Webinar Strategies For 2021

by David Jones Digital Marketor

In the late 1990s, Microsoft provided the technology for webinars that could be made public with the launch of the NetMeeting platform. There was no such thing as webinar marketing. Since then, webinars have come a long way since its inception. As we approach 2020, the next phase of digital marketing has already begun to take shape. Exceptional user experiences and UI designs of all content, including webinars, have become essential. AI has put data privacy and cybersecurity first and digital platforms must be designed with the upcoming 5G revolution in mind.

In the face of these upcoming disruptions, companies will need to rethink the way they approach webinar marketing to stay ahead of the curve. Often times, webinar marketing strategies that chase more webinar visitors lose focus on the bigger picture, i.e. creating the highest quality, most targeted content possible. Getting your audience to click on your webinar link and reach your landing page is only half the battle. The make-or-break situation lies in creating a content strategy that keeps them intrigued with valuable information for the 30-45 minute live webinar.

With that in mind, let's take a look at 5 Critically Successful Webinar Strategies Marketers Often Overlook.

Nail your invitation emails

An optimal content marketing strategy for a webinar should include invitation emails that look like this:

First contact - invitation email 3-4 weeks in advance
Reminder email - 2 weeks in advance
Second reminder email - 1 week in advance
Last reminder - 1 day before
Feedback / thank you email - 1 day post

The best time to start sending your promotional email invitations is approximately 3-4 weeks prior to the webinar event. Yes, the initial invitation emails should add up and it's important that you don't leave any actionable information, but more importantly are the follow up and reminder emails to cover everyone from your webinar funnel. A typical email open rate in B2B marketing plans is only 15.1%, so having periodic follow-up emails is vital for maximum exposure. According to Drip, not following up with your webinar invitations can result in you losing up to a third of your sales. Ideally, a first follow-up email should be sent 1-2 weeks after your initial invitation.

2. Choose the right media for promotion

To keep up with your lead generation game, you need to promote your webinars on the right channels to gain maximum exposure. If you have an omnichannel approach to promote your webinars, you will get more webinar registrants.

Influencer Marketing:

Teaming up with an influencer for your business niche can be the perfect way to generate more audience for your webinars. Influencers usually use their social media presence to create awareness for your webinars with headlines such as: “I'm going to the XYZ webinar on intent marketing; it's a great way for marketers to keep up with current marketing trends'. Having the right influencers to endorse your brand will certainly make a big difference to your webinar marketing plan in the way your contacts in the industry approach your webinar promotion.

Social media:

For B2B trends, look no further than LinkedIn. Share your webinar registration forms with connections and don't forget to include a personalized InMail. You can also create events and a Facebook ad to promote your webinar and use Twitter by generating relevant hashtags as part of your social media marketing strategy.

3. Select the optimal webinar software

Hosting a live webinar can present many technical challenges. Poor connectivity, audio quality, random disconnects can become a real hindrance to the success of your webinar. Days of one-way discourse in webinars are over, audience engagement and interactive tools for active participation are essential. With that in mind, some of the factors to consider when selecting your webinar software platform for a seamless digital experience are:

Compatibility with browsers and operating systems

Have a user-friendly interface with easy navigation

Extremely hassle-free and fast installation and start-up time

The number of visitors the software can handle

Automatic live recording and replay integration

Auto-response functions

Indispensable interactive tools

Given these points, here are some of the best software solutions you can choose for an upcoming webinar:

Adobe Connect
ON24
Cisco Webex
GoTo Webinar

4. Schedule according to the viewer's time zones

Timing is everything, whether it's setting up weekend deals or holiday campaigns. When setting up your webinars, consider the background and location of your audience. Certain days and times will certainly work better if you try to attract as large an audience as possible.

When it comes to webinars for B2B marketers, the vast majority of data shows are on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

As for the times, a recent study by GoToWebinar found that 11am is the most engaging, with 2pm coming in as the second most preferred time slot.

For Lead Generation Services - CONNECT WITH A LEAD GENERATION SPECIALIST

5. Exceptional audio quality

When it comes to communication, only 7% of the meaning is derived from the words we use, while 38% comes from the tone of voice and the remaining 55% from non-verbal cues. Needless to say, when hosting a webinar presentation, the audio quality is far too critical to ignore. Undoubtedly, bad audio will cause an immediate shutdown and ruin any effort you've put in to get your viewers to the webinar at all. If you sound distant or creaky, it will have a serious impact on what would otherwise have been an exceptional message.

Final thoughts

Webinars are an effective way to build lasting connections with your prospects and play a vital role in their customer journey, while at the same time differentiating your brand from your competitors. With changing buyer preferences and video consumption metrics soaring through the roof, marketers will need to get creative and develop their webinar marketing strategies over time. Use these tips as the basis for building your own creative marketing plan to become an excellent webinar host.