Maybe you’ve never even heard of webinar businesses before but want to see what all the hype is about! Whatever it is, you’ve come to the right place.
Running a successful business is stressful work. And it becomes more complicated when you don’t know where to start or how to go about pitching your idea or product. So, keeping that in mind, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about starting a webinar business. But not just that, we’ll show you how to do it the right way.
What is a Webinar?
Webinars are the new normal, especially today when almost everything is turning online. A webinar is an online seminar that ideally lasts up to 30 – 45 minutes. It’s a great way to sell your products and services. It mainly consists of a host or a panel of them, a video or slide presentation, and an audience, of course!
Why You Should Consider Holding a Webinar
A webinar is an effective way to attract people and turn them into potential customers. A webinar will give your business the exposure it needs to get started. It will also give your audience a chance to interact with you, which they wouldn’t have been able to if it was a face-to-face presentation.
Webinars help you with:
- Sales
- Brand awareness
- Community building and gaining leads
- Reaching people all around the globe
Starting a Webinar Business: The Basics
Now that you know precisely what a webinar is, let’s get into how you can own your very own webinar business!
Planning
Good things come to those who plan—mapping out your route and knowing what to do when is essential to ensure the success of your webinar business.
It would help if you asked yourself questions like
- What do you want to name your business?
- What is your budget?
- Who is your target audience?
- What is your goal?
Starting a legal business
You must establish a legal entity. It’ll allow you to take legal actions and sign contracts with your customers and dealers. By establishing a legal entity, we mean, get your business registered. Even if you’re starting really small, and don’t have any office, registering a business will help you in the longer run.
Permits
There are specific licenses and permits you’ll need to acquire before formally calling yourself a businessperson. Otherwise, prepare for an incoming tsunami of hefty fines. You’ll be declaring bankruptcy before you even step foot into the corporate world! You can thank us later.
Check your state’s agencies; they can guide you accordingly.
Insurance, everyone needs it
Just as with any insurance, business insurance makes sure that in case you run into any problem, your financial losses can be covered. Different insurance types depend on the service you provide. These laws vary from area to area. Again, checking with your agency will save you the hassle.
Taxes
There are essentially two types of taxes, state and federal. You will have to register your business for these taxes before you can start operating.
Building a website
You need a website. It doesn’t matter what you sell or how big or small your business is. A website increases your business’s credibility, and your customers won’t be second-guessing your authenticity. This is true for all business types, including a webinar business. Additionally, you can promote your webinar business through a website – by running ads and whatnot.
You can make your website yourself with many online tools available or hire a web developer. Whatever fits the bill. Just make sure it’s user-friendly and gives an accurate representation of what your business is and what it stands for.
Business banking and accounting
In case it slipped your mind, you still haven’t opened a business account! And no, your personal account won’t do. Mixing your different sources of money gets sticky; you don’t want to get into all that.
Besides, it’s essential to track your business’s progress. Keeping an eye on your accounts can potentially help you figure out where you might be going wrong.
Hosting a Successful Webinar – Top Ten Tips
A webinar, if done right, can skyrocket sales to a whole new level! However, if done poorly, it could potentially cost a business some severe loss. It’s a thin line to tread on. So, let’s dive into what makes a successful webinar.
Choose your webinar software wisely!
Selecting a webinar software that works for you is a crucial step. It will play a huge role in planning your webinar. A couple of essential pointers to keep in mind while doing so are the following:
- Does it allow audio conferencing and live chatting?
- Will you be able to run multiple surveys and polls?
- How many attendees does it allow?
- Will it allow sharing and recording of your seminar?
- Does it work well on mobile phones?
- Does it fit your budget?
The right equipment for a smooth sailing
Imagine you’re listening to an online lecture, and you can’t hear a thing. The speaker’s video and voice are lagging, and they keep getting disconnected. All in all, it’s not a pretty sight. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been planning a webinar; if your audience can’t make out what you’re saying, you have a problem. Having the right equipment will make sure you never have to put your audience through that kind of torture.
A fast internet connection will save you from the embarrassment of getting kicked out of your own webinar. Of course, having a backup doesn’t hurt either; you never know where the winds might be headed!
If you’re solely relying on your laptop’s microphone to do the job, stop right there. Investing in a good pair of headsets with a mic is essential. It doesn’t have to break the bank either. There are many options in the market; you just need to know where to look.
So, in order to make any webinar a hit – it needs to have the right equipment.
Getting to know your audience
Before you even begin writing your script and making your slides, it’s crucial to find out who your target audience is. Finding out main aspects such as your audience’s goals, ages, jobs, and pain points will make it much easier for you to know how to hook them quickly.
