Why PowerPoint Alone Isn't Training
PowerPoint was built for presenting, not for learning. When a deck moves online without its presenter, it loses the one thing that made it work. That gap is what conversion closes.
No record of who learned what
A .pptx file cannot report to your LMS, so there is no record of who completed the training, how long they spent, or what they scored. For compliance training that is a dealbreaker: auditors want completion data, not a list of email attachments. A converted SCORM course reports all of it automatically.
Slides without a presenter are just notes
In the classroom your trainer explains, gives examples and answers questions, so the deck is only a visual aid. Send that same deck as self-paced training and learners get bullet points with no context. Conversion rebuilds the missing explanation through narration, on-screen guidance and worked examples.
Clicking next 60 times is endurance, not learning
Passive content invites skimming, and skimming shows up later as failed knowledge checks and repeat questions to your helpdesk. Converted courses use click-to-reveal, branching scenarios and knowledge checks that make learners decide something before they can move on.
No assessment, no proof of learning
PowerPoint cannot deliver scored quizzes, randomised question banks or pass/fail certification logic. Without assessment there is no way to know whether the training changed anything. Converted eLearning builds in formative knowledge checks and a final scored quiz tied to your LMS gradebook.
It breaks on mobile and ages badly
Large decks render inconsistently across devices: fonts shift, animations fail, and learners need PowerPoint installed to view them as intended. HTML5 output from conversion runs in any browser on desktop, tablet or phone, with no software to install and no formatting surprises.
It locks out the people who need it most
A deck emailed as training is rarely keyboard navigable, rarely captioned, and rarely readable by a screen reader. If your organisation is bound by Section 508, the ADA or EN 301 549, an untagged slide deck is a compliance exposure. Converted courses can be built to WCAG 2.2 AA from the storyboard onward.
Your options
5 Ways to Convert PowerPoint to eLearning
There are five realistic routes from a slide deck to something a learner can take on an LMS. Only one of them is us. Here is the honest comparison, so you can rule us out quickly if a cheaper route fits.
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| Method | Best for | What you get | Where it falls down | Typical cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Save as HTML5 or PDF | Sharing reference material fast | A web-viewable version of the same slides, no software needed to open it | No tracking, no assessment, animations often break on export | Free |
| 2. Upload the .pptx straight to your LMS | Policy updates and short announcements | The file sits in your LMS as an attachment learners can open | Most platforms will not treat it as a trackable course. You can see who opened it, not who learned it | Free |
| 3. AI course generator | Short, low-stakes internal content, high volume | A structured, mobile-ready course with auto-generated quizzes in minutes, SCORM export on paid tiers | Generic instructional design, generic visuals, weak on branching and accessibility. Output still needs a human review pass | Free to roughly $100 per author per month |
| 4. DIY in an authoring tool | Teams with an in-house instructional designer | Full control, real interactivity, SCORM and xAPI publishing, your own house style | Tool licence plus a genuine learning curve. Realistically 30 to 60 build hours for one hour of finished course | Licence roughly $1,000 to $1,600 per year, plus your team’s time |
| 5. Done-for-you conversion | Audited, certified, customer-facing or accessibility-bound training | Instructional redesign, custom visuals, scripted narration, branching scenarios, WCAG 2.2 build, LMS-tested package plus source files | Costs real money and takes 5 to 7 weeks. Overkill for a ten-slide internal update | $2,999 to $7,500 per course, fixed |
Methods 1 and 2 are not conversion, they are distribution. If your only requirement is that people can open the file, stop here and save your budget.
Do It Yourself, or Hand It Over?
We would rather you spent nothing than spent $4,500 on something a free tool would have handled. Here is where the line actually sits.
Convert it yourself when
- The deck is under about 25 slides and the stakes are low
- Nobody will ever audit completion of this training
- The content changes monthly and will be rewritten anyway
- Someone on your team already knows Rise, iSpring or Easygenerator
- You need it live this week, and good enough beats good
- It is internal only, with no accessibility obligation
If most of these are true, use a free AI generator or Rise and get on with your day. We will still answer a question if you email one.
