Sales Training iCUE Training Initiative
Top Tips in 10 animated intro
Overview
In the mid-2000s, I was hired by ADP as an instructional designer for their sales training organization. But I wasn’t really hired for my instructional design skills. I was hired because of my background in video production. The VP of Sales wanted training that could be delivered beyond the classroom and just in time, and video was a part of that strategy. In addition to creating video-based training, the VP of Sales wanted to use video to promote upcoming training for a new training initiative called iCUE (Individual Competence, Unparalleled Excellence).
Making Things Up as You Go
Sometimes the objectives for a video were clearly defined, but oftentimes I just sort of winged it, especially when it came to promotional videos. In one particular case, I came up with an idea while sitting in a meeting where the training team was brainstorming ideas for a new training program called Top Tips in 10.
Since I wasn’t really participating in the meeting as an instructional designer, I started daydreaming about creating an opener for the videos. Since the team had already come up with a Top Tips in 10 logo, which included a clock, I started thinking about how I could transform the name of the training initiative, iCUE, into the Top Tips in 10 logo.
That evening, I played around with my ideas in Adobe After Effects. I decided to first turn the C in iCUE into the logo’s clock. Then I made the clock vibrate and ring like an alarm clock while fading out the remaining iCUE letters and fading in the Top Tips in 10 letters. I showed the video to the team the next day and everyone loved it. The only thing left to do was to add music and the voice-over.