For years, independent software vendors (ISVs) have depended on traditional, formal training, typically delivered in a one-size-fits-all approach, to boost adoption of new products. These training solutions included paid or free formal training, product manuals, marketing communications and more.
The goal of software product adoption is to get customers to understand the true value of the product and how it applies to their personal needs and goals, so they will incorporate the technology into their daily lives or work. To be great at this, ISVs would need to work outside their core software development competencies and acquire training skills and capabilities that may not yield the greatest return on investment. As Warren Buffet famously said, everyone has a different “circle of competence.” The important thing is not how big the circle is, it’s staying inside the circle.
When ISVs choose to work with a partner that specializes in technology training and adoption, their in-house talent and resource investments can double down on producing the best software solutions possible and accelerating product adoption without the risk of operating outside their core skills and abilities. This is especially critical when faced with a challenging economy and hard choices on the best ways to invest company resources. In fact, when ISVs partner with a training and adoption provider, they can grow their own revenue base dramatically.
Here’s a client example to consider: A leading financial technology (fintech) provider needed a training partner that specializes in product adoption capabilities to help them accelerate their internal new-hire training. New implementation consultants took 6-12 months to become fully billable resources capable of helping implement the company’s platforms. Company leaders and implementation consultants were challenged with delivering on their own projects while also training new hires, which was not their core competency. The old onboarding and training model hadn’t worked for years, and they needed to pivot to address the need for greater speed.
After much consideration, they looked to a proven training and adoption partner who specialized in meeting the needs of the modern learner and designing world-class learning journeys. This partner first asked a series of questions to understand their challenges and assess the current state, then provided a blended learning strategy for reducing onboarding time by 75%. The strategy included a measurable business case for saving the fintech provider hundreds of millions of dollars over five years by refocusing most of their billable consultants on revenue-generating activities and transitioning to the new learning model.
As the relationship grew, the fintech provider began realizing the benefits for their internal learning needs and looked to their training and adoption partner to help them accelerate customer onboarding, too. The training and adoption partner again provided a modern learning and adoption strategy that addressed the full end-user lifecycle, from initial onboarding to the platform to ongoing adoption of new functionality releases. This strategy included a focus on rapid training development tools to reduce training development time by 80% and digital adoption platform solutions to support on-demand learning as needed. The partnership was mutually beneficial and drove revenue growth for the fintech provider and the training and adoption partner. What’s more, the partnership benefitted the fintech provider’s customers, who had experienced frequent turnover of front-line workers and needed their employees to quickly adopt the banking platform so they could achieve their own business goals and strategies. It was a three-way win!
For enterprises challenged by product adoption or struggling to enable their customers to incorporate their products into their daily routines, a training and adoption partner could be the “secret sauce” to accelerated growth.
