I love learning about new ideas, concepts, and technology. Add colorful graphics, charts, and other pictures and I’m an enthusiastic student. Like 65% of the population, I am a visual learner. When ideas and concepts are partnered with images, learning and retention increase dramatically. Because webinars use both auditory and visual presentations, they are powerful tools for educating people about your products and services.
While webinars are live events, they are also recorded for future use. And that means you can use webinars in so many different ways! Webinars are a great way to:
- Share ideas, tips and solutions
- Connect with your audience in a new way
- Build community by inviting customers to share testimonials
- Onboarding your team
- Training employees
- Answering frequently asked questions
- Providing better customer service information
- Demonstrating services and products
Clips from your webinar can be used on your website, your social media, and your marketing campaigns to highlight product features.
Due to the overabundance of information available to us online, there is a saturation of webinars and other e-business tools. Webinars continue to be an effective marketing and sales tool, but they must deliver valuable content that is worth the time and attention of your audience.
Hosting a webinar can seem a little daunting at first, but like any project, after you do it once it’s easy to replicate the process. Here are my top ten tips for successful webinars.
1. Share Valuable Content
Define your message and brainstorm creative ways to share it with your audience.
- Consider how you can educate your customers or train them how to use your products
- How can you meet your customers’ needs or solve their problems?
- Present tips and ideas or show a product demonstration
- Invite guests to share different perspectives and testimonials
The more you can provide solutions for your customers, the more valuable your content will be.
2. Be Animated and Engaging
Even though you are talking into a camera, don’t forget about your audience. Keep your voice light and energetic. Connect with your customer so they can sense the enthusiasm you have for the subject. Remember, it’s easier to close a web page than walk out of a room, so keep your audience engaged by encouraging questions and comments. At the beginning of your webinar, ask participants to set aside distractions and learn with you rather than multitasking while they listen with one ear. They probably won’t do it, but the reminder might help.
3. Create Great Slides
Rather than just talking, keep your audience engaged visually as well. Use screen casting to show tutorials or product demonstrations, or create a slide presentation using PowerPoint, Keynote or Google Slides to illustrate what you’re talking about. Slides can show examples and graphics as well as keep the attention of your audience. Good slides can also keep you organized and on track as you give your presentation.
4. Involve Others
Webinars can be hosted by one person or company, or they can be a joint venture where partners support the message of the other. With joint venture webinars, you can double your reach and exposure without spending more of your marketing budget. When considering potential joint venture webinar partners, look for:
- Someone who has a similar product or service
- Someone who has a complimentary product or service
- Someone who has a similar audience
- Someone whose audience could benefit from your products or services
- Someone whose list varies from yours
Get our Finding JV Webinar Partners program complete with tracking sheets, scripts and a sample contract here.
5. Consider Your Timing
When are your customers usually online? Are they more apt to participate in a webinar during work hours or in the evening? Know your target audience and schedule your webinar when they are most likely to attend.
6. Choose the Right Webinar Service
There are several good webinar hosting platforms available such as GoToWebinar, Zoom or AnyMeeting. A quick google search will give you even more options. Before you choose a platform, consider how often you will be presenting webinars, how many people you expect to attend, and what features you want to include to meet your webinar goals. Other questions to ask:
- How is content stored and viewed? Can you edit recordings?
- How many presenters will be involved in each webinar?
- What is the webinar capacity? Will there be enough room for your expected audience?
- What features do they offer for engagement? Can you post polls, ask questions, and respond to comments?
- What tracking and reporting capabilities do they have? Can you track sources, engagement, and leads?
- Is the platform customizable? Can you promote the look and feel of your brand?
- What is the pricing structure? Is there a monthly fee or do they charge per event? Are there additional charges for voice over IP or other features?
Most webinar service providers will offer a free trial period for the first month. You can check them out and see if their platform works for your business.
7. Have a Solid Plan and Process
Approach planning a webinar as you would any other project or event. Have a plan in place with tasks and deadlines. Create a process for sharing marketing information, promoting your webinar, and preparing for the event. Having a process in place will be especially valuable as you do additional webinars. Not sure where to begin? I’ve done the work for you. Download my free Joint Webinar Swipe File file to get started.
8. Promote Your Webinar
Make sure people know about your webinar. Send invitations to your email list. Include promotions in your newsletter and on social media. Include a clear message, letting your audience know what they can expect and why they can’t miss your event. Don’t forget to send reminders out the day, hour, and even a few minutes before your webinar goes live.
9. Don’t Forget to Hit Record!
Take my word for it. Even though this seems pretty obvious, it’s easy to forget. And after all the work you’ve put into creating and promoting your event, you would hate to present your webinar only to discover it wasn’t recorded. Delegate this task to someone on your team. If you have the staff and support, it works best to have someone presenting, someone interacting live via chat, and someone who makes sure that everything is being recorded. Include this task in your webinar process so you don’t forget.
10. Follow Up
After all the work you’ve put into planning, creating and presenting don’t lose out on opportunities by failing to follow up.
- Send a brief follow-up email to attendees asking for action and feedback
- Share a replay link and call to action with all registrants, especially those who couldn’t attend
- Create tasks for your sales team to follow-up on leads
- Pull clips from your webinar for your website FAQ page, social media, and internal training
Webinars are also a great way to grow your business and email lists. With a webinar targeted to your ideal audience, an audience interested in what you have to offer, you can generate real leads and build better lists. Engaging with your audience through a webinar builds customer loyalty as they get to know you and your business as you share the enthusiasm you have for what you do.
Do you have a process in place for planning and presenting your next webinar? Let us help! Download a free copy of my webinar process here.