The use of webinars to engage prospective customers and create leads has increased exponentially over the past year.

According to research by Content Marketing Institute, 60% of content marketers use webinars as a content marketing tool.

It has enabled marketers worldwide to generate high-quality leads and enhance brand awareness. They are also cost-effective alternatives to in-person events and helps you to build and develop strong relationships over the web.

As webinars grow in popularity, it is crucial to keep in mind some of the best practices that you should follow while generating an audience to ensure the success of your webinars:

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Pick the right date and time

While it might seem obvious to many people, there are times when important dates and events are entirely forgotten while choosing the date and time for a webinar.

According to a WhatCounts poll, the best days to host a webinar are Wednesdays and Thursdays. Mondays and Fridays are typically filled with catch-up and last-minute tasks.

Based on the geography you are operating and your target audience’s behavior, you need to pick the right date and time when you can assume maximum attendance.

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Promotion

To ensure that your webinar reaches a maximum number of prospects, you must promote it effectively. Restricting yourself to one platform would limit your reach and conversion. Based on your target audience and their digital habits, you can consider promoting your webinars through the following:

-      Paid search marketing

-      Social media

-      E-mail

-      Website

-      Partnering with companies

-      Influencers

It is also a great strategy to write a blog around your webinar and keep the CTA as your webinar. A multi-channel strategy enables you to maximize your reach and stay top-of-the-mind of your prospects.  

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Sign-up experience

Various tools and tactics available on the internet have made it easy to generate traffic for any link or website. However, with increased marketing activity, conversion rates have taken a hit over the years. This is where your sign-up experience plays a crucial role in converting your prospects to attendees.

On average, we are exposed to more than 5000 marketing messages daily.

Your sign-up page should be able to communicate the topic of the webinar and the benefits to the user simply and directly. Additionally, it is a great practice to have trust signals on your sign-up page, like the speaker’s profile, partner’s logo, or testimonials. It gives much-needed credibility to your webinars.

Finally, you should ensure that you can easily capture your prospect's attention on the sign-up form. It builds trust with your user, thereby ensuring maximum conversions.

The number of fields in your form is inversely proportional to the number of leads you will generate.

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Reminder

According to Bizibl, the average registration-to-attendee ratio is between 35% to 45%.

Compared to other digital mediums, this number is on the higher side, underscoring webinar'ssuccess as a marketing tactic.

However, considering the amount of effort that goes into hosting a webinar, you cannot risk losing even a single attendee. Hence, sending reminder emails 1 week, 1day, and 1 hour before your webinar helps you to increase the conversion rate and generate huge audiences.

If you’re not on my calendar, it doesn’t exist.

Including“Add to calendar” links in your confirmation and reminder mailers is a great practice. This enables your prospects to block a specific time, ensuring their attendance.

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Conclusion

Webinars have become an important arm in a marketer’s arsenal. However, it is essential to realize that we have moved from a world of information scarcity to that of information abundance. It is becoming increasingly difficult to garner the sustained attention of your prospects. Hence, it is imperative to follow best practices to ensure the sustained success of your webinars.

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Ready to boost your webinar attendance? Implement these best practices and watch your audience grow. Need expert guidance? Contact us to strategize your webinar promotion today!