3 Ways to Drive Attendance to Your Webinars

You have to host a webinar that historically holds the worst attendance rate. The topic and content are highly valuable and would useful to your clients and prospects, but you’re concerned that the pattern of attendance for this session is doomed to repeat itself. How can you turn things around?

Webinars are increasingly taking center stage as one of the strongest pieces of content in a marketer’s arsenal. Their flexibility and compatibility allow for creativity: they can be educational or interactive seminars, as well as discussions or demos.

It’s one of the most proficient methods of communicating with a large group of clients or prospects (or both). So why is it so hard to get registrants to attend? The initial announcement and landing page will attract registrants, but if you’re really trying to drive attendance, the battle has just begun. It’s time to pull out the sure advantage and implement the 3 P’s of Presentation:

#1: PARAMOUNT PLANNING

Get started with establishing general information that will act as the groundwork. What’s the topic and story? Who’s the host? When will it be held?

Choosing the best date and time can be challenging if a large attendance rate is the ultimate goal. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are considered sweet spots when it comes to participation (On24). Compared to Monday (the start of the week, and a day most people spend getting organized, planning or launching new initiatives) and Friday (the end of the week, and a day most people take off, or cut short to start the weekend), your audience is more likely to be able to spare the time during that middle block of the week.

By the same token, choosing a time can also be a challenge. With the global nature of marketing, many B2B marketers want to choose a time that will work for a variety of time zones. Between avoiding commuter hours and steering clear of the much needed lunch break, aiming for 10 am or 11 am PST (which is around 1pm or 2pm EST) should help you catch the best wave of attendees.

#2: POWER PROMOTION

Now that you’ve got all the logistics in place, it’s time to promote like it’s everyone’s business. Most registrants will sign up the week of, so it’s best to promote your webinar for at least two weeks to continue to push for that winning number. Execute power promos on days where registrants are most receptive to your message. As with scheduling, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday have also been deemed the sweet spots for promotions. Use these five techniques for power promotions to drive registration and get your audience ready:

• Drive traffic through social media sites (i.e. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, etc.). Allow registrants to share the event with hashtags, mentions, or status updates.
• Blog about the topic of your webinar and use links to drive to your registration page. This will help set expectations for the type and depth of content on offer.
• Include links to registration forms or landing pages in emails blasts, and eNewsletters, and try creating a speaker video to increase the excitement.
• Send an email reminder on the day of.
• Create a calendar event for Google Calendar, Outlook, and iCal (this will solidify this spot on their schedule to ensure they don’t miss it).

The more tailored and strategic the promotion process, the better the attendance.

#3: PERFECT PERKS

Last, but not least, give attendees something to look forward to. They’re already expecting some worthwhile information, so don’t leave them hanging with just that. Get them excited about the webinar before it happens with some of these ‘perfect perks’:

• Special access to a product demo
• A free download of a white paper/ebook/report
• A prize to the first 10 people to register/login
• A limited discount (if available)
• A feature in a blog, customer story on website, youtube video, conference, etc.
• A workbook to complete

These may seem like small bonuses, but they’re big-ticket items to your prospects that could push you over the top.

Webinars are full of great finds, and those who register will love getting unique, exclusive or extra content. Use what you have to get your clients and prospects engaged.
Happy presenting!

Source:  MOYA MCKAY, Pardot

Image Source:  FreePik