A Planning Guide for Organizing a Webinar

Today, B2B marketers have a wealth of options available to them. The digital medium, after all, has ushered in fresh opportunities for them to get creative with their content and try out new and exciting ideas to engage prospective clients. Webinars have become an especially important tool for B2B marketers. Though they have been around for a while, webinars are becoming increasingly popular as companies discover the tremendous prospects they hold for lead generation, sales growth, and relationship building.

What Is a Webinar?

A webinar, short for a web-based seminar, is a live video conference that leverages the internet to connect the host to an audience from all over the world. The host has various options available to conduct this webinar.

Features of a Webinar

• Deliver presentations either by sharing your screen, displaying visuals, or displaying yourself as you present.
• Allow the audience to interact with you via a Q&A session and receive real-time responses.
• Share downloadable resource material with the audience during the session.
• Provide an on-demand session for individuals who missed out.

These features in totality make webinars a near-physical experience that is dynamic, fully immersive, and can actively involve the viewer from the get-go. Webinars are also incredibly malleable in terms of their utility. They can serve multiple businesses for multiple objectives such as:

• Educational purposes
• Training employees
• Onboarding activities
• Discussing industrial trends, and so on

Hosting a webinar might sound intimidating, but it’s not rocket science. However, if it’s your first time hosting a webinar, you might want to do some preparations beforehand to grow comfortable with the technology and build that confidence. Of course, the best way to approach your preparations is to draft a quick to-do list and tick things off as you progress through them.

Checklist for Your Webinar

Determine your objective

This, of course, is the starting point. Always tackle the “why” first. Why are you holding the webinar? Are you trying to generate leads, educate people about an important matter, build personal relationships, position yourself as an expert in your field, or simply generate awareness about your brand? Basically, what do you hope to achieve out of your webinar? Defining your objective right off the bat will help set the tone for the webinar, thereby facilitating a smooth and seamless flow of information.

Identify your target audience

The answer to your first question will lead you to the second: Who does your objective concern? It’s important to identify who you intend to speak to, for the content you draft later will have to be tailored according to the general profile of your target audience.

Select a topic

This one’s a no-brainer. You need to have a clear, well-defined topic in place to base your webinar on. Once you’ve chosen a topic, develop your content strictly around it, ensuring that your focus remains razor-sharp and doesn’t digress from the central issue at hand. Webinars that lack direction and are all over the place will fail to bring value to the audience, thereby defeating the purpose of the whole endeavor.

Choose a webinar software

Review the webinar software in the market. Do a comparative analysis of their features and see which one suits your budget and requirements the best. Software with all the necessary bells and whistles — multiple engagement tools, customizable landing pages, a dedicated helpline, and an easy registration method — is most likely to secure optimal results. Remember, the software you choose will ultimately determine the quality of your webinar, so don’t skimp on it or settle for something substandard.

Pick a speaker

You’ll obviously need presenters for your webinar. It’s up to you what format you want to go for: host and presenter, single presenter, dual presenter, or a panel. Recruit confident and articulate presenters who have a good grip on the material and can take out time to sufficiently prepare for the session. It’s equally important to pick a presenter who is willing to do the job. Presenters who’ve reluctantly taken up the role just won’t be able to generate interest or deliver the impact that an enthusiastic presenter can.

Set the date and time

Set a date and time for the webinar. If you’re trying to go global with your reach, pick a time that can accommodate people from different time zones and publicize it well in advance.

Create the content

Don’t be spontaneous with your content. You want to deliver a session that is structured, well-thought-out, and ultimately creates enduring value for the audience. Make an outline of your salient points and then add extensive notes under each point. As pointed out before, make sure you don’t go too far off-topic. Of course, it’s alright to crack a joke, ask questions, or share an anecdote in between — something that helps lighten the mood or break the monotony. But your content should largely be built around the topic you’ve chosen to speak about. Moreover, pair your copy with visually compelling slideshows, images, or even videos to add more character to your content. Variety in your content will also help a great deal in sustaining your audience’s interest through the session.

Devise a promotional plan and include reminders

No matter how well-prepared you are, your webinar won’t make an impact if nobody knows about it. Decide on a promotional plan — write emails to existing and prospective clients, promote the session on your social media pages, or run paid advertising. A few days prior to your webinar, be sure to send friendly reminder emails.

Think about registration

There must be an option to register for the webinar so you can get a tentative idea of how many people are interested and plan to tune in. A registration process that is quick and easy will obviously drive a higher number of registrations.

Do a test run

This is a must before your webinar. Ensure that your internet connection is steady and reliable and your equipment is fully functioning. Earmark a place beforehand where you can hold the webinar uninterrupted. Check the video and audio settings on your device. Test the software to see if it’s functioning without glitches. More importantly, see if you know how to navigate it. If you’re having trouble, reach out to your software provider’s customer support team to have your queries resolved before the day of the webinar.

Rehearse

Rehearsing will help you master your content before you dive into the webinar. So be sure to practice in front of the webcam. See how you appear in the video and make sure your voice is clear and audible.

Get ready for showtime! Follow this checklist and you can rest assured you’ve taken care of everything. A well-conducted webinar can be a great boost to your business. On the other hand, a dismal webinar experience will leave a very poor aftertaste regarding your brand. Thus, it’s best to be well-prepared with a foolproof webinar plan. Good luck out there!

About vFAIRS

At vFairs.com, we strive to build a top-class online event platform that will help event organizers make memorable connections with their target audience. We’re obsessed with taking out the hassle normally associated with physical events and leaving organizers and exhibitors to focus on what’s most important: engagement with the audience.

Get in touch with an expert to learn more about vFairs here.