Webinars can be an intimidating social marketing tool especially if you are not 100% comfortable with the topic or speaking to a large audience. One benefit is that a great webinar has the ability to connect companies with people. These connections can lead to conversations with new prospective clients which could potentially drive sales. The more comfortable you become with webinars the more fun you can have with them!
Make your webinar visually appealing with great imagery throughout the deck. Consider your brand when thinking of imagery and colors. Create slides that are image heavy with less content. A plain slide with a paragraph of text would not be engaging. During the webinar try to provide video examples where applicable. A short clip could keep the audience engaged.
It is nice touch to have a host or moderator, in addition, with the speakers to help discuss the webinar topic. The host would be the one to introduce the speaker or speakers and if it is a Q/A format the host can be the one asking the questions leaving the speakers open to have a fluid conversation. Choose a host that is knowledgeable of the topic and engaging!
You can keep the audience engaged in a number of ways. Utilize polls throughout the webinar to keep the audience involved. This is a great way to get feedback for your webinar and it may even change the direction of the webinar. You can also provide different documents as attachments to the webinar to give the listener more information regarding the topic without overcomplicating slides by adding extra content.
Keep the listeners from checking out or leaving the webinar early by keeping the topic not only engaging but informative. Provide facts and personal stories for an effective webinar. Try an address the audience on an individual level by using “you” or “your company”. Also, try to practice enough that you are not reading directly from your notes. I will leave a webinar early 100% of the time if there is a monotone voice on the other end reading word for word off their notes.
Create a hashtag for the event! Use the hashtag on twitter, promote it through a blog, and ask people to use the hashtag to connect during the webinar. It is a great way for the other listeners to connect and draw a crowd. Begin using the hashtag before the event to gain a following and get people talking!
The goal is to create content that encourages listeners to come back for more. When you apply these tips during your next webinar tag us on twitter and don't forget to follow us @marketpath!
