One of the worst things that I can think of is a meeting that has trouble sticking to the agenda. With an audience response systems, now you can at least keep the polling on track by using countdown timers. I’m not sure that I can 100% explain it, but when time is ticking away on a screen, meeting attendees seem to just get the idea that now is not the time endlessly debate a point, it is now time to cast a vote, collect some hard data and possibly put the issue to rest.
Now on to some details about how to effectively use a countdown timer with an audience response system:
When it comes to countdown timers, simple is better. TurningPoint’s simplest countdown is called Gemstone and I use it almost exclusively.
Pick a time and stick with it. In my experience, I’ve found that 7 seconds is about perfect. 5 seems to short and 10 feels link an eternity. While seven seconds may not seem like a long time, keep in mind that with most ARS systems attendees can vote as soon as the question is displayed on-screen.
Meeting attendees need structure. Presenters or facilitators need to setup a rhythm that they will use when it is time to use the keypad. For example:
- Read the audience response question.
- Read the possible answer choices.
- Tell the audience, “Make your selection and vote with your keypad now”.
- Start the countdown timer
Use music with the timer. This also serves to set the rhythm. After the first question or two, even if the audience doesn’t know there is a countdown timer on-screen, they will know that when the music stops, voting is over. Ideally, you will have prepared audio clips before the meeting that are the right length and fade out at the end. (Example of a 7 second audio stinger) Remember to keep the music fun. Don’t put people at the meeting to sleep. This is something that a full-service audience response system operator will certainly take care of for you.
Don’t make the timer a prominent element on your slides. Tucking it in the bottom right corner is just fine.
If you are in need of any song suggestions for use with the timers, please comment below. To download several music clips that I use check out another post on audio stingers.
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