Hand it over when
- An auditor, regulator or certifying body will look at the records
- The course must meet WCAG 2.2 AA or Section 508
- Learners or customers outside your organisation will see it
- The deck needs redesigning, not reformatting, before it teaches anything
- You have a curriculum of decks, not one file, and need consistency across them
- Your L&D team’s time is worth more than the fee, which it usually is
This is the work we do. Everything below describes how.
What We Do With Your PowerPoint Decks
Conversion is not a file export. It is a redesign of your content for someone learning alone, at their desk, with no one to ask. Here is what happens to your deck once you hand it over.
Instructional design and content restructuring
We audit your slides against clear, measurable learning objectives written in Bloom's terms, then cut what does not serve them. Dense decks get chunked into short modules with a storyboard you approve before development begins. This is the step most conversion services skip, and the reason their output is just slides in a different wrapper.
Interactive course development
Static bullets become click-to-reveal layouts, tabs, hotspots, drag-and-drop, sliders, sorting activities and branching scenarios drawn from real situations in your workplace. Every interaction is chosen to fit the content rather than to decorate it. The result is a course learners work through, not one they flip through.
Assessment that actually measures something
Formative knowledge checks close each topic and a final scored quiz applies pass/fail logic, feedback and retry rules you define. Question types include multiple choice, true/false, matching, fill-in-the-blank, drag-and-drop and scenario-based judgement items. Every question is mapped back to an objective, so a failed item tells you which topic to fix. Scores report to your LMS for certification and audit trails.
Narration, video and avatars
Voiceover restores the explanation your presenter used to give, scripted from your speaker notes and SME interviews, in human or synthetic voice. Where it helps we add guide characters, talking-head video or animated explainers. Audio is synced to what is on screen so learners hear and see the same idea at the same moment, and every track ships with a caption file.
PowerPoint to training video
Not every deck should become a clickable course. For awareness campaigns, launches and short explainers we produce narrated MP4 video from your slides, with optional presenter or avatar, captions and a transcript. Video cannot score or branch, so where certification matters we pair a short video with an interactive assessment instead of choosing one.
Built to localize later
If the course will eventually run in more than one language, we separate text, narration and on-screen graphics at build time so translated versions do not require a rebuild. Retrofitting localization into a finished course typically costs more than the original build. See our eLearning localization and translation services.
Publishing standards
SCORM 1.2, SCORM 2004, xAPI and AICC
The standard you publish in decides what your LMS can actually report. Tell us the platform and version and we will pick it for you, but here is what the choice means.
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| Standard | Choose it when | What it reports | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| SCORM 1.2 | Your LMS is more than a few years old, or you are not sure what it supports | Completion, pass/fail, single score, bookmarking, time spent | One score per course. Suspend data is capped, which can truncate long branching courses |
| SCORM 2004 (4th ed.) | You need per-objective reporting or enforced sequencing between modules | Everything SCORM 1.2 reports, plus multiple objectives, sequencing rules and richer status values | Support varies between platforms. Sequencing has to be configured deliberately or it locks learners out |
| xAPI (Tin Can) | You want analytics beyond course completion, or learning happens outside the LMS | Any statement you define: interactions attempted, video watched, job aid opened, offline and mobile activity | Needs a Learning Record Store. Data without a reporting plan is just storage costs |
| cmi5 | You want xAPI-level detail but still want the LMS to launch and own the course | Everything xAPI reports, with SCORM-style launch, completion and pass/fail built in | Newer, so platform support is less universal than SCORM. Still needs an LRS behind it |
| AICC | Legacy aviation, defence or manufacturing systems that still require it | Completion and score, over HACP | Effectively legacy. Only choose it if your platform gives you no alternative |
| HTML5, no wrapper | Hosting on your intranet or website with no LMS involved | Nothing, unless you add your own analytics layer | No completion record. Not suitable for anything audited |
Every package is validated in SCORM Cloud and then tested in your own LMS before handover, including completion, scoring and bookmark-and-resume. Nothing ships with a “works on our machine” caveat.
LMS platforms we deploy to
We test in the platform you actually use, not a generic one. If yours is not listed, it almost certainly still works.
