How Webinars Fit into the Marketing Funnel for Demand Generation

Customer Touches in the Marketing Funnel

Customer touches are another concept that requires you to understand your marketing funnel.  In the perfect world, your marketing messages are so persuasive that they can convince people to become customers after the first time they learn about you.  In reality it is rarely that simple.

Prospective customers typically require multiple contacts before they make a purchase decision. If you don’t know how many contacts your customers require, this will be a useful research project for you to undertake with your customer database. Contacts can be emails, webinars, phone calls, old-fashioned mail, or any other form of contact. 

On average, it takes seven contacts with a prospective client before they feel comfortable making a purchase decision. Educational or thought leadership webinars can be an excellent (and low-pressure) demand generation tactic, while helping your prospects become more comfortable and understand your business.  

If your average number of client contacts in your marketing plan is less than the number of touches your clients require to convert, adding additional contacts is a good tactic to explore. You might not see an immediate spike in sales after any single demand gen webinar, but a strategy that increases the number of customer touches in the marketing funnel should result in a larger number of paying clients at the end of that funnel. 

Webinars as a Sales Tactic

Custom content is one of the favorite tools of sophisticated marketers, and demand generation webinars are a fantastic tool for creating and disseminating custom content.

It is always easier to sell someone something when they are willing to talk to you. According to the Custom Content Council, “61% of consumers say they feel better about a company that delivers custom content, they are also more likely to buy from that company.”

That’s a remarkably positive impact for custom created content, and you can’t get more custom than webinars. Demand Generation, or Lead Gen webinars give you the opportunity to interact with prospective clients directly and address their questions through the course of the event.

As sales tactics go, any form of communications that clients welcome and that is more likely to lead to a sale is incredibly valuable. That makes demand generation webinars an excellent marketing tool to have in your toolbox. 

Interested in learning how to get started with webinars?  Check out our complimentary OnDemand webinar, How to Design, Develop and Execute a Successful Webinar.