Tag: webinars

Business Presentation Tips for Hosting a Webinar Event

online presentations

presentation tips

Rick Enrico

SlideGenius

webinars

Jul 16, 2015

Innovations in internet technology have made day-to-day business communication fast and efficient. Besides email and other networking tools, there’s also another medium that can expand any business’ market and sales: webinars.
[sg-blog-modules module=one]
A webinar is an online seminar that allows a speaker to share PowerPoint presentations, videos, and other multimedia content with an audience in real-time, anywhere they are. If you’re looking to build deeper connections with customers and prospects, hosting this live event is good for you.

We’ve discussed in our previous post some tips on creating a webinar PowerPoint presentation. Now, we’ll be listing specific tips for enhancing your public speaking skills when presenting to a webinar audience:

Make It Personal

Speaking to a computer screen won’t engage your virtual audience. Talk through the slides to present and persuade people as if they were there in person.

Don’t let your monitor hinder you from successfully delivering your webinar. Instead, make your talk personal as if doing a one-on-one conversation with a close friend or colleague.

Be Creative

Virtual audiences are more likely to wander off and multi-task while listening to your online conference. No matter how good your speaking skills are, they can still get bored with your discussion.

Keep them engaged by incorporating creative visuals in your deck. Use a combination of interactive images, questions, and short video clips to catch their focus and heighten their interest in your business presentation.

Use Effective Pauses

Hosting a webinar is much like public speaking – it requires appropriate pauses and pacing.

Effective, short pauses allow you to steadily control the discussion’s flow. You can use noticeable silences to give your listeners a chance to think about what you’ve just said.

Choose a healthy pace so you don’t look like you’re rushing through your entire presentation.

Avoid Filler Words

Most speakers use filler words “uh,” “um,” and “you know” to make everything they say one long sentence.This presentation habit is also a big taboo when delivering a webinar.

Keep these words to a minimum to not alienate your audience from you and your message. This can cause a big dent in your credibility, and should definitely be avoided.

Conclusion

Webinars offer the perfect platform for attracting new leads and nurturing existing client relationships to a more responsive level.

Follow these presentation tips to facilitate effective learning and engagement across varied online audiences, and give your business a higher profile.

Need assistance on your webinar PowerPoint presentation? SlideGenius is here to help, whether on planning, content creation, or designing!

 
[sg-blog-modules module=two]

References

“The art of the webinar… how to speak to an audience that you can’t see.” Ginger Public Speaking. n.d. Accessed May 22, 2015.
“Webinar PowerPoint Tips: Creating a Presentation.” SlideGenius, Inc. June 29, 2014. Accessed May 22, 2015.

Your 5-Step Plan to Prepare for an Online Meeting

online meeting

online presentations

webinars

Sep 17, 2014

What do you do when you have to plan projects with collaborators from all over the country? Thankfully, you won’t have to hop in and out of planes to meet in person.

All you have to do is set up an online meeting. With today’s technology, you can easily set up a platform where you and your contacts can communicate on the same page regardless of geography and time differences.

[sg-blog-modules module=three]

Here’s a 5-step plan to help you prepare:

Find the perfect platform for your meeting.

There’s more to online meetings than just asking people to jump in on a Skype call. The first step is to choose the perfect platform to conduct your online meeting. There are plenty of websites that offer software optimized for a hassle-free way to connect with a large group. You can go to sites like ON24, AnyMeeting, join.me, and GoToMeeting.

Explore the merits of each program before making a decision. You can also ask your contacts for their input. A few of them might already have an online meeting software installed.

Send out invitations right away.

Send out invitations as soon as possible, even if the date you’re eyeing is still weeks away. This will give everyone enough time to sort out their schedules.

In your invitation, include details about the online meeting platform you chose to use. This will allow first-time users the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the program.

Let everyone know the agenda before the scheduled date.

Plenty of factors can impede the success of online meetings, such as slow Internet connection or one of you may be experiencing problems with the software you all agreed to use.

To minimize distractions, make sure everyone is on the same page about what your discussion will be about. As the person leading the meeting, it’s your responsibility to send out the agenda a week before the scheduled date.

