In a digital landscape bursting with audiobooks and podcasts, e-learning is changing the way people master new subjects and grow in the workplace. If you need to work at your own pace and balance your education with a busy career or home life, e-learning is the perfect solution. You can even earn an entire degree with online e-learning programs from reputable universities. E-learning is also used by businesses to connect with both employees and customers.

E-learning doesn’t mean that you have to do everything yourself. A professional narrator will read your curriculum or training materials to you in a friendly and digestible manner. Many e-learning courses also include other students that you can interact with through discussion boards and classroom management systems. If you’re not part of a class with other students, you may need more self-discipline to keep yourself accountable.

Many businesses also use e-learning platforms to train new employees, inform existing employees about new practices, generate new business and provide information to customers. However, one video may not be enough to target all employees or customers. Personalized profiles and learning paths can help e-learning practices be more successful. Targeted e-learning can aid in employee retention, align employees with company goals, optimize employee skills and increase productivity. Using a millennial voice will help engage younger employees.

Successful companies take time to develop meaningful e-learning courses. Remember that employees will not always be motivated to watch e-learning videos, especially about compliance issues. Using animation, voiceover narration, infographics and other creative elements can help keep viewers engaged. Avoid dry copy and preachy attitudes – people don’t want to simply be told what to do. Also remember that we all have different learning styles – combining audio with video and interactive elements can help your information reach different learners successfully.

Consider creating awareness before requiring employees to go through e-learning videos. You can also use interactive strategies, gamification, and e-learning based on scenarios and stories. Adding a human element to your e-learning videos will help employees connect more deeply to your message. Choose your voiceover narrators carefully, thinking about how your employees (or customers) will relate to them. Would they prefer a female or male voice over? An energetic voice or a calm soothing one? These are the details that will help you create audio that truly engages your listeners.

E-learning should be organized thoughtfully. Our minds seek organization and love lists. Prioritize information strategically to help viewers retain the most important elements. Show examples of information being successfully implemented. Also consider signposting to make the experience engaged and clear. When done well, e-learning can be motivating and even inspiring.

Many approaches to e-learning are available, from immersive storytelling to social media polls. For customers, you might consider an adaptive assessment to determine which topics need to be covered. You can also find out more about your customers using a reflective learning model that asks them to think about and rate their recent experiences. Finally, a branching approach allows people to think about hypothetical or future scenarios with a sort of “choose your own adventure” path. Think outside the box! An e-learning video should make the most of its medium and not simply read off the text from a static article.