How do you handle unresponsive participants in your online presentations?

1 Use polls and quizzes

One way to break the ice and stimulate interest is to use polls and quizzes throughout your presentation. You can ask your participants to answer questions related to your topic, test their knowledge, or share their opinions. Polls and quizzes can also help you assess the level of understanding, identify gaps, and tailor your content accordingly. You can use online tools like Mentimeter, Kahoot, or Poll Everywhere to create and launch interactive polls and quizzes.

2 Encourage chat and Q&A

Another way to foster communication and participation is to encourage your participants to use the chat and Q&A features of your online platform. You can invite them to share their comments, questions, experiences, or insights related to your presentation. You can also ask them to respond to each other's chat messages or Q&A entries. Make sure you monitor the chat and Q&A and acknowledge, answer, or address the relevant points. You can also use the chat and Q&A to solicit feedback and suggestions from your participants.

3 Use breakout rooms

A third way to increase engagement and interaction is to use breakout rooms to divide your participants into smaller groups for discussions, activities, or exercises. Breakout rooms can help your participants connect with each other, exchange ideas, collaborate, or practice skills. You can assign topics, tasks, or roles to each group and give them a time limit and instructions. You can also join the breakout rooms to facilitate, observe, or support the groups. At the end, you can ask each group to report back to the main session and share their outcomes or learnings.

4 Use gestures and expressions

A fourth way to enhance your connection and rapport with your participants is to use gestures and expressions to convey your enthusiasm, confidence, and emotions. You can use your hands, face, eyes, and voice to emphasize your points, show interest, and create variety. You can also use gestures and expressions to invite feedback, signal agreement, or acknowledge contributions. For example, you can nod, smile, raise your eyebrows, or use thumbs up. You can also ask your participants to use gestures and expressions to indicate their responses, feelings, or preferences.

5 Use gamification and incentives

A fifth way to motivate and reward your participants is to use gamification and incentives to make your presentation more fun and competitive. You can use elements like points, badges, leaderboards, or levels to track and display your participants' progress, performance, or achievements. You can also use incentives like prizes, certificates, or recognition to acknowledge and appreciate your participants' efforts, contributions, or improvements. You can use online tools like Classcraft, Quizizz, or ClassDojo to create and manage gamification and incentives for your presentation.

6 Use feedback and follow-up

A sixth way to improve and sustain your relationship with your participants is to use feedback and follow-up to show your interest, appreciation, and support. You can ask your participants to complete a survey, a form, or a quiz at the end of your presentation to collect their feedback, opinions, or suggestions. You can also send them a thank-you email, a summary, or a recording of your presentation to reinforce your message, provide additional resources, or offer assistance. You can also invite them to contact you for further questions, comments, or discussions.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?