Technology Options
Why Augment a Speech With Technology?
Having been in the speaking industry for the last 12 years, I’ve noticed audiences are getting more difficult to impress. Many people have literally seen hundreds of speakers and they yearn not only for fresh content, but also fresh methods of delivery. The attention span of Gen Y only makes this worse and they’re now entering the work force. These factors led me to experiment and augment my programs with various technology tools, that allow me to create a new type of conversation and relationship with the audience. In order to keep them engaged, I let them converse with me electronically while I speak. I provide simple ways for them to connect with me and to receive the materials I cover in the talk. This document provides descriptions and instructions for each of the presentation augmenting tools I use. They can be mixed and matched to create just the right feel for your audience, and you will be pleased with the positive comments you receive just for trying something new!
Wifitti – Text based Q&A to the Big Screen
DESCRIPTION – Wifitti.com is a free Web-based service I use to allow the audience to text message questions and comments right to the stage. I start off the presentation by teaching them the simple instructions, so the audience feels comfortable sending texts. Everything they send is anonymous and I have the ability to filter bad language, so only reasonable questions and comments get through. Providing this kind of capability to the audience creates a whole new feel to a presentation, because the audience gets to participate at a much higher level. What I love about Wifitti is that I can typically answer 20 to 25 questions per talk, instead of 3 to 5 at the end of the presentation. Many of the meeting planners who have worked with me to use this tool, have gone on to use it with other speakers as a way to spice up other programs.
INSTRUCTIONS – Because this is a Web-based tool, an additional laptop with an Internet connection is required. A decision needs to be made as to how it will be projected onto the big screen. There are multiple options, including dedicating a specific screen to display Wifitti or providing a switching capability, so the presentation slides can be swapped for the Wifitti screen when I call for it. In this case, I need a confidence monitor, so I can see the questions coming in while I speak.
HELPFUL HINTS – One thing that has to be considered is the impact on the timing of the presentation. The talk must be at least an hour long and there must be some flexibility with the end time, because we can’t predict how many questions will come in. The other consideration is the size of the audience. The perfect size is 150 to 1000 people. Any more than that, I normally get too many questions; any less, there are not enough questions and it feels funny because the audience is small enough to just ask me directly.
Skype Video Integration*
DESCRIPTION – The Internet, and tools like Skype, provide simple and free methods, which allow me to bring in an expert in a field to talk to the audience for five minutes on a specific point. The neat thing about this is it can be done live, so the expert is speaking to the group over the wire in the middle of my presentation. This breaks up the pattern of simply having one person talking from stage for a length of time. I’ve learned how to imbed this live video, so it’s low risk and quick to initiate. Even Oprah is Skypeing people into her show now!
INSTRUCTIONS – The only important thing we need to do this is a good Internet connection and the time to test it before the presentation. Other than that, I will always have the visiting expert ready to go at the appointed time
HELPFUL HINTS – This is a great addition to any talk over 90 minutes because that’s about the normal attention span for people these days. This is also a great option for audiences that have seen tons of presentations and are looking for anything different. If a well-known expert can be arranged to do the short segment, it becomes really impressive from the standpoint of name recognition.
Virtual World Integration or Delivery*
DESCRIPTION – Virtual worlds are going to be a powerful method for people to communicate, be entertained, and for businesses to sell products. Second Life got hot for a while and the next wave coming now is virtual meeting rooms. I own property in Second Life and can deliver either part, or all of a presentation through this medium. One interesting opening for a talk is to have me do the first 10 minutes as an avatar on screen, then walk on stage and do the rest live. People are amazed at what is possible in a virtual world these days. I can tour a virtual world to show any interesting business model that might fit for a specific audience, too.
INSTRUCTIONS – This all must be done live over the Internet, so we need a fast computer and stable Internet connection. The computer must have the Second Life client software loaded on it in advance, and I need to have time to arrange the tour I would take through the virtual world. This is customized for each client based on time and the industry. See the pictures below to give you an idea of what the virtual facility looks like that I have built for delivering this kind of presentation.
HELPFUL HINTS – This can be a flashy opening, or a full talk. If it is used as a full talk, the time dedicated should not be more than 45 minutes. One possible use for this technology is as a change of pace for an event with lots of heavy content over a few days.
