Project: Counterfeit Cash Vigilance Training
- Caitlin Bartholic
- Nov 25
- 3 min read
The Project
Well… I sure did learn a lot completing this project. As part of The eLearning Designer's Academy November Challenge, I created a training for the (very fictional) Cascade State Bank to help their (also fictional) bank tellers spot counterfeit cash. I used this challenge as a chance to stretch some different Storyline muscles, and learned a lot about US Currency in the process.
The Betrayal
During this project, I learned that Inter is a variable font that is not supported by Articulate Storyline. It looked great while I was designing, but the second I hit Preview or Publish? Boom - completely different font. A jump scare. A betrayal. A whole vibe shift.
I experimented. I tried again. I uninstalled the font, reinstalled the font. Restarted the computer. No solution. So... I did what any reasonable person does when the solution doesn't reveal itself... TO THE MESSAGE BOARDS!
(Insert heavy sigh here). No solutions to be found. It seems this problem has been happening to others, and when I saw a post from 2 years ago about the Inter font with a response from Articulate that it was being worked on, I started to lose hope. I reached out.
By the time Articulate confirmed that Inter wouldn’t work, it was too late to redesign anything major, so I just pivoted to a supported font and kept moving.
The Process
To keep things realistic, I completed a full Needs Analysis - despite the fact that Cascade State Bank does not exist. The project may be fictional, but the process wasn’t: I focused the learning on identifying security features, let learners practice in several different formats at their own pace, and wrapped it up with a branching scenario so they could try navigating a customer interaction under real-world time constraints.
Since this is a branching scenario, I mapped everything out in Miro first, using color-coding to keep all the paths straight. I really like seeing the big picture before diving into Storyline and wrestling with triggers and slide numbers. This approach kept me organized and helped me spot issues early. Here’s a look at how my Miro layout translated into the Story View.
Next up was some visual storyboarding to nail down the branding, completely unaware of the emotional damage future-me would suffer once Inter showed its true intentions. Innocent times. But alas, one must forge ahead. I used a template another ID shared (I love this community), focused on overall look and structure rather than every slide, and ran it by my imaginary stakeholders. They adored it. My fictional SMEs? Flawless. Zero problems. (Genuinely, these challenges are such a fun space to experiment.)
I didn’t focus a ton on visual design for this project, building mostly just within Storyline; instead, I used this opportunity to play with cue points, character states (I had way too much fun with Mr. Davis and all of his expressions), shapes-as-hotspots, flashcard interactions, and a little branching scenario. These monthly challenges have honestly been a gift - low stakes, very experimental, and perfect for trying new things without the pressure of a full client project. (If you want some behind-the-scenes peeks, my last two blog posts walk through how I handled shapes as hotspots and focus order.)
And yes… I included a quiz! I know, I know - quizzes aren’t always the most thrilling part of a course. But this one pulls in multiple question types to actually reinforce the critical skills, not just check a box that says “I finished.”
Experience this Project!
Check out the full project! I actually learned a lot about currency security features that I never knew before. One of my favorite perks of Instructional Design is that I get to build new skills and pick up random new knowledge along the way. Truly - what a cool job.
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