Benefits of Online Sales Training When Web-based training solutions first emerged a decade or so ago, few companies outside the IT world recognized the potential power of this versatile tool. Viewed by many as a novelty or perhaps a technology for which widespread adoption was well in the future, most sales organizations preferred to stick with their three-ring binders, chalkboards and fluorescent-lit classrooms, thank you very much. Today it's a whole different story. Technology and bandwidth improvements – along with the global ubiquity of Web access and the ever-rising costs associated with educating far-flung, diverse sales forces – have compelled sales organizations in nearly every industry to get serious about online training solutions. Admittedly, early attempts at online training failed to take full advantage of the power of the Web. Training organizations typically scanned existing paper training materials and posted them online as static Web content. Today, however, online training solutions are incredibly dynamic, and in many aspects, offer marked advantages over even face-to-face training. Some of these benefits include the following. Fast and Easy Content Development Technical expertise is no longer a prerequisite for creating effective, high-quality online training content. With only working knowledge of PowerPoint, nearly anyone can produce engaging modules featuring voice-over narration, video, animations and product simulations. Monitored Participant Comprehension Surveys and quizzes can be built into the course material. This allows training organizations to solicit feedback, maintain interest levels and formally assess learner comprehension much faster than before. You can even choose your preferred question method, whether short answer, multiple choice or question branching. Up and Running Immediately Many courses are published utilizing common platforms, such as Macromedia Flash Player, which is already installed on 98 percent of Web browsers in use worldwide. In practice, this eliminates a key barrier to participation, because learners are not bogged down on the front end of the training process by complicated and time-consuming downloads. Matched to Different Learning Styles Because the training programs are self-paced, learners may pause, rewind and progress through modules at their own pace. Bookmarks allow users to resume immediately from wherever they paused and keep all previous quiz results intact. Easy Updates All existing course content may be maintained in a single, searchable library. Existing content is easy to find, retrieve, reuse or re-purpose for the organization's changing training needs. For many sales organizations, however, the most compelling factor behind a shift to Web-based training is that universal driver – the bottom line. Online training drastically reduces not only such hard costs as travel and accommodations associated with face-to-face training, but also it reduces the soft costs, such as the time reps must spend out of the field. These budgetary savings, along with the increased flexibility and convenience, give today's online-sales-training users a marked competitive advantage over organizations still mired in the bricks-and-mortar sales-training mind-set. Learn more about effective online training solutions at www.macromedia.com/software/breeze/training/productinfo/product_overview/, and view the features of Macromedia’s Breeze Training.