Top Tips

At the DLnet masterclass in Manchester on Tuesday, the group came up with a whole load of useful tips for running events. The Top Tip, voted as the favourite, appears as this week's DLnet Tip of the Week:

Make time to keep up-to-date yourself which came from Kieran's group

The close runner up (just 2 votes in it!) was to Make Training Focused - that is, to know what people need to get out of it, which came from C Powell's group

Here are all the tips by category:

Content
from Kieran's group

• Reinforce content after training
  
• Check all live links
  
• Evaluate feedback
  
• Have a back up resource
  
• Target content to the audience
  
• Develop a lesson plan
  
• Be flexible
  
• Have fun and interest generators
  
• Nothing is perfect
  
• Plan interaction - communication is a 2-way process
  
• Be honest if you don't know
  
• Deliver in short bite-sized lumps
  
• Make time to keep up to date yourself
  

Venue
from MP and JR

• Trainers can travel - "bringing knowledge to you"
  
• "My place or yours?"
  
• Training : any place, anywhere, anytime
  
• Ready, steady, TRAIN
  
• All you need is a PC and a connection
  

Equipment
from Louise, Debbie, Helen, John

• Going remote? Check your leads/cables are long enough!
  
• Back up training materials on e.g. Powerpoint rather than rely on live
  
• Test equipment in situ before use
  
• Ensure trainees can use equipment before training - arrange preliminary mouse-handling practice where necessary
  
• Cache web pages before live demos
  

Materials
from K Turtle's group

• Keep plenty of stocks of materials
  
• Reminder sheets for trainees which aren't too cluttered
  
• Make sure materials are up-to-date
  
• Make good use of materials already available via DLnet
  

Training tips
from C Powell, E Bowen, K Turtle, FF

• Make training focused - know what they need to get out of it
  
• Focus by discipline and level of knowledge
  
• Flexible time and location
  
• Be friendly and proactive
  
• Bitesize chunks of knowledge are more memorable
  
• Don't do training on a Friday afternoon!
  
• Use multi-purpose materials e.g. a crib sheet could also be a mouse mat
  
• Put up promotional materials in toilets e.g. flyers on the back of toilet doors
  

Attracting non-users
from Jane, Angus, Steve, Rhona

• Advertise on intranet
  
• Virtual library service
  
• Promote home and office access to services
  
• Keep it simple
  
• Attend department meetings
  
• Work with your IT department
  
• Speak or have a stand at your organisation's induction days for new staff
  

Promotion
from Gwyneth, Lee, FF

• NeLH URL on paper drip mats (i.e. the mats which go between your cup and saucer)
  
• Make clear and obvious link to NeLH from our own web pages
  
• Doorstep staff in the queue for lunch
  
• Effective use of e-mail
  
• Update mousemats
  
• Smile more
  
• Put flyers on doors where staff come in to the library etc
  
• Make sure promotion is timely and specific - relate to current awareness issues
  
• Use a Quiz of the Week
  
• Table flyers in the canteen
  

Evaluation
from L Jones' and S Beck's group

• Evaluation helps the trainee to see if their objectives have been met
  
• Ensure they know you will act on their feedback
  
• Use incentives e.g. fines amnesty or free photocopying if ideas are implemented
  
• More incentives e.g. each evaluation form has a raffle ticket/prize....
  

Funding
from LHF

• Never say no - or almost never!
  
• Talk "their" (i.e. potential funders) language
  
• Prove your worth using evidence and statistics
  
• Know your place in the organisation and refer to goals and to drivers such as CHI visits
  
• Know your finance source
  
• "Sell" your staff