Why Companies Educating External Audiences Need to Think Like a Product Manager
Rachel Arts from Talent Storm interviews Learn Fox founder Laura Lee-Gibbs on why thinking like a Product Manager can help organisations design and launch training products for external audiences.
When you’re educating external audiences— whether that’s partners, customers, or stakeholders — remember to involve more than just delivering content. To truly succeed, your organisation needs to adopt a product mindset, which views your learning programs as products that can deliver measurable value. Adopting this approach ensures the program is competitive, scalable, and aligned with both your user and business needs.
So, to help you achieve this, here’s a breakdown of the key insights from the Learn Fox discussion, with actionable tips for organisations that are embarking on their external learning initiatives.
What is Customer Education?
Customer education involves training external audiences to achieve specific goals. These audiences might include: membership associations that provide value to their members, software companies who train customers on their product use, corporate organisations that deliver training to partners, suppliers, or sellers, and charities who are raising awareness or selling training to corporate organisations as a revenue stream.
The stakes are often higher for external learning because unlike internal training, there is no captive audience. The learners must find the program compelling, and the success of the learning may depend on the program’s ability to stand out in competitive markets.
Why You Need to Focus on People, Not Just Content and Technology
When building your external learning programs, you should consider the following three key pillars: People - identify who your learners are, their needs, and the challenges they face. Content - audit and package your existing materials or develop new content that resonates with your audience. Technology - choose the tools that facilitate learning delivery, but only after first taking the time to understand your audience and content requirements.
Tips:
Prioritize the people aspect first. Who are your end users and what do they need? What change management processes might be required to onboard them effectively? Then ensure that your available technology enhances the learning experience rather than overwhelms stakeholders with complexity.
What Else Does a Product Mindset Consist Of?
A product mindset keeps the learner at the heart of every decision while balancing your organisational needs. The key considerations to remember are:
· Value Creation – try to offer different tiers of training (e.g. basic online modules vs. premium face-to-face workshops) and tailor your packages to meet the varied needs and budgets.
· Scalability - start with a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that delivers value and evolve it from there, while ensuring that the platform and content can be adapted to new audiences and requirements over time.
· Iterative Improvement - regularly test and refine your learning offerings based on feedback and any emerging needs.
How Do You Differentiate Between End Users and Buyers?
In external learning, the people consuming the training (end users) are not always the same as the decision-makers purchasing it (buyers). For example, a charity might sell training packages to HR teams at corporations, but the actual learners are employees and managers. Don’t forget that training providers must appeal to both the buyers’ needs (e.g. ROI, ease of deployment), and the users’ needs (engaging and relevant content).
When differentiating between End Users and Buyers you should always remember to understand the motivations of both groups and tailor your messaging accordingly, and then package your offerings in a way that appeals to buyers while delivering value to users.
How Do You Get Started on Your Customer Education Project?
To successfully launch an external learning program, you need a structured approach. Firstly, you need to Define the Vision - what is the program’s purpose and what outcomes do you want to achieve for both the organisation and the learners? Next, Conduct a Needs Analysis - interview your stakeholders, survey the end users, and map out your business requirements. At this point you should also balance your business or organisational goals with your user needs to ensure alignment. Then, Create Personas and User Stories - develop clear profiles of your end users, buyers, and internal administrators, and use these insights to shape learner journeys and your functional requirements. You should also Audit Your Existing Content - identify what materials already exist (e.g. PowerPoints, manuals) and assess their quality, then plan on how to adapt, enhance, or repurpose this content for external learners. Lastly, Focus on your MVP First - launch with the minimum features and content you need to deliver value, and build a detailed roadmap for future enhancements as the needs evolve.
Using Visual Thinking to Align Stakeholders
One innovative approach we discussed involved using visual thinking in Learn Fox Labs (facilitated workshops) to clarify complex ideas and align stakeholders. Visual representation through live drawing can be incredibly helpful because it helps make the connections between people, content, and technology, can highlight key themes and priorities, and can simplify communication for broader teams.
This approach ensures that stakeholders have a shared understanding of the project vision and helps them to contribute meaningfully to its development.
Key Takeaways for Organisations
The key takeaways from our discussion can be summarised as the following:
· Adopt a Product Mindset - view your learning programs as products that can evolve with user needs, and always focus on delivering value to both your buyers and end users.
· Prioritize Your Needs Analysis - understand your audience and business requirements before selecting the appropriate technology or building content, and develop personas and user journeys to guide any decisions.
· Start Small, Think Big - launch with an MVP to deliver immediate value while keeping a long-term vision in mind, and remember to be agile and iterative, refining the program as it grows.
· Engage Your Stakeholders - use tools like visual thinking to align your teams and help clarify objectives, and collaborate with buyers, users, and internal teams to ensure the program meets everyone’s needs.
By thinking like a product manager, organisations can create external learning programs that not only educate, but also deliver measurable business impact. Start with the basics, refine as you go, and never lose sight of the learner’s experience.
Learn Fox are an independent boutique digital learning consultancy working with organisations to develop their digital learning strategy, design and launch their training products, and select the right learning platform, tools and technology. Get in touch to find out how we can support you with your digital learning project.