Back in February, I made a post reviewing training resources that were available to new content authors. Since then, Sitecore has released 18 new courses for Marketers, Administrators, and Developers on their eLearning portal that cover a variety of topics on the platform. While I cannot speak to the developer and technical training, I was able to take many of the marketing courses. I think Sitecore has definitely made quite a few improvements over their eLearning offerings in the past.
A New Look and Flexible Learning Formats
The first thing I noticed was the updated look and user interface. The new courses are much easier to navigate through. It’s also easy to track your progress through each section. Each course is wrapped with pre- and post-assessments, and shorter “check your knowledge” checkpoints after sections to keep you on track. Courses now present their content in four different Lab formats that cater to different learning styles. Sitecore recommends learners complete at least two labs to get a better understanding of the topic.
Instruction Lab is the “textbook version” of the course that caters to readers. I found lab this to be the most useful out of the four using images, gifs, and videos to demonstrate and illustrate concepts as you read along.
Simulation Lab gives you a chance to try out your new skills in a simulated Sitecore interface. While this is still not as “open” as training in an actual Sitecore instance, it is much more forgiving than the previously offered simulations and the demos run a lot smoother.
Micro-Video Lab presents course content through a series of short videos. I did not find this lab to be as helpful as you would think. Many of the videos presented (at least in the courses I took) were heavy on “stock video” of people chatting in an office setting or using laptops or phones, while terms and definitions are explained. There are brief walkthroughs where a user demonstrates something you just learned inside of Sitecore, and I finished these labs feeling like there should have been more.
Taken on its own, the Game Lab does not teach very much and instead offers an ‘edutaining’ way to “check your knowledge” from the other labs. There were a few fun trivia-style games; however, many of them were either very easy or thematically felt more appropriate for a much younger audience.
More Author and Marketer Training Options Than Before
Previously, Sitecore offered only two Author/Marketer courses on the xP Platform. Now there are five to choose from, seven if you count the two Sitecore Experience Commerce 9.0 and 9.1 offerings, with topics covering all the current xFlavors of the platform:
- Web Experience Management 9.2
- Context Marketing Fundamentals 9.2
- Personalization and Experience Optimization 9.2
- Introduction to Sitecore® Experience Accelerator 9.2
- Fast-Track Design in Sitecore Experience Accelerator 9.2
In the end, nothing has changed about my previous recommendation. Many of the new eLearning courses offered by Sitecore are still a good self-directed training resource for introducing new authors and marketers to the basics of the platform. Have you taken any of the new training yet? What has your experience been like? Share it in the comments below.
