How to Create Engaging Content for a Webinar?

Source

Modern digital marketers are increasingly relying on webinars, with good reason. Webinars are a superb source of quality leads. According to InsideSales, 73% of marketing and sales leaders vouch for webinars as a premium lead generation tool.

There are three key reasons webinars are popular. First, they are incredibly versatile. They work at every stage of the flywheel.

Second, they are excellent tools for engagement. For the period of the webinar, they captivate the audience, which absorbs the information you send out.

Third, webinars yield a wealth of audience data. This data can be used to tailor marketing campaigns down the line. However, to benefit most from webinars, you need to create engaging content. Getting the right webinar ideas and presenting them is key to webinar success. There are many webinar ideas, each working for a particular purpose.

Webinar Content Creation Ideas

Here are some interesting and engaging content ideas for your next webinar.

Source

Sales and marketing webinars

Webinars work great for content marketing. Add CTAs to create engaging content for such webinars. Focusing on marketing does not mean making the content sales-y. Focus on audience engagement rather than on hard selling.

Trend focused webinars for thought leadership

Sometimes webinar organizers aim at building thought leadership. For this purpose, webinars that focus on trends or states of affairs are great. Keep your finger on the pulse of things and speak with authority. These webinars work great by bringing professionals up to speed on statistics and trends.

Webinars for launching products/services

The days of in-person product launches are passe. Webinars do the same with much more engagement. They work great for global product/service launches. Don’t focus on replicating an in-person event. Instead, create an unforgettable experience for online users.

Webinars that go in-depth

With generalized information all over the internet, what sets you apart? You need to go in-depth and super-specific, providing information that isn’t proliferated on the internet.

You may take an hour to dive into a specific product detail. You may teach customers how to benefit from a product fully. Or, you may train your sales team on using an automated tool.

Webinars that focus on current events

These could focus on company responses to current events. Many firms held successful current event webinars in the aftermath of COVID-19.

Source

Webinars for compliance

Such webinars are an offshoot of e-learning. Do you need to get employees in sync with new compliance standards or regulations? Then a compliance webinar may be just what you need. Collaborate with regulators to understand how to remote-train your employees to meet standards.

Townhall webinars

Your C-suite can speak to the whole organization via a virtual town hall.

Career advice webinars 

Give attendees the tools they need for success. They will be grateful for your advice. Every subgroup of attendees has unique life issues. Advise them based on these issues. For example, if you are working with freelancers, get them up to speed on all relevant tax regulations.

Well-being webinars

Everyone is looking to simplify their life. Well-being webinars that solve problems are the in-thing. Make people’s lives simple; they will thank you for it, in cash and/or kind.

Value communication webinars

Communicate values like inclusiveness through webinars. Use an interactive format and be sensitive to attendee emotions.

Tips to Create Engaging Content In Webinars

Source

As webinars grow in popularity, everyone is conducting one. So, what sets you apart? Today, you need a set of tactics to differentiate yourself. Follow these tips to be a cut above.

1. Consider creating a discussion-style webinar. Unscripted webinars that use this style appear to work very well. You may forego a script, get two smart people together, and get the host to ask impromptu live questions. Such webinars tend to be conversational and informative.
2. Create webinar content around the questions in your prospect’s mind. Send out a call for questions. Promise to answer the best questions on-air. This will create a buzz around the event and also lead to good word-of-mouth publicity.
3. Add interactive features on the webinar sign-up page. You could add a poll or top questions voting feature. This also helps understand which questions the public wants an answer to the most.

10 Steps to Create Engaging Content

Here are 10 steps to ensure you are creating a well-received webinar.

Put together a great webinar team

There are three key players in a webinar team. Choosing the right individuals for these roles will determine the success of your webinar.

The webinar organizer

The main individual is responsible for creating engaging content for the webinar. They also decide the speakers, communicate with participants, promote the event, and handle registrations.

The webinar presenter/s

They are usually subject-matter experts. Their main job is to develop and deliver engaging content and manage programming, troubleshooting, and event registration.

The webinar assistants

They manage details that the presenter and facilitator don’t have time for. They answer technical questions. Big-scale webinars generally require assistants.

Choose the webinar format

A good webinar format puts the message across while engaging the audience. There are four webinar formats to consider:

Single speaker format

This is the earliest type of format. One speaker communicates with the attendees here. This speaker is responsible for the webinar entirely and answers all queries. This format works well for small audiences.

Interview format

Here, the presenter interviews the subject-matter experts. In doing so, they aim to answer all the questions the attendee may have. This is an engaging means of communication. Sometimes attendees are encouraged to ask questions as well.

Panel discussion format

This involves several speakers engaging in a discussion on the topic. It also involves a moderator who keeps the discussion on course. 

