Running Webinars on eduFire – The Top 5 Reasons I Think eduFire Kicks A*s

Ah webinars.  You gotta love ‘em.

What a great way to present to lots of people at the same time, anywhere they want.  The benefits are undeniable, and fortunately, I get to run a lot of webinars all the time at our company.

But there are a lot of options out there to choose from when it comes to running webinars (just to name a few : WebEx, GoToWebinar, Elluminate, iLinc, and Adobe Connect.)

I feel they all have their pros and cons, and you have to make a strategic decision on which one works for you.  I’m personally a big fan of GoToWebinar.

With GoToWebinar, I can run unlimited webinars for up to 1001 people for $99 / month!

Ok, I haven’t run a webinar with more than 200 yet, but I like to dream.  And I like knowing that my investment won’t have to increase the more successful my webinars become.

But what if I want to invoke some of the more advanced functionality of a platform like Adobe Connect?  It’s crazy expensive if I want to get it on my own…But it’s crazy cool in terms of its functionality (which I’ll highlight in depth towards the end of this blog post.)

Enter eduFire…

I learned about eduFire several months ago and decided to offer a free webinar on Facebook for Business to see what would happen.  It was a fantastic experience:

• Over 60 participants from around the world
• Highly interactive and entertaining
• Video broadcast showing my ‘human side’ (er… awkward human side)

I loved the experience.  I had a blast, and based upon the feedback from the course, apparently the participants liked it too!

In fact, consider signing up for our next webinar on August 27th – HOW TO: Create and Promote Your Own iPhone App.)

I was so enamored by the eduFire organization, I not only visited them in San Fran a few weeks ago, but I decided to write an article about them.

And now…

My Top 5 Reasons I Think eduFire Kicks A*s

1. Leverage Adobe Connect without having to pay for it! We use GoToWebinar (which is an awesome webinar system, don’t get me wrong)…BUT there are several features and benefits of Adobe Connect that make it an incredibly powerful system.  (See below for a further analysis of differences between Adobe Connect and GoToWebinar).
2. Their system is All-in-One! With eduFire, there’s no need to put up the necessary capital for infrastructure such as a registration system OR payment system.  Their process is simple:  Teach.  Get Paid.  Done.
3. Their eduFire community is full of eager learners from around the world.  In my first eduFire webinar on Facebook for Business, in the 60 person class there were over 15 countries represented!  I don’t have too many opportunities to speak to international audiences.  Each of those participants would not have known about the webinar if it wasn’t for eduFire’s extensive network.
4. Using stronger technology can give you a better perception of professionalism.  I’ll be blunt: Adobe Connect looks beautiful.  It’s all built in flash technology so it looks better and its user interface is seamless.    Take advantage of this technology because purchasing Adobe Connect is not cheap!  15 percent commission to eduFire in exchange for access is well worth it in my opinion.
5. Their business model is valuable and creates a win-win for everyone.  I agree with eduFire, we all have something to teach.  Thanks to their relationship with Adobe and a business model that makes the technology accessible by everyday people, they are helping democratize powerful education and training on the internet.

So, got something to teach?  Head over to eduFire and set up a class today.  And don’t forget to get signed up for my next webinar on eduFire – HOW TO: Create and Promote Your Own iPhone App.

Never stop learning,

- Brad Kleinman