I Went Looking for Learning Tech SMEs Can Actually Use
Learning Technologies is brilliant, but it can also feel a bit like wandering into Aldi for bread and accidentally ending up in the middle aisle considering a heated airer, a chainsaw, a yoga mat and a pizza oven.
There are platforms, content tools, AI assistants, skills solutions, compliance systems, analytics dashboards and probably at least one thing promising to revolutionise everything by lunchtime.
So I went with one specific question:
What is actually useful for SMEs?
Not what looks impressive on a stand.
Not what has the slickest demo.
Not what sounds exciting if you have a dedicated L&D team, a big implementation budget and six months to roll it out properly.
But what might genuinely help a small or growing business improve the way people learn, work and perform.
And honestly?
I didn’t find quite as much as I hoped.
That does not mean the event was not useful. It was. But it did confirm something I have been thinking about for a while: the learning technology market is still very heavily shaped around larger organisations, bigger learner numbers and more formal learning teams.
For SMEs, the picture is more complicated.
Because most small businesses are not asking:
“Which enterprise learning ecosystem should we invest in?”
They are asking things like:
“How do we get new starters up to speed?”
“How do we make sure essential compliance learning is covered?”
“How do we help managers support their teams better?”
“How do we stop important knowledge living in one person’s head?”That is a very different set of questions.
The first thing that stood out: AI was everywhere, no surprise.
Unsurprisingly, AI was one of the big themes.
AI content creation.
AI support tools.
AI-powered platforms.
AI promising to make learning quicker, smarter, more personalised or easier to produce.
And there is definitely potential there for SMEs.
Used well, AI could help a small business draft learning materials, summarise guidance, create scenarios, build quizzes, tidy up messy information or turn expert knowledge into something easier to share.
That matters, because SMEs often do not have spare people sitting around waiting to design learning content.
But the same caution still applies:
Faster content is not automatically better learning.
If AI helps turn useful knowledge into clear, practical support, brilliant.
If it simply helps create more generic e-learning, more quickly, then we have not solved the real problem. We have just produced more stuff.
And most SMEs do not need more stuff.
They need learning that is:
clear
relevant
easy to access
simple to manage
connected to real work
useful at the point people need it
AI may help with that, but only if the thinking behind it is strong.
What did look genuinely useful?
I only saw a limited set of organisations, so this is not a full review of the exhibition. It is a snapshot through an SME lens.
But a few things did stand out.
TechSmith: practical tools people actually use
One of my favourite finds — although not a new find for me — was TechSmith.
I have used Snagit for years, ever since a Swedish Training Manager introduced me to it when I was working overseas. It has quietly stayed in my toolkit ever since. Along with Camtasia and Audiate, other TechSmith products.
And that says a lot.
For SMEs, useful learning tools are not always big platforms. Sometimes they are the simple, practical tools that help people explain things clearly.
Snagit can be used for:
screen grabs
step-by-step guides
quick process instructions
text grabs
basic editing
mark-ups and annotations
showing someone exactly what you mean
I use it constantly. For IT support messages, quick guides, screenshots, process notes, visual explanations and those “this bit here” moments that are much easier to show than describe.
That kind of tool is genuinely valuable for SMEs because it helps capture knowledge quickly.
And often, that is the real learning problem.
Not “we need a platform.”
But:
“How do we show people how to do this properly without explaining it from scratch every time?”
That is where practical tools like Snagit earn their keep.
Kahoot!: familiar, fun and useful in the right context
Kahoot! was also there.
Again, it is not new. Many people will already know it. But it can still be useful, especially for online sessions and webinars where you want to add a bit of energy, interaction or light competition.
For SMEs running virtual learning, team sessions or informal knowledge checks, tools like Kahoot! can help break up the passive “sit and listen” experience.
And because there is a free version, it is accessible in a way many larger learning platforms are not.
It is not a full learning solution, of course.
But used well, it can make live learning feel more engaging and memorable.
For SMEs, that kind of small improvement can matter.
7taps: microlearning that feels more realistic for small teams
7taps Microlearning also stood out as a genuinely interesting option. Again, a tool I dip in and out of.
For SMEs, microlearning can be a much better fit than long, formal courses, especially when the aim is to share quick guidance, reinforce key points or support people with small but important pieces of knowledge.
A tool like 7taps could be useful for creating short, focused learning experiences in-house.
Things like:
quick policy explainers
short process refreshers
onboarding nudges
manager prompts
customer service reminders
follow-up learning after a session
short “how we do things here” guides
That feels much closer to how SMEs actually work.
