Just a few short years ago, webinars would have been impossible or prohibitively expensive. But now, they are inexpensive and even free, depending on which service you use.  In addition, you’ll need a few additional tools to reach and connect with your market, especially if you plan to turn your webinars into streams of income. Here’s a rundown of some of the key tools you could use:

1. A way to capture your leads. The first thing you need is a way for people to connect with you, usually a one-page website (or squeeze page) that invites visitors to provide their name and email address in exchange for access to your webinar.  You need this squeeze page as it will allow you to build your list, which you can then use to send information to your subscribers, including information about any upcoming webinars. You can either set up a separate page or make the opt-in form part of an existing page.  Either way, you will also need a place for potential webinar registrants to go.
2. An Autoresponder system. An autoresponder is an email management system, and will quickly become an indispensable part of your online business.  There are various options available such as Aweber, 1shoppingcart, or Constant Contact, or one of their branded versions.  These services ensure your emails are sent and will protect you from spam complaints. Any of these autoresponder services will allow you to create lists and send them emails.  You’ll be able to send them your webinar information, as well as follow up with additional information after the webinar and of course invite them to your next virtual event.
3. A payment processor. If you plan to make money with your webinar, you’ll need a way to take payments. There are a number of options, from PayPal to Clickbank to a shopping cart system like 1ShoppingCart.  There are several things you need to consider when choosing  your  best option such as whether or not you’re planning to offer affiliate commissions and what other products you want to sell. If you plan on building a business around your webinars, you may want to consider a shopping cart that allows you to integrate your autoresponder function with the payment process option. You can use PayPal as well as other merchant accounts through a shopping cart.
4. A webinar service. Figure out which options you want in a webinar service provider such as the number of participants, recording capability, playback capability, reliability, and sound quality, ease of use, and availability of support services and choose accordingly. Always test any services you’re considering to make sure they meet your needs.  Most offer a free trial for a period of time so you can discover how user friendly they are before your actual webinar.  A few popular ones are GoToWebinar and Webex.

How about you? What other tools have you tried? I love getting feedback. Here on this blog, you’ll get commentluv. This is a plug-in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you leave feedback.

Until next time,

Robin

Why do people offer webinars? Sure, some of them want to get the word out about their causes, but most hosts know that webinars are a great way to make money. Here are just some of the ways you can make money with your webinar:

1. Charge for registration. Charge people for access to your webinar. How much you can charge ranges from a few dollars to thousands of dollars; obviously, the higher the rate, the higher the perceived value needs to be. I would suggest that you keep the registration fees on the lower end of the scale when you first get started. It will give you a chance to prove your value to your market before you ask them to invest huge amounts of cash up front.
2. Charge for the recordings. You can generate income by making the initial webinar free, and then charging for the webinar video or audio recording or both. How much you can charge will depend on your market, the content, and the length of the webinar.
   Here’s a special strategy: When people register, you can invite them to buy the video recording and or audio recording at a pre-event special discount, and then raise the price after the webinar has taken place. This sort of pricing strategy provides an incentive to act “now.”
3. Sell your own products. You can also sell your own products either towards the end of the webinar or even after in a follow-up email. The products should be related to your webinar and be useful to your target market.
4. Sell an affiliate product. If you don’t have your own products to sell, offer your attendees a special offer on a related affiliate product, perhaps one created by your guest expert.
5. Turn the contents of the webinar into an eBook. When you conduct a webinar, don’t think that’s the end of it! Transcribe it and turn it into an eBook.
6. Run a series of webinars. Think creatively about new ways to package and present your content. Take a series of related webinars and bundle the audios together into a larger product for sale to your market.
7. Turn your webinars into physical or digital products. The video recording and audios can be made into DVD sets and if transcribed can be turned into physical books that you can sell on Amazon.

There are many ways to make money even if you don’t charge an upfront fee for your webinar registration.  You can use several of the above methods to turn your webinars into multiple streams of income.

How about you? Can you add to this list?  I love getting feedback. Here on my blog, you’ll get commentluv. This is a an opportunity to leave a link back to your own site when you leave a comment.

Until next time,

Robin

You will need to generate some publicity for your webinar if you want others outside of your immediate “world” to attend. Here are some 5 easy ways  to promote your Webinar:

1.  Email your list. Even if you only have a few dozen subscribers, let them know what you have planned. Encourage them to invite their own friends and contacts.

2.  Blog about it. Write a short interview with your guest expert or provide an introduction to the topic you’ll be covering. You could even invite readers to submit questions, which will increase their involvement in your webinar.

3.  Mention it on the social media platforms where you’re active. Tweet about it and post updates on Facebook, and LinkedIn. Post an announcement in the Events section on Facebook.

