So, you have prepared a lot for an important webinar scheduled for this week. And, there is a good number of people who have signed up for the session already.
But are you sure that all of those people will join your webinar, and on time?
Unfortunately, on average, only 60% of the registered people actually end up attending the webinars.
Why?
Due to the new trend of remote work culture, there has been a rise in consumption of online webinars, leading to a 295% increase as compared to 2019.
With this surge of information online, it’s hard to get people’s attention & to hold it. This doesn’t mean that all the hard work you’ve put in for the webinar has to go to waste.
Why Should You Record Your Webinars?
Webinars are seminars that take place on the web. The best part about these online gatherings is that anyone can participate in these sessions from any part of the world.
But what after your webinar has ended?
Should you collect feedback & move on with your next webinar now?
No, not so soon.
You can still use the concluded webinar to reach a wider audience & promote your content. Provided, you have recorded that session.
A recorded webinar can be definitely used for study & to improve your upcoming virtual meets. But, it also provides you access to valuable & informative content that can be shared with the audience later for consumption.
You can edit your webinar into short clips to quote a guest or to share an informative segment of the session online. This also helps you cater to your audience using social media.
If you’ve planned a number of webinars around a related theme, then you can use the recordings as a series of episodes to create a complete resource file for that topic. This can differentiate you from your competitors considering your in-depth research & information on that subject.
Recorded webinars when targeted at the right audience can not only boost your online presence but also drive your sales & revenue.
How To Choose The Right Webinar Recording Software?
Now that we know how much help building an online community does to your business, let’s see which are the factors you should consider while choosing a recording software for your webinars.
Features
Some of the most popular features needed in any webinar recording software are desktop-sharing, video editing, chat or whiteboard for collaboration, and unrestricted time limit for recording. OpenMeetings is one of the meet schedulers & a recording tool that doesn’t limit the time or the attendees.
But, getting more for a price is always a welcome deal.
Look for multi-purpose software that can assist you with not only recordings but also help you in delivering the final product.
Serving a lack-luster, hour-long webinar recording to your audience is not going to benefit them and you. Once a webinar is finished, you’ll have to edit it to make it more engaging.
So, if you’re looking for a software, then opt for the one that does more than just recording and can help you in your projects effectively.
Budget
There are many tools in the market that offer different features at different price ranges. Some are even free & can be upgraded if you’re looking for some specific functionalities.
The pricing is usually on a monthly basis or a one-time license fee.
Narrow down the features that you want & then shortlist the software that can meet those requirements at a reasonable cost.
A cost-effective solution is ideal for a long-term online content strategy.
Setup
Nothing beats a no-fuss & easy to use application. Consider a tool that is easy to download & can be installed on your system without any hassle.
Check if the tool is compatible with Windows, Mac, or Linux, and then go ahead with the suitable version.
If for using a software you’ll have to add ten other plug-ins then it’s not an optimized solution.
Video & Audio Quality
Clear audio & video is necessary to have quality content. Ideally, the quality of the shared screens and meetups should be consistent irrespective of the internet connection of the presenter.
Along with this, also look for the formats available in the tool for downloading the recording.
Basic formats like MP4, AVI, or MOV should be supported.
Interface
A simple and easy-to-use interface saves you hours of tutorials & lets you finish your work quickly.
While choosing a recording software, consider the one that gets the job done effectively without elaborate & complicated frills to it.
An easy-to-navigate software lets you derive the maximum value out of it.
Editing
A recording tool that lets you edit your files is like icing on the cake.
Instead of spending money on an additional editing software, you can search for the recording tool that has basic editing options like cut, merge, and transitions to enhance your recordings.
Riverside is a webinar recording tool that separates the audio & video tracks so that you can have complete control for post-production add ons.
Integrations
Some software allow you to integrate with a third-party application as well which can be an added benefit if you’re looking for customization.
For eg- You can integrate your recording platform with webinar schedulers to create a seamless experience for the attendees.
Taggg is an efficient meeting scheduler that provides integration options with other platforms like Zoom & Zapier.
Storage
There are tools that support downloading the files locally & let you store them on the cloud as well.
You can check for the storage space that is provided without any additional cost. The more storage space you have, the less you’ll have to worry about failed or incomplete recording sessions.
After all, your computer has a limited amount of available free space, and you want to avoid potential storage issues, right?
Sharing
When you’re recording a meeting, it is important that you can share the final file with others as well.
Receiving & accessing the recordings shouldn’t be a hassle for the guests.
Even direct links for social media are also a plus point to eliminate extra work.
Support
The software that offers 24/7 and prompt support is always a better option than an unreliable source where you have to scratch your head figuring out a solution
Or if it’s a glitch, then wait for it to get resolved on its own.
A dedicated support channel builds confidence in the services and assures consistent performance.
Best Free Webinar Recording Software
Just want to record the webinars but for free…
Gotcha!
There are some free software that do the basic job of recording important meetings & webinars without any hidden charges & conditions.
LiveWebinar is an advanced webinar software that gives everything you may need to manage your webinars & meets. It is a web application so you won’t have to bother with downloading & installing setups to your system.
It makes collaboration easy with its quick setup & broadcasting feature. You can live stream to social channels like YouTube, Facebook, or Vimeo. And, the features like live chat, polls, whiteboard, and breakout rooms make the session interactive. Along with this, you can personalize every meet with your branding & custom templates.
The free version can be upgraded to paid one if you need more hours of interrupted recording & attendees for your webinar.
The free one allows up to 2 hours of recording & 5 attendees and the upgrade starts from $11.99 per month.
Movavi is the screen recorder software that is available for iOS and Windows. It is an easy-to-use application that lets you get started in just 3 clicks. The software also gives an option to adjust the recording area.
ApowerSoft Online Recorder is another software that is completely free and offers a wide range of features. You can not only record the meetings but also edit them aptly.
MobiZen is an application primarily for mobile users to record the mobile screen, edit the video, & share it online. However, Windows users can also download this to their system if the Windows version is 7 or above.
Apart from these free options, if you want full-fledged software even with some cost then you can consider Camtasia, Loom, or Bandicam.
Camtasia has a first-year plan of $299 per user which later renews at $50 per year. The first purchase includes a one-time license cost & maintenance fee.
Camtasia is an all-in-one solution for recording meets & editing them professionally. The features like presets, animations, transitions, and captions make it a great option for sharing the aesthetic output with your audience.
Loom has plans starting from $8/user/month and its free version will let you add 50 users who can each record 25 videos. But here’s the catch….these videos have a time limit of 5 minutes per video.
Bandicam has only a one-time purchase of $40 for 1 license. This has features like scheduled recording, real-time drawing, and web-cam overlay. The free version is also available with a watermark & limited capabilities.
Wrap Up
Webinars are an important part of the marketing strategy that focuses on building brand identity & online presence.
These webinars are a great way to interact & engage with the audience across the internet so it’s necessary that you plan out the whole journey carefully.
A webinar is truly successful when it is sustainable as well. So, think about how your upcoming webinar is going to help with your overall goal & how you can utilize it in the coming weeks as well.