Episodes

  • On Screen Behavior (And expectations!)

    On Screen Behavior (And expectations!)
    Oct 31 2022
    Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. Welcome to episode thirty-four of  “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Today we’re going to talk about “On Screen Behavior in Webinars And Virtual Meetings. Oh yeah, and Expectations.”Remember you can always catch up on all the episodes on TheWebinarGuy.com I find it a fascinating thing how often in life, we forget where we are or what we’re truly doing. I’ll call it clueless. Yet that really doesn’t fit, because the virtual sessions I manage, moderate or host are with very bright and educated people. They are not clueless. So to make my point, please forgive this next… Have you ever observed someone, say sitting on a park bench or at a food court, wherever. And Mindlessly, yeah we’ll go with mindlessly- they scratch this, or pick that, or well, ya know what I mean?At first, we’re fascinated. Maybe grossed out, mostly surprised that someone would “do that” in public. I know that you and I have never done anything like that, but I digress.In the last week, a speaker did a webinar on his phone. Not bad in and of itself, as it was on a holder. But during the session, he got a message, and we see this huge finger coming to the screen to clear it. Yeah. Twice.Another phone user, a panelist that was walking around their office with their phone. When it was their turn, they stopped, said their piece. But then immediately started walking around again. Talk about distracting!People in noisy places where you can barely hear them, or worse hear everything their co-worker is saying. Stupid things in backgrounds, and on and on.But what to do?! Let me step aside for a moment. I’m the webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me). When you decide to plan your webinar and are looking for speaker training, or what I call stage craft training, we have many resources and would love to help you! Reach out to: WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! We’d love to work with you! Thanks for listening to my commercial! So what to do?First, I’m constantly amazed by people that seem to think its no big deal. I’m going to call it the Walmart generation. You know the people that just no longer care how they present themselves in public. The instances I just described aren’t that bad (yet?), but they point to a mindlessness of presentations. Let’s talk about “Brand”. What IS a brand? Businesses spend billions each year defining, establishing, creating, marketing and protecting their brand. Then it comes to a webinar or other virtual event and, “meh, it's no big deal.”Your brand is everything, including the way you dress and present yourself. Including forgetting you are on camera and blowing your nose. Yeah, on camera. Unmuted. Honest.The lady who sat sideways at her desk, but her top was caught on the desk and well, um.. let’s just say she was showing more than she intended. When I have to pause their video and interrupt, it’s embarrassing for all.Maybe the word I was originally looking for was “unconscious”- not clueless.I suppose the overarching point I’m trying to make is to approach your virtual summit or virtual event in a more conscious manner. Your role in the webinar or virtual meeting doesn’t matter. If you’ll be on camera, stop for a moment and think about how you are representing you and your brand.This seems an obvious point. People still do get dressed up for going out, going to church, looking nice at a networking event, a date with a significant other; yet, the moment we get comfortable in front of a camera and no one else is in the room, we kinda forget ourselves.So here’s a checklist for you to consider;One: STOP and remember what you’re doing and say to yourself: I’m about to be on screen in front many people that will tell others about my webinar, or virtual meeting, or my role in it. Overall- how can I best prepare to be “present” in the webinar?Two: What can I do with my background (or set) to best represent myself (and the brand). Are there dumb things in the background (Like that eighties hair-band poster with swimsuit models?). (That was last weeks winner.) And while we’re on this one, check your lighting to ensure its balanced! (Check webinar episodes seventeen, eighteen and nineteen for more on all these!)Three: What wardrobe challenges might you have in that outfit? Take a moment to stand up, sit down, turn in your chair- whatever. Watch yourself in your camera to see what shows and might not work.Four: Ambient Distractions. Really think about your space. Does your office face a windowed hallway where co-workers may wave as they pass and take your attention? (that one was last month). What if you’re facing outside and there’s construction next door, or the park, or… Please eliminate things that will take your eye focus off camera!Five: On screen distractions. Whatever device you are using, do you have...