- Moodle & Totara
- Cornerstone OnDemand
- Docebo
- SAP SuccessFactors
- SAP Litmos
- Workday Learning
- TalentLMS
- Absorb LMS
- LearnUpon
- 360Learning
- Adobe Learning Manager
- iSpring Learn
- Canvas
- Blackboard Learn
- Cypher / Open LMS
- Custom & in-house LMS
Which Authoring Tool We Build In
We build in whichever tool fits your content and your team, and you receive the source files either way. That means you can verify the choice was right, and change vendor later without starting over.
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| Tool | Strongest at | Trade-off | We pick it when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Articulate Storyline 360 | Complex interactions, branching scenarios, variables, custom logic | Slide-based rather than responsive, so mobile layouts need deliberate design | Your content needs decision-making, simulation or conditional paths |
| Articulate Rise 360 | Fast, genuinely responsive, clean reading experience on phones | Limited custom interactivity, less control over visual design | Content is knowledge-transfer heavy and learners are mobile-first |
| Adobe Captivate | Software simulation and system training, screen capture workflows | Steeper learning curve for your team to maintain afterwards | You are training people on an application, not a policy |
| iSpring Suite | Working directly inside PowerPoint, preserving original animations | Ceiling on advanced interaction design | Your L&D team wants to maintain and update the course themselves in PowerPoint |
| Lectora | Accessibility depth and precise control of the published output | Less common, so fewer people can pick it up cold | Section 508 or WCAG 2.2 AA conformance is contractual, not aspirational |
The recommendation is made during the content audit, in writing, with the reasoning attached. If you already own a licence, we build in your tool.
Built in, not bolted on
Accessible by Default: WCAG 2.2 AA and Section 508
Accessibility is decided at the storyboard, not patched in at QA. A course that was designed around a drag-and-drop cannot be made keyboard accessible afterwards without rebuilding it, which is why we make these decisions before development starts.
What we build to
- WCAG 2.2 level AA, Section 508 and EN 301 549
- Full keyboard operation with a logical, visible focus order
- Screen reader tested in NVDA on Windows and VoiceOver on macOS and iOS
- Closed captions on all audio and video, plus downloadable transcripts
- 4.5:1 minimum text contrast, 3:1 for interface components
- Meaningful alt text on informative images, decorative images marked as such
- No content conveyed by colour alone, no auto-playing audio, no flashing above threshold
- Accessible alternatives for drag-and-drop and hotspot interactions
What you can show your legal team
- An accessibility conformance report for the delivered course, on request
- A documented test log: tool used, assistive technology, criteria checked, result
- Known limitations stated plainly rather than quietly omitted
- Caption files delivered as separate assets you can correct or retranslate
Most conversion vendors treat accessibility as an upsell or a checkbox. If your training is required by law to be accessible, ask any vendor you are considering for their test log. The answer tells you a lot.
Where We Use AI, and Where We Don't
AI makes conversion faster and cheaper, which is why our prices are what they are. It does not make the design decisions. Here is the exact split, so you know what you are paying for.
AI does the production work
- First-draft narration scripts written from your speaker notes
- Synthetic voiceover, where a human voice is not worth the budget
- Image generation and clean-up for custom visuals
- First-pass translation, then reviewed by a native speaker
- Draft distractors for multiple-choice questions
- Caption and transcript generation, then corrected by hand
People do the design work
- Deciding what learners must be able to do, and cutting what does not serve that
- Choosing which interaction fits which idea
- Writing scenarios from your actual workplace situations
- Validating that each question measures the objective it claims to
- Accessibility decisions at storyboard stage
- Final QA, in your LMS, by a human who has to sign it off
If a vendor’s answer to “how do you convert decks” is “we upload it to our AI”, you are paying agency rates for a $30 subscription.
Our PowerPoint to eLearning Conversion Process
A defined process is the difference between a predictable project and an endless revision loop. Every stage names its deliverable and what we need back from you, so nobody is waiting on an unnamed thing.
Step 1 · Content audit and learning objectives
We review your deck, speaker notes and supporting material, then define with you what learners must be able to do afterwards. That determines what stays, what goes and what is missing entirely.
You get: a content outline, measurable objectives, an estimated seat time and a fixed quote, before anything is built.
We need: your files and about 45 minutes of a stakeholder’s time.
Typically: week 1.
Step 2 · Instructional design and storyboard
Our designers restructure the content into modules and map every screen: text, visuals, interactions, narration script and quiz questions. Changes made here are fast and free, which is what keeps the timeline honest.
