Webinar Software Under Attack: Google Docs and SlideShare Take Aim

Whether they intended to or not, hosted software solution providers Google and SlideShare are starting to give traditional webinar shops a run for their money. Both companies are providing consumers with alternatives to pricey webinar software.

SlideShare, described commonly as YouTube for presentations, offers a new service called SlideCasting. It’s a marriage of SlideShare and podcasting that allows users to sync up their video and audio files. Because SlideShare is an online service, some users are finding creative ways to use the software. Rashimi provides some great tips on how to use SlideShare for presentations.

Check out this three minute video demonstration of how SlideCasting works.

| View | Upload your own

Google Docs and Spreadsheets used to be limited to, you guessed it, documents and spreadsheets. But, recent additions to the tool set include presentations, Google’s answer to PowerPoint. It allows folks to collaborate online and create and edit presentations, but it also provide users with an online interface that can be used to share slide decks online.

Web events, however, involve more than just presenting a slide deck in a web browser. You have to have email to send invitations to your target audience at various intervals before and after the event, and you have to have a way for your attendees to hear the voice of the presenter, without hearing each other.

Combine a web-based presentation service with a FreeConferenceCall.com telephone line and email invitations from your favorite email service provider, and you’ve got all the basics needed to run a successful webinar. Although the technology won’t make you an expert overnight, these Ten Best Practices for Webinars will help you avoid the ppitfalls made by others before you.

Filed under: Presentations

Comments

By Ben Tremblay on December 6, 2007 -- 1:41am

Thanks for the SlideShare link. But I can’t help thinking that, really, NBD; almost a decade ago Real (How many folk remember RealAudio?!) had a very nice SlideShow app. I mean /very/ ... easy to use, and nice product in the end.

So good on SS, but ... not exactly ground-breaking?

--bentrem

p.s. first visit to CW ... great site!