Are brokers' training courses useful?
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All brokers now offer trading training in the form of webinars, seminars, educational videos, online courses, trading guides and ebooks. Are these training courses really useful for novice traders?
Broker training courses enable individuals to acquire the basics of how the various financial products and the trading platform work. This allows them to master the basic terms used in trading (leverage, pips, lots, margins, money management, etc.) and to know their meaning. This is the first step in a trader’s training.
If you are a new trader, do not neglect the educational content provided by your broker. All free content is good to take. If you have misunderstood a term or an element, the broker is there to answer your questions. The support team is normally qualified to provide you with information on the basics of trading.
All regulated brokers are required to provide learning content for their clients. This is required by the MIFID directive. As a result, all brokers have a more or less complete training section. Smaller brokers generally only offer simple trading manuals while larger brokers offer a very complete range of learning tools.
If all brokers try to develop their training section, it is not for the pleasure of helping individuals but rather to create an image of reliability. The more trading training a broker offers (regardless of the tool used), the more positive his image is to individuals. The individual has the impression of being supported by a professional during his trading apprenticeship. The biggest brokers in the sector are very reactive with support so as to answer all the questions you may have as quickly as possible.
Training is also a good way for the broker to advertise himself. A broker cannot constantly advertise his trading conditions, he must find other solutions to promote himself and training is an excellent tool. The more educational content he puts online (especially with webinars and seminars), the more he can communicate on specialized sites, send emails, etc. The broker's objective is to get as many people to talk about him as possible.
For this reason, brokers regularly organize events to train individuals in trading. However, the fact that the objective is economic does not prevent you from enjoying free educational content. Everything is worth taking for good trading training.
Broker trading training is useful but it will not make you a good trader (see how to become a good trader). These training courses are just there to teach you the basics. Most educational content is simply the definition of financial terms. As for the support, it is there to answer your questions about the trading platform’s functions, trading tools and various products. But don't count on your broker to teach you to trade or to lead you to successful trading. For that, you can only rely on yourself. It is experience that enables you to be a winner and that takes several years to achieve results. No trader today can make sustainable profits without a long training phase.
However, you can consult trading forums and read fact sheets on specialized trading sites to get some practical tips that are a shortcut to experience.
Some brokers offer more advanced trading training. For example, they will cover a specific topic in a webinar and explore it further. These videos are undoubtedly formative but they are also a trap for the individual in the sense that they give the illusion of ease.
Let's say a broker makes a training video on divergences. He explains the different types of divergences to you by showing you different examples. The problem is that he doesn't go on to show you the cases where it doesn't work, the elements that validate a divergence, where to place your stop loss, etc. The result is that at the end of the video, you will use this tool but will quickly be confronted with the harsh reality of trading, and lose.
As with everything, with trading, there is a huge difference between theory and practice. From a practical viewpoint, brokers' training courses do not address it. There is no feedback from a real trader. In the end, this often puts at risk individuals who think they have mastered the tool, but that is an illusion.
It should not be forgotten that a broker is a for-profit company. Its purpose is to get you to trade for maximum profit by earning commissions on each transaction. The most serious brokers (those directly regulated by the AMF or the FCA, not by the MIFID) do not want you to lose. Indeed, the longer you last, the more commissions they earn. However, they do not prevent you from taking significant risks.
For a broker, the most profitable traders are scalpers who take numerous positions per day and especially those who use a significant degree of leverage on each position. The more leverage you use, the more commissions you generate. It is better to have a trader who razes his account in one month (having used high leverage), than a prudent trader who uses little or no leverage but does not lose.
It always makes me smile when brokers warn of the risks of trading. As I told you earlier, they have an obligation to do so. For example, they tell you that misusing leverage involves risks, but they provide traders with leverage of more than 1:100. They never tell you not to risk more than 1% of your portfolio per position, or to use the minimum position size when you start. They allow you to deposit too small an amount into your account (which makes it impossible to apply good money management), etc. In short, they warn you about the risks but they push you to take them.
The training courses offered by brokers are useful for individuals but they are only there to teach you the basics of trading. Don't rely on your broker to make you a good trader. His goal is still to get you to trade, don't forget that! Always take a critical look at all the content you read.
