Window 2 - Why calls for user training should trigger alarm bells
Welcome to Advent of Strife and Window 2 🎄 Today’s topic is all about user centricity and how usability shortcomes can turn out to be hidden behind the need for user trainng.
Let’s start with a retorical question; When was the last time you attended a user training session for your social medias? Most likley your answer is never. Without training being an integrated part of the social media companies business model, these platforms have billions of users. And there is, more than one, but one prominent reason for that - user centricity & usability.
Now lets turn to the CMS industry. Imagine you’re exploring a new content management system (CMS) and the vendor enthusiastically offers comprehensive user training. At first glance, this might seem like a bonus—after all, who wouldn’t appreciate some guidance? But what if the need for training is a symptom of a deeper problem? In a truly user-friendly CMS, training should feel like an afterthought, not a necessity.
Let’s dive into why the call for CMS user training should raise questions and what it reveals about the platform you're investing in.
The Promise of Simplicity in Modern CMS Design
User-centric CMS platforms are built with one goal in mind: making life easier for the people who use them. Editors and content managers shouldn’t have to wrestle with complicated interfaces, decipher jargon, or navigate endless menus. Instead, every feature should feel intuitive, empowering users to create, manage, and publish content with speed and confidence.
But when a CMS vendor highlights the need for extensive training, it suggests the system may be inherently complex. It begs the question: Is this CMS truly designed with the user in mind?
What User Training Often Reveals
Overcomplicated Interfaces
A steep learning curve usually indicates a cluttered or unintuitive interface. If you need a roadmap to navigate your CMS, it’s a sign the product was likely designed with developers or technical users in mind—not editors and marketers.Hidden Costs and Time Investments
Training isn’t just an extra step; it’s a hidden cost. The hours spent learning a system take time away from actual content creation and strategy. This complexity drains productivity and stretches onboarding timelines.Inefficiency in Everyday Tasks
When users have to rely on cheat sheets or remember intricate workflows, efficiency suffers. A CMS should feel like a seamless extension of your team’s creativity, not an obstacle course requiring constant guidance.
How Simplicity Drives Success
A CMS that embraces productivity empowers users to:
Start creating immediately, with minimal instruction.
Focus on content, not “how to do’s”).
Solve problems intuitively, without needing external support.
At Strife, we believe simplicity isn’t just a feature; it’s the foundation of user-centric design. That’s why our CMS is built to eliminate unnecessary steps, anticipate user needs, and prioritize ease of use at every turn.
Questions to Ask Your CMS Vendor
Before committing to a CMS platform, ask these critical questions:
How much training is required for editorial teams to become productive?
Can everyday tasks be accomplished by your editors without technical or external assistance?
How do non-technical users rate the system's usability?
What kind of feedback has shaped the platform's development?
Any modern CMS vendor should confidently be able to demonstrate that their platform is simple, intuitive, and designed for your team to succeed—without the need for hours of training. At Strife the vision is always that our CMS should be intuitive to an extent where every feature and user flow is self explanatory. If our customers calls for user training, that means a product design failure.
Conclusion
When your CMS vendor emphasizes training, consider it a red flag. Complexity undermines productivity, and no amount of training can mask a poorly designed platform. Instead, choose a CMS that champions simplicity, empowers your team, and lets you focus on what matters most: creating exceptional content.