Process, Knowledge and Resources

Like many Internet innovations, Web conferencing is not in itself difficult to use. The technology vendors have made great strides to create user-friendly presenter and attendee capabilities. But acquiring Web conferencing technology is analogous to renting a room at a convention center - now that you have the meeting space, how do you run a great meeting or event? The challenge lies in two areas:

1. Where to use it? Web conferencing is not a panacea. In many cases, in-person meetings can be more effective. The challenge is to find where the cost, time, effectiveness and convenience of Web conferencing presents a better set of trade-offs.
2. How to best apply it? Once you've identified areas of opportunity, you need to put in place an effective Web conference strategy. This includes attracting the right audience, creating compelling materials, ensuring presenters and presentations are ready, preparation for audience interaction, capturing valuable data about each participant, and identifying effective post-event follow-up.

To address these challenges, you need a sound understanding of the process of Web conferencing, the knowledge about how to execute each step, and the resources to get the job done:

• Process: Web conferencing follows a similar, but in critical ways unique, process to in-person meetings; special emphasis must be placed on preparation for this medium, scripting of interaction, participant data collection and follow-through.
• Knowledge: Each step of the process must address specific aspects related to remote meetings or seminars. Materials, meeting flow, and presenter style must be tuned for the Web. You also must include your conferencing vendors in the appropriate steps of your planning.
• Resources: Selecting a Web conferencing provider is just the first step in lining up resources. Implementation and coordination efforts to assist with audience acquisition, content development, audio conferencing and event moderation are critical considerations.

These are the core three elements of every Obidicut package that make Web conferencing attractive for a wide range of corporate uses.