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How do I to host an interactive webinar
What is it?
A webinar is an online seminar or workshop. Webinars typically have both an audio component and a visual component. The audio component may be heard through the participant's computer speakers (in which case participants can listen, but not speak) or via normal teleconference.
The visual component can be presented using one of any number of webinar services. These services allow presenters to webcast slideshows, websites and other content live from their own computers onto the computers of participants. Many webinar services provide other features, such as polls, whiteboards, chat panels, and even a video feed of the presenter.
How is it connected to health promotion?
Webinars, while not taking the place of face-to-face events, provide an important addition to other services. As participants and presenters do not need to travel, webinars save time and money. They can be a good professional development tool for participants in remote areas. Webinars increase inclusion as they allow participants to share ideas and information over a much larger geographical area and with a much wider cross-section of people than face-to-face events.
Tips for hosting a webinar
Ready
As soon as people register, send them both the webinar service information and the teleconference numbers. Encourage them to test out the webinar service in advance (but don't expect that they will actually do this!).
The day before the webinar, send a backup copy of any PowerPoint decks or other supporting materials to participants, along with the webinar access information and teleconference numbers again.
At least one hour before the webinar, pre-load your presentation(s) and any other supporting materials including any websites you plan to visit during the webinar.
Set…
Take a few quiet minutes to have your lunch, use the bathroom, and get yourself a glass of water -- hosting a webinar can be dry work!
Open the webinar half an hour or so before the scheduled start time to let people get in and get themselves settled. Most will join at the last minute, but it reduces technical support issues to allow people to join earlier. Open the teleconference fifteen minutes before the start time, for similar reasons.
Have a second person present who is free to help with technical issues, answer questions that arise, and so on. This prevents technical issues from slowing down the webinar.
Go!
At the start of the webinar, after you've welcomed the participants, run through any housekeeping items. Here are a few you might consider:
 Ask people not to put the teleconference on hold, as doing so often subjects the entire teleconference to hold music. If they need to take another call, ask them to hang up and call back in.
The same is true if participants have a bad phone line or get disconnected from the webinar: ask them to call in again and/or reconnect to the webinar.
Ask participants to mute their phone lines, either using the mute button on their phone or by using the mute feature on the teleconference (usually #6).
Announce when there will be time for questions (Throughout the webinar? At specific points? Only at the end?)
Point out salient features of the webinar software -- if there's a chat or question panel, if there's a way to increase the text size, if there is a "mood" indicator they can use to say "slow down" or "speed up," and so on.
Then you can begin your presentation!
Hosting a webinar can be disconcerting at first. Because you aren't able to see your participants, it can feel like you are talking only to yourself! If youmake sure that people know when they will be able to ask questions, silence is normal.
Where can you go for more information?
Three major webinar services:
Microsoft LiveMeeting, offered by Bell)
Momentum
Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro
and others:
Bridgit
DimDim
Many more, and a comparison chart, can be found on Wikipedia.
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