Plan how you’ll use the time you have.

As with the nature of business, it’s possible that the people in your group only somehow managed to squeeze in your presentation into their schedules. Respect their time by strictly following the schedule you agreed on.

If you can, try to wrap up your presentation 20 minutes before the time limit. This will give you and your collaborators enough time to have a meaningful conversation about the points you raised.

Create PowerPoint slides that are simple and concise.

Simple PowerPoint slides are important to any presentations. But for online meetings, they are practically a requirement. There is a strong possibility that some of your contacts might not have a steady connection.

PowerPoint files that are too large can easily weigh down Internet speed, so make sure you include only the most important points. Visuals are vital but try to compress your images before sharing your slides. If you want to incorporate a video, it’s best if you could just provide a link. Avoid any animations and slide transitions.

—

Follow these pointers to create ideal webinar PowerPoint slides, or contact our PowerPoint design experts.

You can also click here to learn more about using PowerPoint for online meetings.

These days, the boardroom isn’t the only venue for a meeting. With these tips, you can prepare an online meeting that will allow you and your collaborators to come up with fresh ideas. Don’t let distance stifle the flow of creativity and productivity.

[sg-blog-modules module=two]

Featured Image: William Hook via Flickr

Webinar PowerPoint Tips: Creating a Presentation that Speaks through the Screen

webinar powerpoint

webinars

Jun 30, 2014

In today’s world, distance is no longer an issue when it comes to effective communication. With web conferences or webinars, you no longer have to hop on a plane to sit in meetings with those in another time zone.

But there’s more to webinars than just talking in front of a webcam, especially if you want to share crucial information or leave a lasting impression. It’s important that you enhance your audience’s experience with a webinar PowerPoint deck.

When you’re presenting in front a live audience, you’re physically available to command their attention. Your PowerPoint slides serve a secondary purpose. However, when you’re presenting online, your webinar PowerPoint deck is the main attraction.

With that in mind, consider these specific tips to make sure that your webinar PowerPoint speaks through the computer screen.

Sequence: What your webinar PowerPoint should contain

It’s important that your webinar PowerPoint follows a structure with a logical flow. Begin with a quick introduction, delve in the main body of your topic, and end with a concise conclusion.

  • Introduction – Include slides introducing yourself and other presenters in the webinar. Include a picture and relevant credentials so your audience can feel like they’re not just talking to a computer screen. It’s also useful if you can include a slide that explains the logistics of your webinar.
  • Body – The body of your webinar PowerPoint deck will depend on the topic you’re discussing. Whatever it is, keep your discussion clear but brief. Stick to discussing only one point at a time. There are plenty of ways to arrange the body of your webinar PowerPoint, just make sure that each point is structured into main segments.
  • Conclusion – The conclusion of your webinar PowerPoint should be short and sweet. Don’t drag it out by repeating everything you said before. Instead, create a slide that summarizes your main points. To encourage your audience to participate in a discussion, include an action plan or a call-to-action question.

Design: What your webinar PowerPoint should look like

Your webinar PowerPoint should be efficiently designed for online sharing. Lags on your presentation look unprofessional and can be frustrating for your audience.

Opt for a simpler, sleeker design. As always, avoid using too much text and bullet points. Most importantly, avoid using huge picture files, videos, and animations which might cause problems for connectivity. This doesn’t mean you should go completely without graphics. Just make sure the file sizes aren’t too large or are compressed before sharing. 

Consider the following when designing your webinar PowerPoint deck:

  • When explaining something that requires several steps, consider making use of “build” slides. This is a type of animation that allows you to reveal a slide bit by bit as you talk.
  • Make use of PowerPoint’s SmartArt graphics to illustrate key points without having to use complicated images.
  • For your the background of your slides, opt for a solid color or gradient effect. Lower quality images might not be big enough to fill the entire background. And if you resize them, your background will look distorted and pixelated.

 

Reference

“Reduce the File Size of a Picture.” Office Support. Accessed June 30, 2014.

 

Featured Image: Ministerio TIC Colombia via Flickr