You’ve decided to host your first webinar. That’s a big deal. It’s the first time you’re putting out such a big piece of content, the first time you’re putting yourself on camera, and, most importantly, the first time introducing your company to a wider audience. There are plenty of factors that go into making a successful webinar, but we wanted to highlight a few.
Production & Promotion
If this is your first webinar, it’s probably best to keep your focus razor-sharp. This is a time where you have 20-30 minutes of time to dive into a specific topic. Be organized; there should be no “winging” it.
As for the production side of things, you should give a good amount of thought into the technology. What camera are you using? Is the lighting okay? How about audio? Is my speech garbled, or clear?
Now that the technical aspects are taken care of, it’s best to figure out what kind of format you’d like your webinar to be. Here are a few to consider:
Q&A
These are great ways to engage your audience and potential customers as participants ask questions to either you, your C-suite level executives or a panel of guests you chose. These events are fairly straightforward and easy to host. Moderating a Q&A is being prepared enough to steer the conversation either towards or away from certain topics, being comfortable enough to jump in when necessary, and being patient enough to let your panel guests do their thing.
Educational
This is the most common webinar you can present. These offer the most flexibility and can be crafted to be super engaging by using slides, video, and clever editing to move right along. These can also be pre-recorded and when done well, will be vital marketing collateral that can be used often down the line.
Panel Discussions
These are similar to a Q&A but rely more on a moderator with an agenda and pointed questions rather than extemporaneous audience questions. With the panelists getting a list of questions ahead of time there is a better opportunity for them to have thoughtful and insightful responses.
Workshops
This is a great method to introducing an audience to your product or company live. Or if your service has a big customer service component, you can pinpoint service issues or walk customers through specific ways of using your product.
Now that you’ve figured out what kind of webinar you’re releasing, it’s best to give some thought to the promotion. The best strategy is using a multi-channel approach to marketing the event. This can come in the form of emails, social media pushes, targeted banner ads, and social engagement from fellow presenters or special guests. If you’ve already pre-taped your video, consider looking into pre-roll ad space on YouTube.
By taking an organized approach to your webinar, you’re ensuring a wealth of marketing collateral for years to come.