If you’re looking for other ways to expand your webinar creativity, then you’ve come to the right place. In this blog, we will be discussing how to host an “Ask Me Anything” Webinar.
An “ask me anything” webinar (or AMA) is not a new format. It’s an adopted format that gained traction with Reddit users. However, the ‘ask me anything’ format can be a bit of a wild card.
This week, I want to breakdown the best tips for hosting an ‘ask me anything’ webinar so that you can get the most out of this format.
Why Host An Ask Me Anything Webinar?
1. Invite The Best Speaker
2. Have A Great Moderator
- Walk you, and your audience, through the roadmap of the webinar.
- Keep the webinar on track and on time.
- Moderate questions, including inappropriate questions.
- Stimulate your audience to keep questions coming through.
- Select the best questions to answer in the queue.
3. Be Prepared With Question and Answers
Let’s say you have a large number of registrants. You have the best speaker and you were able to find a great moderator. In theory, this should ensure your webinar success, but sometimes, it doesn’t.
By preparing questions in advance, you guarantee that there will be no awkward pauses at any time during your event. Just because you have a lot of registrants, doesn’t mean they always ask questions. You should always have some questions in your back pocket to stimulate the conversation. This way you avoid any awkward situations.
Here are some tips to get you started:
- Get participants to submit questions a couple hour prior to your webinar event.
- Reach out to your sales team and identify 5-7 pain points your customers experience.
- Other frequently asked questions surrounding your business or product.
4. Use The Tools & Features Available To You
Depending on what webinar platform you choose to use, you should have numerous Call-To-Action widgets and tools available to you. Be sure you have a full understanding of all the features that your webinar platform provides, and how you can benefit from putting them to use.
Not all of them will work with an ‘ask me anything’ webinar. For instance, the polling feature might not make sense for this style, unless you want users to vote for the final question or an upcoming one.
Your moderator should also have extensive knowledge about these tools to assist you during your live webinar.
5. Do A Dry Run Prior To Your AMA Webinar
6. Don't Forget The Follow-Up
Be realistic, you might not get to every question that you’re asked, and that is okay. A follow-up email will help you with that. Create an FAQ of all questions missed, most often they are similar to one another, and list out all the answers. Include this in your follow-up email along with your on-demand webinar.
This is also your opportunity to discover where your leads are in your sales funnel.
By continuing to nurture your leads with answers to questions that weren’t on the AMA provides a great way to build a relationship with your listeners and to build trust.
7. Have Fun & Embrace The Risk
Like any event, some risks come with hosting an ‘ask me anything’ webinar.
It’s not a planned or scripted webinar, and it can be much more candid than any other live events you may have been a part of.
Some risks include:
- Not knowing if anyone will ask questions of substance.
- If questions will even be submitted.
- You, or your speaker’s reaction depending on the questions asked.
That’s okay though, because you are prepared. You’ve taken first handed advice from industry-leaders who are here to help. Similar to what you’re providing your audience.
Just remember to have fun and try to relax. Higher risk events can lead to much higher returns when executed properly.
Let's Recap
Ask me anything webinars make your brand more personable and you, the expert of your industry, can provide insight to viewers that they may not have had previously. Follow the 7 tips above, and you will see a great reward in this format.
- Have the best speaker: Be sure you’re knowledgable about the industry, product, and brand.
- Have a great moderator: Your moderator should understand the tools and know how to stimulate conversation.
- Be prepared for anything: Be ready for silence, or for too many questions in the queue.
- Use all the features available to you: Every webinar platform has tools & features, find the one that fits your needs.
- Test all equipment: Always test equipment for crisp, clean audio and visuals.
- Follow up: Nurture your top funnel leads and answer questions you didn’t have time for.
- Take the risk & have some fun: Remember, the higher the risk, the higher the value, and never forget to have fun while you’re on camera.
