Successful Zoom Webinar Training: How To Create The Best Training

Zoom webinar training has quickly become an essential way for organizations to deliver their training.  But how many Zoom webinars have you attended, which have been poor experiences?  Facilitating Zoom webinars to create successful and engaging learning and education requires specific skills, experiences, and knowledge of the instructor.  So in this article, you’ll learn when to use zoom for webinar training and when not to.  And how to use interactive activities to deliver successful Zoom webinars and increase the participants’ satisfaction and learning.

What is Zoom?

Zoom is a cloud-based video conferencing service.  It is intended for businesses to work remotely and offers a wide range of services to accommodate any business’s needs.  These include video and audio conferencing, collaboration, chat, and webinars.  It also supports desktop and mobile users and can be used to hold webinar training sessions.  And Zoom has become extremely popular in business, with over 500,000 companies choosing to use the service.

Pros and Cons of Zoom Webinars

Attendees of zoom webinar training cite many benefits of Zoom webinars.   Including

• Value for money (can use it for free)
• Ease of use
• Customer support
• Available on android, IOS, mac and pc
• Interactive features such as raising of hands, sharing of screens, and shared whiteboard
• Up to 10,000 attendees may participate in a Zoom webinar
• Ad-free navigation
• Multiple hosts, hosts can mute participants and control who has access to the video panel
• Create waiting rooms, record videos, and save chat

Some of the cons cited by attendees of Zoom webinars are

• Inability to transfer or share files or documents at the time of a webinar training session
• The system sometimes crashes when there are lots of attendees
• The free version limits your meetings to a max of 40 minutes
• No web version to join a webinar or meeting from your browser. You must install the app locally on your device
• Zoom uses a lot of your system resources. Video and audio processing requires a very high CPU percentage.  Some users have claimed that it uses up a significant amount of their Random-Access Memory, causing their computers to overheat.
• Some functions, such as breakout rooms, aren’t available on mobile versions
• Inability to delete inappropriate comments on the fly
• Zoom does not work without downloading an app for your browser. If attendees forget to download the app, it can cause delays.  And it’s not usable on a Chromebook

A Zoom Meeting or Zoom Webinar Training?

Before you start, you need to decide whether you are holding a Zoom meeting or a Zoom Webinar.  While the meeting and webinar training platforms offer similar features and functionality, they have some key differences.

Meetings are a collaborative event with all participants able to screen share, turn on their video and audio, and see who is in attendance.  But, Zoom Webinars allow the host and any designated panelists to share their video, audio, and screen.  The host can also unmute attendees.  And Zoom webinars allow view-only attendees, who can interact via Q&A, Chat, and answer polling questions.  But webinar attendees can’t rename themselves once entered.

Zoom Meetings

Usually, you’ll want to have a Zoom meeting in the following circumstances.

• Hosting interactive sessions where you’ll want to have lots of audience participation or break your session into smaller groups
• Typically used for small to large groups for, customer-facing meetings, sales meetings and training sessions
• Where it’s ok for the participants to have some control over their audio sharing
• All participants can mute/unmute their audio
• A host can mute/request to unmute participants
• The host can set all participants to mute upon entry
• When you want all participants to be able to share videos
• You have up to 100 with a free license, or a maximum of 1,000 depending on the plan
• All participants are known by all the other participants
• When you want to allow chat features so participants can send instant messages to other users within a meeting or a private message to an individual participant
• As the host, you need to control when a participant joins the meeting. As the meeting host, you can admit attendees one by one or hold all attendees in the Waiting Room and admit them all at once.

Zoom Meeting Pricing For Organizations & Businesses

Basic Plan

• Free
• 40-minute limit
• Allows up to 100 attendees
• Use of 3 whiteboards

Pro Plan

• $149.90 US, $200 Canadian/year/user
• Allows up to 100 attendees
• Use of 3 whiteboards
• Group chat and file sharing
• 5 GB of cloud storage

Business Plan

• $199.90 US /year/user
• Allows up to 300 attendees
• Unlimited whiteboards
• Group chat and file sharing
• 5 GB of cloud storage

Business Plus Plan

• $250.00 US/year/user
• Allows up to 300 attendees
• Unlimited calling
• Group chat and file sharing
• 10 GB of cloud storage

Zoom Webinars

You’ll want to host a Zoom webinar in the following circumstances

• Zoom webinars are ideal for large audiences or events that are open to the public. Think of them as a virtual lecture hall.  Typically, webinar attendees do not interact with one another.  But while Zoom webinars provide options for you to get more social with your attendees, your average webinar training session has one or a few people speaking to an audience
• Typically used for large events and public broadcasts (50+ attendees) such as:
  • Town halls
  • Quarterly updates
  • Educational lectures
• When you want the host or panelists to control audio sharing, only the host and panelists can mute/unmute their audio. The host can unmute one or more attendees.  But, attendees can join in a listen-only mode.
• Only the host and panelists can share videos.
• You have between 500-50,000 participants
• The participant list is only visible to the host and panelists
• You want to use email reminders for the Zoom webinar training
• If you wish to control whom panelists and attendees can chat to
• If you want PayPal integration

I can’t imagine Biohaven moving forward without the underpinning of the strength of Zoom as a platform because it has become part of a daily way that we do business and honestly it just helps us get work done.