Q&A format

In the Q&A format, the presenter answers questions – but these come directly from the audience. Also, Q&A segments are usually part of the end of most webinars.

Visual planning and camera readiness

Source

Successful webinars have great audio-visuals. Just text slides don’t work here. Make the webinar replicate a face-to-face experience. Your presenters need to be camera ready. Ensure the cameras and lighting are good quality and at the correct angle. In terms of visual planning, ensure that you:

• Use an introductory slide
• Use a synopsis slide
• Include a slide of the tools and websites used during the presentation

Choose a webinar solution

Zoom is a great solution for webinars. However, others work well, including ClickMeeting, WebEx, Adobe Connect, BigMarker, and GoToWebinar. These solutions allow you to conduct surveys and polls after the session.

To decide which webinar tool to use, ask yourself the following questions:

What are the webinar objectives?

A product launch or business promotion means a large audience. So, you will need a solution that lets you interact with a large audience of attendees.

Is the webinar solution user-friendly?

Webinars have a time limitation. The right solution will help you make the most of your time. A single-speaker format works best with uncomplicated software.

What is the cost of the webinar tool?

When considering the cost of the solution, you need to focus on the target audience. A large audience will need an enterprise package. A small or medium audience can do well with a premium package.

Source

Location and equipment setup

For a well-conducted webinar, you need the right space and equipment. Choose a place that is free from interruptions and background noise. The right equipment, such as a good quality headset, is important for a professionally conducted webinar.

Keep a backup, fully charged laptop as insurance from a failed computer system. Ensure your audience has a great experience by choosing the right location and equipment.

Webinar promotion

A crucial part of webinar success is webinar promotion. Such promotion should aim at maximizing webinar participation.

1. Create a landing page that outlines the webinar topic, the speaker/s, time and date, and a CTA for people to sign-up for and attend the event.
2. Make a prominent banner advertisement on your homepage to publicize the event. 
3. Use Twitter, Facebook, and other social media sites to promote the event. Use a unique and catchy hashtag.
4. Use emails to drive registrations. A large chunk of marketers agrees that emails work very well in this regard.
5. Send a direct webinar link to attendees on the day of the event.

Choose the perfect time and date

The time and date you conduct the webinar should be such that it maximizes attendance. Your attendees would be from different time zones around the world. However, many of them may be from a particular time zone.

Choose the time of the webinar with this audience in mind. A poll by ON24 indicates that Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the best days to conduct webinars. You could also directly poll attendees for their most preferred times to attend the webinar.

Choose an interesting topic

Crucial to creating engaging content is choosing an interesting topic. You can vaguely speak on a generalized topic or deep-dive into specifics. We recommend specific, niche topics. 

• Already created content – when choosing a topic, go through previous content you have already made. This could be a blog post, article, or social media post. Find the content that received the most attention. These are the topics that arouse the audience’s interest. 
• Other related webinars – Attend webinars in your field. These not just give you topic ideas but also give you a hint on trends.

After topic selection, you can write engaging content by asking yourself these questions:

1. Is there a recurring question that potential audience members ask?
2. What are you an expert at and would love to teach?
3. What can you focus on for 30-60 minutes that would offer the most value?

Answering these questions can lead you to a topic on which you can create engaging content.

Practice, practice, and practice

• Start practicing for your webinar several days ahead. Do dry runs so that everyone involved in the webinar creation gets an idea of its nuts and bolts. 
• Check if all webinar staff are familiar with the contents and software.
• Finalize slides, and do away with spur-of-the-moment changes.
• Choose the best communication methods within the team.
• Assign individual activities to webinar team members.
• Review registration information.

Follow up after the webinar

Engagement isn’t about just the webinar. Once the webinar is over, you need to follow up with the audience. Not doing so is a missed opportunity. You could send a thank-you email or a CTA for a future webinar. Send a webinar recording link to those who missed the live event. 

Source

Key Takeaways

• Webinars are one of the most powerful lead generation tools there are.
• To get the most out of webinars, you need to generate engaging content ideas.
• When creating engaging content for a webinar, you need to adopt a rigorous, scientific approach.
• Success in a webinar also depends on the software you use, the ideal software for you would depend on variables like audience size.
• When used well, webinars can be a pillar of the business’s success.

Source

Conclusion

The question of how to create engaging content for a webinar does not have a straightforward answer.

Many elements go into a successful webinar. You need to select a hot topic. You also need to answer audience questions. In addition, you need to present it professionally.

A successful webinar requires the presenter to wear many hats. The organizer needs to be a successful copywriter, host, interviewer, technician, and logician.

But a successful webinar makes the hard work worth the effort. It means increased business and a shortcut to online marketing success.

FAQs