My response is a bit off tangent. Please bear with me and read on…

A snack in Western culture (and in most other cultures) is a type of food not meant to be eaten as a main meal of the day, but to assuage a person’s hunger between meals, providing a brief supply of energy to the body. The term may also refer to a food item consumed between meals purely for the enjoyment of its taste. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snack_food)

Quoting from Dr. Patrick Nemechek’s blog, “For every 100 calories difference in your diet, your weight will go up or down approximately 10 pounds in the course of 1 year. If you think about it, that’s the rate at which many of us put on the weight in the course of a year. Eating 100-200 calories per day is equal in calories to about 1 snack per day!” it is clear that snacks have a very detrimental effect on one’s health by insidiously increasing body weight, resulting in many health maladies like hypertension, diabetics, cardiac disease.

If we start substituting snacks for proper meals, we don’t need the good doctor’s diagnosis of what will happen to our health and well-being. We can predict it ourselves. At best, a snack may be consumed for the enjoyment of its taste, that too infrequently and in the smallest of portions, definitely not the Dagwood-typeJ. We need well-balanced meals, a major portion comprising unappetizing things like raw vegetables to maintain good health. We should not lose sight of the fact that we eat to live and not to enjoy the taste of what we eat.

Continuing in the same line of thinking, if we think that we can substitute serious, focused study that involves hours of hard work to gain deep insights into a subject with “knowledge” gained from twittering or similar kinds of exchanges in social networking, we are fooling ourselves. It applies to e-learning too, a domain in which our company operates. In my last month’s blog, Learning Predictions – 2010, I mentioned the increasing demand for quick-fix learning solutions. Organizations are asking for more learning “pills” rather than instructionally sound comprehensive e-learning courses that have been subjected to adhere to robust learning design principles and processes. Well, Alvin Toffler predicted this craving for impermanence and shortcuts decades ago. It is now every much here, whether we like it or not.

So, what do we do, as learning professionals? Our professional values and ethics will guide us. We will have to advise our customers what is best for them in the long run, what is important but not urgent.

In the language of arithmetical ratios, a snack is to nutrition is as twittering is to learning.

Thank you for reading my blog and for sharing your comments.

RK Prasad
CEO

In a business, one of the chief aspects is manpower. How safe is the personnel of an enterprise? This question should be answered with confidence by the management of a company. Employers should undertake to see that all safety precautions are in place so that employees are not injured on the job. Besides, imparting safety training is the best way of educating staff on how not to get work-related injuries, illnesses and possible chances of death while working. It also demonstrates the use of using predetermined workplace safety procedures.

Safety training is a key element in the prevention of work-related injuries, illnesses and death. When educated on safety procedures, employees will know how- to prevent an incident in the workplace by properly operating machinery, and will also learn how to respond quickly if presented with a dangerous situation.

Whether an employee works for the company at the corporate office or plant or he is sent abroad on an assignment, he should still receive the benefit of this support from his management, aided by online training. Such training makes an employee aware of international ethical, cultural and safety tips that he could use wherever he goes. From an employer’s perspective, this online safety training is an investment as it provides long-term benefits to employees and to the organization as a whole. For an employee, it’s a confidence-building measure to think that the organization cares for him enough to introduce him to such online training courses.

When employees go abroad on an assignment, they need to be trained in several aspects of life there. When it comes to on-the-job safety, company trainers are entrusted with the duty of creating a one-point interface with content relating to different world locations that teach safety aspects to employees. All the knowledge gained through this means far exceeds all other conventional means of training employees. Another advantage of taking such courses is that the employee is given a certificate at the end of the training.

However, some employees feel that such training is totally unnecessary and a waste of time, so do not take it up sincerely. As an employer, you can give your employees online training courses on topics such as international travel safety or related topics. When imparted online, these programs can not only be interesting but fun too because it gives the user the opportunity of simulating the kind of experience he or she likes.

A training module can also be modified to suit your company’s needs. For instance, for a course on travel safety, information about the destination and things to do in a certain kind of emergency should be incorporated.

By giving employees online education in safety heightens their sense of security while performing their daily workplace activities, which in turn, leads to higher productivity. It also results in reducing the rates of accidents and incidents. Lastly, for companies this is documented proof that training of this nature has actually taken place, thus preventing the company from any likeliness of lawsuits involving workplace injuries.

These are my views on this subject. What are yours? Do write in and let me know.

My sister runs a successful fashion boutique. She has been in this field since the last five years and has managed to create and retain her goodwill by taking care of her clients’ individual demands. When she started out, she faced severe competition from her counterpart a few blocks away, but she has managed to retain her loyal customers.

Her business—or for that matter any kind of business—demands customer retention, which is an extremely important aspect. No wonder it is said that the customer is king, because he/she can make or break a business.

Why is it important to retain customers? There are numerous reasons for retaining customers. The main reason a business venture is successful is because customers makes purchases. If you want the customer to return to buy your products, retaining the regular customers and creating a steady customer base will help.

A loyal customer base means you enjoy a good reputation. An increase in your customer base also equates to good financial standing of your venture. By retaining customers, you can also obtain new clients and this is best done by your existing customers’ advertising your products or services by word of mouth advertising.

How to retain customers

Business entrepreneurs who know the true importance of customers will find successful ways to create a loyal customer base. The best way to promote customer retention is to offer products and services that a client needs. While attending to an existing customer, my sister listens very carefully to his or her requirements. She pitches in with her suggestions, if needed, but works largely according to the client’s wishes. This makes complete sense as, at the end of the day, all a business entrepreneur wants is a happy and satisfied client.

Top notch customer service is another way of promoting customer retention. If required, my sister goes to her client’s home for fittings and styling. Any minor alterations are managed willingly by her tailor. Offering quality pre- and post-sales service to customers in person, via the telephone or Internet is a key constituent in retaining customers. Training your employees to treat your clients with respect and care will promote customer retention.