You get: a screen-by-screen storyboard document plus the accessibility approach, for sign-off.
We need: one consolidated round of comments, and an SME available for factual questions.
Typically: weeks 1 to 2.
Step 3 · Visual design and branded interface
We design the course interface around your brand: colours, fonts, logo, navigation, menu and progress display. Slide visuals are rebuilt with proper layouts and graphics rather than pasted across as-is.
You get: one fully built sample module in your branding, to approve before full development.
We need: brand guidelines, or your logo and two hex codes if no guidelines exist.
Typically: week 2.
Step 4 · Full course development
Approved storyboards are built in the tool that fits your content: Storyline 360, Rise 360, Adobe Captivate, iSpring Suite or Lectora, with every interaction, narration track and assessment in place.
You get: a working draft link to review, then one structured revision round with all feedback consolidated.
We need: feedback in a single pass, from a named decision-maker.
Typically: weeks 3 to 5.
Step 5 · Quality assurance and compliance testing
Every screen is tested for functionality, audio sync, quiz logic and scoring. We validate SCORM and xAPI packaging in SCORM Cloud and run accessibility checks against Section 508 and WCAG 2.2 where required.
You get: a QA log and, where accessibility is in scope, a conformance report.
We need: nothing. This one is on us.
Typically: week 5 to 6.
Step 6 · LMS deployment and handover
We upload and test the course in your actual LMS, confirming completion tracking, scoring and bookmark-and-resume behave as expected before anyone else sees it.
You get: the published package, all source files, and 30 days of post-launch fixes during rollout.
We need: LMS admin access, or an admin on a call with us.
Typically: week 6 to 7.
Free estimator
How Long Will Your Deck Become?
As a working rule, 40 to 60 content slides become about one hour of seat time once narration, interactions and quizzes are added. Put your slide count in and see roughly what you are dealing with.
About 1 hour of seat time
Fits one course build. Which tier you need depends on interactivity.
An estimate, not a quote. We confirm real seat time during the content audit, before you commit to anything. Decks over 120 slides usually convert better as two or three shorter modules than one long course.
Pricing
Simple. Transparent. No surprises.
Fixed pricing. Fixed timelines. Every price is per course (30 to 60 minutes of seat time). Your tier is set by how interactive the course needs to be, not by how many slides you send us.
Rapid Build
Clean, guided courses for essential knowledge
$2,999
per course
• 30–60 min seat time
• Limited interactivity — click-to-reveal, tabs, drag-and-drop, scored quizzes
• Custom, on-brand visuals
• AI / Human voiceover
• SCORM 1.2 / 2004 or xAPI / cmi5
• Kirkpatrick L1–2 built in
• 5–7 week delivery
Recommended
Professional Build
Full interactivity with a named on-screen facilitator
$4,500
per course
• 30–60 min seat time
• Full interactivity — branching scenarios with real consequences
• Custom animation + named on-screen facilitator
• Feedback that teaches after every decision
• AI / Human voiceover
• SCORM 1.2 / 2004 or xAPI / cmi5
• Priority project manager
• 5–7 week delivery
Enterprise Build
Maximum depth — simulation and fully custom design
$7,500
per course
• 30–60 min seat time
• Simulation — adaptive branching + software / process sims
• Fully custom design + motion graphics
• Named facilitator + scenario storytelling
• AI / Human voiceover
• SCORM + xAPI / cmi5
• Priority project manager
• Timeline confirmed at scoping
Every tier includes instructional redesign, storyboard sign-off, testing in your own LMS, and the editable source files. Want proof before you commit? Send five to ten representative slides and we will convert two screens as a paid pilot, credited in full against your project if you go ahead.
What You Receive at Handover
You own everything. If you decide to work with someone else next year, they can pick the project up without rebuilding it. That is deliberate, and it is not how most vendors do it.
Files
- Published package: SCORM 1.2, SCORM 2004, xAPI or AICC zip
- Editable source: .story, .cptx, Rise export or .pptx with iSpring project
- All audio tracks as separate WAV or MP3 files
- Caption files (.vtt) and full transcripts
- Image and graphic assets, layered where applicable
- MP4 video version, where video is in scope
Documentation
- Approved storyboard document
- Narration scripts, matched to screen
- Quiz bank with answer key and objective mapping
- QA test log
- Accessibility conformance report, where in scope
- LMS upload and settings guide for your platform
- 30 days of post-launch fixes during rollout
How to Choose a PowerPoint Conversion Vendor
Ask every vendor on your shortlist these eight questions, including us. The ones who cannot answer them concretely are the ones whose output is slides in a different wrapper.
