With the global pandemic, all businesses are trying to find new ways to present their offering without leaving the office (or the house for those working from home!). Online webinars and web meetings are increasing in popularity as they are easy to implement and proven to be quite effective.
At Ultimate TechnoGraphics, we have been using these two methods for years. Today, we are happy to share our Top 7 Tricks to help printers plan their webinars and web meetings.
- Scheduling Secrets
One of the most important questions to ask yourself when planning online webinars is « When ». The schedule has a big impact on the number of registrations you will receive. According to LogMeIn, the best day and time to schedule a webinar is on Wednesday or Thursday Also, we recommend you consider your audience localization and adapt the time to their time zone if applicable.
2. Promotion works
There’s a saying that says: “Doing business without advertising is like winking in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does.” In other words, promotion is key for the success of your webinars. No matter the strategy and medias you will use, the importance is to get the word out to the right audience. We recommend to start promoting your webinar 4 weeks in advance. If you do not have the time, make sure to promote it at least the week leading up to the event; that’s when 59% of registrations occur.
Also, if you are hosting a public webinar, put extra energy to come up with a catchy title. Studies show that, on average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy.
3. Send Reminders
Sending reminders is a crucial factor that will determine the number of attendees in your live session. Some people register for webinars weeks in advance thus the importance of reminding them the day and time on which your webinar will take place. We recommend sending reminders 1 week, 1 day, 1 hour before the webinar. This extra step will directly impact the success of your webinar.
4. Dry-Runs and Practice
Have you done a presentation at a conference without rehearsing it first? Not likely. Online webinars are no different. Preparing a dry run before the live event allow you the get more comfortable with your speech to deliver it in a more natural way when potential customers will be on the other end. Also, it gives you the opportunity to play with the different tools of the platform to avoid any technical issues at an impromptu time.
5. Block Time for Q&A
The difference between a webinar and a video is the live aspect of it. The value for attendees to connect to the live event is the ability to interact with the presenter. Make sure to block 5-10 minutes for a live Q&A (Questions and Answers) at the end. Only answer general questions that are pertinent for most of your audience. All specific questions can be answered by email right after the session.
6. Record it
Even though you chose the best date and time to host your webinar, and even sent reminders, you will notice that a great percentage of your registrants will not be connecting for the live event. Some have last-minute obligations; others have scheduled something else at that time or even forgot about the webinar. No matter the reason, all registrants expect the webinar to be recorded so they can watch (or re-watch) it whenever they want. Today, most of webinars in the printing industry are recorded, so make sure yours is too!
7. Have Fun
This last advice is the most important one. No matter on which platform you organize your webinar or what you will show during your presentation, your audience will remember your energy and positivity. Be confident and enjoy!
Discover our webinar collection, or watch the recordings here!