Here are 5 simple ideas and tips to make your virtual training more engaging and ensure attendees learn the most!

Whether face-to-face or, as we’ve now grown accustomed to, a virtual setting, capturing your learners’ attention continues to be a challenge. If you’ve been tasked with leading a virtual training session, you may be dreading the idea of having your learners completely disengage behind their screens. But, the reality is a virtual training session may even be a blessing in disguise!

Even before WFH or hybrid work structures, 70% of employees reported being distracted at work. With all sorts of diversions just a click or swipe away, it’s no wonder individuals are struggling more and more to maintain focus. So, why can a virtual training session be an advantage?

With the right live video tools, you can capture viewers’ attention and keep them even more engaged than in an in-person setting. It’s more than possible to deliver a stellar training session that keeps them hooked from start to finish.

Need live video tools to connect to your video conferencing app? Download ManyCam for free today!

Keep reading to find out how to make virtual training more engaging.

5 ideas to make virtual training more engaging

• Make it as interactive as you can

First off, you should make it a habit to keep your video on during training sessions. As the one leading the class, you want to make sure your trainees feel some sense of connection to you. Plus, they will have something to look at instead of their phone screens, or off into the distance. If possible, ask for them to turn their cameras on, too, so it creates a mutual relationship and puts a bit of pressure on them to look focused.

It’s crucial for virtual training to be as interactive as possible. During your training or after you’ve delivered your content, incorporate polls and quizzes, Q+As, and discussion panels. They will ensure your trainees stay sharp and engaged.

• Incorporate multi-media elements

As stated before, it’s always good practice to keep your video on. But, you can go above and beyond that by including an array of stimulating media and extra resources.

Incorporating multiple video sources is one way to go and will even give you a break from having to do all the explaining. It also gives your trainees a break from the same mundane lecture or demonstration format of learning. Using a virtual whiteboard to include hand-drawn diagrams and mind maps is also a twist on an old-fashioned way to hold your learners’ attention.

Sharing your screen to include live demonstrations is another way to add variety. You can also share slides and allow your trainees to annotate on these slides in real-time. It will get them more involved in a hands-on way.

ManyCam allows you to include all these ideas and even go a step further. For example, if you wanted to do a live, practical demonstration, you could link multiple devices, such as your phone and iPad and your webcam, and offer your audience more angles and dynamism.

• Incorporate Breakouts

Making sure employees have the option to work together and collaborate is very important. This holds true no matter how well your trainees already know each other beforehand. But, it is especially relevant to employees who are meeting for the first time at the start of a series of new training sessions.

Offering the option for breakout rooms is an excellent way for employees to engage with one another in a more intimate and less formal environment and collaborate to complete training exercises.

Note: You can split the participants into groups and send them to specific rooms on most video conferencing apps. These are called breakout rooms, and attendees can discuss by themselves while the presenter remains in the main conference call.

• Construct feedback loops

It’s vital to consistently engage your trainees by creating back and forth interaction opportunities in any virtual training session.

As part of your efforts towards interactivity, you can start and end each training session with questions that will encourage feedback.

Start your session by asking your employees what they already know about the topic you’ll be presenting or what they remember from the last session. This will give them a chance to engage immediately, and it will provide you with a better understanding of what to spend more (or less) time focusing on.
It may also boost some of their morale to show off how much they know about a particular topic. Plus, you can take the opportunity to appoint specific individuals to take over and explain to their peers during a breakout session.

To end your session, you can incorporate another opportunity for feedback by asking your participants questions like:

• • What they liked about this session in particular
  • What they found most or least helpful
  • If they need any more time on or assistance with a topic

• Schedule breaks

Finally, perhaps the most overlooked idea is to remember to schedule breaks. Engagement requires participants to be at their best, which is hard if they are tired or overwhelmed. So, make sure to include the time in your lesson plan to give your trainees a breather.

Though this may seem like common knowledge, it’s way easier than you think to forget. Giving intervals of about 10-15 minutes every hour or 2 of your sessions will help keep your attendees from dozing off or completely losing focus.

That allotted time will keep their minds sharp and give you time to regroup and change around any part of your session plan if need be.

Key Takeaway

In conclusion, remembering to be creative and using technology to your advantage, as well as incorporating ideas for interactivity, will make virtual training a lot more engaging.

Allowing attendees small interludes for breakout rooms and actual breaks will help create a collaborative and dynamic learning experience. It helps keep their focus razor-sharp.

Utilize these simple ideas and tips to keep your trainees focused and engaged on your next virtual training sessions.