6 Reasons You Should Be Doing Webinars

Have you ever considered doing a webinar of your own? Or do you think this is something only the “big guys” do?

As you guys may have noticed, I have been doing more webinars lately. I intend to do more, of course. I have some plans coming up in that regard which I’ll tell you guys about soon. :)

But, there are good reasons why I’m doing webinars. Here are 6 of them…

#1 – They Hold Attention Quite Well

Written blog posts don’t hold attention very well at all. Case in point, if you’re reading this very text, I’m proud of you. Because most people will simply scan the sub-headlines of this post and move on. Most people don’t read entire posts because their attention is so scattered.

Webinars, by their event-based nature, hold attention FAR better. The average webinar is about 45-60 minutes long and, most of the time, you can get people to pay attention for that entire time. This allows you to deliver your message, build the relationship, and do ALL the things we know we should be doing but is far more difficult if we never pull people off our blogs.

#2 – You Get Real-Time Feedback

When you write a blog post, you have to wait and see if anybody cares enough to post a comment. And, in most cases, they won’t.

On a webinar, you can ask them for feedback right then and there. You can even see their names and ask them. They can type questions and comments into the little questions box and you get them in real-time. You can answer them in real-time, too. It is SO much more interactive. You can even adjust your presentation on the fly to suit their needs.

#3 – They Have Implied Scarcity

Anybody in marketing knows full well the power of scarcity. Well, a webinar brings a sense of scarcity simply because of the fact that it is LIVE. So, anything offered on the webinar benefits from this scarcity. You can drive people into action much better because they are there in real-time and, at some point, that event is going to end.

#4 – They Make Sales Like Crazy

The reason you see more and more people doing webinars is because, from a marketing perspective, they work insanely well. While a typical sales page converts at less than 10% (usually FAR less than 10%), a webinar can often convert as high as 20%-30%. Obviously, it all comes down to your presentation skills and the awesomeness of your offer.

For all the other reasons listed on this post, webinars sell. And, if you’re in the business of making sales online, you’d really be dropping the ball if you’re not using webinars in some way.

#5 – You’re The Expert.

Anybody can fake expertise in a blog post. On a live event, you really can’t. If you have people on an event and you’re doing a presentation, you need to have some command of your subject or it will show through. On one hand, this can seem daunting. On the other hand, however, this puts you into the “expert” role for the people listening to the webinar. Enhanced authority is a good thing. :)

#6 – They’re Reusable In Numerous Ways

You can get residual benefit from a webinar in a few different ways. For example:

  1. You can use the recording for future presentations. You can even chop it up into a series of free videos you’ll give away.
  2. You can use it to record a product, then turn around and sell it later.
  3. You can set up automated recurring webinar replays, allowing people to RSVP for pre-scheduled viewings of the same webinar at times that are convenient to them. NOTE: If you do this, don’t fake it being live. There’s nothing wrong with pre-recorded webinars, but don’t lie and tell them it is live when it isn’t.

I encourage you to evaluate how you can use webinars to further your own business. You have to begin to think outside the blog, you know?

Oh, and the cool thing is that you don’t have to have your own products to justify doing webinars. But, more on that one a little later… :)

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  • http://www.prolificliving.com/blog Farnoosh

    Hi David, I’ve been pulling together my first webinar, and I am excited and terrified ;) ! Well, maybe just nervous. I used to be a master presenter at my corporate job (at things I couldn’t stand presenting on) so now that I am crazy about the topic, I feel confident too. Question for you: Can you please share the tools you use for your webinars? I want to go with GoToWebinar, but I understand there is no way we can get the email sign-up list from them and they are stuck in GoToWebinar, and hence Derek Halpern’s Webinar Bridge. Do you recommend that? And how do you sell on the call during the pitch? Can people *click* when on a call? I have been on several webinars and did not think I could immediately click on a link to buy – maybe it’s an email they receive right after the webinar is over? I should just attend your next one. Thanks and whatever wisdom you share, I’ll devour. Best….!

  • http://thoughtmedicine.com Linda Gabriel

    I have many of the same questions as Farnoosh. Maybe you can do a webinar on webinars! LOL

  • http://Mazzastick.com Justin

    I agree with the Farnoosh and linda. How do you go about setting up and using a webinar.

