Have you ever spent days creating a webinar campaign that had

• a highly relevant topic

• terrific line-up of speakers

• finely tuned list of contacts in a very specific audience

• great email copywriting

• multiple emails deployed strategically over time

• a good amount of registrations

….but only 2 people actually listened in?

How do you increase actual webinar attendance vs. registrations?

Reminders

Outlook Calendar Appointment

In the webinar registration confirmation email or webpage, include a link to an Outlook appointment that registrants can quickly add to their calendars. Make sure you designate a reminder within the appointment so registrants will get an Outlook pop-up reminder 30 minutes, 15 minutes, 5 minutes or other time you decide prior to the start of the webinar.

It’s very helpful for registrants if you include the link to the webinar, any login/password information, and telephone dial-in instructions directly within the Outlook appointment so they don’t have to find the registration email buried in their inbox. Including a phone number or link to live chat for assistance with any problems registrants may have accessing the webinar is also a good idea.

Many people also use Google calendar, so including a link for a Google appointment may also be useful for registrants.

Some online event management software includes a feature to do this (something to look for when deciding which software solution to use), but if yours doesn’t, Chad Horenfeldt over at the Anything Goes Marketing blog created a document with step-by-step instructions on how to create an iCalendar appointment and include the link in your confirmation email or webpage.

Reinforce Webinar Value in Email 30 Minutes Before Start

Ever registered for a webinar, but when the event time came you’re buried in work and say to yourself “I don’t have time for this” and skip it?

Remember that your prospective customers have many things demanding their time and attention. In order to tear them away from those things, they need to know that the time spent with you will be worthwhile.

Reinforcing the value of the webinar - answering the all important “what’s in it for me?” - by sending a reminder email shortly before the start of the webinar can persuade more registrants to stop what they’re doing and attend. My suggestion is 30 minutes prior, as that gives registrants enough time to wrap up what they’re doing, go to the bathroom, get a drink, or whatever they need to do, but not so far ahead of time that they forget about it.

Again, include a link to the webinar and dial-in instructions in the email.

Create Pre-Webinar Excitement with Survey

Send registrants a brief email survey prior to the webinar asking what they feel is important in regards to the webinar topic, and what they most want information on. Listening to your audience’s needs not only makes the webinar content better, but helps them feel more engaged with the event and more willing to spend the time attending.

Give Compelling Reasons to Attend Live Event Instead of Viewing It Later

Most companies record their webinars and make them available on their websites for viewing after the event, or send registrants the presentation slides. It’s a very good idea to do this, but it can dissuade registrants from attending the live event. Why bother attending at the time of the event when they can just get the slides later and view it whenever they want?

Offer something only live attendees can take advantage of, such as

• live Q&A session with attendees submitting questions via chat feature or special phone number to call

• ask attendees questions about the topic during the webinar, and give prizes to first person to answer each question correctly via chat or other means

B2B marketing research firm Marketing Experiments uses a great tactic in their webinars on landing page optimization, pay-per-click advertising, and other marketing avenues. On the webinar registration confirmation page, they offer the opportunity to submit your materials for live review by several experts during the webinar and receive feedback that you can immediately employ afterwards.

It’s great information for all attendees, but if someone has submitted materials then you can bet they’ll be more likely to attend the live event and find out if their materials will be reviewed.

What techniques are you using to increase attendance?