4.  Ask your contacts to spread the news. Leverage your relationships with others in your space, and ask them to publicize your webinar. Forums are great for this.

5.   Mention it in your own newsletter. Don’t assume your list will put your webinar on their calendar the first time they hear about it.  Remind them a few times, especially on the day of the actual event!

There are many, many ways to promote your webinar. The more time you spend, the more buzz you can create.

What has worked for you? I love getting feedback. Here on my blog, you’ll get commentluv.  This is a plug-in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you leave a comment.

Until next time,

Robin

If you are the presenter at your webinar, you can schedule the event when it suits you. You have the option to either host the event live or you can pre-record it and post to your website for registrants to review at their convenience. Whichever way you go, listed below are some things you’ll need to keep in mind when scheduling your webinar:

1.  Build an Audience

Allow yourself enough time to build an audience and set up the event, but not too much time; you don’t want your audience to get tired of hearing about the event before it takes place. A two week interval is ideal but you can make one week workable if necessary. You don’t want to risk losing momentum but any time less than this timeframe may not allow you to put a professional event together in time.

2.  Majority Rules

Realize that you will never make everyone happy. There simply is no one time that is ideal for everyone. Your best bet is to pick a time that should work for the majority of your target market.

3. Target Market Focused

There are times that work better than others. Depending on your market, late afternoon or early evening webinars may be ideal, for others during the work day may be a better option. Regardless, people that cannot attend live will have the option of downloading your webinar at a time that suits them after the fact.

4. Offer a Download

Offering a download also gives your webinar a longer shelf life. You can continue to invite people even if they missed the call, they can still get the download.

5. Be Time Sensitive

Try to keep your webinar to one hour in length. If you are hosting a training event, you may want to stretch this to 90 minutes, to allow for questions and demonstration purposes. Most people won’t be able to allocate more time than this to attending your event.

6. Be at Your Best

Choose a time when you’re at your best. If the morning is prime time for you consider scheduling your event when you are at your peak.

What works for you? I love getting feedback. Here on my blog, you’ll get commentluv. This is a plug in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you leave a message.

Until next time,

Robin

Should you charge for your webinars?  And if so, how much?  This really depends on your goals. If your main purpose is to promote a product or service or to build your audience, you may decide to offer your expertise for free, thereby maximizing the number of people who participate.

The benefits of hosting a free webinar:

• You’ll get more registrations.
• It’s easier to implement.  You won’t have to worry about processing payments or integrating a shopping cart with your sales page or email service.

The drawbacks of a free webinar:

• You won’t make any money upfront.
• It can be difficult to get your speakers to mention your call to their list if they won’t be making any upfront money from it.
• Sometimes, something offered for free is perceived as having a lower value than something that comes with a price tag.

If your main goal is revenue generation, you could offer free participation initially and then charge for access to the recording and/or a transcript of the webinar. This way, you maximize the number of people you get to add to your list, but you’ll also raise some revenue as well.

The benefits of hosting a paid webinar:

• You’ll make money with each additional person who signs up to attend.
• Your speakers will be more likely to promote the call if they can earn a commission (through their affiliate link for example).
• Your webinar might be perceived as more valuable if people must pay to gain access.

The drawbacks of a paid webinar:

• The more you charge, the fewer attendees you are likely to have.
• Implementation is more complicated, as you’ll have to set up a way to take and process payments as well as process affiliate commissions in the event that you’re offering an affiliate program.

If you’re just starting out, I’d recommend going with a free webinar. That way, you can work out the kinks, figure out the technology, and focus on learning the ropes without the added stress of dozens of people expecting a top-notch, glitch-free experience. Once you’re comfortable with the process and have gained experience you can move to charging for premium webinars.

Only you can know what will work best for your situation and your business. Take a look at the benefits and drawbacks of each model, and choose the one that feels right for you.

Have you tried running a webinar before? I’d love your feedback. Here on my blog, you’ll get commentluv. This is a plug-in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you leave a comment.

Until next time,

Robin

One of the easiest ways to host a successful webinar, is to invite an expert to take part.  Here are 5 great reasons for them to participate:

1. You don’t have to rely on your own expertise – your expert will be there to educate your audience.

2. You’ll achieve expert status by association. You may not be an expert in their field, but by interviewing them you’ll be seen as being in the know.

3. You can bring new expertise to your audience. Offering an added perspective to your audience raises your value in their eyes. You become a “connector,” someone who knows all the right people.

4. You can get in front of new prospects. Many experts have audiences or lists of their own, and their “tribe” will follow them to your sphere of influence. If they like what they see, they will stay a while – and maybe even buy something!

5. You can do soft-sells on affiliate products. If you are an affiliate, you can bring the expert in front of your audience for a Q&A session. Then, when they mention their product, you provide your affiliate link and get a commission for every product  your audience buys.

