Whether you’re a new business owner or other looking to host your very first webinar, these are 7 useful tips for you to take into account when preparing for a webinar:

Engaging slideshow presentation

Although a webinar does consist of the host, possibly yourself, talking quite a lot, your discussion should be accompanied by an engaging slideshow presentation. This means that your presentation shouldn’t follow conventional business presentation formats that are often boring and formulaic. Instead, use pictures and colours (but not too much), and even vary the type of content – questions, quotes, polls, and so on. 

The ideal time and day

For improved attendance, you may want to schedule your webinar before or after lunch hours, meaning 10am to 2pm, with 12pm as the exception. In terms of what day, mid-week webinars are best, so it might be worthwhile to stick to Wednesday or Thursday when planning your first webinar. 

Stick to the main points of your script 

It can be easy to fall into the trap of going off on a tangent once you have started talking about something, however, be careful not to do this as it can waste valuable webinar time. Whilst a discussion that is off-topic may have garnered some interest, it’s recommended to stick to the main points of your discussion so that you’re able to state the purpose of the webinar comprehensively. 

Ensure that your internet connection is reliable

As webinars rely on stable internet connections, it’d be a good idea to make sure that your internet connection runs swiftly and efficiently without causing any lag or delay in video and/or audio feed. This may also be dependent on your webinar software, so don’t forget to use the most appropriate software for your webinar. For optimum internet connection, check whether you’re able to connect your device to ethernet for a faster and more secure connection.

Choose the optimal room to host your presentation

You don’t want to be hosting your first webinar in an environment where your audience can’t hear or see you properly; therefore, it’s best practice to conduct webinars in a space where you can be seen and heard without distractions. For example, a room with poor lighting isn’t the ideal environment for a webinar – good lighting and minimal background noise is perfect. 

Publicise and send invitations to your webinar

How will you reach an audience if they don’t know about your webinar? You’ll need to publicise your webinar to your target audience which can be done via email invitations to advertising your webinar on platforms like LinkedIn. To generate leads, you must persuade your audience to attend your webinar, so ensure that your marketing materials for your webinar are exceptional. 

Practice makes perfect

As it’s your first webinar, you may want to practise your script and how you will act during the webinar by hosting a room just by yourself. As a result, you then have access to all of the webinar features as you would on the actual day, thus you can familiarise yourself with the functionalities of the software which may include comments and screen sharing. Therefore, you’re better prepared when the day comes. 

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