- Will you show me a written price before a sales call? If not, the price depends on what they think you can pay.
- Do I get the source files? If no, every future edit goes through them at their rate, forever.
- Who writes the learning objectives? If the answer is “we follow your deck”, there is no instructional design happening.
- Can I see your accessibility test log? Claiming WCAG conformance is easy. Producing the log is not.
- Do you test in my LMS, or just SCORM Cloud? Packages that validate in the cloud still fail in real platforms.
- What exactly is a revision round? Undefined revisions are how fixed prices stop being fixed.
- Will you convert two of my slides first? A pilot on your content beats a portfolio of someone else’s.
- Who owns the content, and under what terms? Ask for it in writing, with an NDA if the material is sensitive.
The Decks We Convert Most Often
Different decks need different treatments. A compliance deck and a sales deck should not become the same kind of course.
Compliance and safety decks
Scored assessment, certification logic, audit-ready completion records and accessibility conformance. See compliance training and safety training.
Onboarding and induction decks
Split into short modules a new starter can take across their first fortnight, not one three-hour marathon. See employee onboarding and microlearning.
Product and sales decks
Objection-handling and discovery turned into branching practice rather than feature lists. See product training and sales training.
Classroom and ILT decks
Facilitator-dependent material rebuilt for self-paced study, including everything the trainer used to say out loud. See ILT to eLearning.
Ageing course libraries
Flash-era courses, orphaned decks and abandoned SCORM packages brought back into a maintainable format. See legacy content conversion.
PDFs and manuals, not just decks
The same treatment applies to policy documents, SOPs and training manuals. For a quick self-serve option, try our free PDF to SCORM converter.
Frequently Asked Questions
PPT to eLearning conversion is the process of turning a static PowerPoint presentation into an interactive online course that runs on a learning management system. It involves restructuring the content with instructional design, adding interactions, quizzes and narration, then publishing to a format such as SCORM, xAPI, cmi5 or HTML5 so the learner’s progress and scores can be tracked.
Yes. A PowerPoint file cannot connect to an LMS on its own, but its content can be rebuilt in an authoring tool such as Articulate Storyline 360, iSpring Suite or Adobe Captivate and published as a SCORM 1.2, SCORM 2004 or xAPI package. The converted course then tracks completions, time spent and quiz scores in any SCORM-compliant LMS.
We publish fixed pricing per course, covering 30 to 60 minutes of seat time: Rapid Build $2,999, Professional Build $4,500 and Enterprise Build $7,500. Cost is driven by the level of interactivity, the multimedia required and whether simulation is involved, not by hourly billing or slide count. You will know the exact project cost before you commit, and the quote is confirmed after the content audit.
A single course takes 5 to 7 weeks from kickoff to LMS deployment, depending on complexity, SME availability and how quickly you return feedback. Rapid and Professional Builds run to that window; Enterprise Build timelines are confirmed at scoping. Larger curriculum projects are delivered in phased batches, so you can start rolling out early modules while later ones are still in development.
As a working rule, 40 to 60 content slides translate to about one hour of seat time once narration, interactions and quizzes are added. The real number depends on slide density: a deck full of speaker notes converts differently from one of single-line bullets. Use the seat time estimator above for a rough figure, and we confirm it during the content audit.
Most learning management systems will not accept a raw .pptx as a trackable course. You can usually attach it as a downloadable resource, but it will not report completions or scores, and in most platforms learners need PowerPoint installed to open it properly. To upload it as a real course, the content has to be published as a SCORM, xAPI or AICC package first, then imported as a zip through your LMS course import screen.
Yes. We produce narrated MP4 video from slide content, with an optional on-screen presenter or animated avatar, plus captions and a transcript. Video suits awareness campaigns, launches and short explainers. It cannot deliver scored assessment or branching, so where certification or completion tracking matters we usually pair a short video with an interactive assessment rather than choosing one over the other.