Charlie Conway, PH.D. Chief Scientific Officer on the use of Zoom Webinars

Zoom Webinar Pricing For Organizations & Businesses

Zoom Webinar packages include the following:

• Unlimited webinar sessions for up to 30 hours each
• Brand your Zoom Webinars with a customized backsplash and control over virtual speaker backgrounds
• Ability to export registrant and attendee lists
• Integrate with CRM and marketing automation tools
• Monetize your webinar through paid registration
• Ability to live stream your webinar to third-party platforms
• Record your webinar to the cloud
• Access to post-session reporting

# of Attendees
500	1000	3000	5000	10000	10000+
$690 US/yr/license	$3,400 US/yr/license	$9,900 US/yr/license	$24,900 US/yr/license	$64,900 US/yr/license	Contact sales for a quote

 

Zoom Event packages include the following:

• Everything in Zoom Webinars, and;
• An all-in-one event management solution
• Event hubs for organizing and showcasing your events and hosts
• Host multi-session, multi-track, and multi-day events where you can use either Zoom Webinars or Zoom Meetings (or both!)
• Have your greenroom for each session with Backstage, a new feature that gives speakers and hosts their own space to watch the live stream and gather during the event
• Customizable registration and ticketing options
• Attendee networking through a chat-enabled event lobby
• Live stream session content to event lobby and third-party platforms
• Post session recordings to the Event Lobby and allow attendees to view them after the event
• Event analytics, including registration, attendance, event engagement, and ticket sales
• With your purchase of Zoom Events, you can schedule webinars in the webinar portal with all of the benefits of a Zoom Webinars license.

# of Attendees
500	1000	3000	5000	10000	10000+
$890 US/yr/license	$4,400 US/yr/license	$12,900 US/yr/license	$32,400 US/yr/license	$84,400 US/yr/license	Contact sales for a quote

 

When Not To Use Zoom Webinars for Training

Zoom webinars and pre-recorded webinars have become a significant way for people to communicate with one another.  And they are now a primary tool for delivering training remotely.  But Zoom webinars do have some limitations and aren’t the best way to train in specific situations.

Zoom Webinar Training Can Be Resource Intensive

Doing many webinars can become overwhelming and an inefficient way to train people.  Zoom webinar training can be very resource-intensive if you have to do many of them.  Not only do you need an instructor for live webinars, but you also need to have a producer.

Zoom Webinars Are Unsuitable For Some Types Of Training

While webinars are suitable for certain types of training, they’re a poor choice for others.  For example, procedural information or activities that need individual practice.  Such as onboarding, sales training, management development, and product knowledge.

Lack Of Learner Control And Convenience

One of the significant advantages of self-paced courses is the control and convenience for the learner.  Yet, in Zoom webinar training, the learner has no control over when it occurs or the pace of learning.

A Scheduling Nightmare

Zoom webinars require scheduling, and getting everyone to attend at once is much more challenging.  And scheduling can be time-consuming and often results in delays in delivering the training.

When To Use Zoom Webinars for Training

As discussed above, there are some situations where you might want to create other forms of online learning.  But there are several instances where Zoom webinars for training are the very best option.  These include

• When content changes frequently and you need the material to be current
• When you have a “cycle” and your zoom webinars, need to be timely
• When you do a lot of “Q&A,” but the questions are not repetitive. For example, when you have a variety of audience segments.

Zoom Webinar Training

Zoom Webinar training is here to stay.  While there are a few downsides, and it isn’t suited for all online training, it still has many of the benefits offered by online learning.  It’s why Zoom webinars have become a standard method for training and information sharing, often designed to replicate the experience of a face-to-face training course.  It also allows for discussion, group breakout work, Q&A, and access to a responsive expert.  But, the skills needed to design and deliver a Zoom webinar training session are quite different from in-person delivery.  So mastering how to provide engaging and interactive sessions is essential.

Preparing In Advance For Your Zoom Webinar Training Session

Being organized is critical to create the best experience for your Zoom webinars.  So the checklist below will help to make it a smooth process.

