Research shows that people have a shorter attention span when they are online than they do in a face-to-face session (Lunt Crosman, 2004). We also know that the majority of participants in webinars will multi-task during the session. At the same time as the webinar is in progress, participants are likely to check their e-mail, engage with social media, eat lunch or so any number of other activities that require them to divide their time and focus.
When it comes to offering training or sharing knowledge through a webinar, your participants are not interested in spending time going over and over the same material to memorize it or going deep into theory. They want solid, relevant content and they want it in a way that keeps them engaged and interested.
Experts in the e-learning field have found that shorter sessions result in higher rates of retention (Lunt Crosman, 2004). Having said that, you don't want to cram in so much material that you have to talk a mile a minute. You want to divide your time for each segment of your session. The main segments will include an introduction, a maximum of three main content points, and a conclusion. You also need to allow time for interaction such as polls and other activities, as well as a question and answer period.
The general rule is to break your content down into manageable chunks. Offer each "chunk" as an individual session. Give relevant examples, stories, statistics and actionable "how to"s for each topic you present. It is better to offer more sessions on more topics, with each session being rich in content and takeaways for your participants.
Ideally, your webinars should be no less than thirty minutes in length and no longer than ninety minutes. If you go shorter than half an hour, you may not be able to cover your main points in any depth at all. If you go longer than ninety minutes, you run the risk of losing your participants' attention completely, as they pass the point of diminishing return for learning. That's the point at which they start to be able to absorb less and less. The longer you go past the point of diminishing return, the less they retain.
The optimal time, in my opinion, is 60 minutes, with 45 - 50 minutes being for the main presentation, allowing for a 10 - 15 minute question period at the end.
Keep it short. Keep it relevant. To have an exceptional webinar, the trick is to strike the balance between providing excellent value for the participants by providing solid content while keeping them engaged and interested.
References:
Lunt Crossman, Penny. 2004, July. "E-learning for Short Attention Spans". Transform Mag. Vol. 7, pp. 37 - 43
Want to cite this article in your own research? Here's the citation information:
Eaton, S.E. (2011). What's the Optimal Length of a Webinar?
Dr. Sarah Elaine Eaton is a speaker, author and consultant who specializes in webinars. She holds a PhD in education from the University of Calgary and has been an educator since 1994. She's been working with educational technologies since the turn of the millennium. She is the CEO of Exceptional Webinars, a company that provides training and consulting on best practices for webinar success. Check out her website at [
http://www.exceptionalwebinars.com]http://www.exceptionalwebinars.com.
Throughout her career, Dr. Sarah Eaton has has presented on her work in seven different countries. In 2010, she was inducted into the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. Her most requested presentations are "Why Webinars Work" and "Unleash the Power of Webinars!" Book Dr. Sarah to speak at your next technology or marketing event!
Article Source: [
http://EzineArticles.com/?Whats-the-Optimal-Length-of-a-Webinar?&id=5809596] What's the Optimal Length of a Webinar?
