Webinars have become the tool of choice for many professionals, especially business and corporate leaders. Indeed, a majority—67%—of professionals say webinars are their number one preferred online learning format.
While some investment and effort might go into hosting a webinar, the rewards often offset this. In fact, webinars can be an effective way to turn prospects into customers. And it’s no wonder most marketing and sales leaders believe that webinars are the best method.
If you really want to be an effective product or service seller, you may need to learn how to use webinars. Learn pre-webinar sales preparation techniques to win success.
Key Takeaways:
- Webinars are powerful sales tools. They offer a unique platform to showcase products or services in depth.
- Strategic preparation enhances outcomes. Proper pre-webinar preparation boosts the chances of success.
- Audience engagement. Engaging your audience before the webinar through personalized communication increases attendance rates.
Planning Your Pre-Webinar Strategy
Your pre-webinar marketing strategy is the foundation for your webinar’s success. Without a clear, well-thought-out plan, you are leaving opportunities to connect your audience with your business and your purpose.
1. Define goals
Before you plan your webinar, ask yourself, “What is my goal here?” Do you want to get new customers or teach them something cool? Maybe it’s a mix!
A goal will give you your direction. This will guide everything from the kind of stuff you speak about to how you get them juiced up and excited about your webinar.
For instance, if you are trying to grab new customers, you’re probably going to be showing how your product or service solves their problems. But if all you love is making a name for yourself out there, then you might teach people something interesting in your industry.
2. Identify target audience
Understanding your webinar audience is crucial to success. Ask yourself:
- Who are they?
- What are their pain points?
- What is it that they’re going through?
- What solutions can your webinar provide?
- What drives them?
- Are they seeking solutions, knowledge, or perhaps some inspiration?
Detailed audience personas will help you tailor all of your content and messaging to your attendees’ needs.
3. Choose the right webinar topic
It is best to go for a topic in which your audience would be most interested and concerned. Google Trends and keyword research tools may let you know what’s currently trending in your niche. Also, the previous webinars, with their feedback and customer questions, can give you relevant topics.
Crafting Compelling Webinar Content
Once your strategy has established the foundation, it’s time to focus on producing content that will capture your audience’s attention and drive them to engage.
1. Research key topics
Good content starts with good research. Dive deep into the topics you plan to cover and ensure you’re providing valuable insights that your audience can’t easily find elsewhere.
Keyword research tools help you identify what your audience is searching for online. For example, if you’re hosting a webinar on digital marketing trends, look for the most searched terms in that area and incorporate them into your content.
2. Create interesting presentations
Your presentation should be visually appealing and designed to keep your audience engaged. Here are some tips:
- Visuals: Use infographics, charts, and images and incorporate interactive elements.
- Minimal text: Use bullet points for the main idea; keep your recipients content with enough text.
- Multimedia: Insert videos, animations, and other tools to add dynamics and interest to your presentation.
3. Develop a strong narrative
People remember stories better than facts alone. In your webinar content, create a compelling story that your audience can relate to, including their pain points and solutions.
Start by nailing a common issue your prospects face. Steer them through your solution and then put into practice what they’ve learned.
For instance, if you lecture on strategies within the digital marketing sphere, explain in full the typical experiences faced by small businesses in regard to their ability to differentiate online. After that, provide effective strategies and conclude with steps they can take to leverage their digital presence.
Technical Preparation
The most engaging content can go bust if your technical setup isn’t good enough. Here’s how to ensure a smooth and professional webinar experience.
1. Pick the right tools
Choosing the right webinar platform is key. For several reasons, StealthSeminar is an excellent choice:
- Automated Webinars. You will be able to pre-record your webinar and set it to run automatically. This is perfect for reaching audiences in different time zones or for taking off the pressure of a live event.
- Live Chat. You can engage your webinar audience through live chat options by answering questions and engaging in real-time.
- Analytics. StealthSeminar has in-depth analytics, allowing you to keep pace with performance and maximize future webinars.
2. Ensure high-quality audio and video
Nothing’s more frustrating to the webinar participants than having poor audio or video quality. Here’s how to avoid that:
- Invest in good equipment. You’ll want to make sure you have a good microphone and a clear webcam so the sound and video are clear.