One Week Before The Zoom Webinar Training

• Confirm the date, time, title, and a basic description of your webinar training, including why the attendee needs to participate in this Zoom webinar training session
• Assign webinar training roles, including host, co-host, and panelists, and the structure, content, and timing of the training elements
• Test the internet speeds of your host, co-hosts, and panelists to ensure the best experience possible
• Review all webinar settings and Zoom account settings. Enable the meeting functions that you want to use
• Finalize all content, presentation materials, activities, and design/branding
• Create and add Q/A questions if you are using this feature in your webinar
• Ensure you have the most up-to-date version of Zoom
• Encourage your panelists or presenters to test their internet speeds and confirm that they have a minimum of 50 Mbps download speeds and at least 5 Mbps upload speeds.
• Complete a “practice” session of the zoom webinar training

On The Day Of The Webinar Training Session

• Start the webinar 30 minutes before the event’s actual start time
• “Enable Practice Session” is enabled so that the host, co-hosts, and panelists can join the webinar and review any material before the webinar starts
• Test their audio and video before officially beginning the webinar
• Be sure that any webinar features that you would like to use, such as Polls or Q/A, are enabled and are ready to be used in the webinar
• Mute all panelists until the presentation starts
• move out of the practice session and into the actual webinar
• Have the moderator welcome attendees and let them know that the webinar will begin momentarily
• If recording the webinar training session, let attendees know
• Monitor chat or Q/A for questions and technical concerns from attendees

Zoom Webinar Training Accessibility

Zoom webinars can promote accessibility to training, especially when using the accessibility features correctly.  For example, include captions in videos and share materials with attendees that are accessible using Web Content Accessibility Guidelines  – allowing your Zoom webinar training to reach all audiences.

How To Create Interactive Zoom Webinar Training

With a few proven tips, you can easily enhance the interactivity of your Zoom webinar training and increase participant satisfaction.  And these greatly enhance the learning experience of the Zoom webinars.  But you should aim for 4 – 6 activities for every hour of online instruction to break up the pace.  It’s also best to minimize lecturing or presenting slides in the session.  And use the Zoom webinar training as a time for attendees to apply, get feedback, and practice.  Rather than passively listen.

Below, we break down activities to include in your Zoom webinar training to increase the learning experience.

Basic Activities To Include In Zoom Webinars

These activities are easy to set up, simple to operate, and commonly used.  And many participants will have had some exposure to them.  But novice instructors can start by adding these to their Zoom webinar training.

Screen Sharing

Screen sharing is a Zoom webinar training activity that used for

• Tours
• Presentations
• Videos
• How-to lessons

For example, to show how to use a software application or to highlight a feature in the software.  It allows the audience to see what you are doing on your screen.

Combining a professional streaming-studio output with the Zoom platform we’re all familiar with ushers in a new set of opportunities for universities, where online is here to stay.

Dr. Toby Thompson, Studio Director, Cranfield Broadcast & Record, on Zoom webinars

Tips for screen sharing in your Zoom webinars

• Screen sharing, however, can be a “bandwidth hog.” So, close all other open applications and any unnecessary browser tabs.
• Keep your presentation to a minimum. And if a participant is presenting, make sure they know how to find the share feature button
• When screen sharing, you can “screen” everything visible. Or only screen share a specific application.  Be careful you don’t share your screen and then forget.  Otherwise, when you open something else, you might end up oversharing!

Status Indicators

Status indicators are great for Zoom webinars to provide quick visual feedback.  They can help you gauge the pace of the learning and keep the conversation flowing.  And make sure the learners are paying attention!

For example, one of the most effective status indicators is the “raise hand” indicator.  Especially when you have a group conversation and want to give everyone a chance to speak in turn.

Tips for using status indicators in your Zoom webinar training

• A good practice when using the raise hand feature is to acknowledge the speaking order: “I see Jen has her hand up, so we’ll hear from Jen, then Stefano.” It communicates to the participants that you are acknowledging their request to speak.  And so, they know when it’s their turn which helps prevent them from interrupting.  Also, as they know, this prevents lengthy silences between questions when it’s their turn.
• Don’t forget to remind participants to put their hands down when they’ve finished.