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    10 mins
  • The Power Of A Series Of Webinars And Virtual Meetings

    The Power Of A Series Of Webinars And Virtual Meetings
    Oct 11 2022
    Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. Welcome to episode thirty-three of  “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Today we’re going to talk about “The Power Of A Series Of Webinars And Virtual Meetings.”Remember you can always catch up on all the episodes on TheWebinarGuy.com It was nineteen-twenty-six. A company was trying to figure out how to increase sales. Something we are all doing most every day. The company’s sales manager, Allan Odell came up with arguably, one of the best, and possibly most memorable marketing ideas of the era.He was inspired by a string of signs leading to a service station in Illinois, each sign promoting a product or service available at the station.A tweak here and there and the Burma Shave sign series was born and almost immediately the company saw a spike in sales. If you’re not familiar with the Burma Shave Signs, do a search. A quick recap; They were “one line” signs in a series of signs, in sequence often found on fence posts along the road. Remember this was before the advent of interstate highway system and back roads kept speeds down a bit. Perfect for the time and conditions.There were usually four or five signs about one hundred feet apart or so. Eventually more than seventy-five hundred sets were in forty-five states! And while they most often were about shaving, they also did some funny signs, and even “public service” signs that had nothing to do with shaving. But in keeping the style and brand common, you knew where they were from.There are many lessons to learn here but first a quick work from our sponsor: Yes, I’m the webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me). When you decide to plan your webinar and are looking for marketing ideas, we have many resources and would love to help you! Email me: WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! We’d love to work with you! Thanks for listening to my commercial! Stories like the Burma Shave Signs are fun, but there’s serious marketing stuff going on there. Let’s go back to the title of this episode: The Power Of A Series Of Webinars And Virtual Meetings. I’d like to hope that I’m demonstrating this concept with this series of episodes on Zooming to Webinar Success.Lets look at the lessons:Lesson one: The signs were cohesive; they all pointed to the same goal, brand and purpose. Lesson two: The signs were memorable. Each sign made you want to read the next one. Lesson three: Related to that is that they encouraged people to talk about them. Almost like Super Bowl ads. Imagine them discussing them at work, “Hey did you see the new Burma Shave series on route forty-four?”Lesson four: They were fun. I’m sure families traveling talked about those signs for miles. Lesson five: They were long enough to create interest, but short enough not to bore.Lesson six: They created desire. You were hoping to see another series and see what they’d come up with.Lesson seven: No matter the content, like golden arches, it built brand awareness.Lesson eight: The messages were perfect for the time period and conditions.Lesson nine: Targeting; While they were really targeted to males that shaved, everyone enjoyed them! And when Jane told Sheila about the sign she’d seen, there was a subliminal message. I’m betting Sheila told her husband Mike at dinner that night, and well, that’s pretty good marketing.Lesson ten: They are still talked about and used as a great example of how to create marketing -now nearly one hundred years later!While I hope these “zooming to webinar success” episodes are still around one hundred years from now, I’d be really happy if just a few of you told someone else about our services!Go back and look at the lessons;They were cohesive, to the point and always on brand messageThe signs were memorable. They encouraged conversation.They were fun.Long enough to create interest, but short enough not to bore.They created desire. They built brand awareness.The messages were perfect for the time period and conditions.They were targeted.And Longevity; They are still talked about and used as a great example of how to create marketing!Now think of your next webinar, virtual summit, or virtual meeting. How many of those things can you capture in your marketing of the event? How many can you capture DURING your event?There are so many ways to engage your audience and create memorable content! I’d love to hear your ideas!So back to the title; The Power Of A Series Of Webinars And Virtual Meetings.”Now take all that and string together content that makes people want to come back for more. Don’t give it all away at once. You may wish to use a sequential series that for number two to make sense, someone has to be in on number one. Or like this series, it doesn’t matter which one you watch first, they are all relevant to “Zooming to Webinar Success!” ----- ----- This series is ...
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    8 mins
  • How long should a webinar be? Just Right!

    How long should a webinar be? Just Right!
