• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Gamification Nation logo

Gamification Nation

Gamification and game design for business results

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Solutions
    • Employee experience
    • Customer experience
    • Learner experience
    • Serious games
    • Gamification Training
    • Application Gamification
  • Speaking
  • Store
  • About us
    • About Gamification Nation
    • Awards
    • What our followers and clients say…
    • In the media
    • Contact Us
(+44) 0845 056 9828
Is gamification right for your project?

Top tips for using technology in speaking and education

An Coppens | 21st August, 2017

share:

From my work as a trainer, speaker and facilitator for nearly 20 years, I have seen the change in the tools being used for engagement during a live or virtual training session. I am accustomed for live training to make the interaction face to face  and happen when I have the feeling that the audience needs a little bit of an energy boost. I see it as the role of the trainer or speaker to manage the energy in the room. But on occasion workshop organisers want me to use apps to “enhance” the workshop and to be honest, when you have a strong connection with a group face to face, sending someone to an app is a complete disconnect and a distraction.

From training with motivational speakers and being part of the crew members, I learned how to use movement, dance, purposeful moves and exercises to create a deeper connection with the audience. The whole dance intro originates from these days and a snoring audience member at a conference. What was meant to be a once off, has become a regular request to open a talk with a dance or if music is not available movements like a mexican wave or stretching. The reason why this albeit simple technique works, is because you effectively create a state change, meaning a physical state change from sitting to standing. If you then also add positive music and a bit of laughter in the mix, the physical effect combines with the neurological state change from relaxing or sleepy to more fun and energetic. Or at least that is the intention.

When you are running a conference, workshop or all day training, you can introduce stand-up exercises or walk and talk exercises to achieve similar results. At recent events in Asia, I saw the use of technology being used to introduce engagement. We had both a good example of a live poll and then a bad example where the speaker lost the whole audience by sending them to download an app and then go through it, not once but twice in one talk. What was worse is that the downloads were not really related to the topic of the talk or workshop. So below here are my top tips for using technology in your education sessions

Tip 1: Ensure it works

When using technology that relies on internet access, make sure you have guaranteed access to enough wifi. The French company Klaxoon built a dedicated internet box that trainers can carry around to create the interactive, technology powered elements. If you are using apps, ensure everyone can download them and ideally have them use the app before they arrive for the event, that way people already have it on their devices and you don’t waste valuable time. If in doubt of wifi, polls still work with a show of hands, so you can always have that as your fall-back position.

Tip 2: Use technology to enhance the message

Use the technology to enhance the message, so the poll or word clouds based on people’s answers can be fun to see populate in a large audience without putting people on the spot. Finding out where people are coming from in terms of knowledge or opinions works well and creates a sense of belonging of the group, without having to reveal identity straight away. In situations where you have hierarchy potentially causing silence, this is a useful technique. When technology is used randomly to showcase a website or app, ask people to view it with you on the big screen rather than losing the connection. If they like it they will write down the app or site and that information can also be in the course notes.

Tip 3: Be mindful that not everyone is tech savvy

For every technology whizkid there is also a no-tech numpty. Both can show up in your workshop or training, so always allow for time to explain how to use the technology from apps to computers. Some people may find this incredible, but in a lot of companies and work environments not everyone has to use technology all of the time.

Tip 4: Test it and be willing to forget the tech if it doesn’t work

Always test your technology on the day and if it doesn’t work, just drop it and move on. I saw a number of great speakers completely flunk, because their technology failed. Whether it was their slides, the projector, the polls, the apps or other tools; always know enough to be able to go no-tech in an instant. If you are using video, audio or special effects in presentations, always test them before you go live.

Although these top tips are first and foremost aimed at face to face environments, they equally apply to webinars and virtual summits.

Tip 5: Gamify for a reason

When gamifying a talk with technology, do it for the right reasons, aka something you want to person to remember or something that they will benefit from. For example a prize for the first question, to encourage more questions. I use story cubes to create narrative in some of the exercises in the workshops I run, low tech which works regardless. I have seen randomised dice rolling apps work in training to give people a randomised mission or task. Voting with post-its or in an app can be a meaningful addition to decide on a course of action or a winning idea.

If you don’t find a valid reason, then just don’t get tempted to drag in gamification, it wouldn’t showcase good practise and makes people wonder about it’s relevancy.

What other top tips for technology do you have?

Categories: Gamification Tags: Gamification, speaking and technology use, tips for technology in education

share:

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Book a Strategy Consultation

Strategy consultation

Book a strategy session now and find out what is possible for your company.

BOOK NOW

Buy your game deck

Buy your game deck

Build your own gamified experiences with our game deck

Buy Game Deck

Must Buy Book: Tapping into the Crowd by An Coppens

Must Buy Book: Tapping into the Crowd by An Coppens

Buy Book

Featured Post

Gamification trends for 2019

The time of year for predictions and resolutions is alive and well, so here are our visions for the trends in gamification for 2019. Like last year we … Read More about Gamification trends for 2019

Got questions?

Ask us your question

Related Posts

default featured image

In focus: hero’s journey

In business gamification,  adding game psychology and game mechanics to a...

Creative playstorming

Creative playstorming

When you are used to deliver workshops and training sessions, it is often...

default featured image

Feminine Gamification Viewpoint: social sales

Feminine Gamification Viewpoint: Social sales It seems appropriate on what...

Footer

Our Office

Gamification Nation Ltd,
Kemp House,
152 City Road,
London, EC1V 2NX, UK
Companies House Registration: 08145023
VAT number:
304326932
Tel: (+44) 0845 056 9828
Email: [email protected]

Navigation

  • Home
  • Our Solutions
  • Blog
  • Training
  • Speaking
  • Contact Us

Are you ready to start your project?

When you are looking for a partner to roll out your project, please get in touch! Send us an email or call us. We would be happy to work with you!

GET IN TOUCH
© Copyright 2013 – 2019 Gamification Nation. All rights reserved.
  • Anti-spam Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Linking policy
  • Terms
This site uses cookies: Find out more.