MediaShout

It works most of the time. It integrates with my CCLI Song Select account. It is commonly used by many churches in our area.

It will suddenly stop working and I won't know why or what to do about it on a Sunday morning. It is not cloud based, so I cannot build the slides at my house on my computer and then use them on the church's computer on Sunday, like Proclaim does.

Ability to quickly recall lyrics and scriptures to make a great presentation

Plagued by frequent crashes, even after applying patches recommended by vendor

My favorite features of MediaShout was the amount of customization options the software allows for. I stopped needing to do so much editing work on graphics before importing them, and simply create the exact look I need for a service right within the application.

The only drawback I've had is the learning curve that comes with all of the customization features. For someone who works in graphic design, the workflow is pretty standard; however, it would be helpful to have access to additional training resources that can assist volunteers who use MediaShout on a weekly basis for smaller congregations.

First and foremost, their customer service / support is the best. Any issue (my own or theirs) I've ever had the MediaShout team has effectively and efficiently solved to my utmost satisfaction. The team is very knowledgeable about their software, know it inside out, and are on top of their game with it. [No non-english speaking people reading from a script with these guys!] They are tirelessly patient and extremely concerned with making sure my experience with MediaShout is the best they can make it. That alone makes the money spent on the software well worth it!

Secondly I love that I can edit the presentation on the fly and live. My Pastor has a tendency to ask for something to be done right BEFORE service starts. Can you show this? Can you add this scripture? You can do all that easily during service with just a few clicks! We couldn't do that before. It's a win/win for us. Pastor's happy and we're happy!

And thirdly, I love that I can now spend more of my time focusing on the pictures / graphics that I want to use instead of spending the majority of my time on formatting and setting up road maps for our worship songs. MediaShout allows you to format the entire cue or script easily! Setting up road maps [that my worship leader changes each time we sing it] is a breeze. Just drag and drop everything in the order you want it and wallah!

And the best part, with the words showing up on the stage with the next line feature, MY team thinks I'm a rockstar!

I don't like that the main stage and the stage are tied so closely together when creating lyrics. I'm very anal about word placement in regards to the picture / graphic I am using. One slight change on the main effects the words on the stage as well as the next line feature. I know I can use the alignment buttons the software provides, but like I said, I'm anal about word placement. I would also like the ability to change the position of the words that show on the stage without it affecting the words or the next line feature as well.

Although the MediaShout customer service is top notch and the support they offer is the best service around, I do wish their user forum was a bit more active. You can learn a lot about how to use a program more effectively by communicating with other end users. I have yet to find a forum within [or without] MediaShout that actively offers this valuable resource.