Content is KEY
Your content is the most important part. That’s what the audience is here for! So make sure your content is worthwhile, educational, and engaging.
First impressions are the last impressions
Your title is your hook. It should be direct and specific to what your webinar is about. Vague titles don’t make the cut.
If you’re looking to build lifelong business relationships, honesty is the best policy. So don’t make any promises in the title you can’t keep. If your title is misleading and doesn’t match up with what you’re discussing, you can expect those attendee numbers to drop drastically.
Content – give them what they’re looking for
Nobody wants to hear long, boring backstories. Get to the point quickly and keep your sessions short. Give them a general overview of what you’re offering, your promotional plans, and what makes you different from others in the market.
Your main aim is to solve your customer’s problem. Why would they invest their hard-earned money in your product or service otherwise?
To run a successful webinar, you don’t necessarily need to pre-plan your entire script. Instead, jot down points you want to discuss. This will give you a rough outline to follow and ensure you don’t go blank on the spot!
Slides, they’re more important than you think!
Long wordy slides are a bore; they would have picked up a book if they wanted to read all that. Keep your slides concise, and make sure the font is big enough for those attending from their mobile phones. You need to cater to everyone in your audience. You can make your slides fun by using different colors and fonts, but be careful not to go overboard!
Make sure to not make the mistake of reading off of your slides. Your audience can read for themselves!
Don’t shy away from selling your product
Don’t be hesitant to sell out your product; that’s what they want, remember? Solutions!
However, it would be best if you pitched strategically. Don’t start your presentation by selling your product. You’ll just be shoving it down their throats. Instead, refer back to your service or product occasionally. This will help you ease into the transition of pitching towards the end.
A successful webinar is worthwhile and informational with or without your product. Remember that.
Go in with full zest and zeal!
If you’re rambling on and on monotonously, you’ll lose them before you even get to the pitching. You don’t want to put them to sleep, do you?
If you’ve given them a time, stick to it. Don’t be late! People have things to do and places to be; be mindful of that.
Keep the session interactive and engaging. Don’t drag your session, and if you’ve said it would last 45 minutes, then make sure it does. Encourage the attendees to participate by holding a question-and-answer session, asking them questions, sending out polls and case studies to make sure there aren’t any gaps.
Additionally, allow for frequent breaks. There might be too much information to take in all at once. And let’s be honest, you’ll need that glass of water after all that talking!
Deadlines and limited time offers
Deadlines and limited-time offers work like a charm. They are tried and tested!
They create a sense of urgency and compel customers to buy the product when they’re given a limited time window. Give them an offer they can’t refuse.
Emails are your best friend
It’s finally the day you’ve been waiting for; all those sleepless nights are finally going to pay off!
But wait.
Is that you staring back into your reflection on a blank screen?
That’s what happens when you don’t send out reminders! With everyone’s lives so fast-paced, people hardly have time to get a breather, let alone remember the date of some webinar they had to attend.
Send out a couple of reminder emails. Make sure to keep them short and sweet, mentioning the date and time. For example, you can send out emails of acknowledgment when they register, remind them 24 hours before the presentation and an hour or so before with the link.
Keep them coming back for more!
The webinar’s done and dusted. And you think you did well.
Now what?
Thank your audience for taking out their time to listen to what you had to say. Make them feel special by giving them access to online courses or pamphlets that can help them brush up on different skills.
Oh, and remember that question-and-answer session you held earlier? This is where that comes into play. Listening to the questions your audience had will help you decide what your next move will be and what changes you might need to bring in your business (if any).
And if, for whatever reason, some of the registered candidates didn’t attend, pass out recordings or a written blog post summarizing everything you covered to them via email. They’ll be regretting they ever missed it in the first place! Remember, facilitate! You never know who your next customer might be.
Are you confused about what your next webinar should be about? Let your audience do the thinking for you! Ask them what they want to hear about next.
Feedback
Whether it was your first webinar or the millionth, you’re bound to make mistakes. It’s human nature. However, rather than beating yourself up about it, ask your audience for feedback.
It will help you plan your future webinars tailored according to your audience. Understanding where you may have gone wrong will help you bounce back stronger than ever before. And your audience will appreciate that you took the time to consider their opinions. It’s a win-win situation!
Don’t Give in to the Fear of Failing
Many times, our fear of failure is so great that we never even take the risk to try. However, the greatest tragedy of life is not failure; it is, in fact, not trying at all. If you’re starting a webinar business, I’d like to come forward and congratulate you for taking a leap of faith. With the pointers mentioned above, hard work, and faith, you can do wonders. A webinar business awaits you. Grab it while you can.