- Test everything. Before the webinar, do a full tech check on your internet, audio levels, lighting, and the software you will be running through.
No matter how well one prepares, there is always the risk of things going wrong. That’s why it pays to have a plan B. These may include having equipment available as backup, preparing a pre-recorded version of your webinar, or even having someone else from the sales team step in.
Promoting Your Webinar
You’ve got a great webinar planned, but how do you get people to actually show up? Even the best content will be useless if no one attends your event. Effective promotion is key.
1. Create a landing page
Your webinar landing page will help drive your promotional campaign. It needs to articulate clearly why people must attend the webinar presentation and details of the date, time, and topic. The content needs to be persuasive, with calls to action that encourage visitors to take a particular step.
Moreover, testimonials, speaker bios, and agendas increase credibility and provide engagement. The design should be clean and mobile-friendly, with an easy-to-use form to capture all relevant information. You can find many webinar landing page examples, even free templates, to generate leads.
2. Use email marketing
Email marketing is another powerful method used in marketing webinars. If you have a list of previous attendees, create segments by filtering attendance history, interests, and other buying behaviors to deliver customized invitations to each segment that can resonate with them.
Write engaging subject lines that grab attention and indicate the value of the webinars. Send reminder emails before the event and create a special early-bird discount or some other incentive to motivate people to register earlier.
3. Leverage social media
Social media can help you extend your webinar reach. In 2024, an estimated 5.17 billion total are social media users worldwide. Promote your webinar in your corporate social media using posts, stories, and paid promotions.
Drum up interest by publishing extracts of video clips, quotes, or infographics. Ask followers to share the event in their networks, use relevant hashtags while you do so, and make the most of relevant hashtags. You can also increase visibility and credibility by collaborating with industry influencers or partners for your event.
4. Pair with influencers
Collaborate with industry leaders, influencers, or businesses that complement yours to create a promotion. They can help spread the word about the webinar to their followers or the people on their email list, getting more eyes in front of your event.
In exchange, you might offer them opportunities to promote their own content or co-brand with you during the webinar. Teaming up with others can increase your reach and your perceived value since more people in your industry will see that you are associated with those big names.
Engaging Your Audience Pre-Webinar
Engaging your audience before the webinar helps ensure maximum attendance and a much more engaging event. According to the survey, about 29% of webinar attendees will register only on the day of the event. In addition, 17% of the respondents indicated they would register more than 15 days prior to an event.
Automated reminders are critical to ensure that your registrants don’t forget about your webinar. Consider these schedules:
- One week prior: A reminder with an overview of what to expect.
- One day prior: A reminder with the link to join the webinar.
- One hour prior: Final reminder to make sure they’re ready to join.
StealthSeminar makes these messages easy to set up and send out automatically. Additionally, Building up anticipation can be achieved by offering worthwhile content prior to the webinar. This not only keeps your audience on their toes but also establishes you as an expert in your topic.
Furthermore, communication can make a real difference in how your audience perceives your webinar. Use the information you get from the webinar registration page to tailor your messaging.
Conducting Dry Runs
Even seasoned webinar presenters will benefit from rehearsing. Dry runs are going to help you make adjustments to the presentation to ensure everything runs smoothly on the day.
First, a practice run will iron out any kinks in the presentation. This is not just about the content delivery but also about the technical aspects of the webinar. You need to practice navigating the webinar software and using audience engagement features.
Next, check for pacing, tone of voice, and speech clarity and make relevant adjustments. This will help ensure that you are very comfortable with the material and technology before going live.
Lastly, engage your team members or a small test audience and ask for their feedback. They will help you realize where the content may not be clear, where it may be too fast or too slow, or where some visual aids are lacking.
Final Thoughts
Webinars are part of every sales and marketing strategy today. They offer dynamic ways for any business to drive sales. However, any given webinar’s success does not rely on what happens during the actual webinar. The weeks and days before the webinar ensure the event runs smoothly.
A successful webinar demands detailed planning. Plan your approach and create an engaging sales pitch. Be technically equipped to hold the session, advertise it well, engage with your audience, and have dry runs in place.
Do you want to automate the process? Tools like StealthSeminar help smooth the automation and make it easier. Instead, you will focus on giving value to your audience.
