Learning to use a new website or online service can be a daunting task to some users, and that problem is amplified as sites and services grow more advanced. The online training site Grovo, which is launching today, aims to bridge that gap with video lessons on a variety of topics like the money management site Mint, Google Docs, and the basics of Twitter.

Grovo’s 15 to 20 minute courses are broken down into short video lessons which are generally around two minutes. There are lessons for a variety of skill levels — beginners can step through the basics of individual services, while more savvy users could learn about more advanced features.

When you first sign up for Grovo, you’re asked to rate your “internet experience” on a scale of 1 to 5 and to choose your interests among topics like “business”, “social media”, and “shopping/ecommerce.” That information is then used to deliver courses that would best your expertise and interests.

The lessons are displayed in the company’s “dynamic online learning platform” MyGrovo — which also lets you bookmark lessons to revisit, easily move between lessons in a course, or quickly jump to another course. You’ll be able to track your course completion, share your information with friends, and track the progress of your friends. After finishing a course, you can complete a short quiz to earn a Grovo Certification.

Grovo will certainly appeal to users who’ve always wanted to learn more about certain sites or services, but don’t want to bother their geeky friends. The site’s videos are clear, informative, and professionally made. As somebody who used to train users of all sorts of skill levels, I can attest that there’s something for everybody on Grovo, and the site will surely add more lessons over time. It’s also worth noting that using Grovo is also a lot less demoralizing than owning an entry from the Dummies series of how-to computing books.

In addition to individuals, Grovo can also train businesses and organizations. The company says that courses on sites like GoDaddy and Google Analytics were created with businesses in mind. Companies can use the site to train their employees by assigning courses, managing accounts, and measuring their progress, all from a single interface. While the site isn’t at a stage to replace a professional training session yet, it is a good way to get your staff up to speed on emerging sites and services.

The site is currently free to use, although you’ll have to invite friends to keep using it. You receive five lessons when you sign up, another five for every friend that you invite, and ten for every friend that signs up. This system is likely in place to help spread the word about the service, and I suspect that some sort of payment option will eventually emerge.

Grovo is based in New York, NY. We’re currently awaiting funding details from the company.

Tags: classes, online training, training

Companies: Grovo

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