This post is my initial review of the two services. It features this post and a Google Document that is shared below. Feel free to add your comments below and modify the google document with new insights, edits and other stuff that can help us all evaluate these two services.
Embedding
Below are the options available to anyone wishing to embed a presentation on a blog, wiki etc.
Slideshare (embed options)
Option 1: "Embed"
Twitter Personal Branding
View more presentations from John Moore.
Option 2: "Embed Without related presentations"
Twitter Personal Branding
View more presentations from John Moore.
Brainshark (embed options)
Option 1: Size: 528x439
Option 2: Size: 440x366
Option 3: Size: 422x351
Comparison Chart
Below is a screenshot of a publicly available and editable google document that you can access here.
The verdict? I'd give Slideshare the nod but I'm sure there are lots of really great people at Brainshark who are busy building a great service.
Feel free to leave your comments below regarding your experiences with either of these services, share links to example presentations (they can be yours too, just make sure it has something to do with this post). You can also contribute to the google document here.
Posts
Really good post Chris. My favorite feature in Brainshark is the easy audio-annotation via the telephone interface. I would recommend trying to record audio in Brainshark, then bringing that into SlideShare to chop up using their audio tools.
ReplyDeleteGreat thing with this solution is you end up with presentations in both platforms, doubling your visibility.
John
@johnfmoore: Another plus for Brainshark is that you can fast forward or timeshift to the next slide very easily. Not the case with Slideshare.
ReplyDeleteDavid @ Brainshark here. I won't use this space to hard-sell my product, but I hope you don't mind me highlighting just one key feature.
ReplyDeleteAlthough John didn't take advantage of this, Brainshark's support of powerpoint slide animations is key to how someone conveys their story. It helps to synchronize the timing of valuable points within a speaker's script with a visual point of reference on the slide - keeping the speaker in control of their audience's attention and improving the knowledge retention.
Of course I would love to dive deeper into other elements, but I think that your chart offers a good start to a comparison. I appreciate your perspective and priorities and am interested in seeing others.
David
Thanks for the analysis. I am noting it for product dicussions within SlideShare.
ReplyDeleteRashmi
CEO & Cofounder
SlideShare
@ David: Feel free to add to the google document if you would like. Anyone can. A sort of "wikipedia" doc if you will.
ReplyDelete@ Rashmi: I hope it is useful to everyone. I believe that tools like Slideshare and Brainshark are fantastic channels to communicate. Keep on trucking!
Hi Chris,
ReplyDeleteThank you for the interesting presentation! Tools for online, on-demand presentation are definitely a key to the future of communication, and I am glad that there are multiple options to choose from!
With that in mind, I would also like to tip you and your readers about another platform; Faculte. We are fairly new, but never the less part of this game.
Our platform allows users to upload all sorts of multimedia - images, powerpoints, video, documents, record voice-over and webcam video directly in the Studio and draw with a "pen" on the pages. We've got a lot of different share options, and branding, tracking, full security and monetization is available.
Good competitors keeps everybody on their toes!