A necessary learning tool for individuals
Broker training courses enable individuals to acquire the basics of how the various financial products and the trading platform work. This allows them to master the basic terms used in trading (leverage, pips, lots, margins, money management, etc.) and to know their meaning. This is the first step in a trader’s training.
If you are a new trader, do not neglect the educational content provided by your broker. All free content is good to take. If you have misunderstood a term or an element, the broker is there to answer your questions. The support team is normally qualified to provide you with information on the basics of trading.
All regulated brokers are required to provide learning content for their clients. This is required by the MIFID directive. As a result, all brokers have a more or less complete training section. Smaller brokers generally only offer simple trading manuals while larger brokers offer a very complete range of learning tools.
Training: a powerful marketing tool
If all brokers try to develop their training section, it is not for the pleasure of helping individuals but rather to create an image of reliability. The more trading training a broker offers (regardless of the tool used), the more positive his image is to individuals. The individual has the impression of being supported by a professional during his trading apprenticeship. The biggest brokers in the sector are very reactive with support so as to answer all the questions you may have as quickly as possible.
Training is also a good way for the broker to advertise himself. A broker cannot constantly advertise his trading conditions, he must find other solutions to promote himself and training is an excellent tool. The more educational content he puts online (especially with webinars and seminars), the more he can communicate on specialized sites, send emails, etc. The broker's objective is to get as many people to talk about him as possible.
For this reason, brokers regularly organize events to train individuals in trading. However, the fact that the objective is economic does not prevent you from enjoying free educational content. Everything is worth taking for good trading training.
The limits of these trading training courses
Broker trading training is useful but it will not make you a good trader (see how to become a good trader). These training courses are just there to teach you the basics. Most educational content is simply the definition of financial terms. As for the support, it is there to answer your questions about the trading platform’s functions, trading tools and various products. But don't count on your broker to teach you to trade or to lead you to successful trading. For that, you can only rely on yourself. It is experience that enables you to be a winner and that takes several years to achieve results. No trader today can make sustainable profits without a long training phase.
However, you can consult trading forums and read fact sheets on specialized trading sites to get some practical tips that are a shortcut to experience.
The illusion of ease
Some brokers offer more advanced trading training. For example, they will cover a specific topic in a webinar and explore it further. These videos are undoubtedly formative but they are also a trap for the individual in the sense that they give the illusion of ease.
Let's say a broker makes a training video on divergences. He explains the different types of divergences to you by showing you different examples. The problem is that he doesn't go on to show you the cases where it doesn't work, the elements that validate a divergence, where to place your stop loss, etc. The result is that at the end of the video, you will use this tool but will quickly be confronted with the harsh reality of trading, and lose.
As with everything, with trading, there is a huge difference between theory and practice. From a practical viewpoint, brokers' training courses do not address it. There is no feedback from a real trader. In the end, this often puts at risk individuals who think they have mastered the tool, but that is an illusion.
Unavoidable conflict of interest
It should not be forgotten that a broker is a for-profit company. Its purpose is to get you to trade for maximum profit by earning commissions on each transaction. The most serious brokers (those directly regulated by the AMF or the FCA, not by the MIFID) do not want you to lose. Indeed, the longer you last, the more commissions they earn. However, they do not prevent you from taking significant risks.
For a broker, the most profitable traders are scalpers who take numerous positions per day and especially those who use a significant degree of leverage on each position. The more leverage you use, the more commissions you generate. It is better to have a trader who razes his account in one month (having used high leverage), than a prudent trader who uses little or no leverage but does not lose.
It always makes me smile when brokers warn of the risks of trading. As I told you earlier, they have an obligation to do so. For example, they tell you that misusing leverage involves risks, but they provide traders with leverage of more than 1:100. They never tell you not to risk more than 1% of your portfolio per position, or to use the minimum position size when you start. They allow you to deposit too small an amount into your account (which makes it impossible to apply good money management), etc. In short, they warn you about the risks but they push you to take them.
Conclusion
The training courses offered by brokers are useful for individuals but they are only there to teach you the basics of trading. Don't rely on your broker to make you a good trader. His goal is still to get you to trade, don't forget that! Always take a critical look at all the content you read.
