Introducing PayShepherd
Scaling customer training
When it comes to managing contractors, and contractor spend for heavy industry asset owners, PayShepherd knows that effective user training is crucial for success. That's exactly what their customer success team set out to improve when they partnered with Thinkific Plus.
PayShepherd's software helps clients manage everything from incurred costs to the invoice cycle, providing valuable insights into contractors, scorecarding, relationship management, project insights, and people evaluation. To ensure their customers can effectively leverage this powerful platform, PayShepherd needed a robust, scalable training solution.
As customer education is critical to PayShepherd's business growth, the company wanted to develop a more sophisticated online education experience that could scale with its growing user base while maintaining its signature human touch — a challenge they faced with their previous one-on-one training approach.
Since partnering with Thinkific Plus, PayShepherd has saved 350 hours in just three months, significantly reducing the resources needed for customer training while improving consistency and accessibility.
"We had an incredibly successful rollout. We were utilizing Thinkific Plus within four weeks. It had returned back to our team 350 hours within three months."
From one-on-one sessions to scalable learning — the evolution of PayShepherd's customer education program
How it began...
PayShepherd's customer education program initially relied heavily on personalized, one-on-one training sessions. While this approach aligned with their commitment to humanizing software, it presented significant challenges as the company grew.
"When I first began at PayShepherd, the majority of my days were consumed by hosting one-on-one meetings, walking individual users through each and every step of the software,"
- Pamela McAulay, Customer Success Manager at PayShepherd.
This resource-intensive approach became unsustainable as the company expanded. PayShepherd needed a solution to maintain their human touch while allowing them to efficiently scale their training efforts.
In their search for the right platform, the PayShepherd team chose Thinkific Plus to set up their online academy. The decision was based on the platform's ability to provide self-guided online training while maintaining a personalized feel.
"What Thinkific has given us is the ability to provide self-guided online training where users can gain a fundamental understanding of the software."
"PayShepherd's differentiator is that we humanize software, and that was really something that we didn't want to give up. To scale and grow and serve the incoming customers who use the PayShepherd product, we needed to take that human element and translate it to many more users."
Elevating the customer education experience
Thinkific Plus as the solution.
When PayShepherd needed to scale their training without losing their personal touch, they found their answer in Thinkific Plus. The platform's intuitive interface and robust features allowed them to quickly create and launch their online training program, going live in just four weeks.
"We hit go, we purchased Thinkific Plus, and from there, we spent two weeks ramping our content. We had an incredibly successful rollout. We were utilizing Thinkific Plus within four weeks."
- Jenn Hunter, Co-Founder.
This rapid implementation was crucial for PayShepherd, allowing them to address their training challenges without a prolonged transition period. Here's how Thinkific Plus empowered PayShepherd to revolutionize their customer education:
- User-Friendly Interface: PayShepherd's team easily translated their one-on-one training materials into engaging online content.
- Multimedia Integration: They incorporated videos, interactive quizzes, and downloadable resources, creating a rich learning experience catering to different learning styles.
- Customization: The ability to tailor the platform to match PayShepherd's branding created a seamless experience for their clients.
- Scalability: PayShepherd could now onboard new clients without the constraints of their previous one-on-one training model.
- Continuous Improvement: The platform's flexibility allowed for ongoing refinement and updates based on user feedback and product changes.
After launching its content, PayShepherd created an online customer education program that could scale with its growing user base while maintaining the quality and personal touch of its training. This scalability was a game-changer, opening new possibilities for growth and client satisfaction.
"By using Thinkific, we could optimize our resources so that we weren't spending as much time doing the training. That freed up a lot of hours for us, but it also gave our clients consistency when it came to training." - Ania Mueller, Manager, Delivery and Client Relationships.
Enhancing training efficiency and user engagement through education
Plus-Powered Business Growth.
Since implementing their education program with Thinkific Plus, PayShepherd has significantly improved training efficiency and resource allocation. The team credits this to an engaging and intuitive learner experience that allows customers to get up to speed quickly while catering to different learning styles.
Key benefits include:
- Self-Paced Learning: Clients can access training materials at their convenience, eliminating scheduling conflicts and leading to higher completion rates.
- Standardized Content: All clients receive consistent, high-quality information about PayShepherd's software, reducing variability in user knowledge and skills.
- Data-Driven Insights: Analytics and reporting features provide valuable insights into user engagement and progress, allowing for proactive support and content refinement.
- Efficient Onboarding: PayShepherd can now onboard customers more efficiently, leading to better outcomes and increased satisfaction.
- Freed-Up Resources: The team can focus on providing personalized support for complex issues and building stronger client relationships.
"We asked our clients how they enjoyed the training that we had rolled out through Thinkific, and the feedback we received was that they enjoyed the content. Another thing that was valuable to them was adjusting to different learning styles. So we had the visual content and the audible content, and then we could also produce an attachment available for download at the end for reference down the road."
The multi-format approach to content delivery has been particularly well-received:
- Visual learners appreciate the video content
- Those who prefer audio can listen to narrated portions
- Downloadable resources serve as quick reference guides
As PayShepherd continues to evolve its online customer education program, they're exploring advanced features to create even more engaging and interactive content, such as:
- Simulations and scenario-based learning modules
- Specialized courses for different user roles within client organizations
- Further personalization of the learning experience
This targeted approach enhances user proficiency and drives even greater value from PayShepherd's software.
"Overall, really positive feedback from our clients to date."
PayShepherd's Favorite Thinkific Plus Features
User Progress Tracking
PayShepherd maximizes the power of user progress tracking with Thinkific Plus. This feature gives the team valuable insights into each learner's journey, enabling them to offer timely, targeted support. By identifying areas where users may struggle, PayShepherd can proactively address potential issues before they escalate. Moreover, the data gathered through this tracking tool informs continuous course refinement, ensuring that training materials evolve to meet learners' needs effectively.
Certifications
Motivation plays a crucial role in successful learning, and PayShepherd harnesses this through Thinkific Plus's automatic certification feature. Learners receive immediate recognition of their achievement upon course completion, reinforcing their newly acquired skills. These certificates serve a dual purpose: they boost learner confidence and provide client organizations with tangible proof of their team members' proficiency. Some clients have even integrated these certifications into their internal professional development programs, extending the value of PayShepherd's training.
Multi-Format Content Support
Understanding learners' diverse preferences, PayShepherd leverages Thinkific Plus's multi-format content support to create an inclusive learning environment. By offering a variety of content types — including video lectures, interactive quizzes, text-based lessons, and downloadable resources — PayShepherd ensures that their training resonates with a wide range of learning styles. This approach not only enhances engagement but also improves knowledge retention. The result is a comprehensive learning experience that maintains learner interest throughout the training process, leading to higher completion rates and, ultimately, more effective use of PayShepherd's software.
Discover how your SaaS business can leverage education to enhance customer success today.
When your customers win, so does your business.
Platforms like Thinkific Plus are making it easier than ever for growing businesses to build and launch their first customer education academy. With specialized tools for content creation, engagement, and analytics for continuous improvement, enabling your customers and fostering business expansion is more achievable than ever.
Ready to embark on this transformative journey?
Request a demo of Thinkific Plus and start shaping the future of your customer experience today.
2024 Customer Education: Benchmarks and ROI Report
Discover the latest strategies that are shaping the future of Customer Education.
With over 64% of industry leaders now embedding educational programs to enhance customer success and engagement, our report offers a comprehensive look at how these initiatives are influencing key business outcomes and enhancing ROI.