Public Chat

Public chat is often best used in Zoom webinar training for

• Providing feedback or input
• Allowing the audience to submit questions in real-time
• Providing feedback to the audience when someone else is presenting the webinar training
• Collecting information from many people simultaneously
• Lightning rounds are a way to give concise and top-of-mind feedback
• Knowledge checks are a way to assess an audience’s comprehension of the topic quickly. For example, the instructor can present options on the screen.  The audience enters the corresponding number for the correct answer
• Confirming people are paying attention

Tips for using public chat in your Zoom webinars

• It’s best to leave the chat tool on because it provides an open channel for the audience to participate. It helps increase their engagement in the learning
• Be specific with how you want people to use the chat, so they don’t get distracted
• You can leave the chat open when you are no longer directing activities in the chat channel. But work with a producer to manage the chat channel and questions that might come in

Audio/Video Conversations

Audio and video are often best used in Zoom webinar training for

• Group discussions
• Playing games, for example, as an ice-breaker
• Receiving and giving feedback
• Role-playing scenarios (but only if group trust is high)
• “Giving the floor” to someone else who has something important to contribute

Tips for using conversations in your Zoom webinar training

• Ask participants to keep the video feed on in a smaller group and mute themselves. It allows for ongoing non-verbal communication and connection.  And providing the audience the ability to switch both audio and video on/off.
• You must not let a person dominate a conversation in a Zoom webinar. One trick is to set norms at the beginning of the session.  And if that fails, then you can always mute them
• Also, it’s essential to be mindful of group trust and intercultural communication. For example, if someone doesn’t have English as a first language, give them the option to type in the chat and speak to ask a question or provide a comment.

Intermediate Activities To Include In Zoom Webinar Training

These activities are a little more involved.  So use them if you have some practice with Zoom webinars.  Having a producer can help with the logistics.  But instructors should still rehearse to make the session go smoothly.

Polls

Polls are an efficient and interactive Zoom webinar training activity to use.  They are often best used for

• Ice-breakers at the beginning of a session
• Informal quizzes
• Quick knowledge checks to understand the groups understanding of topics
• Feedback on their experience with the session or future goals after the session
• Fun games to change up the tempo of what you are teaching

Tips for using polls in your Zoom webinar training

• Use these near the beginning of your session to help “warm up” the participants
• Keep the options limited to 4 or fewer if possible.
• A good rule of thumb is no more than two polls in an hour-long session.

As a bonus, download our Ice-breaker Cheat Sheet of ideas when doing Zoom webinar training.

Games/Quizzes

Games and quizzes are suitable Zoom webinar training activities to increase interactivity in the session.  Games and quizzes are often good to use for

• Ice-breakers at the beginning of a session
• Lightening the mood of an intense topic by playing a drawing or guessing game
• Increasing the level of interactivity in the session
• Role-playing, scenarios, problem-solving activities, and practicing skills
• An example could be using an escape room game or playing a classic game such as Pictionary.

Tips for using games and quizzes in your Zoom webinars

• Try a variety of activities such as drawing games, scavenger hunts, story games, or improv games
• Keep them simple
• Keep them short, typically less than 10 minutes
• There are several external tools that you can use to add interactive and fun activities to the Zoom webinar training, including
  • Kahoot
  • Mentimeter
  • Flipgrid

File Sharing

File sharing is important for many Zoom webinars.  For example, if you teach a class how to redesign something or ask people to complete a case study.  File-sharing is important for

• Completing or reviewing assignments
• In class, with applied learning. Such as providing feedback or analysis on the material provided
• Completing a task independently
• “Student” presentations

Tips for using file-sharing in Zoom webinar training

• Having time to think during the session can be a good thing for a group that meets regularly. Not all Zoom webinars have to involve the instructor all the time.
• Be careful about copyright. Don’t distribute documents that you don’t have permission to distribute.

Advanced Zoom Webinar Training Activities

Experienced instructors of Zoom webinars should use these advanced activities.  And they may need some prior set-up and have in-session requirements.

Using A Whiteboard

You can do many great activities to enhance Zoom webinars by using an electronic whiteboard.  These are excellent for

• Brainstorming sessions
• Using as a virtual flipchart
• Showing how to fill out a section of a document
• Helping to sort items into categories

Tips for using a whiteboard in your Zoom webinars

• Zoom has built-in whiteboards, or you can use Google Slides or PowerPoint slides to take notes and share your screen during your session
• Another option is to use an external tool like Miro or Mural. Both allow you to create pre-prepared boards to guide a conversation.
• You use it either as an “instructor” only tool or as a group tool where anyone can contribute. If using the group option, ensure you know how to use, save, and clear any annotations.

Annotation

Annotation uses a similar toolset to a whiteboard.  For example, you could ask participants to label body parts in an anatomy class.

