How to manage feedback from the presentation backchannel
February 11, 2010
In my eBook How to present with a backchannel I recommend that the first time you present with a backchannel, you shouldn’t try and monitor or respond to feedback in real-time (the term backchannel refers to an online conversation taking place at the same time as people are talking live). I’ve changed my mind. The catalyst is danah boyd’s experience with the backchannel at the Web2.0 Expo in New York (the lack of capitalization is not a mistake – danah prefers her name to be written in lowercase and I’ve decided to respect that).
Danah’s story
Danah had prepared a new presentation for the conference and she was working from a script. She was initially rattled by the set-up: a flat lectern, a Twitterstream displayed on the screen behind her, and bright lights blinding her. But it got worse – here’s what she experienced: [Read more]
How to present with Twitter and other backchannels
November 20, 2009
Presenting with Twitter can be challenging. Just about every week a new story of a speaker getting roasted on Twitter makes waves in the blogosphere.
I’ve written a free eBook “How to present with Twitter (and other backchannels)” to help you avoid that fate. There’s no sign up required. Just click and read.
I asked my trusted and expert community to review the book and say what they thought of it:
“Fantastic eBook! Outstanding information and well worth the read.” Jeff Hurt, @JeffHurt and MidCourse Corrections
Powerpoint Twitter Magic – now you can tweet from PowerPoint
November 2, 2009
In my post 10 tools for presenting with Twitter, I lamented that there was no easy-to-use way of posting tweets from within PowerPoint. Timo Elliott of SAPWeb2.0 has now created an add-in for PowerPoint 2004 and 2007 which does just that. It’s called AutoTweet.
Thank you Timo – you’re a star!
Go to Timo’s PowerPoint Twitter page to download the add-in. Open PowerPoint, and click on the Add-in ribbon. Then click on Autotweet – highlighted in this screenshot:
The two best alternatives to Twitter as a presentation backchannel
October 28, 2009
Note: This post was updated on 30 October to reflect TodaysMeet introducing Twitter integration.
The advent of the backchannel is a tremendous opportunity for presenters. The backchannel is an online conversation that takes place at the same time as people are talking live. Audience participation didn’t use to scale easily beyond a small group. Now, the backchannel allows every audience member, whatever the size of the group, to be an active participant. However, if you plan to use a backchannel proactively in your presentation, it may be better to use a backchannel tool other than Twitter. This is because:
- Twitter users won’t have to be concerned about overwhelming their followers with a series of presentation-specific tweets.
- Anybody can access and contribute to the backchannel without having to register.
That makes the backchannel more inclusive – no Twitter-divide – and allows the backchannel to become a lot more intimate amongst conference attendees.
10 tools for presenting with Twitter
October 14, 2009
Presenting while people are tweeting is challenging – but also adds a new dimension to the presentation experience for your audience. Gradually tools are being developed to make it easier for you as the presenter to manage the backchannel.
Posting Tweets during the presentation
Crafting a set of tweets for the main points of your presentation and then tweeting them as you make those points in your live presentation is a great way to be part of the Twitter conversation.
How to tweet during a presentation
June 30, 2009
The latest academic research on Twitter and conferences addresses the issue of “snarky tweets” during presentations. What should be the guidelines of what is acceptable and what is not? My own experience of tweeting during presentations at Presentation Camp LA highlighted for me the new challenges we face around Twitter etiquette at conferences.
The research
Tony McNeil reports on a survey of 103 people from a conference on learning technology in April 2009: More than just passing notes in class? Reflections on the twitter backchannel.
New survey: How people are using Twitter at conferences
May 27, 2009
Wow. Some academics have written a paper about tweeting at conferences (thank you @tonyramos for tweeting about it).
I’m more impressed that somebody would write such a paper, than by the paper itself.
The paper reports on a survey of tweeters at five different conferences.
Should you display the live twitter stream on a large screen?
May 20, 2009
Twitter is now a reality at many conferences. Now the question is: should you display a live twitter stream on a large screen so that everyone (not just the tweeters) in the audience can see it?
Sir Ken Robinson speaking at "Hacking Education" organised by Union Square Ventures. Photo used with permission from Fred Wilson
Having twitter on a large screen can enrich the conference experience. Here’s a report from the Museums and the Web conference 09: [Read more]
8 things I learnt about using twitter as a participation tool
March 1, 2009
Today, I presented a session remotely at the Presentation Camp at Stanford University, California. My session was on “How to engage your audience with Twitter” and I tried to do exactly that during my presentation.
Here’s what I learnt from my experience:
1. Design your presentation for Twitter
Is Twitter a good thing while you’re presenting?
February 26, 2009
I’ve recently written two guest posts on Twitter and presenting. On Laura Fitton’s Touchbase blog, I looked at the benefits for the audience and the speaker of people twittering while you speak and how to manage it.
On Chris Spagnuolo’s Edgehopper blog, I went to the next step and explored how you can use Twitter to engage your audience.
Both posts have generated a lot of buzz on Twitter and there’s a ton of comments on the TouchBase blog. There’s many useful points in the comments and I have summarized the main issues below: [Read more]
