Webinars help you reach out to a larger audience, boost brand awareness and position yourself as an expert in your field. But how can you ensure the webinar you create will engage your audience and generate quality leads? We explain how in this guide.
What is a webinar?
A webinar is an online event that enables information to be shared via a virtual 'classroom', with people able to attend from anywhere in the world. Webinars can be watched live or as a replay and are usually educational in nature, however they can also be used for marketing purposes.
While a webinar can be more compelling than written content, the format alone does not guarantee success. Considering how saturated the market is for webinars (especially since the Covid-19 pandemic), it is important your sessions cut through the noise and are considered must-attend events by your target audience.
Here we take a look at five key things needed to create a successful webinar.
Lesson 1: Content is king
It is important to ensure that the content connects with your target audience to such an extent that they are compelled to reserve time in their diaries to attend. If it does not resonate, they simply won’t sign up.
Stuck for ideas? A gem may be hiding in your archives. Ask your sales representatives to identify existing content that is performing well and converting, that you can repurpose an item with a new twist. Examples include:
- Transforming a generic webinar into one that is industry/geo/role-specific. Here you can keep a large amount of the existing content, but tweak it in places so it is more targeted.
- Bring static content to life. Use a webinar to dig a little deeper into the findings of your latest white paper, report, or article.
Where will this webinar fall in the buying cycle?
The type of webinar you plan to host is often a good inspiration for content, so it is important to know where you want this webinar to appear in the buyer’s journey.
Top of the funnel
The majority of webinars tend to sit at the start of the funnel. Remember, webinars are more than mere lead generators – they can establish trust with viewers and build credibility within your area of expertise. This will help lay the foundations for future loyalty with prospects.
The webinar should give your target audience food for thought and help them with their business goals, pain-points, unique concerns and even personal goals.
Avoid flicking to a product pitch abruptly at this stage, as viewers aren’t ready to be pitched to yet. This move can undo all of your hard work – timing is everything.
Do not promise too much. While it is tempting to make a big promise in your webinar title to attract a new prospect, if you bite off more than you can chew it could backfire and give the wrong impression. Instead of making broad promises on the webinar’s scope, go deep into a specific area and give targeted insight.
Middle of the funnel
These webinars occur after you have laid the groundwork as a thought leader. These sessions are used to deepen awareness and inspire product interest. Tap into the challenges of the market and subtly present your services as a viable solution.
Peer-validation is very compelling at this stage. Case studies provide value by bringing an existing written customer success story to life. With case studies it is important to focus on ROI and the value your client gained from their collaboration with you.
Bottom of the funnel
Here prospects need answers for objections stopping them from entering a partnership with you and visibility on what they can expect from using your product.
Use demo webinars to show products in action and let the audience guide the direction of the session with any questions they have. You may wish to run a series of different features.
'Ask the expert' webinars have a significant portion dedicated to Q&As. This set up allows the prospects to take control and tap into the trouble areas that are blocking them from purchasing.
Pushing buyers along the funnel
Wherever you place your webinar, it should nudge the user onto their next stage as a potential buyer. Do this by filling your webinar with other content so they can continue learning – for example related whitepapers, ebooks, and the landing page for the next webinar in the series. For mid to bottom funnel webinars consider using a widget that allows attendees to directly contact a sales rep, consult a pricing grid or a product spec.
Post-acquisition
Webinars can also act as a valuable tool to retain and upsell to customers while building a small supportive community. Provide best practice tips on how to get the most out of your services or any upcoming products they should look out for.
Now that you have your content in place, you need to reel in some viewers.
Lesson 2: Webinar titles
The webinar space is saturated, so you need to make sure your title differentiates your session from the rest. As the title is the first touch point for the user, it needs to generate curiosity. When creating an enticing title, remember to:
- Make sure it is benefit-driven so potential attendees can immediately see the value they will gain from the session. E.g.: 'Bite-sized quick wins: Accelerate your process...'
- Use metrics and stats as they quantify the benefits of attending. E.g.: '7 secrets to…'
- Use the language and tone your audience prefers to increase the likelihood of connecting with them.
- Make sure the title is SEO-friendly to boost the amount of organic traffic it will attract.
- Look at including buzzwords or formats that have performed well for you recently.
Lesson 3: Webinar landing pages
Your title has intrigued the user, now the landing page has to seal the deal. This page has to communicate to users that they can’t afford to miss this session. Align the body copy to the drivers and pain-points of your target audience and don’t forget to include the relevant privacy information.
- Try to keep paragraphs short, use bullet points and bold text to guide the reader's attention and give the page structure.
- When it comes to the button to register, some webinar experts advise you to put this in a striking colour. Also, instead of opting for the standard ‘register now’, play around with more inviting alternatives such as: save your seat, save your spot, reserve my seat or sign me up.
- Videos summarizing the content at the top of landing pages have been shown to increase conversion rates.
- Where possible, try to minimize the number of fields you have on the landing page, the more fields the more reluctant the user may be to sign-up.
Lesson 4: Promotion
Be sure to have a promotion plan to publicize the webinar, be that using social media, email invitations or co-marketing partnerships.
Check out our guide to turning social media into one of your best customer service channels.
Lesson 5: Webinar software
The time has come to hit the 'go live' button. Follow these tips to ensure your webinar is a success:
- Always host a dry run. Make sure the speakers and presenters are familiar with the platform of choice and are comfortable with their script and slide deck. Check the mics being used are of good quality and whether anyone has issues dialling in.
- Customize your platform. To boost user experience, customize colors and images on the platform so they are dynamic, inviting and match your brand. Fill the resource centre with related media users can flick to at the end of the webinar so they can continue their journey with your brand. Be sure to draw attention to these at the end of the session.
- Empower your users. At the start of the webinar be sure to impart housekeeping tips so they know how to best use the tools they have available to them.
- Encourage interaction. Remind your viewers throughout to enter their comments and questions, especially if you have a Q&A section at the end.
- Speaker drop-out? Don’t worry, even after all the preparation and test-runs in the world, technical issues can happen when webinars are live. Prepare a contingency script for the moderator should the speaker drop out of the platform. They could read the speaker’s bio, mention what is to come for the rest of the session, assure the audience the speaker is on the way back and invite viewers to use the free time to enter any questions they have for them.
And that’s a wrap! Be sure to follow-up any unanswered audience questions, as this is a good way to open up a one-on-one discussion with a prospect.
Check out CX Network's upcoming webinars.
- This article was originally published on November 10th 2018 and updated on August 1st 2023.