With the right plan, your next webinar can better connect to your target audience
With the on-going need for social distancing, most industries have turned to online webinars and virtual conferences to substitute for in-person engagement. While some industry segments struggle to maintain interest in these types of events, the life science sector has continued to attract audiences and conduct successful, interactive webinars to educate and engage with the scientific community. To help you succeed in creating and promoting your next virtual event, consider the following tips.
1. Interact and engage your audience before the webinar
To best reach your prospects, promote your webinar at least 8 weeks before the event on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and other online platforms where your audience will see it. Take your time in planning, giving you ample time to saturate your social channels with the news of your upcoming webinar. If you try to rush things, you might find that only a handful of people will show up.
In your promotions, be clear on what the webinar will cover. If an audience is unsure of what your webinar is about, they won’t sign up for it. To create excitement, consider creating an attendee offer or giveaway. It may help to draw participation from competing events. If you would like to learn more on how to have an epic webinar, reach out to us or see more here.
Pro Tip: The team at Samba Scientific is great at taking the hassle of preparing a presentation off your hands. We work with you to fill seats and host a stellar event that gets you results like these:
2. Harness client feedback to build insightful, valuable presentations
Reach out to your sales or customer service team to learn about your customers’ current pain points. You can also utilize Google Trends to find out what topics are trending. Delivering the right message at the right time can convert contacts into clients.
We’ve all been in those webinars where you feel it’s a chore to keep your eyes open. Your presentation needs to be visually appealing to keep an audience captivated for 30 minutes to an hour. If creating slide decks isn’t your thing, some options like Prezi or Gamma can help you create a great presentation. Although a slight learning curve might be involved, the payoff can be worth it. Don’t be scared to pepper in a little entertainment. Getting a good laugh to create mini-breaks throughout your presentation can reinvigorate the audience’s attention.
3. Utilize the audiences of well-known Subject Matter Experts (SME) to reach new people
The point of your webinar is to drive new leads and build thought leadership. One great way to do that is to harness the power of your SMEs. Be sure to have them reach out and share the webinar invitation with their base. With their followers on board, you can engage a completely new yet relevant audience.
Also, there’s nothing worse than having a speaker who puts an audience to sleep. It’s helpful to have a host who is energetic, personable, and, if possible, an expert on the topic. Consider adding a co-host to keep the audience engaged. A discussion of a topic is often more interesting than a one-sided monotone script. Including experts in your webinar inspires interest in your event and can be an enticing focus for online marketing before and after the event.
4. Leverage speaker and company social media handles
Most companies don’t leverage social media enough. Actively posting during the webinar provides your audience with a more interactive experience and generates a buzz that will ultimately bolster on-demand views.
We recommend having a person who focuses on your social media channel(s) during the webinar. They can add snippets to pique interest, field any basic questions, and compile questions that may need a more thorough response. Plan to have pauses or opportunities to answer questions, especially during an interview or discussion-formatted webinar. The goal is to get the most out of all your channels. Just think of all the new followers you could get by extending the webinar outside of the seats that you have online.
5. Make the promotion of your webinar after it’s over a continual lead generator
Utilizing videos, animations, downloadable worksheets, and various other assets can help you to effectively get your point across and keep your audience engaged. Do you have a short product video? Perhaps a checklist would be helpful. With a free version of Canva, you can make engaging one-pagers or social posts.
These assets can also be used in post-webinar promotion! You went through all that work and trouble to create something awesome; now’s the time to get the most out of it. From repurposing interesting snippets for social to creating a whitepaper for lead generation to curating a library to help educate your audience, there are many ways to leverage your webinar!
Finally, don’t be afraid to lead with a strong call to action (CTA) to drive form fills, consultations, and leads! You have the lead engaged; now is the time to pounce.
If you’re looking for ways to take your next webinar from good to great, let us help! Our team specializes in creating and promoting webinars that drive business results!
