Trainers all have one main goal in sight: effectively teach a concept. The how, when, where, and what of that process may differ greatly, but in a nutshell, the creation of functional training content is key.
In 2025, trainers have access to resources like they never have before. Between written content (remember paper instruction pamphlets?), video tutorials, screenshots, and more, there are endless ways to deliver training content. But what trends do professional trainers see emerge?
Let’s dive into insight from the TechSmith Advisory Board about their training predictions for 2025.
This select group of training industry leaders provides invaluable insights on trends, products, and messaging. Their expertise helps shape the future of TechSmith’s offerings, ensuring we stay connected to the needs of our community.
From repeatable workflows to intelligent content distribution and, of course, AI, we have the information to keep you ahead of the curve.
AI-supported customer & employee education
Training materials are constantly developing, and it can be overwhelming to stay on top of all the changes. Luckily, our trainers predict that helpful tools will make keeping content up to date easier than ever.
For example, informational video content can be recorded (and re-recorded) with quick-record tools. Camtasia’s Rev AI-assisted workflow is one such tool. Rev will template videos to fit design, brand, and expectations in just a few clicks.
This training prediction makes it easy for trainers to update educational content like how-to videos and tutorials while keeping a consistent look. In all, the change management process becomes a simple task rather than the painful, time-consuming process we know it as.
No matter how quickly a product or internal process changes, customers and employees can be informed almost immediately.
Another example of this development is the use of AI to search for records. Tools can keep track of and find records easily, which will make the content more accessible for customers or employees.
One of the biggest challenges in the SaaS world is keeping content up-to-date with a rapidly changing product. I’m already seeing exciting new tools and enhancements to pre-existing tools that will make my life so much easier when it comes to this.
Repeatable, dependable systems
In a similar vein as quickly updating content, dependable systems are also a shining training prediction for 2025.
A well-structured, repeatable system can boost content creation speed, uphold company quality standards, control costs, and much more.
For example, teams can save time by combining tedious processes into one streamlined workflow. Not only does this save time (and consequently cost), but it will also cut down on the number of tools a trainer needs to complete a task, also cutting down costs.
Niche AI tools can also help certain industries complete work more efficiently. For example, AI can now immediately detect Personal Identifiable Information (PII) and remove it from documents. This eliminates the need for someone to dig through documents looking for any sensitive information. Talk about a real life-saver!
Not only are these tools great for big companies, but they also give a leg up to small teams with limited resources.
Templates, templates, templates
Lastly, our advisory board predicts that the most important tool will be… templates! There is nothing quite as reliable and repeatable as a well-thought-out template.
Whether they be documents or videos, templates are the difference between spending a few minutes on a project and a few hours (or days!!).
Examples of video templates include on-screen how-tos, feature demos, step-by-step tutorials, and more! Templates can be customized to fit a company brand and used over and over again for quick, dependable content creation.
Achieving efficiency at scale is the big content creation strategic trend that I see. With the breakneck speed of business growth and change and their never diminishing demand for performance support and training, L&D has to streamline end-to-end content creation to survive, let alone thrive.
Intelligent content distribution
Humans can do lots that AI can’t. However, if there is one thing AI can do well it’s scan hundreds of thousands of pieces of content in seconds. This makes it the perfect tool for finding information in no time.
In turn, our trainers predict that AI will play a crucial role in repurposing and distributing content intelligently. AI tools can search for the data we need instantly while we worry about other, more important tasks.
Additionally, AI can surface learning materials contextually. This means that it can deliver the correct information the instant the learner needs it. Trainers can be free of their duty to constantly help learners answer small questions and focus on the big questions instead.
However, that is not to say that trainers’ knowledge and expertise will be replaced – far from it!
Instead, AI can help in ways that require less nuance. For example, headless learning management systems allow learning content to not be confined to the LMS. Instead, the knowledge is distributed through the organization’s systems to be accessed as needed. There will be no need to search for the information anymore.
By adopting this AI technique, and others like it, thoughtfully, trainers will make a huge difference in how quickly their learning content is absorbed.
Puzzled projects
We’ve all been there: you’re entering a prompt into ChatGPT and the answer sounds exactly like the last three it gave you. AI-created content, especially the written word, can become repetitive quickly, and it’s important to keep an eye out for that. The last thing anyone wants, but especially a trainer, is for their content to get repetitive and ultimately boring.
Instead, our trainers predict that maximizing the utility of tools and apps by bundling them together is the future of creativity. After all, why limit yourself to one tool when you could have a few helping you out?
Through trial and error, or other’s experiences, trainers will learn which tools excel at which tasks, therefore increasing the impact of each on the other. Then, with their professional skills, they can take that content to a whole new level.
By relying on the skills they’ve learned through their expertise and the products of catered AI content, trainers will be able to create stand-out and effective pieces of teaching content.
Human-centered approach
For all of the AI-based advice so far, this one sets itself a bit apart: don’t stray too far from the human touch.
Of course, AI tools are helpful. They can take away the menial, boring tasks so we can focus on the big picture. However, our trainers predict there will be a craving for human-centered content amidst the influx of AI-created content.
There needs to be a balance, and 2025 looks to be the prime time to find it. For example, AI avatars are very practical when used to create tedious, high-scale content. And let’s not forget that they can replace you on your bad hair days. AI avatars have a very real place in trainer’s workflows, and we’re not here to tell you to ditch them.
But, according to the 2024 Video Viewer Trends Report, only 87% of respondents prefer to hear and see a real person explain new information to them rather than an AI-generated avatar. That’s a big percentage!
Sharing personal stories based on shared experiences will set some trainers apart from others who rely too much on the helpful ways of AI.
AI is a (very) helpful hand, but don’t forget that you are a human teaching another human about a human-created concept.
As more and more AI content is competing for our attention, content creators and people will gravitate towards those things AI can’t do: Share human stories, in human ways, based on earned insights and lived experiences.
In conclusion
Well, have we said “AI” enough times yet? In all seriousness, using AI tools proactively is a great practice for trainers to start adopting today.
Now is the time to embrace change rather than leave it behind. AI tools can help you get ahead of the crowd, and when managed correctly can make a great positive impact on content output.
Don’t be afraid to try new things, and have fun creating learning experiences your audience will love.
Share