Have you asked for any honest feedback on your online presentation skills? Does your competence in navigating and harnessing the technical online platform features for your presentation or speech reflect the level of your expertise, or could your blind spots be costing you more than you realise?

As a professional business person, it is critical for you to be confident and proficient in the basic technical requirements for a successful online presentation, the principles for which are transferable across platforms. This fully interactive peer learning practice session provides a safe space for you to acid test your technical online presentation skills using the basic Zoom platform features - the world's leading video conferencing platform, whilst also learning from others.

Please note, we will also run this session on MS Teams at a later date.

Be sure you're mastering:

• slick slide-sharing
• getting engagement in the chat
• seeing the chat whilst you are presenting so you can engage with it
• being seen and heard with clarity

Please see the agenda and preparation instructions below.

Why attend?

Now and in the hybrid future of work, where online meetings, presentations, conferences, training, and workshops are here to stay, you have far more to consider to ensure your online presentation or sales meeting is effective, productive, and engaging. Delivering your best now also requires slick technical handling of the basic platform features as a minimum, whilst also getting engagement in the chat - which you're expected to see whilst you're presenting.

Representing yourself and your organisation well in a virtual setting requires more than great subject expertise, good posture, assertive hand gestures, solid 'eye' contact, and appropriate attire. What may have worked face-to-face for you for years will need adapting for the online setting, where there is much more room for stress and embarrassment given the required technical expertise. We've been there, and we understand.

All of this can feel overwhelming but the good news is, being successful just requires practice.

Like-minded professionals

Finding a group of colleagues, family, or friends to test out your 'go-live' Zoom skills with isn't always practical or helpful. This event provides a supportive community of like-minded professionals in a productive environment where you are:

✔ in a safe space to practice and make mistakes

✔encouraged in what you do well

✔guaranteed to learn something from your peers to improve your skills

✔critiqued in a respectful way that will lead to greater success and confidence in your future presentations for years to come

PLEASE NOTE: Zoom provides a wealth of features to transform a meeting, presentation, or training session from average to exceptional. In this practice session, you will only have access to the chat and screen share, forcing you to think creatively.

Who is this practice session for?:

Long-standing or aspiring business leaders, keynote speakers, coaches, consultants, advisers, board members, event facilitators, salespeople, and any business professionals who want to hone their technical online presentation skills on Zoom, the world's leading video conferencing platform.

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🎯 PRACTICE SESSION STRUCTURE (all times in BST)

* 13:00 pm - A 5-minute window to come and take a virtual seat

* 13:05 pm - Welcome and introduction

Your facilitator will introduce how the practice session will run.

* 13:10 pm - Ice-breaker break out

Warm-up and meet new people in a small group in a break-out room with an easy and light-hearted activity.

📢 * 13:15 pm - Practice presentations (groups of 4)

❕ You will be required to pre-prepare a 3-minute presentation using slides (at least 1), on a topic of your choice. Each attendee will present to a group of 4 in a break-out room. The rest of the group will take notes and offer encouraging and constructive feedback for 3 minutes. The rule is that the presenter must take the feedback, without explaining why they did or didn't do something. This builds your confidence and skills to structure and deliver effective and engaging longer presentations. The focus here is on the digital skills and the presenter is aiming for the following:

✔ slick slide-sharing

✔ getting engagement in the chat

✔ seeing the chat whilst you are presenting so you can engage with it

✔ being seen and heard with clarity

* 13:45 pm - Group feedback

Back in the main room, groups will feedback on their key learnings to the whole group. Common pitfalls and great top tips will be discussed.

* 13:55 pm - Practice polls & wrap up

Up to two attendees will have a go at running a pre-prepared poll. Polling is great to include in your presentations. Testing you know how to do it in this environment will save any red faces in a live event.

* 14:00 pm - Close

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Event notes:

This virtual event will not be recorded - it is a practice session, not a training session.

The room will be locked at 13:05 BST so please arrive on time.

After you register for the event, you will receive instructions of how to join the event with a link in your 'registration confirmation' email from Eventbrite, including finer details about the requirements for your practice presentation and feedback.

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Learn more about your facilitator:

Katie was the In-House Training Manager and one of the Events Producers at a leading B2B conference and training company delivering conferences, workshops, and training for blue-chip clients for over 25 years. When the company pivoted online at the start of the pandemic, Katie noticed a stark and growing skills divide among senior-level, high-calibre public speakers and trainers who featured on the conference and training programmes. Whilst some speakers clearly developed their skills to ensure they were scored highly by the professional audience, others lost opportunities to speak at future events due to their inability to adapt to the online setting. Katie saw the need for these professionals to practice and develop their skills before the 'live' and has since set up 'engage online' to support individuals and organisations with their online needs. From practice sessions to training workshops, to co-host services and live event chairing, 'engage online' truly understands your challenges and is here to remove the unnecessary online stress and embarrassment. We help you deliver your best and ensure you're getting great feedback from colleagues and clients every time.

👋 Connect:

Not sure you even know the basics of Zoom or Microsoft Teams features yet? Know the basics but want to take your presentation or training from average to amazing with breakouts, shared whiteboards, and polls? Contact Katie below to find out more about the training offered by 'engage online'.

Email katie@engageonline.training

Connect with Katie on LinkedIn

Connect with fellow professional public speakers and presenters in a LinkedIn group: Online Public Speaking & Technical Presentation Skills for Professional Speakers and Seminar Leaders

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