Land use approvals are moving forward during the pandemic with tweaks to the process. Community meetings are still required, but on a virtual platform. How do you plan an online meeting in a seamless and effective manner, while complying with government requirements?
Here are six best practices to ensure an effective and compliant online community meeting.
Choose a platform that creates a required attendance list and allows people to submit questions to a moderator. GoToMeeting,Webex and BlueJeans are just three examples.
Assign different roles to the team to ensure the meeting runs smoothly. Designate a Facilitator to lead the meeting, a Moderator to receive audience questions and submit to the Facilitator, a Technician focused on solving issues that may come up and a Recorder to take required minutes.
Lay out engagement ground rules at the start of the meeting so everyone understands how best to participate.
Provide a phone call-in option for those who don’t have digital access.
Rehearse the online presentation with a test audience to address any technical glitches beforehand.
Maintain eye contact with the audience to maximize the sense of engagement. Look at your camera, not your screen.
Thanks to Beth Kanter and the Nonprofit Technology Conference for some of these ideas.
Watch your email for more Quick Tips in the days to come and check out our blog for ones you may have missed. Please accept our best wishes for you, your loved ones and employees to stay safe and healthy during these trying times.
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