Let’s face it, it can be hard for an audience to get excited about attending a webinar that you will be putting on. We’ve all been to way too many of these things, especially with the whole “working from home thing”. What this means for you as a presenter is that you have an additional task above and beyond putting on a good presentation: you have to find ways use the importance of public speaking to transform your webinar into something that people will want to see, that people can’t tear their eyes away from and that people will be talking about long after it’s over. In short, you’ve got to find a way to add some of that Hollywood magic to your next webinar.
What Makes A Webinar Unforgettable?
When we get asked to make a webinar presentation, we may make the mistake of treating this just like giving a speech. That can be a mistake because there are a number of key differences between a webinar and a speech in front of a live audience. One of the biggest differences comes down to the PowerPoint slides that you choose to use during your webinar. If you were standing on a stage and giving a presentation, your audience might just glance at your slides before their attention came back to you. However, during a webinar, your PowerPoint slides are going to be front and center and so they had better be good.
When creating your webinar, instead of designing a dull, PowerPoint presentation, instead imagine yourself as the director, writer, producer and actor of your own made for Hollywood picture. The best films consists of many images strung together that are designed to tell a story. You can apply this approach to your next webinar. The question that you need to ask yourself is how can you add photos and other visuals to help tell your story and illustrate your point?
What Makes A Webinar Different From Giving A Speech
Since PowerPoint slides can play such a central role in any webinar that you give, one of the big questions regarding them that you are going to have to be able to answer is: “How many slides should I have in my presentation?” As speakers, what we need to realize is that when we are presenting in person, we really don’t need slides. However, when we are presenting online we need to understand that our audience can only see what’s on their computer screen.
As a webinar presenter, it is our responsibility to keep our audience visually occupied and interested with relevant photos and other graphics throughout our presentation. There are a number of different ways to make this happen. To get the best results you are much better off having 10 very simple and entertaining slides, as opposed to one complex slide loaded with boring text. Unlike with in-person presentations, you need to not be scared if you end up with 120 to 180 slides for a 60-minute virtual presentation. The unique environment of a webinar allows you to efficiently use this many slides as part of a single presentation.
You don’t have to just limit yourself to using PowerPoint slides to capture your audience’s attention. Another effective way to add some “Hollywood” sparkle to your next virtual presentation is to use the live webcam that is attached to your laptop. Turning your laptop camera on during your webinar will allow your audience to see the person who is presenting to them. The reason that you would want to do this is because this will bring you much closer to your audience while at the same time allowing you to connect via eye communication and facial expressions. When using your webcam, be sure to look directly into the camera, dress appropriately and create an ideal background for your audience to enjoy. As always, during your webinar don’t hesitate to tell personal stories and include vivid characters, colorful images and interesting dialogue.
What All Of This Means For You
The world that we are living in is constantly changing. Giving a speech used to involve traveling to a location, taking the stage, and delivering a speech. This has all changed now. If you are asked to give a speech, there is a good chance that you will be asked to give it virtually – you’ll be giving a webinar. If not done correctly, these types of speeches can come across as dry and boring. What you need is a way to use the benefits of public speaking to add some Hollywood magic to your next webinar.
In order to make your next webinar unforgettable, we need to understand that delivering a webinar is not like giving a speech. A big difference is the use of PowerPoint slides which are much more important when you are giving a webinar. You can add photos and other visuals to help make your points. When delivering a webinar, it’s ok to use a large number of PowerPoint slides. The next webinar that you give could benefit from your use of the webcam that is attached to your laptop. This allows your audience to see you.
As a speaker, your next webinar can be as good as you want to make it. If you take the time to think about your audience and understand what they’ll be seeing during your presentation, you can create a memorable event. Realize how Hollywood goes about making their blockbuster movies and work some of that magic into your next webinar. With just a little bit of effort, you can make your next webinar an unforgettable event for your audience.
– Dr. Jim Anderson
Blue Elephant Consulting –
Your Source For Real World Public Speaking Skills™
Question For You: Do you think that it is possible to use too many PowerPoint slides in a webinar?
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Note: What we talked about are advanced speaking skills. If you are just starting out I highly recommend joining Toastmasters in order to get the benefits of public speaking. Look for a Toastmasters club to join in your home town by visiting the web site www.Toastmasters.org. Toastmasters is dedicated to helping their members to understand the importance of public speaking by developing listening skills and getting presentation tips. Toastmasters is how I got started speaking and it can help you also!
What We’ll Be Talking About Next Time
Time is the bane of every speaker. We all know that we’ve been allocated a certain amount of time to deliver our next speech. What this means is that we have to create a speech that will fit into the amount of time that we’ve been given. The challenge that we face is that despite the importance of public speaking sometimes this time will change. Our time may be shortened before we take the stage or events may occur that limit the amount of time that we have. What is the best way for us to deal with the ever changing amount of time that we have to give a speech in?