Online vs Face-to-Face Presentations: Advantages and Disadvantages

Abstract

Online presentations may be audio-only or a combination of video plus audio (i.e. videoconferencing). Audio-only teleconferencing is efficient and inexpensive if there is a need to supply a select group of people with the same information at the same time. However, if the audience becomes too large or the audio quality is not high, this method becomes an ineffective way of communicating. Normally, people rely on visual clues to decide when to speak and when to listen, as well as to understand what is being said. As with any meeting, a virtual meeting is undertaken to achieve some objective, but expands the possibilities by reducing the usual barriers to meeting for individuals in different locations, namely the physical separation and the time and cost of travelling to a common venue. An online meeting can be conducted at any time and location. For this reason, online meetings have enjoyed considerable attention in the commercial, academic and other fields. Face-to-face meetings offer networking opportunities and the chance for personal engagement. Coffee break discussions, socialising events and conference meals help teams to establish themselves. When attendees are at a face-to-face event, they tend to be less easily distracted from the business of the meeting than may occur with an online event. Both the presenters and the audience members can read many body language clues which reveal how engaged they are with the topic and what their feeling may be. These clues can be lost with videoconferencing. Teams tend to trust each other more when they have actually met in person.