The manufacturing industry in North America has a problem…a really big one that is adversely affecting productivity, profits and overall global competitiveness. To offset this, employers must find an effective way to train, educate and motivate their employees.
As stated in a Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte and Touche sponsored report entitled “Boiling Point?”, the biggest challenge for manufactures is the lack of skilled labor.
Angela Stringfellow, a Chief Ideation Officer at CODA Concepts, LLC, further confirms this reality by stating, “Despite an abundance of obstacles, the biggest challenge facing the manufacturing sector is a lack of skilled training.”
Given this reality, it’s obvious that more effective training, communication, and education would have a positive effect on the problem, but the question then becomes – what is the most effective and sustainable way to disseminate this kind training and education?
Ways to educate and train employees working as skilled laborers in the manufacturing industry:
- Create an increased amount of detailed training and educational sessions with a live trainer.
- Produce training materials in text form (like a book or manual) and have users consume it at their leisure.
- Produce an educational video with a trainer in a live or recorded setting.
- Produce an educational video with animated content that could be consumed in a number of situations.
The realities with these options is that live trainers can be expensive and are not always scalable, and text materials do not engage people well enough to keep them motivated to learn.
Online video, however, hits the most senses, making it more suitable for educational and training models. It is more engaging than text and can be produced at a cost that is much more affordable than a live trainer. It should be noted however, that there are significant cost and production resource differences with live videos verses animated videos – a fact that has contributed to the growing trend in animated video production and usage.
The Cost of Producing a Video: Live vs. Animated
Are animated videos an appropriate communication tool for the manufacturing sector?
According to manufacturing mainstays like Schneider Electric, TydenBrooks, and Nova Polymers, they certainly are.
Further, in a report by Reelmarketer, they state that the costs of animated videos are much more effective, and this becomes even more apparent in an edit or content update situation.
At the consumer level, 69% of consumed content online by 2017 will be video. And with that kind of conditioning, these numbers will surely translate to attitudes and habits on the level of business education and training.
In fact, the technology giant CISCO proudly uses video for corporate communications and training. And they are very open about the fact that using video for these things improves corporate level communications and lowers costs.
Revolution Weighs In on the Value of Video
The problem for many manufacturing companies is that they have not taken advantage of video communications in the same way that companies like CISCO have. In fact, 75% of companies we track in the manufacturing sector DO NOT use video for communication or training. The remaining 25% who do use video have an immediate advantage over competitors.
Sometimes it’s a bit difficult to see how a new trend or method directly relates to you and your business – and that’s totally understandable. So if you’d like to see how animated video can lower your manufacturing costs, contact one of our account executives here. It doesn’t cost a thing.
P.S. If you would like to check out some other companies who are currently using animated videos to lower costs and stay ahead of the competition, visit our portfolio.