  • Eric

    Yeah, if you know how to kick off a Webinar pretty good, I’m sure they pack a real “punch” unlike anything else. AND, you don’t “need” a list to really make them work as far as I know, although it couldn’t hurt.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Good questions. :-)

    I use GotoWebinar for live webinars. And, yeah, the list can be exported and imported somewhere else, but some providers (like Aweber) don’t make it easy to import a list. Webinar Bridge is a solution to that. There are others, too, like WP Webinar Pro. (which is what I’m using these days). I actually prefer WP Webinar Pro because it has a lot more templates included. And I like them better, personally.

    No, people can’t click on a webinar. What you do is include the URL in your presentation. Make it short and easy to type in, because they’ll have to type it in by hand. And, yes, a followup email with the “buy” link afterward is always a good idea.

    If you pre-record the webinar, then there are systems where you can put a “buy” button right next to the presentation at a certain point.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Might be a good idea. Maybe after I get back from Maine, I’ll throw one together. :-)

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Well, it helps to have a list so you can put people on the call. But, sure, if you work up a really viral marketing campaign, you could probably get people onto it without a list. Then, just use it to build the list.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Perhaps I’ll work up a webinar on webinars, as suggested before. :-)

  • http://www.prolificliving.com/blog Farnoosh

    Dave, you rock! I will be there whenever you create that webinar about webinars. :)

  • http://www.prolificliving.com/blog Farnoosh

    THANK YOU !!!!! What if I be the cheer leader to get more people on the webinar about webinars? If we promise to spread the word, would you go through the trouble of setting it up please, David? THANK YOU!

  • http://www.prolificliving.com/blog Farnoosh

    A million thanks, David. That makes me more comfortable. Yes, I know the strict rules about Aweber. If you are an affiliate for WP Webinar Pro, after I check it out, I’d like to get it through you as a thank you (I doubt very much they are free).
    Noted on the link; I was going to use a straight forward Pretty Link for it of course.
    And I do plan on recording the live webinar, but what is “pre-recording”?
    Thanks again.

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  • http://www.theskooloflife.com Srinivas Rao

    David,

    It’s funny because I was just in the process of putting together a series of webinars that I could and on my list of things to do was to email you to see if you were interested in doing a joint webinar together. In fact we’re going to be probably doing something monthly with a different presenter. 

  • Peter Franks

    Good stuff!

  • http://www.prolificliving.com/blog Farnoosh

    Srini, that sounds like fun. Good luck! What are the topics you are exploring for your webinars?

  • Rkspikes

    David,

    I am all for the webinar on webinars also. I have heard about it. It would be great to actually see it in action. Keep us posted.

  • http://almost60really.com Paula Lee Bright

    Farnoosh, so good to see you. I haven’t been to your place in a while. I must head over there soon. :)

    David, the timing on this is uncanny. I just signed up for GoToWebinar, and would love to know why you’ve switched. I’m not committed yet, and would love to NOT waste money. How soon can you crank out this obviously desired webinar? I’m scheduling mine all too soon, as I don’t feel ready. But I hear that I have to DO IT. 

    I must attend! ;)

  • http://almost60really.com Paula Lee Bright

    Me too, but we need it quickly! ;)

  • Anonymous

    Thanks David
    Do you recommend any of the free webinar tools for starters or GoTo Meeting even for a beginner?
    Mark

  • http://www.ianbrodie.com ianbrodie

    You can kind of put a link in gotowebinar – you put it in the comments box and make sure it’s sent to all listeners. The link will be clickable.

    Not as good as a proper big clickable link or button – but better than people having to type it in.

    Ian

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    Shoot me an email and let me know more what you have in mind. :-)

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    I haven’t tried any free ones. I didn’t even know there were any. My guess is that they suck. :-) You get what you pay for…. almost without exception.

  • http://davidrisley.com David Risley

    I didn’t switch. I still use GotoWebinar. :-)

  • http://www.petezafra.com Pj Zafra

    Hey David, Great post here! Thanks for the tips and insights. I myself love going to webinars. I am still about to start hosting my own webinars but definitely excited to jump into this new type of connecting with people. I totally believe that with webinars, we could definitely start seeing a drastic change in our numbers. Great post here my friend! keep it up! :D