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Innovative Rental offers complete event technology solutions including both equipment rental and technical staff capable of making your event run flawlessly. The Innovative Rental International Network of event rental suppliers has been chosen over a period of ten years as the best suppliers money can buy. If you are interested in incorporating an Audience Response System into your next meeting or conference please call (212) 461-0959 for the Innovative Rental specialist in Audience Response Systems.

Audience Response Systems

Audience Response Systems, or Audience Voting Systems, are a very useful tool in many applications. Where there is a need for prompt feedback as to how well the audience is understanding and retaining the information being presented, or what the desires and preferences of the attendees are on issues, or for voting on issues and resolutions, or simply to provide audience interaction in a team building game or activity, an ARS system is the ideal choice.

The way most modern ARS systems work is fairly straight forward. There are keypads for each attendee. The keypad are registered with the system and are identified. On the pad are several voting options, numbers as in 1 through 5, a Yes or No response, and/or letter responses A-E. Each time a question is asked, the question and a choice of answers are displayed on the main projection screen. For example:

What background color is used on "Stop" signs?

Blue
Red
Yellow
Green
Black

All responses are sent wirlessly to a laptop system which tabulates the results. Voting is limited to a specific period of time, during which the system may play a short tune or jingle. During the voting period, votes may be changed, registering only the last key pressed. Once the voting period closes, the results are tabulated and are formatted for display on the screen. There are many ways in which the results may be tabulated. Some examples are:

Total votes cast, by answer, from the entire voting group
Total votes cast, by answer, by sub group (i.e. Region, team, membership type, etc.)
Percent of correct answers, grouped as above
A Bar graph or pi chart, grouped as above
A simple passed or failed (as in voting on a resolution)
As well as others, depending on the system used.

In some ways the systems are very versatile. They can tabulate vote for groups as small as 2 to several thousand. Voting can be controlled by issuing keypads at the time of registration, to insure that only qualified voters have assess to voting. Keypads can be assigned in groups to distinguish teams, regions, type of membership, or other criterion.

In other respects, the systems can be restrictive. All questions, answers, and correct answers must be preloaded into the computer, meaning asking for votes "on the fly" is very slow, cumbersome, and prone to errors. Groupings (once set) are difficult to change on the fly. Questions must be asked in the order they were preprogrammed.

Generally, these systems are rented as a package which is internally complete (including technician); however, there are several external requirements that need to be provided for proper operation. In order to display the questions, votes cast, and analysis, there needs to be a screen and data projector. The computers require to be patched into the sound system so that voting cues can be heard throughout the audience area. The video outputs of the various computers need to be switched to the projector at the correct times to show the different displays. It is advantageous if the switch has freeze frame capability to allow the operator to bring up the results cleanly. (A Sony 1024 HD switch is ideal for this application.) On shows where there is also PowerPoint presentation and microphones for the presenters in use, an A/V Technician is usually a must, to insure smooth integration of the various elements.

about the author:
John Le Duc has worked in the Audio Visual field in Las Vegas since 1970, served as the Event Staging Coordinator at the Desert Inn Resort from 1995 through 2000. He is currently semi-retired and is available on a consultant basis. Questions and inquiries may be directed through the contact page of this website. Or, to e-mail John Le Duc directly, click here.

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