| Running a seminar or a small business management | | | | commands to cut down the amount of work |
| course can potentially be a labor intensive | | | | required. |
| undertaking. You want to ensure the ROI. A major | | | | For example, if you enter the following words into |
| part of that effort will be in researching developing | | | | Google -income taxyou will be presented with every |
| your materials for presentation. How do you do this? | | | | site that has the word 'income' and the word 'tax' in |
| The following acronym (SOAP) sums up the process | | | | it and from sites throughout the world. |
| and the result:reSearchleads to Originalityand | | | | Whereas the following phrases - |
| Authenticityin Presentation | | | | "income tax" date:3 IRSwill pull up recently searched |
| Essentially, if you research your topic thoroughly | | | | pages on US income tax increasing the relevance |
| before you begin, even when it is an area you work | | | | factor by 100% and cutting down the amount of |
| in daily and are familiar with, you are more likely to | | | | material to trawl through (a process called 'data |
| produce original materials and ideas and present them | | | | scraping') by an order of magnitude. |
| in a fresh and authentic style. | | | | You can also use search engines to trawl news, |
| In addition, you want to get away from the dull | | | | discussion pages and blogs on the same subject and |
| familiarity of 'talk and chalk' training. Training should be | | | | track down any multi media information - such as |
| participatory and your presentation materials should | | | | cartoons, pictures and training films. |
| include in addition to standard lecture materials,o Ice | | | | And there are specialist search applications which |
| breakers such as problem solving and team bonding | | | | work with search engines to make this process |
| exerciseso Scripts for introducing and running | | | | easier and more thoroughgoing. However, these |
| hothouse sessions to generate ideaso Case studieso | | | | normally need a license from the search engine |
| Role playso Workshop exerciseso Multi media | | | | owners to run and so are generally only used by |
| presentationso Supplementary guides and more | | | | agencies or individuals that specialize in this area of |
| in-depth technical explanationso Where to find further | | | | work. |
| information | | | | Whether you or someone else is doing the research |
| Researching an area, particularly one where in-depth | | | | you need to be very discerning. The Internet can be |
| technical knowledge is required can be a | | | | extremely useful but some of the material posted |
| time-consuming process. It also needs specialist skills. | | | | can be both out of date and very misleading. |
| While books and trade magazines supply useful | | | | Once you have collated your material and selected |
| background and allow you to ground yourself in the | | | | the most relevant items, you need to structure your |
| concepts and principles, they are normally out of | | | | training around them. Here it helps to bring in |
| date. They also cost money to buy or subscribe so | | | | someone with good composition and typing skills as |
| unless you have a very good library (probably | | | | you need to rapidly and accurately develop the key |
| belonging to a college) to hand, they not the | | | | lecture materials and notes along with supplementary |
| cheapest or most readily available resource. | | | | guides and sources of further information. If they |
| The best source for fresh and up to date material is | | | | have also participated in the research effort, so much |
| the Internet. This material can come from several | | | | the better. |
| places -o Professional association pageso Magazine | | | | In addition, you also need to script the other types |
| and specialist siteso Discussion forumso News | | | | of sessions. Even sessions where you are expecting |
| organizations | | | | your participants to generate the material need a |
| The key to unlock this material is knowing how to | | | | carefully worded introduction and a well thought out |
| use an Internet search engine. | | | | set of rules to structure the session so that it is |
| Everyone has experienced entering what they | | | | maximally useful to those who take part and that no |
| thought was a meaningful phrase into a search site | | | | one is put under pressure or embarrassed during the |
| such as Google only to be presented with | | | | process. |
| unexpected and unwanted material or so much | | | | What you can be sure of is that the more effort |
| apparently relevant information that there seems no | | | | you put into research and development and the |
| possible way of trawling through it all. Experts in the | | | | more professionally it is done, the more it will repay |
| area know how to use specific search engine | | | | you in the long run. |