Are you bored of this series of posts yet?
Two weeks ago, we defined what Webinar ROI means. Check out the post here.
Last week, we tackled one half of the ROI formula and explored how to reduce the cost equation.
And now we get into the juicy stuff: How to increase the profit equation!
To increase the profit equation you need to drive funnel growth or positively impact sales! Eyes on content is the first step, but getting them from viewing your webinar to taking the right action and eventually showing up as a billing customer or buying a new product is the true measure of any marketing tactic…And webinars are no different.
Where does your funnel need the most help?
Webinars can be used to influence buyers in all stages of the buying cycle, so ask yourself, “where does your funnel need a boost?” Often marketers will look at webinars as a top of the funnel activity – a means to driving awareness or demand – or applying a one-size-fits-all approach, and offering the same content to viewers at all stages of the funnel to continue to show your value. A good way to immediately improve the profit equation of your webinar program is to start planning webinars for different stages. The type of content that builds preference is different than the type of content that creates awareness. In copywriting terms, it’s the difference between a White Paper and a Case Study.
What content fit’s where? Check out this webinar on content mapping.
Get more viewers for your content!
I know, right? If it was that simple, we would all be doing it! The fact is you can likely attract more viewers than you think without spending any additional money and very little time investment (assuming you have applied the steps laid out in last week’s blog, that is). The webinar has to be regarded as more than just a linear presentation that occurs on a Wednesday at 2:00 pm (or whenever you hold yours), but a content asset from which you want to extract every last piece of value before you move on to your next project! So when the webinar ends you take a breath, review the viewership data and get to work!
Always host an on-demand version of your webinar!
Always promote the on-demand version of your webinar!
We have addressed these points a few times on the Better Webinars blog, but as soon as possible you need to send out the “Sorry we missed you” emails to all those who registered but did not attend! They really wanted to be there and generally make up the largest part of your on-demand audience. Shortly thereafter, you should re-promote the webinar to all those who did not opt-in and register to view the live event the first time around by using the “I know you said ‘no’ already, but man, we had a great webinar last week and you can now watch it on-demand” email.
This is the bare minimum! The top 9% of TSN customers get over 1000 live viewers on their webinars, and they get more than 1000 viewers during the on-demand hosting period. Here is what they do:
- Aggregate all webinar content on a single website/hub so people can find & binge on your content – The Netflix Effect.
- Edit your webinar down into bite size teasers to share on social media channels, but NEVER host the whole webinar there. Drive the viewer back to the gated webinar archive if they want more – like this
- Run the same webinar again as a “Command Performance” with the same promotion schedule. It won’t drive as many viewers as your first run of the show, but will provide an additional spike in viewership.
Measure Engagement and use the data to target prospects
Not every lead is created equal. In the world of webinars, those who are most engaged are, well…..most engaged! Higher engagement will generally indicate that the content you presented resonated with the audience member. Find those viewers who watched the longest, clicked on the archive, asked a question or downloaded a resource/handout. Highlight the most engaged of your audience and provide a personalized follow-up to get them to the next stage. This can be facilitated by sales or marketing automation, but the key is getting to these people quickly after the webinar. More engaged viewers convert quicker!
Matt
