How to Create Engaging Elearning Materials

In the past 6 months, I spoke to 50+ instructional designers. What 70% said about their e-learning courses was shocking: “What if I’m not good at creating engaging e-learning courses?” They've followed the advice. Tried the tools' features to the max. Added interactivity, animations, and gamification. But the course still felt... boring. So they start wondering: 👉 Is this a skills gap? 👉 Or am I just not cut out for this? Sound familiar? Here’s the truth no one talks about: This feeling is not a lack of effort. It’s that you’re stuck in overcompensation mode. Overcompensating for a deeper fear: • That you’ve hit your ceiling. • That maybe creativity isn’t your thing. • That no matter how hard you try, your work won’t feel engaging. And that feels shameful. Especially when this is what you’re supposed to be good at. But here’s what most don’t see: Complexity ≠ creativity. More time ≠ more connection. You don’t need to “try harder” You need a different lens. Because the best instructional designers aren’t the most technical. They design with one core question in mind: “How will this help someone do their job better?” They notice what others overlook: → Why the learner disconnects before the real-world task shows up → Where the content feels theoretical instead of practical → How to build relevance without forcing interaction They strip away distractions and double down on usefulness. Because an engaging course isn’t one that dazzles. It’s one that gets applied at work the next day. It’s not about adding more bells and whistles. It’s about removing what doesn’t help the learner do their job better. You’re not the problem. The overload is. Strip it back. Focus on clarity, not complexity. That’s where truly useful and engaging learning starts.

GAMIFICATION UNLEASHED: When most people think of gamification in eLearning, they picture points, badges, and leaderboards. But the true power of gamification lies in meaningful choices and real consequences? Instead of just adding a game-like layer to an eLearning course, we should think about how we can use gamification to create immersive, decision-driven experiences. Branching scenarios are a prime example. They allow learners to make choices that affect the actual outcome of the scenario—providing a more engaging and personalized learning journey. It’s not just about making learning fun—it’s about creating a realistic simulation where every choice matters. This approach helps learners experience the impact of their decisions in a safe environment, which translates to better understanding and retention. In a recent project, I designed a branching scenario where learners navigated complex decision paths in a simulated environment. Each decision led to different consequences, mirroring real-life outcomes. This not only made the learning process more engaging but also deepened learners' understanding of the material. By focusing on the real-world application of decisions, gamification became a powerful tool for meaningful learning rather than just a decorative element. #Gamification #eLearning #BranchingScenarios

Design or content...it doesn't have to be one or the other! Getting the balance between instructional and graphic design can be a delicate one. There have been plenty of times where I've wanted to skip away in my fun little happy land and create these beautifully elaborate e-Learnings where each slide takes me 2 hours to produce. But let's be honest in the real world that really isn't a good use of time. On the flip side, I've also seen my fair share of courses which have good written content, but the design is so outdated, cluttered or inaccessible that the content is lost. In my eyes both are just as important as the other. As someone who wears all the learning design hats (figuratively of course), here's how I achieve an ongoing balance between great design and effective content. 1. I write content with design in mind and design with content in mind. When creating a look and feel for a course, I am always thinking ahead to how the content will blend into the design. Great design should put the content on a pedestal not stick it in third place. 2. Accessibility is at the forefront of every decision. There's no point creating a beautiful look and feel, if the content is then unreadable or the UI is too complex. The same applies to writing content, if you're trying to overcomplicate an interaction, or squash too much on a page, you're going to confuse and lose learners. 3. I consider how I want the learner to feel. Design has the ability to add an extra layer of emotion to something. A well designed starting slide can act as a hook, creating a 'wow factor' and enticing the learner to read more. 4. Plan ahead. If I'm creating scenario activities, narratives, or an activity that spans multiple slides, I consider how design can create a 'flow'. I plan out how I can make it obvious to the learner the slides are connected and how visual cues, imagery, animation and icons can support continuity. 5. Finally, I always create a basic design template. This acts like my blank canvas, so that when I'm writing content I know the restrictions I may have and how much room I have to play with. This is in no way restrictive, but I have found that on certain occasions, reducing my slide space has made me a better instructional designer and supported me to cut the waffle and get to the point. This basic template also creates continuity, reducing cognitive load which allows the learner to focus on processing the content and engaging with the interactive elements. This has just scratched the surface and if you ever catch me in a conversation about this topic, I could talk your ear off for hours. Fellow learning designers, weigh in, how do you balance design and content to create well rounded digital learning? *The video clip is a snippet of a recent eLearning developed for Genius, which I feel demonstrates how I balance ID and GD. #learningdesign #elearning #digitallearning #graphicdesign

🎉 𝐈'𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐞𝐬. Let's talk about transforming '𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚' into '𝒄𝒂𝒏'𝒕-𝒘𝒂𝒊𝒕-𝒕𝒐-𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒆'. Here's my take on revolutionizing employee training: 🪓 Every corporate trainer knows the challenge: How do we make training engaging, not just mandatory? Well, I spent the whole 2023 and researching exactly that. The key? Game-based learning. I relied on two incredible resources: 👉 A deep dive into educational game design principles. 👉 Insights from corporate engagement experts. The goal is simple: Create training games that employees actually want to play. But how? It's not just about making it 'fun'. Let's break it down: 👉 Tailor content to your team's unique culture and goals. 👉 Balance challenge and skill levels to keep everyone hooked. But the real secret sauce? It's understanding your employees' motivations. Here's what I discovered: 👾 Games that align with employees' interests increase engagement. 👾 Real-world rewards for in-game achievements? 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫. Designing these games isn't just about ticking boxes. It's about creating a journey that resonates with your team. Its about telling a story that push your emotions. Want to know the step-by-step process of creating such games? Check out my latest article for a detailed guide. Transform your corporate training from a chore to a choice. It's all about engagement. -------------- Curious to know more? Let's start a conversation in the comments. This approach isn't just theoretical. It's a practical roadmap to redefining corporate training. Join the movement of interactive and impactful learning!

One thing I’ve learned as an Instructional Designer is that the real magic happens when design meets reality. Early in my career I poured energy into making training look polished and complete, but I realized it didn’t matter unless learners could use it in their work the next day. Now I focus on three things: -Start with the real world. I ask, “What does this look like in practice?” and build scenarios that mirror what learners actually face. -Keep it simple. Instead of cramming in everything possible, I design for the essentials and give learners resources they can pull when they need them. -Build in feedback. I design checkpoints that help learners reflect, try again, and walk away with confidence instead of confusion. When I shifted to this approach, I saw engagement go up and content actually stick. That’s what keeps me motivated in this field. What’s one shift you’ve made in your design practice that changed the way your learners engage? #InstructionalDesign #LearningExperienceDesign #eLearning