THEY’RE UBIQUITOUS. People—especially technical writers—love their smartphones the world over, from Vancouver to New York, and the smombies are among us! Yes, the smartphone zombies are among us! You’ve seen them—people walking slowly, looking down at their phones, oblivious to their surroundings, possibly risking an accident—an increasingly common social phenomenon.
To smombies, the content on their phones seems more interesting than real life. I did a one-minute video of a New York subway platform, and almost everyone on the platform was looking at their phones while waiting for the train. The situation is becoming extreme. But I understand, because I’m addicted to my smartphone, too! It seems like fun, not work, to learn on a smartphone instead of a computer. So how can we use this technology to teach?
The idea is to design short training pieces that can be delivered via your app or website. Keep the training sessions to 10 minutes or less. Make the training tasks interactive, so people can use the fun features of their smartphones. Deliver some of your content using video—people just love watching video!
Instructional Video Design Tips
Here are some tips for designing effective videos for learning:
- Include a title slide for orientation
- Use high resolution (1080P HD)
- Include still pictures—both iconic (resembling
real objects) and analytic (symbolizing objects
or states) - Include short on-screen texts—labels, call-outs,
short text slides - Facilitate closed captions and subtitling—create
your own or use YouTube’s automated features - Include background music
- Eliminate unpleasant background noise (electronic
hums, static, and so on) - Use a speaking rate of 180 words per minute
(faster is more popular than slower)
These 8 tips adapted from Petra ten Hove and Hans van der Meij’s research (2015).