Beyond paying attention to the customer’s need and offering pre- and post-sales service, it is crucial that you stay in touch with your customers regularly. The assistant at the boutique maintains an updated customer register. On occasions such as customers’ birthdays, anniversaries, festivals, etc, my sister sends handwritten notes or calls them personally.

There is nothing like having just an online address of your business. True, more individuals are becoming Net savvy, buying and selling online. So, if your offline business demands an online presence, go for it.

Another factor that works in promoting customer retention is the location of your business. My sister’s boutique is close to a shopping arcade as well as a residential area. If your business place is located at an unheard of zip code, your customers will have great difficulty in getting to and from your shop. This could result in your losing a few customers, making the distance a big disadvantage to your business.

Price is another make or break factor in customer retention. If your product offers value for money at a high price and the client is aware of it, be assured that the client will buy your product or service regularly or else you need to rethink your pricing.

On a subjective note, I end this blog. What do you think?

A leading home appliance manufacturer refused to send its representative to demonstrate the working of a microwave oven purchased by my grandparents. Luckily, their neighbor taught them the basics of operating the microwave. Lack of training by the company unsettled my grandparents and they began regretting their big purchase.

What do you make of a company who sells products without offering training on how to use them? There could be some products which do not require training, but some products, even technology products, which require training to a certain extent. Lack of attention, training and poor post sales service are sure shot ways of losing customers, making it a competitor’s gain.

Not all vendors have access to SMEs plus training which require human interaction, thereby increasing their costs. Training sessions cannot be held every day or customers would have to wait for the next schedule of the training before making their purchase. Add to that travel expenses of both the customer and vendor, if the training is scheduled at new venue.

Finding a way out

Web-based training or certification through the vendor’s or company’s website can eliminate the pain of product training for customers. If the training requires human interaction, an online facilitator can fill the gap.

Web-based product training offering text and picture is the least-expensive way to train customers on the products. If need be, product training courses can have the interactivity and simulations coupled with various delivery formats. Further, vendors or companies can cut travel expenses associated with traditional offline training such as labor expenses, traveling expenses, etc.

The company or the vendor has to merely load the courseware on its learning management system and create a login and password for its customers to gain access to the course. Online training means that customers can learn at their own pace, spend more time on difficult aspects and repeat the lesson until they have understood it. This flexibility also extends to repeating or redoing various sections that need more understanding.

Traditional forms of training involve customers travelling to a venue at a certain time, increasing the expenses of both the customer and vendor. Web-based training makes learning easier, efficient and inexpensive.

Online product training is cost effective as it is aimed at a large group rather than traditional offline training for a small group. The product courseware is custom designed for a specific business and can be repeatedly used by many customers, whereas ILT would need to be repeated and paid on a regular basis as when the customer demands it.

Do you agree that by providing online product training, a vendor or company can ensure that its customers or employees can proficiently install, operate and/or supervise the product?

Thanks for reading my blog. Do share your thoughts on the same.

When you go global with your business, it is important that the product you market blends with the intended country. Suppose you create courseware for Company X, based in France in French. Company X also has its presence in Germany and Japan. The company wants to train its employees on the same course across various locations. Will the courseware created in French help German or Japanese employees? Obviously not. So, how will Company X train its employees in Germany and Japan on the same course?

One option is to translate the French elearning courseware to the target language. Translation simply means changing the source language of the software, documentation, learning material, user manual, etc into a target language of the intended country. The disadvantage faced during word-for-word translation is that it yields many funny and offensive literal changes.

The other alternative is localizing the product for the intended country. So what is localization?

Localization, abbreviated as L10n, is the course of action of translating documentation, software, learning materials, user manuals, etc for a foreign market. It involves translating and adapting the text from the source language (including spelling issues and grammar) to the target language, semantic analysis of the source content, support of different character sets, as well as handling the formatting of the information such as date, time, local culture & habits, addresses, phone numbers, local colors and currency… By localizing the product, the company markets the same to the target audience by integrating both the culture and language of the intended country.

During the localization process, the linguist is the most important person to have onboard. He is the native speaker and regional expert of the proposed country. He/she must be aware of the verbal characteristics, cultural differences, language specific humor, forbidden subjects, etc of the targeted country and know how to deal with them accordingly.

At the end of the L10n process, the product should:

• Be appropriate for the target business/country
• Appear custom-designed for the end user’s cultural and linguistic background
• Retain the original meaning of the course/product.

Though many companies claim to offer translation and localization services, Localization of content is best done by experts in linguistic services having years of experience and a stable team of cross-country expert linguists. Failure in accurate localization can have dire effects, such as insulting the culture of the targeted country and its people, apart from causing embarrassment to you.

Here are a few tips to avoid common localization pitfalls:

• Write and/or create materials using simple terms and words, to render easy localization of the same.
• Do not embed text in an image. While localization, the same image would have to be re-created with text superimposed on it. Create text and graphics on different layers.
• Write properties for fonts in an external XML file like a style sheet. A CSS will allow you to define properties for font for individual languages in one accessible place.
• Applications handling localizable content should support the character set of your target language.
• As with fonts, do not embed text in script. Also avoid language constructions that combine text and numbers.

Minimize integrating content by using a mix of different technologies, formats and tools. The more complex the creation process, the more complex the localization process will be.

When a company localizes its content to meet the demands of the business abroad, it adds a personal touch and comforts the end user to read and interpret the product/courseware in his/her own language. The need to train a culturally and linguistically diverse workforce effectively is very important and using the targeted country’s own language as a medium is considered the best way.

Do share your thoughts on the same.

Have a look at a multi language course on electrical safety done in 8 languages.