There are some things though that you should consider before selecting an expert to join your webinar:

• Are they a good fit for your audience?
• Are they personable and good at public speaking?  Have a screening phone call or listen to other interviews with your prospective guest before you issue an invitation.
• Do they have something valuable to say? Make sure you’re spending your time – and your audience’s time – wisely by offering something unique, interesting, educational, or entertaining.
• Do they have a large list? This isn’t a must-have, but it definitely helps if your speaker has a large audience of his or her own and is willing to promote your webinar.
• Do they have products or services to promote? If you are hoping to earn commissions by promoting their products or services, find out how their affiliate program works, and if their products or services are right for your audience.

Get in touch with an expert directly if you can (contact information is typically available on their website). Write a short, professional email saying who you are, why you think your market would be a good match for their area of expertise, when you’d like to speak with them, and how long it will take. Then tell them what’s in it for them, for example exposure to an enthusiastic new market or a share of the proceeds. It’s really not a complicated process. Don’t be discouraged by someone saying ‘no, keep asking others until you get a “yes.”

I’d love your feedback!  Have you run a webinar using a guest speaker? Tell me about your experience.  Here on this blog, you’ll get commentluv. This is a plug-in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you leave feedback.

Until next time,

Robin

In order to pull off a great webinar, you’ll need to plan for success.  Sure, there are things that can go wrong, but if you plan your webinar well, most of them can be avoided. Let’s review 4 things you can do to ensure your webinar will go as smoothly as possible:

1.    Choose a good topic.

Choosing a topic for your webinar is much like choosing a topic for a blog post. You don’t want something too broad, or you’ll have no focus. And you don’t want something too narrow, or you will run out of things to say. Instead, you want to balance your need to cover new ground with your need to keep the length and breadth of your webinar manageable. Calls of up to an hour work well. Any longer and you may burn yourself out or run into more problems than you’re prepared to deal with!If you’re fortunate enough to brainstorm many topics remember you can always hold another webinar at a later date. Right now, you’re just getting ready for the first one, so select a topic you feel comfortable with.

2.    Decide on an expert.

One of the greatest advantages of webinars is that you don’t have to be the expert; you can interview someone else with more experience.  You can also hold a dialog between the two of you, or you can do the whole thing yourself. It’s entirely up to you.

3.    Pick a day and time.

Next, you need to pick a day and time.  It’s easy to drive yourself nuts trying to find a day and time that works for everyone in your target audience.  Just realize that no matter what you do, you simply won’t be able to pick a time that is convenient for everyone! Instead, pick a time that works for you, and go with it.  Webinars are ideal because you can make them available later for those that weren’t able to attend live.

4.    Decide on whether to charge or not.

Are you planning to charge for your webinar?  You’ll want to decide upfront whether to charge or not, and what you should offer as up sells.  In a later section, we’re going to cover fee vs. no fee webinars in more detail.

That’s it! These are the key decisions you need to make before you get started because they will affect a lot of your other activities.  Just keep in mind that they’re not necessarily either/or decisions. There are a range of options you can select, so let’s discuss those in greater detail, starting with inviting an expert.

I’d love your feedback. Here on my blog, you get commentluv. This is a plug in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you leave a comment.

Until next time,

Robin

From the beginning of time, people have been “selling” their ideas to each other. The practice of sharing with and educating others hasn’t changed. We just have a whole lot more options when it comes to choosing the medium. Here are 6 ways Webinars can help you grow your business.

1.    Sell more

By presenting a sales presentation using your computer and over the phone, you offer much more interactivity and a stronger personal connection than you can through a website or direct mail piece.

2.    Create products

The webinars themselves can be turned into products or classes.  You can sell access to your live events, or you can record them and sell them later as video download or audio downloads.  And that’s just for starters.

3.    Get to know your audience

Being able to interact with your audience in real time allows an unprecedented level of market research, right in the moment.

4.    Establish yourself

If you interview experts in your area, you will quickly be seen as an expert by association.

5.    Build your list

Webinars are popular ways to introduce yourself to a new market. It’s easy to invite people to your free events — and as they sign up, they become part of your list.

6.    Create trust

Trust is crucial when you want to do business online.  And one of the best ways to build trust with your audience is to interact with them directly. As they hear your voice live on the call — and as they ask questions and get answers right then and there — you become “real” to them and they’ll be able to bond with you.  This is something that’s much harder to accomplish through sales letters and emails.

With the ready availability of low-cost (or no-cost) long-distance service and conference call lines, and screen sharing applications, webinars have become increasingly popular. Instead of spending thousands of dollars traveling to give an in-person presentation, you can meet your customers and prospects right where they are.  Webinars are a great way to:

• Introduce new products
• Get known in a new market — and get to know that market in turn
• Explain how a product or service works
• Interview experts and share their knowledge with your audience
• Answer questions about your area of expertise

But what about skills?  What do you need to know to host a webinar? Stop wondering! If you have enough experience to start a business, you have enough experience to produce and host a webinar. Stay tuned for my next post when we’ll discuss how to go about producing and hosting a webinar.

