What is the Right Training Program to be included in your Services Offering?

You just bought a new software technology and you are told you that there is an onboarding service that came with the program. You have a few meetings and then suddenly you are on your own. You realize you actually are not prepared to implement the technology nor do you really understand the new software well enough to implement and integrate it into your daily/weekly or monthly operational plan. So it begins….. Your road to self learning and figuring it out on your own.

This is not the customer experience a SaaS company intends to create. However, it is more common than you think. A training program can be a pivotable part of any SaaS company’s implementation plan. Training is not just about teaching the customer the features and functions but about educating them on the possibilities that the software can do for their company.

As a SaaS company, figuring how to design the right training program and what types of training should be free versus paid seems to be a common dilema. Most start with a free onboarding service, then discover with some types of customers that they require a more in-depth training program.

How does a SaaS company figure out what the right Training program(s) should be for their customers to meet the needs of the various market segments?

The Elements to Define the Appropriate Training Program(s)

Types of training

The best place to start is with understanding the various types of training.

Standard Training: Training on the same curriculum to teach you how to use the software.

Best Practice Training: Training on best practices, processes, standards and procedures for a specific industry, compliance or set of processes.

Custom Training: Customized training from the standard curriculum and/or best practices for a specific customer.

Certification Program: Training program designed to create a level of knowledge that is verified with a set of tests and/or a capstone project after training classes are completed.

Training Venues

There are various training venues used to deliver the training content:

Self Paced eLearning: a set of elearning paths for guiding customers through self paced training modules.

Virtual Instructor Led: a training course led by an expert instructor via online video conference.

Onsite Instructor Led: a training course led by an expert instructor conducted onsite at a training center or customer site.

User Communities

The last element to consider is the User community. The training program should consider the various types of roles and user communities that need to be trained. The common user communities to consider when designing the Training programs:

The Core Team - The administrators and champion power users for each group or team. The core team is usually the team that is responsible for making all the required configuration design, standards, policies and procedure decisions to meet their operational needs.

The Internal End Users - The users of the software once the solution is rolled out in production and consists of various roles.

The External End Users - The users of the software that could be users outside the company, for example; customers, vendors, partners, etc.

How to Define the Right Training program(s)

There are several aspects to consider when determining the required training to provide a deep knowledge transfer to customers as well as ensure customers understand all the possibilities that your software offers.

As a SaaS company begins to define the training program options and the types and venue options for the training course offerings, they will need to start with what the required deliverables are for a customer to realize the value outcomes for each market segment and GTM play. If the SaaS company is packaging up the services required to deliver on a each GTM play, it is important to understand what type of training program should be included in that program to ensure the right knowledge transfer is achieved to deliver on the customer’s goals and objectives.

For example, if one of the GTM plays is designed for the SMB market with a few simple high value outcomes, the Training program may be defined with a specific set of training courses that is a Self Paced elearning program. It could also be defined as an elearning self-paced course combined with a Virtual instructor led course. It will depend on the content that is required to be covered that educates the customer on all the areas and processes within the software that is required to operationalize the processes that will meet the high value outcome deliverables.

Alternatively, an Enterprise Customer may require a very different Training program. For example, if the Customer has a larger user community to train with a larger core team and an even larger end user community, this may require a set of standardized courses delivered onsite or a customized course with specific curriculum to meet their required outcomes for each of their defined user communities.

The following is a template that can be used to define the courses and the various Training Programs a SaaS company may need to support their GTM Strategy and their ability to deliver on the high value outcomes defined for each target market and GTM play.

Once the various types of Training courses have been defined that will meet the various Target Markets and Solutions, then the SaaS company can estimate costs and determine the right price point to include in a comprehensive services program.

These courses can be combined in various offerings as needed to provide the most comprehensive education program for the various customer roles and user types to ensure the team members realize the level of expertise that will enable them to execute on the implementation plan.

Once the SaaS company has created the appropriate training courses to meet the needs of their customers that supports their GTM strategy and service delivery requirements, I recommend publishing the Education Program Offerings as part of your Services Programs. Training is an important expectation that customers want to know is offered to support the software company’s implementation approach.

Here’s an example of the Education Programs developed at Socrata:

We eventually turned our education program at Socrata into a University program with a formal certification program. These were included in annual services programs and offered individually with our on-going programs customers could buy anytime or as part of their renewal.

To determine the best fit Education program for your target markets, it is recommended to obtain customer input and feedback including asking them about price tolerance to continue to invest in an on-going education program. The feedback will help you determine the right levels of education expected and required to deliver repeatable success.

The good news is that Customers love Training programs and usually expect some kind of a training program included in their implementation service program. I recommend software companies invest in creating a quality training program with comprehensive content that is easy to follow and understand in a fun approach. Customers will also pay for these programs and in many cases will invest in certification programs that can be covered by employee development budgets.

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