The Critical First Step in Designing a Customer Training Program

Dr. Kerri Laryea, President — iKlarity

• competitive strategy • customer service • 2020 Vision • customer training programs • designing customer education • Randy MacLean • wholesale distribution • Dr. Kerri Laryea

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The often-overlooked first step in creating an effective and successful customer training program is the one most often overlooked.

Before you do a single thing, it's crucial to articulate the beneficial outcome of the training program in dollars and cents. That is, determine reasonable expectations for revenue or profit gains or expense savings as a result of the program.

This is enormously useful in everything that comes after, because it guides budgeting, resource allocation, and investment made in the program. Not only will you know what you can spend, it'll give very good indicators of what potential elements are outside the scope of the project, saving time and effort that might otherwise be wasted on blind alleys.

For instance, the purpose of the project may be to increase customer's ability to penetrate a new market. If the expected increase in gross profit production is $2M/year, the company could invest heavily in a training program to facilitate this. If, on the other hand, the program is expected to cut customer service costs by $50K, the appropriate budget would be much more limited.

Beyond ensuring the program is a financial success, the initial evaluation will frequently be very helpful in preparing for the next part of the planning process — setting objectives and evaluations. (This is covered in another video.)

For more information about Dr. Kerri Laryea, visit: www.iklarity.com