INTRODUCTION
While we may have seen a surge in B2B webinars in 2020 due to the pandemic, webinars have been around for years and will continue to be a vital component of content marketing strategies for B2B brands.
When used appropriately, webinars can help you humanize your brand, build thought leadership, showcase the value of your products or services and generate meaningful B2B leads. In fact, in a 2021 Demand Gen Report, 53% of marketers identify webinars as the top-of-the-funnel format that generates the most high-quality leads.
Following are some tips on how to use webinars for B2B lead generation.
BEST PRACTICES FOR CREATING B2B WEBINARS THAT GENERATE LEADS
Define your target audience. Start by creating buyer personas to identify key demographics of your audience, as well as their pain points or frustrations, interests, desired outcomes and goals. This will help you develop tailored content that is more likely to resonate with prospects. If you already developed personas as part of your overall marketing plan, you can use them as guides.
Create valuable content. While your ultimate goal is to generate leads for your company, you should always strive to provide value for your audience. This means keeping your webinars educational versus promotional. Discuss issues and/or solutions at a high level instead of showing how your specific product or service works. If you mention your company or product, make sure to do it in a way that doesn’t feel overly sales-y. For instance, you can share a case study or experience that ties into the overall message, or you can include some information about yourself to help establish your expertise.
Capture contact information. Create a registration page for your webinar to capture attendee contact information. Many webinar platforms, like GoToWebinar and Eventzilla, have registration built-in. You also could create your own form on your website or on an event platform like Eventbrite. First name, last name, email, company name and job title are good required fields to start with. Your business development team can use this information to nurture leads after your webinar is over–just make sure to include a note to let attendees know you may contact them in the future.
Brand your webinar. Even though you aren’t showcasing your specific product or service, you should still add visual cues that align with your brand. Use brand fonts and colors if you are using slides or handouts and add your logo where you can. For instance, you can include it on your webinar registration page, on a title slide or at the end of your presentation alongside your contact information.
Develop a format that works. According to WorkCast and GoToWebinar, 60-min. webinars tend to attract more attendees than 30-minute webinars. That being said, don’t feel pressured to fill time. A short, informative webinar is better than a lengthy webinar that drones on. Attendees also tend to prefer webinars that include a live Q&A session. Allot about 10-15 min. at the end to take questions and offer to extend the session if you need more time.
Send out post-webinar surveys to gain insights about what worked and what didn’t so you can make adjustments for the future. Over time, you will be able to hone in on the format that works best for you. You also can use the survey to learn about other topics your prospects might be interested in.
Practice. Before going live, run through a practice session (or two) with your team. Take that time to test out sound quality and work out any technical issues (e.g. screen sharing) in advance. This also is a good time to ask for feedback about the look and flow of your presentation.
Record your webinar. Like other forms of content, you can repurpose your webinar to further market your product or service. For instance, you could create an on-demand webinar with the recording to capture new leads. You also could upload the video to your company’s YouTube channel, post clips on your social media pages or website or send it out in e-newsletters.
HOW TO PROMOTE YOUR B2B WEBINARS
Once you create your webinar, you should work with your marketing team to promote it to the right people. This could mean tapping into the list of relevant leads you’ve already collected or targeting new audiences. Here are some tactics to consider.
Launch a tailored e-newsletter campaign. Email is a great way to share your webinar with existing contacts and prospects. Make sure to segment your list appropriately so you are only targeting people who will find value from the webinar–don’t blast it out to everyone. Include webinar details, key takeaways and the registration link in the body of the email to encourage signups. Aim to send out the initial newsletter one month before the webinar and reminder emails two weeks and one week prior.
Leverage social media. Post your webinar to your company’s social media pages to promote it among your followers, and ask your team to share information to their personal accounts as well. In addition, you should run social media ads to amplify your reach. As a B2B company, you will likely want to start with sponsored content on LinkedIn. Use the platform’s targeting features to narrow your audience based on relevant demographics, industries, job titles and more. Plan on a minimum budget of $10 per day and a campaign duration of 14-30 days.
Showcase your webinar on your website. Create pop-ups or banners on your website to capture the attention of site visitors. Link these back to a dedicated page on your website that includes information about your webinar and a registration button (this could also be used as a landing page for ads). If you have an events page or an event calendar, you should list your webinar there as well.
Advertise with relevant media outlets. Industry-specific media outlets could help get your webinar in front of your ideal prospects. Work with an account rep to explore opportunities such as display ads, newsletter ads or even webinar promotion packages that may be appropriate. Ask for a media kit to gain insights about their audience and reach and advertising costs before you move forward.
Use your webinar to promote future webinars. You already have their attention, so you might as well promote your next webinar before wrapping up your presentation. This works particularly well if you planned a series of webinars centered around similar topics. Remember, you don’t want to come off as overly promotional, so you should limit yourself to a simple mention toward the end. You also could include more information about future webinars in your follow-up communications.