SHIFT's eLearning Blog

Our blog provides the best practices, tips, and inspiration for corporate training, instructional design, eLearning and mLearning.

To visit the Spanish blog, click here

    Before You Add One More Image to Your eLearning Course, Read This!

    Bad Stock Photos Make for Bad eLearning How often have you gone to a website, looked at the photos, and said “Oh yeah, there are the happy clapping people, and there’s the arrow going into the target, and there’s the thermometer showing sales figures, and… yawn.” Probably more times than you could count. Does that really make you want to read the content? Does it do anything to enhance the information that’s there? Of course it doesn’t. And the same things that are beyond boring and beyond overdone on various websites are going to be equally as un-engaging if you use them on your eLearning course. The dilemma with stock photos is that cheesy-to-the-maximum, cliché, exaggerated, awkward and fake photos do not connect with an audience of learners. You have to make images speak to your learners. Images need to say the 1,000 words you actually want them to. The ideal case is that you take your own photos, but we know that not everyone has the budget, time or available resources, so if you must use stock photography, make sure it’s relevant, not hideously overused and think creatively about choosing and editing them in unique ways.

      Related Posts

      10 Things That Learners Pay Attention To (And How to Use Them in eLearning)

      In today's fast-paced digital age, the human attention span is often compared to that of a goldfish, famously pegged at just eight seconds. However, a 2015 Microsoft study suggests this number might be a little more nuanced, pointing out that while our initial attention spans are short, our selective sustained attention abilities are stronger than ever. This insight is crucial for training leaders and eLearning developers tasked with capturing and maintaining learner engagement in a world brimming with distractions.

      Humanize Your eLearning Courses or Risk Losing Learners

      Have you ever found yourself lost in an eLearning course that feels more like wandering through a never-ending digital desert than a useful classroom experience? You're definitely not the only one. Too often, these courses end up as lengthy, dull PDFs. Here's what we need to remember: While it’s great to use new tech like AI, we can’t forget about the real people using these courses. In our excitement to share a wealth of information and tap into cutting-edge technology, it's easy to lose sight of the human aspect of learning.

      How Color Psychology Influences Learning in eLearning Environments

      What if we told you that color is more than just a visual element—it's a crucial factor that can make or break the effectiveness of your eLearning courses? Too often, eLearning courses fail to engage learners effectively because they don't tap into the strategic use of color. Research by Dr. Robert Gerard dives deep into this subject, revealing that colors are not merely visuals but wavelengths of energy that can significantly impact our neurological pathways and biochemical responses.