Creating a Awesome Tutorial
Tutorial is the most common type of training within The Open Education Project and the type that I prefer to create. This a a textual and image based resource. The reason I prefer to choose this type of training is because it is easy to update a screenshot or the text within the tutorial if something changes.
A video does not offer this capabilities as you will need to recreate a video if the "look of a system or website" that you are explaining changes.
I am going to walk you through the main components of creating a "quality" training resource and how to format your resource so that it creates the most user friend experience.
Let's look at the Page Editor
I want to explain to you the different components of the editor that you will be using to create the content within each page. These controls allow you to create content that is more visually appealing and that allows for great user readability.
Components of the Page Editor
- Font Styles - You have the choice between 3 different font styles. These can be used to distinguish and/or emphasize text within your content. I recommend using these sparingly as they "over formatting" can lead to your training being more difficult to read.
- Headings - Headings are an excellent way to separate main themes or ideas on a particular page within your training. I try to keep headings to a maximum of 4 per page, but depending on the actual content sometimes I don't even need to use a heading on a page.
Headings should be headlines to prelude the upcoming content and can allow users to quickly scan a page to see what they are looking to learn. - Code Blocks - These allows you to mark text as code within your content. You can simply highlight the text as code and then select "Computer Code" from the Styles dropdown.
- Bulleted Lists - There are two types of lists that you can create, bulleted lists and numbered lists. If you have a list of items that you want to break down or something that you want to categorized based on a number list, simply click the corresponding button to initialize a list.
- Adding Links / Removing links - You can add links to other training resources, other pages and system within the open education project, and even external websites. I recommend that you use links in moderation because it can be frustrating to a reader to have to go away from your training all the time to visit even more training.
We also DO NOT allow affiliate links, promotions, or links with the sole intention of getting exposure to your website. Your training will be DISABLED if we see this. - Spell Check - You should spell check all of your content. Poor spelling makes a training resource less credible and more difficult to read.
- Adding Images - You an add images up to 540 pixels wide. If you try to add an image larger than this it will automatically resize the image to 540 max width. I do recommend that you add images to your tutorial training resources as it can make them much visually stimulating and easier to follow through. I also recommend you try to add screen captures where necessary to represent what you are talking about (you can use Snagit for screen shots).
How to Create an Awesome Video
Videos are good when they provide information that is concise, ideally in less than 15 minutes. People tend to have "attention deficit" when it comes to watching videos and your videos will be far less effective if you make them too long.
Upload size is limited to 50MB so please make your videos smaller than this before you upload them.
If there are important concepts and or points within your video you may want to include the "timeline" of your video within your video description.
Ex. How to Build a Website (3:17)
You can also offer an additional verbiage that supports your video material within the editor (a singular page) that is allotted with each video.
We accept all types of videos as long as their is no personal branding within the videos (that is website watermarks) and there definitely is no room for promotions. Please DO NOT submit a video if your sole intention is to promote as it will be removed.
It feels good to be sharing the knowledge that we have acquired. And I hope that a lot more trainers will be developed from within WA.
Thanks a lot for this opportunity. More blessings to WA team and members!
Reply
Sure feels good to pay the knowledge forward..
Q: How do I do this then?
Because the training isn't available to outside eyes or is it?
This is just what I needed to know Kyle.
Superb.
In other words, you could create a training resource and then let people know about it. Give them the link and tell them all they have to do to get it is sign-up for free (via your affiliate link obviously). :)
No better reason to tell people to join WA than offering them some specific training.
