A few weeks, ago I brought a special guest on stage - via Skype!
It was Skillsoft's Perspectives 2011 event for their customers in Orlando. My talk was on Leadership, Confidence and Moving Forward, and directed to the HR community via a webcast. As we prepared for the event, one of the producers asked me if I wanted to "skype in" a guest expert.
"Like Oprah?" I asked. "Sure, it's easy to do. The trick is getting the expert, not the technology," he replied. Aha! So, I thought about various experts/authors that I knew, who might be able to add value to one of my points.
My first thought was a friend, Jeremie Kubicek, author of the newly published book, Leadership Is Dead. He shares my 'abundance mentality' point of view and I knew it would be a win/win/win scenario. Unlike the old days, when you had to use satellite, Skype is easy and free to bring on stage. You need a dedicated laptop running Skype that outputs (video + audio) to a input selection mixer, and make sure both internet connections are robust. A quick Skype-check happened day of the event, and then, during my talk, Jeremie was on Skype, listening to my talk via the laptop's mic and a monitor closeby.
As I introduced him and told the crowd about him, the producer flips the switch from the power point to him, and just like that, I've Skyped in another speaker! He made some good points and the crowd loved the bonus expert.
Try this for your next event, and leverage your network to spice up your next talk. At almost all levels, it's doable, and you know people out there that would love the exposure or be willing to help.
Watch this video example: Skyping In Jeremie Kubicek For My Skillsoft Keynote
Have you tried G+ Hangouts yet? We've been using them a lot for educational panels as well as impromptu industry discussions. I've found the video quality and connectivity is more dependable than Skype, which freezes and drops a lot when I've tried to use it for events.
Let me know if you need a crash course in Hangouts/Hangouts on Air. I really think it's a webinar killer.
Posted by: Kristi Sanders | April 23, 2013 at 11:54 AM
Love how you did this Tim. Very innovative.
Posted by: Daniel Decker | June 10, 2011 at 02:24 PM
Very neat! Technology is a great way to supplement and elevate your presentation.
Posted by: Norm @ CPA Firm Websites | June 10, 2011 at 01:37 PM