Hosting A Webinar? Follow These Basic Steps To Increase Engagement

Learn How To Make Sure Your Next Webinar Will Be A Big Hit

Planning webinars is a daunting task that requires tracking many moving parts to make the online event successful. There’s a lot to consider and many checklist items that need to be done before, during, and after a webinar. 

As a webinar host, you have a lot on your plate. But no task is as essential as attendee engagement when it comes to the success of your event. 

According to the Content Marketing Institute, nearly 60% of marketers use webinars for lead generation, with up to 40% of webinar participants converting into leads. 

This means that you cannot afford to miss the mark when it comes to webinar attendee engagement. 

Take a look at what you can do to increase engagement and improve leads before, during, and after your next webinar. 

Webinar Best Practices For Engagement  

There are many different types of webinars, but they all require the same components for success. A great webinar involves a combination of solid online presentation formats and strategies to capture your audience’s attention. 

These engaging webinar best practices will help make your online event more interactive and ultimately more engaging. 

Before The Webinar

Expert marketers like you know there are multiple opportunities to engage your target audience before they even log in to your online event. Here are some things you can do to increase engagement before your webinar.  

Craft Compelling Webinar Invites 

Your webinar invitations can make or break your registration numbers. Invites should have an eye-catching design and exciting content. The webinar’s name should be prominently displayed and the credibility of any speakers presenting at the event. 

Utilize banner images and captivating webinar descriptions that will leave no question about what they can expect to learn during the event from the event’s subject matter. 

Use Digital Marketing To Promote Your Webinar 

It’s a no-brainer that promoting an online event using the internet is the best way to go. It’s a powerful tool that can help your webinar gain exposure with your target audience and even attract new participants. 

Email marketing campaigns, social media marketing campaigns, and press releases ensure the right people know about your event. Use pop-up windows on websites to spread the word. 

This means your event landing page is only a click away. Use CTA language to prompt users to take action and register for your webinar. 

Be Prepared 

Preparation is key if you want to gain credibility with your audience. Practice your presentation before showtime and make sure you and your presenters stick to the schedule. Going over your allotted time is a surefire way to kill engagement. 

Make sure all stakeholders are aware of the webinar’s structure. There should be no surprises on webinar day.  Double-check that your headsets and make sure your webinar platform is ready. Brush up on troubleshooting tutorials to streamline the user experience. 

During The Webinar

Once your webinar is underway, the actual job begins. It’s easy for participants to lose interest during webinars, especially when surrounded by so many distractions. 

There are several things you can do to monitor and encourage audience engagement. 

Allow Audience Participation For An Engaging Webinar 

The most important thing you can do during a webinar is to let the audience play a role in the event. Engage them throughout the event by doing the following: 

• Launch Live Poll Questions

• Ask A Question 

• Make Time For Them To Share Their Experiences 

• Ask For Real-Time Feedback 

• Use Social Media Hashtags 

• Plan A Live Q&A Session 

With the help of a moderator, you’ll be able to assess your audience’s needs and keep an eye on their engagement level. Your webinar service provider should offer integrated interactive features that allow you to keep all components in one place. 

Keep Your Presentation Simple And Visually Pleasing 

When your webinar is overloaded with information, it can quickly become dull or overwhelming. This means participants will start dropping off. 

Keep your PowerPoint or slide deck precise with bullet points and clear font styles. Use color strategically, and don’t include too many unnecessary images or animations. Use just enough elements to keep your audience focused and inspired. 

Maximize your presentation using visual aids like infographics, charts, and brief videos to engage your audience. Share the presentation with all webinar attendees after the live event is over to ensure they aren’t distracted with note-taking during the webinar. 

Stick To The Schedule 

Whether they are attending from home or work, webinar attendees are surrounded by distractions. 

Avoid going over your webinar’s overall time, and watch the clock to ensure you have enough time for all items on the agenda. Running out of time may cause attendees to disengage if they were looking forward to that webinar component. 

After The Webinar  

Marketers know that the job isn’t over when the webinar concludes. To maintain the level of engagement you worked hard to achieve, you must follow up with your attendees to gain valuable data and track your conversion rate. 

Follow-Up With Surveys 

It’s easy to forget about post-webinar surveys or to leave it off your to-do list altogether. Sending out surveys is a critical part of the webinar and considered best practice. 

Follow-up surveys are a great way to collect valuable feedback from the participants. You can apply this feedback to your next webinar or your business decisions in the future. 

Send your survey link out in the 24 hours following the online event, when the event is freshest in your event attendee’s minds. 

Offer Webinar Content On-Demand 

Recording your webinar makes it accessible for the participants, post-live attendees, and future registrants. They can utilize on-demand viewings of your video recording or audio podcast to replay your webinar for research, reference, or share with their colleagues. 

Transcribing your webinar is another good practice to increase engagement. Transcription will ensure written data on the webinar topic is available and can be used and referenced for years to come. 

Increase Engagement With Best Practices At Your Next Webinar 

By using webinar engagement best practices, webinars can yield excellent results for hosts and attendees. Engaging webinars help with lead generation and ensure event ROI 

Looking for a webinar service that will help with production and customer service? BeaconLive has over 20 years of experience providing seamless, professionally executed events. Their webinar services require no plug-ins, which means they can be accessed from any mobile device successfully. 

Contact BeaconLive today to deliver your best webinar to date.