Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites have become part of our everyday lives. But can they be used as a training resource?

The key to successful learning is engagement. And since the modern workforce is increasingly media and tech-savvy, more organizations are using social media in their training programs. Social media is a powerful and innovative method to deliver content before, during, and after training sessions.

Here are nine effective ways you can add social media to your online training program.

1. Onboarding

A live-streaming platform, like Facebook Live, can be used to onboard new hires before their first day. You can use it to provide a video tour of the company – introduce them to co-workers, show them the daily routine, explain first-day expectations, and more, depending on how you choose to use the live-streaming service.

2. Boost Camaraderie and Collaboration

You can create a private group on Facebook or LinkedIn, so training class members can get to know each other. This virtual meeting space allows participants to find common ground and share ideas – this is a powerful element of collaborative learning and team building.

LinkedIn groups are more about discussions and sharing ideas than building camaraderie, but it’s an effective platform to connect professional colleagues. You can use a LinkedIn group for post-training discussions and Q&As.

3. Introduce the Training Content and Instructor

Use social media to make introductions and get procedural housekeeping tasks out of the way before the training session starts. Facilitators can upload a video to introduce themselves and provide an overview of the content – including objectives and expectations. You can upload the video to YouTube (set to private or unlisted) or a private Facebook or LinkedIn group.

You could also incorporate a virtual icebreaker activity so participants can get to know each other before the training even starts. For example, members can upload a short video giving their bios along with “two truths and lie.” An activity like this allows you to create a safe and comfortable learning environment before training begins and saves valuable learning time.

4. Share Ideas and Knowledge

Encourage participants and colleagues to use all popular social media platforms to share ideas and information – not just Facebook, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp. Tumblr and Pinterest are popular platforms to post photos, videos, and text. You can also share links to blogs related to training topics. This not only increases engagement, but it also provides one accessible location for learners to find content relevant to their training and development. 

5. Identify Important Concepts and Topics

Encourage participants to use Twitter hashtags to make it easier for them to find tweets related to the concepts and topics they’re looking for. Twitter (along with Facebook and LinkedIn) is one of the most popular social media platforms for L&D. So, strongly encourage learners/employees to tweet about their training and key takeaways from every session they attend.

You can also use a Twitter backchannel to capture notes and thoughts from a training session. Display relevant tweets in real-time using a platform like TweetBeam to encourage participation. Just make sure the Twitter-happy learners can stay focused on the instructor, and the backchannel conversation stays on topic.

Poll Everywhere is another excellent tool for real-time feedback. It allows learners to participate in polls or answer open-ended questions via text – with responses instantly displayed.

6. Connect SMEs with Learners

Use social media as a way to connect subject matter experts (SMEs) with learners. Using a designated Twitter hashtag or a Facebook or LinkedIn group, invite training members to ask questions of the SME. 

You can also give participants a real-world look into the training content by having an SME livestream from an on-the-job setting.

7. Get Feedback

Once the training session is over, get feedback from participants about what they liked and/or disliked about the course and how it could be improved. Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter all have a poll option you can use to collect feedback.

8. Make Resources Easy to Find

Use a social bookmarking tool like Diigo to create a navigation document that allows participants to locate valuable resources and job aids.

9. Maintain Momentum

Keep the discussion going even after the training course is over. Encourage learners to use the private group page for post-training Q&As, sharing, and discussion. Use social media as a post-training way for participants to share a video or picture of them back on the job applying what they learned.

Final Thoughts

When used correctly, social media can be an effective training resource. If you need help incorporating it into your next training course, contact Impact Group Training today. We’d love to show you all the ways to take advantage of this powerful L&D tool!