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Did you know there’s such a thing as a webinar host? No idea what they do? Host Jochem Wijers tells us all about what he does before, during and after the webinar.

Role #1: Host

‘Anyone who holds a webinar at Online Seminar knows they are being taken care of. That also means that there is a special host that makes sure everything runs smoothly, even in times of corona. Jochem is one of them. ‘For the webinar I make sure everything is ready. So the computers, the microphones, the screens… But I also prepare sandwiches and bottles of water. I welcome the guests when they come in and make sure they feel comfortable here. Of course I keep a distance of a meter and a half.’

Role #2: Moderator

‘About one hour before the webinar we always practice,’ says Jochem. ‘We’ll discuss the approach of the webinar again. The director goes to work with the presenter for a final rehearsal. I’m going to work with the moderator. Moderating is an important task within the webinar. The moderator answers all questions that come in through the chat. As a moderator, I am responsible for all technical questions that come in. For example, if a viewer’s internet connection does not function properly, thenI’ll try to solve that.’

‘Our customer’s moderator is responsible for dealing with any questions regarding the subject. If they are of interest for the broadcast, the moderator will forward them to the presenter. Before the broadcast, I will explain how our dashboard works,’ explains Jochem. ‘How to answer a question or forward a question to the presenter. Some moderators are afraid it’s very difficult, but it’s not that difficult. Besides, I’m sitting next to them for the entire broadcast. So if anyone does find it difficult, I can help immediately.’

Role #3 Evaluation

‘Immediately afterwards the director, presenters and moderators come together,’ says Jochem. ‘After the broadcast, the participants will see a survey on their screen. Our customer determines the questions it contains.Usually there are about ten of them. So, we also get the results very quickly. We then discuss the results. What did the participants think of the presenter? Was the webinar useful? We also get figures on participation: did participants watch the entire broadcast, or did they quit at a specific moment? Together we analyse about the reasoning behind very high or low grades. After that we can finish. Always nice, hosting a webinar!’