    Sep 27 2022
    Welcome to episode thirty-two of  “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. Today we’re going to talk about one of my most asked questions “How Long Should my Webinar Be? (As Robert Southey author of Goldilocks might’ve said “Just Right!”)”As you already know (I HOPE you know by now!!), you can always catch up on the first thirty-one episodes on TheWebinarGuy.com Okay, maybe not every day, but almost every day, I get some version of the question, “How long should my webinar be?”I’m sure you’ll not be surprised by my answer. “Long enough”! But as usual, let’s back up a bit. Another thing I tell clients nearly every day is, “Begin with the end in mind”, made famous by Dr. Stephen Covey.I can’t overemphasize how important planning is. It’s really the point of this entire series! And it follows that this single issue is a constant. Every week I get a message, “Are you available to host or moderate a webinar…(wait for it)… tomorrow?Oh sure!When you begin with the end in mind, you know WHY you’re having your webinar or virtual meeting! Back in episode twenty-seven, I asked you to consider WIIFM, or what’s in it for me, or more accurately for your audience (them). So that is one great goal, what IS in it for your audience?But what is it YOU want out of it. The reasons that TheWebinarGuy’s clients have virtual summits, virtual meetings, hybrid events are as varied as the businesses they operate.In episode four I talked about finding the purpose of your webinar. Then in five, the Overall strategy on what you're trying to accomplish. So go listen to those think about the answers.When an audience is being asked to absorb new information, you need to allow the information time to trickle in. We’ve all heard the “learning from a fire-hose” or similar statement. Try that in a webinar and you’ll lose your audience.Generally speaking, my sweet spot is under twenty minutes. Why? That’s a great time length, where it’s long enough to impart the information, leave some time for Q&A and not leave everyone tired, bored or no longer on your webinar!If you’ve been in sales, there’s a constant in how you think of prospects and sales. You may have heard the phrase, 10-6-4-1. You have to get ten prospects, talk to six, four will be interested and you’ll close one.How did that information jump in here? Stay with me for a minute… Like a Realtor would say, “location, location, location” we here at TheWebinarGuy.com say “Planning, planning & planning!”We love to be on your team from the time you first think about doing a webinar!! Yes, I’m the webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me). When you decide to plan your first webinar or you’re looking to plan a larger, or multi-dimensional virtual summit, and think you need assistance, we have many resources and would love to help you! Hit me at WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! We’d love to work with you! Thanks for listening to my commercial! Back to the sales rule 10-6-4-1. Look it up on the internet and you’ll see different numbers, but they are all relevant to the point.If you need ten sales from your webinar, you’ll need to fill one hundred seats. One mistake, in my experience, is when people try to have a webinar and try to get two hundred in their virtual sales meeting to get twenty sales right then. That might work. And then they pack every single thing into that first webinar, then they are disappointed that the audience thins out early and the remaining thirty people don’t buy. Most often, they’ve been overwhelmed!Here's a solution; Plan that webinar to be the first part of the funnel. Get one hundred or two hundred in your webinar or virtual summit! But plan to give “Just Enough” information to your audience to get the right number to the next webinar. In other words, every virtual seminar is a break down to the next.Why blow all your time and energy on an audience that isn’t going to buy. Here’s an example. We do a TON of bit coin, binance, and DeFi webinars for clients.They’ll do fifteen minutes on what bit-coin is, and how it relates to ten minutes on how secure block-chain technology is. Then seven minutes on their platform and how great it is. We’re now over thirty minutes. And I sit and watch the participant list drop one by one. And they’ve not gotten to their CTA!And God-forbid you have a boring speaker that drones on and on and those numbers drop like a rock!What could they do? Start with a statement by your webinar moderator from TheWebinarGuy.com that this webinar is a bit advanced and for those that understand bit-coin, block chain and are ready for a better platform! (read: Manage expectations).First touch on both what bit-coin is, then touch on block-chain, maybe two to three minutes tops. Mention another webinar you’ll be ...
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    10 mins
  • The Single Most Important Factor to your Webinar Success

    The Single Most Important Factor to your Webinar Success
    Sep 14 2022
    Welcome to episode thirty-one of  “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. And another shoutout to Jane Wing at JaneWing.com for our podcast introduction!Today we’re going to talk about “The Single Most Important Factor (to your webinar success)”I’m often asked, “When planning a #webinar or #virtualevent, what is the single most important factor I need to cover?” Well, here we go! If you are planning a #virtualsummit, or a simple #zoommeeting, I have the answer! The most important factor is…I’ve discussed many things over the first thirty episodes! And quite frankly, most of them are really important! Stay tuned for a moment while I review…the last episode (thirty). I discussed the staffing needs larger webinars need and the bodies and capabilities to make sure you have covered for success. If you missed it, head to TheWebinarGuy.com and look for episode thirty.Okay, so what IS the The Single Most Important Factor (to your webinar success)?It’s you! I’ll bet you’re not even surprised! NO ONE else will care as much as you do your webinar, zoom meeting, or virtual event. No one else will have as much skin in the success or failure of the event as you will.Any single one of the staffing needs I mentioned last episode, if done poorly, can certainly embarrass you.Here