Who doesn’t know what webinars are in 2020? We bet almost everyone with access to the Internet does - or at least has stumbled across one unintentionally. That’s, by the way, a secret power of webinars - they might pop-up on your feed just because your friend announced their participation in one. Although social media is now almost completely flooded with video content, some people still don’t believe in the success that lies behind making a live stream (or on-demand records). The question is - if they don't make a profit for entrepreneurs, then why implement webinars in their marketing strategy?
For some salespeople, allowing webinars to play an essential part in their business plan is almost like witchcraft. They don’t see any income from implementing video content and perceive lead generation through webinars as bias.
If you think this way too, we’ll try to show you that it’s not sorcery, but magic - and it’s so powerful that it comes straight from Hogwarts.
Why do people still believe in webinar myths?
"Webinars are just marketing, not a sales strategy." Does this sentence sound familiar? Today, although we are trying to think outside the box, we still tend to believe in myths and superstitions. That's what might happen when a PR team tries to convince a salesperson about the idea of hosting a webinar to generate more sales.
We can't just use the "Accio" spell to bring us whatever item we need (new clients in our case), but we can show real solutions and provide answers to the doubts of any sales team. If your company provides a paid programme you should align it with the content strategy, including webinars. For example, you can feature your products in a video or offer a free sample if possible. It can be anything that might make people who receive it crave more, and encourage them to purchase the full version. You could provide a special discount for your services that is only available for webinar attendees. Thanks to that, you can raise the probability of making sales and earning a profit even if your clients wouldn’t pay full price. These are only a few practices that work, and they’re just the tip of the iceberg.
Without further introduction, let's get down to the topic and debunk the most common webinar myths.
Dispelling the myths
#1 Webinar preparation takes lots of effort but doesn’t generate many leads
Some might think that hosting a webinar is fun, but it's just for the people who have lots of time to spare and enough money to run videos pro bono. As we know, judging a book by its cover can lead to misunderstandings, so let's look at the facts instead. Lead generation is a complex process that involves providing marketing actions on more than one platform. Shutting yourself off to other opportunities and only creating a few types of posts on Facebook or LinkedIn might not result in the best ROI.
To make a robust marketing campaign, including webinars into a content plan is a smart move. Even if at the beginning it may only help with generating leads, this is already a good step. Adding a link that redirects to a Facebook event which takes users to your landing page, and combining a whole project with email marketing, can work wonders in terms of reaching new customers.
Another thing you can do is provide access to the live video to those who are interested only after they sign up for the event with their email address. Thereby you can build your contact list and use it later to inform about upcoming actions with a newsletter. Also, if you need to gather more data on your target audience who are business people, you can ask about the field they work in or even for a phone number. Maybe it actually is magic...
#2 Webinars cost a lot and give little in return
After devising the whole concept of your webinar, you might conclude that it would actually cost you an arm and a leg to create. If you want to make a video that will be perfect the overall price could rise, but it doesn't have to require so much financial contribution. What exactly do you have to pay for when preparing a webinar?
Starting from tools that allow you to run a webinar, many offer free versions. You can check their features for yourself and see if you would like to get access to more options that are available in a paid variant. If there's no need to use additional options for your actions, you can stick to the basic version and still make a profit from your videos.
Other costs might concern working on your soft skills as an entrepreneur and polishing what you already know. However, these abilities would also be useful in your daily life, so it's rather an investment than an expense - and not one that’s strictly related to the money spent on webinars alone. The last thing is the budget for webinar promotion. As with every marketing campaign you can build your reach on organic traffic, but you shouldn't have too high expectations about the final result. Enhancing an event that promotes your webinar even with low-cost paid advertising might help with reaching those clients who are genuinely interested in such content. Cheap often isn't cost-effective.
#3 The market is flooded with webinar content, so I won’t be able to get through with mine
The popularity of webinars in 2020 is rising, and thus the entrance barriers are getting higher - but anything can seem challenging at first anyway. If you're starting a new marketing action and trying to fit into a particular niche, it won't be simple but it probably will be worth the effort. You have to go the extra mile to become recognized, remembered and desired.
Research shows that live events tend to be viewed for an average of 55 minutes longer than on-demand ones. This could lead to the conclusion that creating evergreen videos doesn’t make much sense, but that's another webinar myth. In fact, the gap is tiny - recordings are viewed for about 42 minutes, which still is a significant amount of time. According to the same study, the overall viewing time is increasing. That's why 94% of business people go for both solutions, by simply recording a live webinar in order to meet the needs of all their followers.
#4 A webinar can’t be shorter than one hour
According to many statistics like this one, the average webinar takes about 53 minutes. Some entrepreneurs tend to schedule presentations for more-or-less 30 minutes, and then leave 15 more for a Q&A. This goes along with scientific research that concerns the length of our attention spans. Although it is believed that most people can’t focus for more than nine seconds, the latest discoveries show the opposite. How exactly can we interpret this information and decide on the length of a webinar?
The answer is: it depends on the type of content you create and the audience you want to reach. It is common to host a webinar that lasts about an hour, but this won't work for those people who have less time to spare and expect brevity. Also, playing with the length of the video might help you with getting to know what your audience prefers and therefore to make a scheme for upcoming ones. Flexibility is vital in marketing today, when there's no one-fits-all solution.
The idea of providing a bunch of useful information in almost no-time is gaining popularity. Proof for that can be found in Hotjar's Lightning Talks conference, which consists of speeches 5-minute each. You can see an example of a presentation that keeps it short and sweet yet covers the whole topic, thus debunking this webinar myth.
#5 Webinar quality is poor and bugs are common
This issue is a result of using low-quality devices and tools when proper equipment is essential to make any recording pleasant to watch. It also happens when you run a video without any strategy nor contribution to the project, and don't dedicate enough time to polishing the content you want to present. Keep in mind that the quality of the tech you use is as important as your skills and preparation before the speech.
If you want everything to go as smooth as butter, make sure that your wifi connection is stable or use a network cable. This is the easiest way to avoid bugs and make sure your webinar won't be interrupted. To leverage the quality of your videos you can also buy an external camera or microphone, though many laptops are already equipped with satisfactory components. But even top-notch tech supplies don't make any difference if you sit in the wrong place, with poor lighting for example. Rearrange your space to be webinar-friendly.
Last but not least, another influence on the final effect and quality of your webinar is the tool you use to host the video. The belief that all the systems made for creating film content are almost the same is another webinar myth. Each of them offers different features that others might lack. Some platforms like LiveWebinar, for example, provide HD quality recordings to provide your audience with the best experience possible (and that's not the only superpower of this tool). When it comes to hosting online meetings, workshops and lectures, a robust platform can not only enhance your presentation but also enable you to interact with the participants.
Create a fairytale instead of believing webinar myths
Following common beliefs might hold you back from seizing new opportunities. Webinars are gaining popularity not because it's a nice feeling to host a live video, but because they can enhance your marketing and sales to provide a ROI. Business people hardly ever make decisions that aren't based on thorough research and analysis. If they implement any new tactic, then it probably is a well-thought out decision.
Webinars can work like the “Alohomora” spell, and unlock new doors with new possibilities to reach a wider audience. If you aren't convinced whether this kind of magic is for you, LiveWebinar gives you the option to test our platform, as you can create a free account - which is lifetime but also has some limitations.