Are you a presenter? Do you teach classes? Get ready to think about how your presentation will work as a live webcast or podcast. While your primary focus will be the audience in the room with you, we need to start thinking about our virtual audiences too. Podcasts and webcasts further the reach of our presentations, eliminating the barriers of distance and travel expenses.
I have presented via live webcast more times than I can count. I’m used to thinking about the “folks out there†watching from the comfort of their work space.
Speaker Guidelines for a Quality Webcast:
- Wardrobe – Avoid wearing white shirts or striped shirts with white, because they reflect light and makes for washed out videos.
- Microphone – Wear lapel microphone for good audio.
- Repeat Questions – Repeat audience questions for the benefit of the webcast.
- Stay on Camera – Try not to roam off camera (check with the camera operator for guidance).
- Say URLs – If you browse to web pages during your presentation, say the URL out loud.
- Resolution/Font Size – Develop your visual presentation with your monitor set to a resolution of 640 by 480. Font should be 20 point or better for clarity on live feeds.
- Downloadable Visual Presentations – If you have prepared visuals it would be helpful to provide them before the event so they can be available for downloading by your virtual audience.
- Audience Questions via Instant Messaging – Consider a way for your virtual audience to ask questions during the presentation via instant message.
To date, I’ve only had my presentation podcast once…but I’m sensing a trend and want to start thinking about how to improve the quality of a podcast. So here are my first ideas on this topic:
Speaker Guidelines for a Quality Podcast:
- Microphone – Wear lapel microphone for quality audio.
- Point & Describe – Do you often point at something on the screen and say “this†during your presentation? For your audio only audience, “this†is completely out of context. Whenever you point, remember to briefly describe what you are pointing to.
- Repeat Questions – Repeat audience questions for the benefit of the podcast.
- Say URLs – If you browse to web pages during your presentation, say the URL out loud.
- Downloadable Visual Presentation – If you have prepared visuals it would be helpful to provide them before the event so they can be available for downloading by your virtual audience.
- Audience Questions via Instant Messaging – Consider a way for your virtual audience to ask questions during the presentation via instant message.
Webcast/Podcast Advocate – assign someone in your live audience to serve as the webcast/podcast advocate. Their mission is to make sure you (the presenter) follow the guidelines for quality webcasts/podcasts. The advocate might even want to have a reminder card in their hands that says:
- Point & Describe
- Repeat Questions
- Say URLs
If you are podcasting, you could ask your “advocate” to close their eyes while they listen to your live presentation. For fun, you could even make a bet with your webcast/podcast advocate. Perhaps a beverage of their choice for each time they catch you out of compliance with the quality webcast/podcast guidelines!
Now I’m off to download another podcast from Web Essentials 05. Mmmmm, who to listen to next? So many delicious choices. Who knew that web standards would get as much air time on my ipod as music?
Now, I need your help. What ideas do you have for improving the quality of webcasts and podcasts.