Top Tips for Running a Webinar for Associations
A well run, smart webinar is a powerful content marketing tool. If you make a connection with each audience member through presenting an organised and content rich webinar you will be on your way to becoming an expert in your field.
Not all webinars run so smoothly, and if your presentation has faulty slides, bad crackling audio or worse, the chances are that you may loose the trust and respect of your audience you have worked to hard to obtain.
In reality the chances of running into technical glitches is likely and no matter how much preparation and testing you do sometimes these things are out of your control.
However, there are a few ways in which you can minimise the risk of errors accruing and disrupting your webinar. Follow our handy tips and tricks of running a webinar and see the results of running a higher quality and less stressful online presentation.
1. Choose a good software technology
If the software isn’t up to it then there is no point, as you can’t afford to have broken connections. We have used RedBack Conferencing and they record the webinar for you, and delegate a facilitator to introduce speakers.
2. Prepare before hand
Make sure you have your script or dot points ready so you know what to say for each slide.
Recruit a wingman, this could be a colleague, co-worker or assistant who will act as a behind the scenes helper. They can keep you on track with time, and help organise the attendees questions.
It’s also a good idea to have all the bios ready for the presentation, that way you can read them out at the start to introduce the speakers.
3. Use poll questions to build interactions
In a group setting it’s hard for individuals to interact, by taking regular polls throughout the webinar this will encourage individuals to make comments or ask questions. View the results on our Poll questions.
4. Rehearse and be prepared
Make sure that your audience can hear and see the content at all times. You need to make sure every element is tested prior the presentation. Set up a practice before the time of the webinar to ensure everything is working.
5. Prior to Air
Prepare your computer, close any programs that you won’t me using and turn off notifications. Make sure your computer is charged and has the power cord.
Ensure your work area is clean and your notes are neatly organised to avoid ruffling around during the presentation.
If you have more than 2 speaker presenting sort our who is doing which parts and speaking first.
Login to the webinar at least 30 minutes before to run through everything is working.
6. During the stream
Start the webinar on time, there is nothing worse than having to wait 5-10mins for the presenter.
Introduce the speakers and thank everyone for coming.
Remember to Record your Webinar.
Think like a talk show host, you need to keep high energy levels and bring the best out of the guests.
Begin the presentation and remember to have fun.
Tip: Allow questions during the webinar and answer them as they come through, and make notes. This way they are relevant to the topic you are currently talking about rather than waiting till the end to answer all of them at once. Have the live poll questions appear in front of the audience as well as presenters so they can also see how the responses are going in a percentage.
7. Connecting is important
Your final slide should have the speakers contact details and social media links. This way those who want to get in touch and find out more can email or phone the speakers directly.
8. Build in follow up activates
Encourage users to follow your social media accounts.
Post the slides and recording so those who didn’t view the webinar can.
Tip: Make sure your software provider can provide a list of the those who have attended and those who haven’t this way you can send the relevant newsletters. Once you have the webinar recording you can send that link to those who registered but didn’t turn up on the day so they can still view it. For those who did attend the webinar send them the polls results and topics that will be addressed in another series that were highlighted.
View our latest webinar on Member Engagement and how to transform the way users interact with your organisations website.
