Using Polls To Increase Audience Engagement

Tired of competing with a smartphone for your prospect’s attention during your presentation or demo? Stop fighting technology and embrace it by using the power of real time polls to promote audience engagement and reinforce your message! If you want to learn even more webinar tricks like this, make sure to download and watch our webinar: 6 Keys to a Killer Web Presentation.  

The mental focus, physical activity, and instant results of a real-time poll can draw audience attention to your topic and are a great way to power up Q&A for a group of five or more. Besides, asking your audience for a show of hands is so 20th century. Posing a thought-provoking question on a topic that leads into your presentation and asking your audience to weigh in on their smart phones and show them the results in real-time moves you into the new millennium.

A poll takes some prep, but it’s really fairly simple if you have the time and an internet connection. There are a variety of on-line polling programs -- some free, like polleverywhere.com, some paid -- that are easy to set up and make it possible to access real-time results live in your presentation. Here are some tips for setting up and delivering a real time poll.

  Preparing your polls:

• Set up an account with a polling program that allows for text message polling and take some time to get familiar with it.
• Develop your poll question(s) and assign a unique code to each answer. (Hint:  Pick an engaging question. A patronizing or silly question can fail just as easily with cool technology as with an old-fashioned show of hands. )
•  Create a slide for your poll, clearly displaying the code numbers for each answer and a number for audience members to text their response to.
• Confirm internet access at the venue where you’ll be delivering your presentation.

Delivering your polls: 

• Use your poll during the opening to frame your presentation or to introduce a new topic or agenda item.
• Ask your audience to weigh in on the question by texting the corresponding code to the displayed text number.
• Open a separate browser to show the poll results as they happen in real-time on your screen.
• Encourage discussion of the results. Remember, the purpose of a poll is to grab attention and leverage the results into a compelling discussion.

Remember, to learn more about polling and other tips and tricks, make sure to download and watch our webinar 6 Keys to a Killer Web Presentation. 

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