it, and what they should have done instead. Users gain a personalized understanding of the core concepts being taught.

● Ability to teach various situations and experiences. Interactive training videos allow the viewer to experience roles from both sides, such as when a salesperson and buyer interact. The video can be set to help the user play both roles and see how the interactions on each side impact the decisions of the other role.

● Interactive training videos are mobile and easy to access. Viewers don’t have to come to a classroom setting or meet in a defined location with others present to train. Learning can take place via smartphone anywhere there is an internet connection. The accessibility of these types of training makes it more likely for employees to engage in training and learn. They can decide when and where they are most likely to gain the most from watching the training — and they can participate on their own time.

Video Scenarios for Safety

For example, in a training setting involving chemicals, it could be hard to show, in-person, what would happen if a mistake was made in how a chemical spill was cleaned up. Mistakes like this could be dangerous to the health and well-being of the trainer and the trainee. Thus, if a trainer spilled a chemical and asked the trainee to clean it up, the trainer would then have to quickly intercede before the trainee used the wrong chemical or process to clean the mess, as allowing the trainee to make the mistake would be dangerous. 

With interactive training videos, a chemical spill scenario could play out. The trainee could choose how to clean the spill and IF the incorrect choice was made, they could see the outcome on the screen without any real danger to them. This type of training allows viewers to experience the impact of incorrect choices without impacting themselves or others, but also while learning.

Ready to produce interactive training videos for your team? While interactive training videos may never fully replace in-person trainers for all things, they do stand to deeply influence training among corporations and teams and provide many valuable benefits. For help getting started with interactive training videos, give Beverly Boy Productions a call!