Until next time,

Robin

The idea of holding your own webinar might seem as out-of-reach as starting your own professional sports team. As you’ll discover in the next few weeks, however, that’s simply not the case. In fact, thousands of internet marketers, small business owners and solopreneurs regularly use webinars to reach new audiences, establish themselves as experts and create new products.  And so can you.

Some people charge thousands to teach you how to master the fine art of webinars but you really won’t need to spend that kind of money to learn the ropes.  Webinars don’t have to be flashy events with slick graphics, big-name speakers and four-figure price tags. Instead, most of the best webinars are much more down to earth.  They’re a lot like traditional seminars, except that they are presented using screen-sharing software and a bridge line rather than in person and at a physical location.

It’s easy to see the advantage of webinars. You won’t have to limit yourself to the number of people you can round up and lure into a hotel room or lecture hall.  Instead, you can draw your audience from all over the globe and connect with them by computer and phone.

And it doesn’t have to be fancy either.  In fact, any time you’re recording and presenting your products, services or on anything else related to marketing your business, you’re conducting a webinar. Of course you can also host webinars that are more formal and require more planning and care in execution. And that’s what you’re going to learn in this series.

First, I’m going to cover the basics of webinars: Why you should incorporate webinars into your marketing mix, how you should set them up and promote them for best results and how you can leverage the power of what you have created. In a matter of days, you will find out how to produce top-notch webinars that grow your business as well as your bottom line.

I’d love to hear from you.  Are you eager to host a webinar yourself? Here on my blog, you’ll get commentluv. This is a plug-in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you leave feedback. But you don’t have to be a blogger to leave a comment, I want to hear from everyone!

Until next time,

Robin

Focusing on a Solid Virtual Event Plan

I’m a firm believer in having a thorough plan before starting something and I know this is critical to business success. Before making any decision that will impact your business, you need to develop a solid project plan. This also holds true when planning to host a virtual event. There are some simple yet key aspects of a good project plan that will ensure you reach your business goals.

First of all, why are you going to host a virtual event? Do you want to communicate a change in procedure or train your employees on a new process? Are you launching a new product, or trying to reduce costs by switching to an online conference this year? Once you have defined your business goal and the expected outcome, you are on your way! You’ll need to clearly identify your target audience ensuring your event is tailored to them. What does success look like? By starting here, you’ll improve your ability to reach the desired business outcome.

Next what’s the best way to communicate your message? Teleseminar or Webinar? What format should you use? The event format should mirror the results you expect to achieve.  A good project plan will help you choose the most effective way to get your message across.

Choosing the appropriate platform and software to host your event can easily be determined once you’ve completed the 2 steps above. The project plan you develop will ensure you have chosen the most effective technology that’s within your budget. A bit of advice; you should always include a dry run or rehearsal into your plan, who wants to run into technical issues when you’re delivering an important message live to your employees or clients? Avoid surprises! Also, do you know how to use software and platform that you’ve selected to run your venue? Ensure that someone can provide the required demonstration and teach you to run the software with confidence. Or better yet, get yourself a good VA Moderator that can run the event for you. That way you focus on delivering your message, and the event details can be taken care of by someone else. You always need a contingency plan and point of contact during an event in case something goes wrong and attendees aren’t able to connect to the session.

There are many pre-event details that need to be taken care of long before you get to the live event. Developing a solid project plan will ensure you don’t miss any critical steps. When things are written down and assigned to someone they are going to get done! You’ll need to have a way for attendees to register for your event  Invitations have to be sent out,  with ongoing reminders to ensure good attendance during the event. These reminders and invitations can be posted on your blog or included in a press release if you’re including this step as you promote your event.

Your project plan should also include designating who will be responsible for recording the event; it’s important to capture the audio/video from the event. This is important to upload to your website afterwards for replay by those that weren’t able to attend the live event. As well, you may not want to field questions or monitor chat during the event and a good moderator can do this for you.

Another key step that is often overlooked is to gather feedback after your event. You want to find ways to continuously improve and it’s easy to do a quick on line survey immediately following the call so participants can give you their relevant feedback.

Virtual events can really be an important component to running your business. Why not take your success to the next level and work with your virtual event specialist and develop a solid project plan.

What kinds of things do you do to put an effective plan in place? I’d love to get your feedback and here on my blog you’ll get commentluv.  That’s a plug in that allows you to leave a link back to your own site when you post a reply.  I look forward to hearing from you!

Until next time,

Robin