Online Meeting and Webinar Tips
Tips for a successful webinar experience!
VOIP Audio Best Practices
Attendees:
1. Register well in advance, and sign-in at least ten minutes before the webinar begins.
2. Add the webinar to your calendar and include the login link that was sent to you when you registered.
3. Use a land line telephone for audio access when possible. (Will incur your normal long-distance carrier rates.)
4. Do not connect via speaker phone, mobile phone, or voip when avoidable if you will be speaking.
5. If using the free voip audio connection option through your computer, use a headset when possible.
6. If connecting to audio via a computer microphone and speakers or speaker phone keep your microphone muted except when speaking, and turn down the volume of your speakers before you unmute your microphone to speak.
7. Webinars can include as many as 1,000 attendees, so everybody except registered presenters are muted by default. To contact an organizer or presenter submit a question or use the chat box in the webinar control panel.
Presenters/Board Members:
1. Provide copies of all presentations and other meeting materials to the webinar organizer at least 24 hours in advance of the webinar.
2. Download and practice with the webinar software at least 48 hours before the webinar begins.
3. Assure that for the duration of the webinar you are in a location with minimal background noise, a reliable broadband internet connection, and a land line phone.
4. Always use a land line phone for your audio connection when possible for better audio quality and greater reliability.
5. Login to the webinar at your presentation location and load your presentation materials on your screen at least 20 minutes before the start of the webinar.
6. Keep your phone or computer microphone muted at all times except when you are presenting.
7. During the webinar, pay close attention to the chat box to view messages from other presenters or organizers. They might be trying to alert you regarding an audio problem.
8. DO NOT GATHER IN THE SAME ROOM. People in close proximity tend to come together for office meetings. This is NOT recommended for webinars. Each person should be on their own land line and own computer for the webinar. Gathering people together around a speaker phone can cause numerous audio problems. But it will work if no other option is available as long as there is not excessive background noise and the phone remains muted except when presenting.
9. Optimize your screen settings for the audience. Turn off any tool bars or navigation menus that are not needed. Turn off Skype, SMS, email, calendars and any other program that uses screen pop-up alerts.
10. Allow for lag time when transitioning between slides. There might be a delay of a few seconds between the time the presenter changes a slide and the time that the audience sees the new slide.
Organizers/Staff:
In addition to tips for presenters,
1. When possible arrange for a back-up person to login as a redundant organizer on stand-by with copies of all presentations open, minimized, and ready to display on a moment's notice. This organizer takes over if the primary organizer's internet connection fails.
2. Never display a blank screen, by default display the meeting agenda to the attendees if no other presentation materials are being displayed.
3. Assure that you have copies of all presentation materials loaded, opened, and minimized at least 30 minutes before the start of the webinar.
4. Arrange to have a second person assist during the webinar by monitoring and responding to attendee communications in the chat box or by email, and to help members connect (by directing them to this web page!).
5. Practice the webinar in advance with presenters, determine order, discuss protocol, review tips for presenters, and answer any questions.
6. Remember to close the webinar software when the webinar ends to avoid unintended superfluous webcasting.
If you have difficulty using the software, or for additional user support, visit the Citrix website or contact Citrix technical support for the product you are using by clicking the appropriate User Help link.
GoToMeeting User Help
GoToWebinar User Help
