How to create a webinar to use gamification online
As I said here, creating games to be used online saved me in the terrible moment when my mom was dying in Italy. In this post I explain how I got organized to create a webinar to use gamification online.
I practice Linguistic Empathy and I expect you to do the same. Please bear with me if my English is not perfect.
My most recent challenge has been to continue using games and activities of my face to face workshops, but moving them into the virtual world. I have spent days reflecting, creating, modifying and expanding the portfolio of games I have accumulated over the years. So I have decided to create a webinar to use gamification online, in order to give coaches and trainers the opportunity to continue their work without depriving themselves of this important part of the relationship with customers and participants.
Yesterday I gathered twelve women from my beloved Expatclic community, and with them I tested some of the activities I intend to include in the webinar I will offer shortly. Based on this experience, here are some important points I suggest to keep in mind when building a webinar that focuses on the use of gamification online.
1. Preparation is the key
It takes a lot of time, but it is essential to prepare the webinar as accurately as possible. This includes:
- put a lot of care in preparing the material: make sure you have everything you need for each single game, and have it at hand. I create a folder where I add all the materials I will use during the webinar. I give a very clear name to every document and image, in order to find them at a glance when needed;
- create a relationship with the participants before the webinar begins. Explain well what they can expect and above all what you expect from them. This is also the time to ask everything you need to play the games you will teach during the webinar (information, photos, stories);
- be very clear about what each participant will have to bring to the webinar. Paper, pens, colored pencils, a particular object? Ask for everything and insist on the importance of participating with all that’s needed;
- create a document where you can see the webinar programme at a glance. In this document, specify as much as possible the details of each activity. This is especially important if you introduce a vast number of games and are afraid of getting confused while leading the webinar;
- have a list with the names of the participants at hand. You can write it by hand and keep it next to the computer, write it on a document that you will keep on the desktop, use the image of a clock with the names of the participants. Whatever works for you.
2. Get to know your software
Whether you use Zoom, GoToMeeting, Webex, Livestorm or any other online communication software, it is important that you are thoroughly familiar with its features and know how to use it and how to explain it to the participants. My advice is to spend as much time as necessary at the beginning of the webinar to make sure everyone understands the features that will be used during the webinar. For some, this can be particularly complex. Take this into account when planning the total duration of the webinar.
3. Be clear about the content of the webinar
Make sure the attendees understand what you are offering. This is a rule that applies to every product and service you sell, but it becomes very important in webinars where you train on how to use gamification online. If a person expects to learn games to use in his coaching programmes and finds himself playing only with team building activities, he will not leave the webinar with a positive impression.
4. Be prepared to explain each activity thoroughly
Before letting the participants play, make sure that everyone, no one excluded, has clearly understood the rules of the game. A confused person is enough to make the atmosphere less joyful.
5. Always have a Plan B
This is very important for the whole duration of the webinar. Prepare plans B in case even just one of the participants cannot use one of the software functions. Always keep alternative games close at hand if for any reason you realize that you cannot use the ones you planned.
Following these few rules will above all ensure you face the webinar in a relaxed way, and have fun. After all, we also play for this, don’t we :-)?
Never stop playing!