Annotations are excellent in webinar training for

• Group analysis
• Ice-breakers
• Group documentation

Tips for using annotation in Zoom webinar training

• You can provide some specific guidance to participants by using the arrow tool. Or by typing in your comment.
• Make sure to clear the annotations, as they will appear on anything you are projecting.
• You’ll also want to turn off the tool when you aren’t using it to prevent participants from distracting the class by playing with it.
• If this requires using slides, pages, or images, prepare these in advance.
• If the facilitator is familiar with whiteboarding, annotations are an easy activity to arrange.

Breakout Rooms

Breakout rooms are an excellent way to enhance your Zoom webinars and provide extra interactivity.  And there are many uses for them, including

• For small group discussions
• Reviewing case studies
• Splitting people into role-specific subgroups
• To practice and prepare debates, competitions, presentations, demonstrations
• Pair-and-share activities to elaborate on more significant topics or complete a debrief on a topic
• Practice role-playing scenarios

Tips for using breakout rooms in your Zoom webinars

• Have clear written instructions for the group and appoint a “spokesperson” to lead each group.
• It can be intimidating for groups to use, especially at first, ensure that the work is very impactful. Or fun or compelling.
• Don’t overdo their use, and typically use them if your group is more than 10-12 in total. If it’s less than that, opt for a group discussion instead.
• As a host, you can go to any session you want.

Zoom Webinar Training Tips For Facilitators

Using the features and tools in your Zoom webinars described above requires the facilitator to be confident when using them.  And getting people to participate takes confidence and commitment.

Here are tips for facilitating and helping attendees get the most out of your Zoom webinar training.

1.   Find a way to enable participants to engage early in the session.

• Get them to use the raise hand indicator when you ask a straightforward question, “How many people had coffee this morning?”
• Thumbs up on camera when you ask a question
• Ask attendees to type something in chat (“where are you joining from?”)
• Encourage participants to use the Annotate tool (“where are on the map are you from?”)

2.   Don’t fill all the silence – use silence as a tool

• Resist the temptation to answer your question every time
• Display a timer, so people don’t think the screen is frozen
• Turn off your mic to indicate that you are waiting for someone else to speak

3.   Call upon attendees to participate in your Zoom webinars

• At the beginning of the session, let participants know that you’ll be asking them to speak. Tell them the speaking order.
• Use the phrase “We haven’t heard from ________, yet today,” and list several names.
• Suggest participants use the chat option if they can’t reply verbally
• Use annotation or whiteboards to allow them to provide input

4.   Use objects on camera, for example,

• Ask attendees to write feedback on paper and hold it up to the camera. Or make it a game with a timer and include a prize.
• Use online meeting virtual cards such as those below, Online Meeting Virtual Cards for Zoom and Classroom
• Ask participants to have items on hand and use those for interaction. For example, “hold up your drinking cup if you are ready to go to your breakout room for discussion.”

5.   Use Games and Icebreakers

• Do things feel a little sluggish? Throw in an ice-breaker to lift the mood.  You can use ice-breakers at any time in a session, not only at the beginning.
• Instructional games have been around for a long time. You can adapt many of them to use in Zoom webinar training sessions.  For example, “Who am I,” “Charades,” and “Picitonary.” Or “introduce your neighbor,” “top ten list of…..”, etc.
• Give you audience control. For example, use a poll for attendees to indicate which topics they’d like you to expand upon.

People participate in Zoom webinars for the experience, not just the content.  And they remember the content more if the experience is engaging.

Conversion of Zoom Webinar Training To On-Demand E-learning Courses

Earlier on, we discussed instances when Zoom webinar training was unsuitable in certain cases.  For example, procedural information or activities that need individual practice.  Such as onboarding, aspects of sales training, management development, and product knowledge.

And we discussed some of the challenges of Zoom webinars in terms of

• Lack of learner control
• Inconvenience for learners and
• How Zoom webinars can become a scheduling nightmare

To address these challenges, you could consider converting existing recorded Zoom webinar training sessions into self-paced eLearning courses.  And it can be done for a modest cost and can have great benefits.  While it’s beyond the scope of this article to delve into this topic, you can find information here on how it can be done.

Additional Resources To Assist Your Zoom Webinar Training

In addition to the above tips and advice, the following are additional resources to help enhance your Zoom webinar training.

• Education and support for instructors in Live Virtual Training
• Zoom learning center
• Zoom also has its own YouTube channel containing video tutorials in multiple languages
• Linkedin learning for zoom
• Zoom games

Final Thoughts – Successful Zoom Webinar Training

Zoom webinars have become a standard method for training delivery.  But to create successful webinar training sessions, instructors must prepare well and use the tools and activities to develop interactive and participative sessions.  And with the tips and the knowledge you’ve gained , your Zoom webinar training sessions will be highly engaging learning experiences for your participants.