at TheWebinarGuy.com we think we’ve seen it all. Expected speakers that don’t show up or misunderstood the time zone of the event. Bad connections, scammers that do stupid things in a public forum, really bad backgrounds, bad scripts, bad PowerPoint decks, those that simply don’t even understand the interface and take no time to figure it out, poorly managed hand-off and more.A step aside here. Actually, it’s a step up to my soap box. When asked to speak for an international conference because they’ve achieved some modicum of success, they may have been awarded a PhD in a field, published papers and more. Then this person comes onto a virtual webinar session where they are the featured speaker. Their screen comes on and they are still straightening their hair. They don’t know how to share their screen or know how to get PowerPoint into slide show mode. Oh, they’ll open it and start talking in edit mode where you can see all their notes and remnants of their desktop and more. Really?!In my mind this is the Walmart version of presentations. It’s just way too casual! And I see it ALL THE TIME.If you have no respect for yourself, at least have respect for those that have invited you to speak?! Makes me want to scream.Sorry, I’ll step down for now. However, throughout the series, I’ve constantly pointed out the pitfalls that can occur while planning or holding a webinar.How can you avoid these things? Well, partially, the answer is “good luck”.One way is first to contact a company whose sole purpose is to produce an amazing webinar or virtual event for you.Here at TheWebinarGuy.com we include all these points and work with your speakers and others to help ensure they are prepared and you look amazing!! Yes, I’m the webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me). When you decide to approach your first big webinar or you want to plan a large, multi-dimensional virtual summit, and think you need assistance, we have many resources and would love to help you! Hit me at WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! We’d love to work with you! Thanks for listening to my commercial!So how do you eliminate this?Let’s go back to what we’ve identified as the “The Single Most Important Factor (to your webinar success)”You.One other thing I often see is that would-be presenters doing their first webinar, is that they think that pulling off a fantastic, memorable (for the right reasons) webinar or virtual summit is a walk in the park.Its like they think, “Well, I’ve been on plenty of zoom sessions. It’s can’t be that hard!”Well with that attitude it won’t be hard! It will likely be embarrassingly bad.Most new clients are surprised by how may questions we ask. It’s because we know what’s all needed and we want your event to be stellar! And we try not to leave anything to chance!Many times, in this series I ask you to stop and consider the depth of the subject we’re on. Not to take it lightly or pass over it entirely.This is another of those times. It is YOUR name or YOUR brand. How do you want to be perceived? How do you want it treated? This is one of those crossing line decisions we make in life. We can cheap it out and hope for the best or decide today that you’ll put in the work to produce the most noteworthy, fun, engaging, interactive and maybe more- webinar possible.THAT is why you are the most important “The Single Most Important Factor (to your webinar success)”YOU will set the standard that all the participants producing your webinar will follow. The ...
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    8 mins
  • Staffing a Big Webinar or Virtual Summit

    Staffing a Big Webinar or Virtual Summit
    Sep 8 2022
    Welcome to an anniversary episode of sorts- Episode Thirty of “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. And a special shoutout to Jane Wing at https://JaneWing.com for our new podcast introduction!Today we’re going to talk about “Planning your Big Webinar or Virtual Summit- Part two”We’ll talk about the pieces parts you’ll need! Stay tuned… In the last episode (twenty-nine) I started talking about producing larger webinars and how that might be defined. If you missed it, head to https://TheWebinarGuy.com and look for episode twenty-nine.As I mentioned in that episode, here at TheWebinarGuy.com we’re often involved in large virtual events. These events can be “large” in different ways. What are those ways? It’s all about numbers. The number of speakers planned, the number of days it will span, the number of staff required to take care of myriad details and of course, the number of dollars you’ll spend to do any of that. ALL the numbers are related, btw.I talked about overusing the word “multi” as I hit those numbers above, Multi-everything!And I said that the webinar or virtual summit, or virtual event- whatever you want to call it, will be constrained by two significant factors. Audience and Budget.Okay enough going back over the last episode, let’s move on, but first. Before we dig in too far a word from our webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me). When you decide to approach your first big webinar or you want to plan a large, multi-dimensional virtual summit, and think you need assistance, we have many resources and would love to help you! Hit me at WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! We’d love to work with you! Thanks for listening to my commercial! So, define “Big” already, Grant!Alrighty. Again, I define a BIG webinar or virtual event when it just flat can’t get done by you alone and likely not by two people. Can they be done, yikes, yes but not if you like to sleep!What you might need; First take a real, honest, frank evaluation of what you can actually do on your own. Know what your gifts and capabilities are and make an honest assessment of whether that serves your virtual summit or event.Now fill that in with those that can do other things around your gifts. Let’s start at the beginning with marketing the event. Here we go…Web designer/web master to post events. Will they need to integrate with platforms like EventBrite to post or zoom to create the event?Social media posting: There’s a specialist in every field, and this is no different. You may need someone with knowledge of each platform for best practice and keyword