We use AI for production work: drafting narration from your speaker notes, synthetic voiceover, image generation, first-pass translation and caption generation. We do not use AI to set learning objectives, design scenarios or validate assessment questions, because those decisions determine whether the training works. AI is why our prices are what they are; it is not what you are paying us for.
Sometimes, yes. If your deck is short, low-stakes, carries no compliance or audit requirement, and someone internally has time to review the output, a tool like Coassemble, Easygenerator or iSpring Cloud will get you there for a fraction of the cost. Bring in a conversion partner when the training is audited, certified, customer-facing or accessibility-regulated, or when the deck needs redesigning rather than reformatting.
Any SCORM or xAPI compliant platform, including Moodle, Totara, Cornerstone OnDemand, Docebo, SAP SuccessFactors, SAP Litmos, Workday Learning, TalentLMS, Absorb, LearnUpon, 360Learning, Adobe Learning Manager, iSpring Learn, Canvas and Blackboard. We test the finished package in your actual platform, not just SCORM Cloud, before handover. If you run an in-house LMS, tell us which standard it accepts and we will publish to it.
Yes, where you need it to be. We build to WCAG 2.2 level AA and Section 508: keyboard navigation with a visible focus order, screen reader compatibility tested in NVDA and VoiceOver, closed captions and transcripts, 4.5:1 text contrast, alt text on meaningful images and accessible alternatives to drag-and-drop interactions. An accessibility conformance report and the underlying test log are available on request.
Yes to both. cmi5 is the modern choice when you want xAPI-level detail but still want the LMS to launch and own the course. AICC is legacy, still required by some older aviation, defence and manufacturing systems, and offers less than SCORM 2004 does. Tell us your platform and version and we will confirm which one you actually need.
Where they serve the learning, yes, but most are rebuilt rather than copied. PowerPoint animations often do not survive export to HTML5 cleanly. We recreate the ones that aid understanding and replace decorative ones with purposeful interactions, so the result works better than the original rather than merely matching it. If you build in iSpring Suite, original animations carry across more faithfully, which is one reason we sometimes recommend it.
At minimum, your PowerPoint files and a short conversation about your audience and goals. Speaker notes, trainer scripts, brand guidelines and access to a subject matter expert all improve the output, but none are mandatory. We can work from a bare deck and fill the gaps during the audit and storyboard stages.
It depends on your content and how learners will access it. Storyline 360 suits complex interactions and branching. Rise 360 is fastest for clean, mobile-first content. Adobe Captivate suits software simulation. iSpring Suite works well when your L&D team wants to maintain the course inside PowerPoint afterwards. Lectora is the strongest option when accessibility conformance is contractual. We recommend the tool in writing during the audit, and because you receive the source files you can verify the choice works for your team long term.
If your LMS is more than a few years old, SCORM 1.2 is the safest bet and what most platforms support. SCORM 2004 adds better sequencing and per-objective score reporting. xAPI tracks learning beyond the LMS and is useful when you want detailed analytics, though it needs a Learning Record Store to be worth anything. Tell us your LMS and we will confirm the right format.
Yes. If you tell us at the start, we build the master course so text, narration and on-screen graphics can be swapped per language without a rebuild, then produce localized versions with native or synthetic voiceover. Localizing at build time costs considerably less than retrofitting a finished course. See our localization and translation services.
Yes, and because you own the source files you are not forced to. You can make minor edits in-house, send updates to us, or hand the files to any other eLearning developer. For content that changes often, such as policies or product details, we structure the course so those sections are quick to swap out.
Yes. Training decks often contain proprietary processes, product information or compliance material, so we work under NDA on request and limit file access to the assigned project team. Source files and all materials remain your property throughout.
Yes. Send five to ten representative slides and we will convert two screens as a paid pilot, credited in full against your project if you proceed. You see our instructional design treatment applied to your own content, in your own branding, before signing a full scope.
Get Your Free Proposal
Fill out the form and we will introduce you to a Learning Advisor with experience in your industry, who will book a call to talk through your project.
No obligation. It is a fact-finding conversation to check there is a fit and that we can actually help. Bring your deck, or just your slide count.
We reply within 3 business hours.
No time works for you? Email venchito@rainmakermastery.com and we will arrange a schedule.