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.
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.
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“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.
