As the world is gearing up to deal with the ongoing pandemic and adjust to the new normal, there is another pandemic taking prevalence, gripping the world-Webinars. COVID-19 has changed the important aspects of life and professional life-forever. The things which we till some time ago used to take for granted, the disease has made us stop, ponder, and reassess the way they can be done, and should be done. The ongoing health crisis is the catalyst to the rise and boom of this new machine world, and we do not have an option.

The lockdowns everywhere have made us resort to performing things virtually, be it entertainment, education, gaming, office work, consultation for health, practically everything. The virtual meeting and engaging platforms provide an opportunity to expand your reach, generate new ideas, and help achieve the overall goals. But as applicable to any technology, it has its hits and misses-Hits and Misses of the new webinar world.

Hits:

1. Plethora of options: Mediums and platforms ranging from unpaid to paid subscriptions and memberships, are available nowadays. One can choose the platform based on their requirement. No special equipment is required as such, with a good webcam a presenter can get the webinar going in no time.
2. Cost and time effective: Time is the essence and provided the technology is being used diligently, it becomes a blessing as a lot of time can be saved as travel time is reduced to almost zero. An enormous expense owing to material cost is also saved during online communication.
3. Diversity of audience: Many individuals can attend a single webinar from across the world at the same time, no matter where the workforce is.
4. Interactive & engaging: Attendees can use interactive tools to start a conversation, and they can very well participate in polls during events, can use the ‘raise hand’ option to raise queries, express through ‘emotion’ buttons, etc. Webinars enable brand creation and options for interactive events are available for the audience, as well as to download relevant resources.
5. Flexibility: The programs or events can be watched later, at a time convenient to the attendee and they don’t have to watch the static screen for a longer duration.
6. Environment: Mother earth is feeling better as the carbon emissions have drastically reduced owing to less travel for office work.
7. Revamping of systems: All over the systems have started shaping and adjusting to the new norm, showing the ability of the human race to adapt, sustain, and survive yet again.

Misses:  

1. Technological issues: Though the world over systems have advanced and efficient technological tools are available for communication, there is always a possibility of issues arising during online communication. If meticulous planning before going live is not done at the end of the presenter as well as the audience, it may result in frustration or irritation to both sides.
2. High-speed internet and System requirements: Internet speed is an important factor and in the absence of highspeed network, lags and distortions cannot be ruled out. Moreover, all kinds of browsers do not support webinars and some of them do not even allow changes in their settings or system configurations.
3. Frustration and irritation: The time lags, cracking of voice, image freezing, etc. resulting in inefficient exchange of information, and the whole purpose of the webinar gets defeated at times.
4. Communication gap: In the absence of video feed, it is difficult to understand the session at times due to a lack of body language. Clapping and greeting the presenter for their efforts is a key element that goes missing.
5. Lack of proper webinar etiquettes: Most webinars expect the audience to keep their audio-video in off mode. The attendees may tend to munch or snack during the webinars or attend the session in improper attire. It also becomes embarrassing when accidentally the audio-video is left on, and the attendees are doing their personal work, which is disappointing for the presenter at the same time.
6. Disruptions at the audience’s end: The audience may be distracted or interrupted if they are doing some other work simultaneously or having side conversations. Moreover, everyone is operating from home, so many times disturbances owing to other household activities are possible.
7. Missing personal touch: Humans are tuned to respond when they speak to someone based on body language, actions, smiles, gestures, etc. These elements are missing in the online mode, and the overall efficacy of a webinar is therefore hampered in the absence of these human cues.

With lockdowns and home offices becoming the new norm, webinars may become a permanent way of life in the coming future. We all might be operating behind closed doors for longer than expected yet communicate with everyone using such technology. With uncertainty creeping in every new moment, and no permanent cure visible to eliminate the virus at present, the ‘webinar pandemic’ is here to stay!