The following is Part 2 of "How to Overcome Stage Fright When Giving Presentations":
Web-based presentations (using the Internet to give presentations) are the quite the norm for a number of businesses globally...especially those with multiple locations spread across international borders.
(These types of presentations are now replacing face-to-face presentations, as they reduce travel time and associated expenses and allow for increased productivity of employees and other invitees, as a result.)
The same process for preparing for off-line presentations apply here too, so please review our previous post, "How to Overcome Stage Fright When Giving Presentations (Part 1)", for these tips.
Web-based presentations are usually done using web-conferencing software like Citrix's Goto Meeting or Microsoft's Net Meeting, where you'll make an online audio and video presentation to colleagues or supervisors, using these software.
You'll also need:
1) A headset (consisting of an earphone and mouthpiece)
2) A web cam, should you want your audience to see live pictures of you (as an inset) during the presentation.
The following tips are essential for ensuring that your presentation goes smoothly, thus reducing the chances of stage fright occurring.
Before the presentation:
1) Get familiar with your web conferencing software at least two (2) weeks prior to using it.
a) Read the help files and "Quick Start" guides to immediately get comfortable.
b) Test out the software with colleagues who are already familiar with it and ask for their help in getting you started quickly.
(Usually the Training or Information Systems Departments in your organization would have already been using or testing this software, so please contact them for help.)
This reduces nervousness on the day, prior to and of, the presentation.
c) Remember to run through the presentation at least three(3) days prior to it, to ensure that everything is synchronized and works well. Also ensure that your audio and video settings for your headset and web cam, respectively, are working properly, so that you can be easily seen and are very audible.
2) Get familiar with the moderator features and features that facilitate private conferencing (you may want a private conference with members of your team and not the rest of the audience.)
Since you will be conducting the presentation, you are by default, it's moderator. You may want to send out the rules of how the presentation will be conducted, via email (preferably in the presentation invitation e-mail), prior to it taking place, so that everyone will know how they should behave during the presentation.
For e.g.:
a) If they're to listen to the entire presentation and then ask questions at the end, please let your audience (invitees) know this.
b) If the web-conferencing session will be recorded, please let your audience know this too.
3) You may have to "sell" your presentation to some key invitees, whose attendance is crucial, but whose time is limited. Use your invitation e-mail to convince attendees why they should attend your presentation and give a very brief presentation outline. This helps invitees to assess whether or not your presentation is worth their time and effort.
4) Your web-conferencing software should also be able to automatically (via your pressing one or two buttons) notify presentation invitees of the date and time of presentation and send them reminders up to the day of the presentation.
a) It should also allow you to search for invitees' other free days, should the original date be inconvenient for key invitees.
This is a useful productivity enhancement tool which saves you time and emotional strain of having to send notices to each invitee, separately.
b) The software should also notify you of invitees who have not opened their invitation e-mail or who have not confirmed their attendance, so that you can follow-up with them via phone.
5) If giving a presentation where a real-time video caption of your face will be seen, buy a wearable web cam, so that when you move, it will move with you. This gives you more flexibility to move about, slightly, during the presentation.
6) Start your web-presentation on time. You don't want to gain a reputation of being late...it will ruin your chances of getting attendees for your other presentations.
At the start of the presentation:
1) If ten (10) or less people have been connected, let everyone introduce themselves.
2) Give an introduction to the presentation, thank your audience for attending and start the presentation.
During the presentation:
1) Acknowledge when someone new joins conference to make them feel welcome, but don't review what has happened before...it detracts from the flow of the presentation...please inform them that they'll get the recorded version of the presentation when it's done.
[This should not be done for presentations with larger audiences (say over 40 persons), as it's too time consuming. (For these presentations, schedule short breaks after 15 minutes, 30 minutes,etc. into the presentation when you can generally welcome newcomers to the presentation.)]
2) Go through the presentation and have a "Question and Answer" period for at least 15 minutes at the end, so that the audience can get further clarification re what was said.
3) Let the audience know when the presentation has ended and ensure that you're the last person disconnected from the conference call.
Immediately after the presentation:
1) Ensure that you send out any information that was requested, promptly.
2) Thank your audience for attending and send the recorded presentation and presentation slides to each invitee.
Following these tips will not only ensure you a successful web-presentation, but will also reduce stage fright when doing so.
Please also see my recommendations, below, for web-conferencing software that make web-presentations easy.
Web-conferencing software that I would recommend:
For Micro and Small Businesses:
1) Skype for Business
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Please see review (for Skype, not Skype for Business), here!
Advantages:
a) It's dirt cheap and very affordable for micro and small businesses.
b) Skype facilitates video and audio conferencing calls over the web. These calls are free when made among Skype users. All each invitee has to do is register with Skype and download the latest software version unto their computer.
c) Skype also has a "Conferenceware 2.0" application add-on (called an Extra), provided by Tele-efficiency Inc. which, in addition to web-conferencing, also facilitates white-boarding (where more than one person can work on the same document, at the same time.)
Disadvantage:
a)This software can only facilitate up to 25 concurrent (simultaneous) users.
2) SightSpeed 6.0,
Please see review, here!
Advantages:
a) Reasonably priced and allows for video conferencing.
b) You can record the videos and send to people on your contact list or put these videos on your website or
or MySpace Blog.
c) You can record audio and video portions of the presentation, separately or together.
d) Their website is very user-friendly and has videos that show you how to set up your web cam, microphone and how to get started with their video conferencing features.
Disadvantages:
a) You can only video conference up to 4 people simultaneously.
b) You can't do white-boarding (explained above).
For Medium-sized to Large businesses:
1) Netbriefings: Please see review here!
2) WebEx: Please see review here!
Other web/video-conferencing reviews (for businesses of all sizes), from reputable companies include:
1) CNET reviews (done in 2005) on web-conferencing software.
2) PC Magazine's review (done in 2007) on video-conferencing software.
Please let me know how helpful these tips were to you, by pressing the "Comment" link beneath this post and leaving a short comment.
Thanks in advance :).
I'd like to thank Corin (G.I. Folk) for the use of his Flickr inset photo above, entitled, "Day 76 - Stage Fright".
Gillian
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