Creating an Online Stream of Communication with Almost.at
DESCRIPTION – Social Technologies now allow participants to keep a running conversation about an event going through Tweets, photos, and video uploads. The Website www.almost.at provides a meeting planner free capability to create an online location and gather all of this content into one place, so people outside the event have a way to “attend” without actually being there. In reality, this allows people to follow along and participate in conversations coming from the event. This is a really cool leading edge method for increasing the value of an event for the participating companies.
INSTRUCTIONS – In order to use this tool, we must first go set up an event at the almost.at website. Then we have to set up the proper hashtag indexes and publish these to the attendees, so they can tag their content in the ways needed to automatically route to the almost.at event shell.
HELPFUL HINTS – It is critical to get the event set up early and have people post content to it before the event. This “salts” the event with content, so it looks alive and causes people to be more interested in adding their own content. Meeting planners can designate a photographer and have them upload photos and video, too, so the site can have visuals.
Personal Meetings with the Speaker Through Online Appointments*
DESCRIPTION – For many attendees, the chance to spend some individual time with a speaker can be worth the price of the entire event. In order to use this capability, I need to be booked for a morning presentation and have a place to meet with people who make appointments through the afternoon. The idea here is that your attendees are told in advance they can go to a specific weblink from your site, in order to lock in an appointment with me. These are limited, of course, and normally focused on a specific topic I’ll be covering. For example, when I speak on Social Technologies, people can meet with me to get advice on building strategies specific to their business.
INSTRUCTIONS – We normally make these appointments 30 minutes, with a few breaks in between at times to allow for rest, and meetings that might run long. A room needs to be provided to meet with people and an agreement needs to be made in advance as to how many appointment slots will be offered. This often depends on how large the audience is.
HELPFUL HINTS – This is an extremely high value option for audience members, and it’s important to think through how things will be handled, if the appointments run out fast or there is a line of people who really want the opportunity. It’s very important to publicize this add-on with a specific description of what I will be talking about and what help I can provide to participants, so they know exactly what help is available to them.
Klososky iPhone Application
DESCRIPTION – I have built an iPhone application that allows participants to text message me while I speak. The application also provides an easy method for the audience to download the digital materials I show at the event. The nice thing about this option is, it helps the audience learn more about me, and better connect with me during and after the event.
INSTRUCTIONS – There are two ways this can be handled. One is to publicize the application before the presentation, so it can be downloaded and used during my talk. The other is for me to tell people at the beginning, so they can download the application while I’m speaking.
HELPFUL HINTS – This option is going to grow because I will add new functionality all the time.
Remote Webcast Mini Speech*
DESCRIPTION – An easy way to augment any event is to have a speaker video in live for a short 10-minute (or so) segment. This can be a one time quick feed, or could be done at multiple points through the event. This is a great way to spice up an event and it’s inexpensive compared to other options. Normally, we decide in advance what segments I would do and the role these bits are playing. In some cases, I’m providing much of the information I would have live, but am breaking it up into one quick piece or multiple pieces. You would be amazed how much audiences love having someone on video on the big screen for just a quick visit.
INSTRUCTIONS – We can use Skype, iChat, or any other video service that makes sense in order to get the quality needed. A computer with a good Internet connection is a must. I also need an AV person dedicated at the event end, who can work with me to make sure I’m on video live when it’s time to project onto the screen.
HELPFUL HINTS – Since it’s impossible to time an event exactly, it’s a good idea to have a person on the phone to notify me how close we are to going live. This can be the AV person or one of the meeting organizers.
Presentation Resource Delivery
DESCRIPTION – My presentations are filled with video clips, websites, and processes audience members often ask me for after the event. In addition, I get many requests for the presentation itself. With some planning, we can have all of these tools packaged in digital format and ready to “hand out” to anyone in the audience who wants them. This can be done through physical media (USB drive or CD) or online through a download. Audiences really appreciate easy and timely delivery of materials, and especially when we are providing a useful package of information that is deeper than what they usually get from a speaker.
INSTRUCTIONS – If you would like to deliver this electronic package through your website, we need the location in advance, so we can publicize the web address at the event. If you are going to hand it out on physical media, we just need to know the date by which you need all the materials.
HELPFUL HINTS – If you want to deliver this on a USB drive, please provide at least a one GB drive because the materials will take that much space. If you are going to provide an online download, you need to make sure you can handle large file sizes.
*indicates an option that may require an additional cost
