Web Conferencing

IN TWO PLACES @ ONCE

HOW TO HAVE A MEETING OF THE MINDS IN VIRTUAL TIME WITH WEB CONFERENCING.

BY J. LOUISE LARSON

As a business tool, web conferencing has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception a decade ago. It can increase productivity by giving users access to multiple meetings and audiences in multiple locations—all at the same time. It can connect stakeholders in far-flung regions who can’t make an in-person meeting on short notice. The same technology that has put the internet in every office and home has made it possible to web conference economically, effectively and easily. “Web conferencing is very convenient, and as long as you have a message that doesn’t need to be given face to face, it’s ideal,” says Mike Archer, CEO of PresentPLUS, a web conferencing company based out of Golden, Colorado. With the help of an entire tool belt of customized front-end advantages, clients can have an interactive experience in which the web conferencing provider’s legwork fades into the background and the client’s message gets the focus.

Whether your company has its own IT and web conferencing department or you outsource, making the technology work for your company means being prepared and using certain tools.

Here are a few tips on how to plan the most efficient and rewarding web conference:

DECIDE ON A FORMAT. There are two different streams of web conferencing. Th e most common is one-to-many, where one presenter is delivering information to many attendees. The other option is collaborative web conferencing, which generally involves between 10 to 25 participants who are all presenters collaborating on the presentation. While a minority of web conferencing companies have their own soft ware, others lease from the industry’s “backbone” providers, offering clients a palette of software and service choices.

BE PREPARED. Make sure presenters are trained and feel comfortable; conducting a rehearsal is always a good idea. Preparation and training enable presenters to focus on their message and its delivery. Make connectivity checks prior to the show. Get the attendance up. Send out invites multiple times, and remind confirmed attendees that you’ve received their registration; include one last reminder the day prior to the conference. An on-demand teaser with a few slides can show prospective attendees that the presentation will be helpful. Many of these event management functions can be handed off to your service provider for a fee.

STAY ALERT. Use annotation tools: underline, circle and help focus people on the main points. Polling keeps the audience focused and allows for active participation; it can also provide helpful feedback. Incorporate Excel spreadsheets. Elicit interaction. Chat functions, such as instant messaging, allow participants to send questions to a chat board. The presenter can then observe the questions queuing up, read them out loud and provide answers, while at the same time keeping the presentation moving.

KEEP IT BRIEF. Unless you have a captive audience for job-essential technical training, limit your presentation to less than an hour. The longer it is, the more likely attention will start to drift. Corporate vanity sometimes prompts presenters to use more features than the information requires, all in an effort to make the company look good. The Keep It Simple principle is an important one. “Everybody’s busy—they’ve got other things to do. Make sure they retain the information: give the message, say goodbye and leave,” Archer says, noting that technology allows clients to see how many people are tuned in compared to how many people actually have audio turned on—and how many people are starting to drop off .

WATCH YOUR NUMBERS. The cost of web conferencing is generally a function of volume, determined by connection minutes per attendee. Other factors contributing to cost include the size of the show, the features and the amount of event management delegated to the web conferencing company. With the “seat-license” model for collaborative web conferencing, a company buys X number of seats, pays Y dollars for them and has unlimited use. Commoditized web conferencing works for the company that does many small collaborative conferences. For video conferencing, the price may triple, except for big companies with their own audio-visual department.

IT’S NOT OVER WHEN IT’S OVER. With an exit survey, attendees give feedback and can pose questions that may lead to contact later, a desirable feature during a sales presentation. To maximize productivity, take advantage of on-demand features; record the web conference so it can be posted to a website and viewed as a web cast.

KNOW WHEN YOU NEED TO BE THERE. In many cases, of course, there is no effective substitute for business travel. Knowing when to use the right tool for getting the message across is essential. In both business travel and web conferencing, building attendee buy-in is key. “Web conferencing is easy to attend, and easy to forget about,” Archer says. “If you fly to a seminar you’re more likely to go. And the more time people invest in preparation for a show, the more likely they are to attend.”