They often need learning that can be created quickly, accessed easily and applied immediately.
Not everything needs to become a 45-minute e-learning module.
Sometimes a short, well-designed piece of microlearning is enough to move people forward.
Where I struggled
This is the honest bit.
A lot of what I saw still felt designed for corporate environments with large learner volumes, larger budgets and more formal infrastructure.
That is not a criticism of those tools. Many of them are probably excellent for the organisations they are built for.
But for SMEs, the fit is not always obvious.
The platforms aimed at smaller businesses often seemed to lean heavily on ready-to-use content libraries. And while ready-made content has its place, it can still feel very much like standard e-learning fare.
Useful? Sometimes.
Transformational? Not necessarily.
For essential compliance topics, such as health and safety, food safety, fire safety or other regulated areas, many SMEs are likely to go to specialist providers. And that makes sense. If the content needs to be technically accurate, legally current and sector-specific, you want it produced by people who specialise in that area.
For broader workplace skills, the answer is not always another off-the-shelf course library.
Soft skills, communication, confidence, problem-solving, management behaviours and collaboration can often be supported through:
mentoring
coaching conversations
manager-led practice
curated learning
useful books
TED Talks
YouTube explainers
podcasts
Udemy-style courses
team discussions
short reflective activities
The issue is not always whether content exists.
It does.
The bigger issue is:
How do SMEs organise it, make it accessible, give it context and help people actually use it?
That, to me, feels like a real gap.
The missing piece for SMEs: not more content, but better structure
This was probably my biggest takeaway.
SMEs do not necessarily need endless content libraries. They need better ways to make sense of learning.
They need to know:
what learning matters
who needs it
when they need it
where to find it
how to apply it
how managers can support it
how to keep it simple enough that people actually use it
That might include technology. But it might not start with technology. It might start with a curated learning pathway.
A simple onboarding structure.
A manager checklist.
A small resource hub of recommended videos and articles.
A few well-designed internal guides.
A mentoring framework.
A lightweight tracking process.
A short digital learning module where consistency really matters.
The value is not just in the content.
The value is in the thinking, organisation and application around it.
That is the bit SMEs often do not have time to build.
And that is also the bit many platforms do not fully solve on their own.
So, what should SMEs take from Learning Technologies?
My takeaway is not that SMEs should ignore learning technology.
Far from it.
There are tools that can absolutely help small businesses create, capture, organise and deliver learning more effectively.
But the most useful tools for SMEs may not be the biggest, boldest or most expensive.
They may be the ones that help with everyday learning problems:
capturing knowledge
explaining processes
supporting managers
nudging behaviour
organising useful resources
making learning accessible
helping people practise
reducing repeated questions
keeping essential learning visible
For SMEs, learning technology needs to earn its place.
It should not create a huge implementation project.
It should not rely on a full-time learning team.
It should not add more admin than it removes.
It should not look impressive but sit unused.
It should help people do their jobs better.
That is still the test.
My practical advice for SMEs
Before buying learning technology, ask:
What problem are we actually trying to solve?
Then ask:
Is this a content problem, a confidence problem, a consistency problem, a compliance problem, a management problem or an access problem?
Because each of those might need a different answer.
A compliance issue may need a specialist course.
A process issue may need a quick guide.
A confidence issue may need coaching or practice.
A consistency issue may need a checklist or structured onboarding pathway.
A knowledge-sharing issue may need better capture and organisation.
A skills issue may need a blend of curated resources, discussion and application.
The technology should support the answer.
It should not become the answer by default.
Final thought
I went to Learning Technologies looking for learning tech SMEs can actually use.
I found some genuinely useful tools, especially the practical ones that help people create, capture and share knowledge quickly.
But I also came away thinking that the SME learning gap is not simply about access to technology.
It is about clarity.
Clarity on what people need to learn.
Clarity on what problem the business is trying to solve.
Clarity on what needs to be formal, what can be curated and what just needs to be easier to find.
Clarity on how learning connects to everyday work.
And perhaps that is the real Aldi middle aisle lesson.
It is fine to browse.
It is fine to be curious.
You might even find something genuinely brilliant.
But it helps to remember what you came in for.
If your business is trying to make sense of learning, onboarding or workplace skills without getting lost in platforms, content libraries or shiny tools, Jessanol can help you step back and work out what you actually need.
Before you invest in learning technology, let’s get clear on the problem, the people and the practical support that will make the biggest difference.call and we’ll work through it together.
