The number of things to learn about starting and running an online business is enormous and can sometimes be overwhelming. Fortunately, there’s an app to solve this. In this Google Primer review, you’ll get an inside look at the content within this nifty tool and how it can benefit the amount of time we spend on mobile nowadays.
What Is Google Primer?
Google Primer is an exclusive mobile app that offers FREE learning resources in various areas of digital marketing. Unlike other tools created by Google, it has a more casual user-interface and works well offline.
The app covers three main categories, namely;
1 – Business and Operations – Teaches one from finding a profitable niche to expanding internationally. This section is most suitable for small business owners, retailers, and startups.
2 – Brand and Identity – Teaches about web building and online customer engagement. This section is helpful for anyone who wants to build an online presence for a business.
3 – Marketing and Measurement – Teaching about various marketing channels and measuring return on investment (ROI) with analytic tools. This section will benefit those who want to scale for more traffic and profits for their existing online business.
How to Get Started?
The app can be downloaded from any mobile phone that supports Google Play or iOS.
Upon activation, it would ask for the type of skills that you are interested in. For example, if you choose content marketing, the app will suggest lessons that are associated with that topic. If you want to learn in a sequential manner, you can also choose lesson sets curated by the Primer Team.
What do I like About The App?
Many learning apps are clunky, but that will not be the case with Google Primer.
1 – For starters, the lessons are presented in bite-size and flash-card-like format. Often, they are accompanied by illustrations and you just need to ‘swipe the cards’ or tap the arrow buttons to move onto the next page. It’s quite a fun experience – almost like reading a children’s storybook, really.
2 – The simplicity of the app also translates to shorter learning time as most lessons only average about 5 minutes to complete. This makes it a good resource for learning during lunch break or commuting on the train without information overload. I have used the app while on-the-go and it feels like I spent my time more productively – albeit a short one – instead of texting randomly on the phone.
3 – The fact that it works offline makes it even better to kill time. Do you know how public places often have a poor Wifi connection? Well, this app helped me through my 5-hour transit at Montreal airport the other day and it was a fulfilling experience knowing that I can enrich my knowledge without having to spend a cent.
4 – Despite its simple presentation, the app still manages to squeeze in short quizzes and checklist in between lessons to keep up with the learning engagement. I found that this short activity enhances one’s understanding of a rather complex subject matter and serves as a good revision. It reinforces the objective of the lessons and makes you feel like you’ve actually gained something valuable even for just a short time.
5 – Behind the scene, Google Primer is a collaboration of experts from various digital industries who have come together to share their knowledge in specific fields. Among those who have contributed are SEO strategist, entrepreneur experts, Shopify eCommerce, and Hootsuite social media. New lessons are constantly being added and the app will update you on this via mobile or email notification.
6 – Another aspect that I like about this app is the number of content ideas that I can generate for my blog. This may not be applicable for everyone, but if you are in the online business and marketing niche like I do, it kind of provides a bird’s-eye view on the array of subjects that can be tackled. It helps me to see my niche from a professional standpoint and discover new keyword opportunities for a different audience.
What’s The Limitation of The App?
Aa an app feature, there are limitations to what you can actually achieve through the lessons. If it’s a very complex topic, a 5-minute short course will not be sufficient to go through all that you need to know. And if you don’t understand something, there’s no channel to ask the experts either.
So, it’s basically a self-learning app and it’s only as good as what you would make of it. If you are looking for a more comprehensive step-by-step training in online business marketing, this community platform might be a better alternative.
Prime Your Business for Success
Nevertheless, Google Primer is a jargon-free that has set itself different from other types of dense-learning resources. I think the mobile approach is a smart idea to inspire new young entrepreneurs as well as teaching digital skills to a time-deprived society.
As for people who are already in the scene and wanting to improve on their business skills, switching to mobile learning (or revision, whichever you prefer) mode once in a while, can actually be quite refreshing and fun. In fact, I think the experience in itself, can teach you a lot about approaching your own mobile audience.
Hopefully, after reading this review, you would consider installing the app and start using it during your lunch break 🙂 There is a lot of useful information going on inside and I think it’s a great complement to whatever pre-existing online business training that you are part of.
Have you heard or used the app before? Please leave your comment below to share your thoughts.
I have heard about Google Primer. In the past, it was actually called Learn10x. Primer is a fast, and easy way to learn new digital marketing skills and it gives you bite-sized lessons to do whenever you have 5 minutes of free of time to spare. The only disadvantage is that it doesn’t go in-depth on certain challenging topics.
Otherwise, I think it’s a pretty nifty app.
Google Primer is great app for anyone who wants to learn about online marketing. I have been using the app for a while now and actually learnt a lot with the application. I also love that it works offline and most importantly free of charge. There is a limit to what you can learn though because most of the information are just scrapping the surface. Nevertheless, it is still a good app for beginners to get started.
I have actually never heard about this app and a bit shocked that I haven’t since it’s made by Google. I am new to building an online business so I will gladly learn from anything I can find, especially if it’s easily accessible through the phone.
It’s exhausting to jump from site to site and e-book to e-book trying to learn everything about online marketing. Sometimes I feel like I am just running in circles. I am downloading this as we speak. Can’t wait to try it out. Thanks Cathy.
Glad you found it useful, Dan 🙂
Hi Cathy – nope, not heard of this before but I’m all for education – and free, too! 🙂 so I’ll definitely install it and check it out.
In a recent webinar I attended, the speaker was saying that our attention span is getting shorter and we need to develop strategies that take this into account when engaging with visitors. I’m not sure how to do this on a blog. Do you?
Writing shorter articles may seem like an obvious way to go but this, apparently, is frowned on by the Big G who seems to prefer War and Peace – like tomes 🙂 Maybe Mr G himself has the solution in these bite – or should that be byte 🙂 – sized lessons.
I’ll be taking a closer look to see if I can take away anything from this nifty app and apply it on my blog. Exciting! Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Hi Ian, I think attention span has got more to do with engagement rather than the length of an article. If you write one thousand words with all text, poor spacing and too much white element, it will quickly trigger readers to loose their interests.
But if you have one thousand words with videos embed, relevant images and write in such a way that tells a story, I think that would keep the readers engaged until the very end. Hope this helps.
Really informative article and as someone who is interested in growing her small online business. This tool will definitely come in handy when I need a quick reference or when I am in areas with poor WiFi connectivity. Just wondering, how often do they update their content and lessons? Thank you.
Hi Cheyenne. Google keep the app updated pretty regularly. If you allow the notification in the setting area, it will let you know whenever there’s an update.
Hi Cathy, thank you for this review. I have heard about this app, but I have not used it yet. I like the aspect of business it covers and the fact that it has small bite size 5 minute tutorials. This might be a good starting point for a beginner like me. Will definitely try it out.
Thank you for sharing this information about Google Primer. I had no prior knowledge of this app so I will go ahead and install it right away. I see from your article that the benefits are plentiful so I hope to learn from it too. I think it will work in tandem with a community like WA because both share the same values and approach in online marketing.