How to make your eLearning sessions and Web Seminars a success?
There are many services that allow you to do e-learning or ePresentation remotely (also called Webinar, Webinar, Webinar, web seminar…).
The different solutions often have approximately equivalent functionalities:
Screen presentation
Voice via computer
Virtual “private” rooms
…
The most popular tools are:
Google Hangout: Google’s VOIP online conferencing service. We will especially regret the quality of the sound.
webex.com: the world leader, interesting for its packages for the use of a meeting room from 20 people to unlimited
gotomeeting.com: one of the most reliable leaders
Join.me: one of the low cost challengers of the web conference
Skype Enterprise: Microsoft’s meeting service, which remains valid especially for a presentation with a small number of speakers.
Zoom.us: a simple and practical newcomer with a fixed phone number to call
Amazon Chime: Amazon’s new web conferencing service (max 100 participants)
The prices have become affordable (or even free!) even for small structures (a few tens of euros per month for Zoom or Join.me), and with an internet connection everyone is able to use VOIP communication (the voice that goes through the PC).
Be careful, however, to check that the tool works in large companies, administrations, banks… which sometimes block services like Join.me. Zoom… for security reasons. In this case use your own 4G connection or ask your contacts for their tool.
These tools are very useful for remote training of sales representatives, demonstrations to customers, troubleshooting a PC remotely, recording mini training sessions on your site or intranet, for a “virtual Tour de France”…
Of course, e-learning is a complementary tool to physical demonstrations, as there is no substitute for a handshake and face-to-face discussion. For full details, read this post here.
Prerequisites: before implementing these solutions, it is necessary to check that the ADSL / WIFI connections are sufficiently stable and carefully study the cost of telephone communications (as long as voice over IP will not be more reliable, 100 participants who call a toll-free number at your charge for one hour each will always end up costing you dear!)
Equipment: you and your contacts must have an Internet connection, a fixed telephone close to the PC and a 1024 x 768 screen.
Of course, the absenteeism rate can be quite high for prospective web conferences, especially if the conference is free (sometimes 60% of those absent).
Tip ePresentation 1: Use a landline phone for your presentations.
Taking VoIP is a bad idea if you want to have good quality sound, the quality of the network is usually not sufficient to ensure good understanding, and not everyone has a speaker on their PC.
Always prefer sound via the phone, even if it means using 1 fixed phone.
Tip ePresentation 2: Define rules during presentations.
For the meeting to go well, it is necessary to inform the participants that they must not put themselves on a double call (otherwise it is Mozart’s turn for everyone), everyone must speak in turn, not to make a live meeting with more than 25 people at the same time, to ask questions via the chat if there are many people.
Nb: provide a person to read these questions so as not to be interrupted all the time….
Tip ePresentation 3: Send an email before the meeting to explain the login procedure.
One week before the meeting, send an email detailing step by step the connection procedure with all the illustrations, and asking them to test their browser now (and in case you are contacted).
Tip ePresentation 4: Do not panic if the presentation freezes on the screen or if users are disconnected.
ADSL connections are reliable, but systematically during presentations via the Internet, regular disconnections are to be expected, both for the moderator and the participants.
So don’t panic, keep talking on the phone until the network comes back.
In case the failure is longer, plan to send the PowerPoint presentation by email.
Tip ePresentation 5: Force yourself to speak more slowly and make slower mouse movements.
During an ePresentation, your listeners will only have the sound and not your person in front of them.
So you have to make an extra effort on your speech and insist on the arguments and speak more slowly.
Similarly, you have to move the mouse more slowly to present elements on the screen because there is a latency time between your screen and the participants’ screen.
In addition, only part of the movements are retransmitted.
Tip ePresentation 6: Record your presentations and then replay them.
Another interest of ePresentations is to be able to record the presentations and then broadcast them again either on your website or on Youtube / Vimeo (for those who missed the presentation, you evangelize its other customers…).
Tip ePresentation 7: Report back on the meeting within 48 hours.
The problem with ePresentations is misunderstandings and lack of attention (especially if the meeting lasts 1 hour).
Therefore, the content of the presentation must be confirmed in writing after the meeting.
Tip ePresentation 8: Check your equipment before the presentation.
Don’t forget to test your equipment 30 minutes before the meeting to face a possible technical problem: powerpoint that is not ready, activeX that is missing…