usage and more. How often will they post. Are they paid ads? Is the budget made for that? Can that person or persons interact well with your speakers or their staff to market them into your event?Script writing/editing: Maybe you’ve got a script and you just need someone to look at it for clarity, maybe it needs written from scratch. I get many scripts to record for clients that you can tell were written by the person that is the subject expert, so it’s really detailed and then at the same time, it steps right over the points the audience really needs to know!Slide Deck creation/editing: Repeat the paragraph from above on script writing. I’ve gotten slide decks where the “expert” just flat skipped an important slide or two.But the other problem with inexperienced slide deck creators is using all the cute bells and whistles that will ruin a professional presentation. We spend a lot of time normalizing animations, removing animations that aren’t needed and more. And we end up adding graphics that better explain processes or expressing the appropriate emotion for that point the speaker is making.Back to Speakers: Who else is going to speak? Who will interact and help to manage them, their notes, their slides and as mentioned, possibly work with their staff?Event coordination: Who is going to track all this and manage all these people?Tech Coordinator:  Who is responsible for set completion? If a simple virtual event, you may just use your room (see episode seventeen) what do you need to do to be ready? What about sound (mic, etc) and your speakers and camera (just go hit episodes fifteen through eighteen!). Oh yeah, make sure your computer is ready as well as your internet connection too.Software: Do you have someone to check your computer and KNOW that all your software is working and will play nice on presentation day. By the way, a word of caution on “updating your software because the publisher said it was a new version that can run faster and jump higher. Just last month we had to roll back three of our packages to the point where they would play nice. I’ll just say it will be a while before I upgrade stuff that’s working.Do you need programs like: OBS, WhatsApp, Skype, Discord, zoom ...
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    9 mins
  • Planning a Big Webinar or Virtual Summit

    Planning a Big Webinar or Virtual Summit
    Sep 2 2022
    Welcome to episode twenty-nine of “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. Today we’re going to talk about “Planning your Big Webinar or Virtual Summit”.We’ll talk about some of the pitfalls and advantages! Stay tuned… In the last episode (twenty-eight) I talked a bit more about promoting webinars and virtual meetings. If you missed it, head to TheWebinarGuy.com and look for episode twenty- eight.Here at TheWebinarGuy.com we’re often involved in large virtual events. These events can be “large” in different ways. What are those ways? And how does this play into your planning and budget? Stay tuned because in this episode, twenty-nine, we’ll discuss some of the many ways that larger virtual summits and multi-day, multi-presenter, multi-EVERYTHING is different than “just doing” a simpler webinar.Let’s start with defining what a “Large” virtual event looks like. Maybe an “official” definition from the web is in order: “Webinars provide attendees with a single session to attend, while virtual events offer flexibility in single or multi-session agendas that take place at different times or days” Okay, that helps, but…Another definition suggests that the answer to virtual events is that they are multi-dimensional. Where webinars go big on a single topic for whatever period of time, Virtual events can be just a few sessions on multiple subjects that are usually related in some way, to multi-day events with myriad speakers from all over the world, drawing a multi-national audience.Sorry, I feel like I’m overusing “multi” but there just isn’t another word that works!Okay back at it. So what DOES large mean? Add complexity and it gets “large” in every sense of the word from number of attendees to speakers to well, everything you can think of.I’m going to suggest that the webinar or virtual summit, or virtual event- whatever you want to call it, is going to be constrained by two significant factors. Audience and Budget.First, I’ve talked in multiple episodes about promotion and snagging audience and getting attendees to your virtual event. This is the first factor. It may be or seem obvious, but your ability to define your audience, market to them, get them to register and the million dollar part: Get them to attend- That is a huge challenge! (And then make them want to stick around!!)The second part that I’ve really not gotten into in this series is defining your budget. Well, this is really the first factor, quite frankly. Because if you have enough budget, you can get audience! ----AD START---But before we dig in too far on that little gem, the budget, a word from our webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me). When you decide to approach your first big webinar or you want to plan a large, multi-dimensional virtual summit, and think you need assistance, we have many resources and would love to help you! Hit me at WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! We’d love to work with you! Thanks for listening to my commercial!----AD END--- Okay, the 900# gorilla in the room: BUDGET. A standard conversation we often have with new or potential clients goes like this:THEM: “How much does it cost for you to produce a webinar?”TWG: “Here’s our standard list of fifteen questions we always ask to get started. One of the first is; Do you have a budget?”THEM: “Yes, but…”I can tell you that this conversation goes back and forth until there is an understanding that there is no “one size fits all” webinar or virtual meeting/event. And to help you, we really need a realistic budget. It saves our team AND the client both time and resources.So my first advise here is: Get you or your current team serious about how much you can or will spend.That said, a simpler, one day event could cost well, what all do you need done?Marketing? Planning? List buying? And on and on. Again our simple “starter questionnaire” is around fifteen questions and our planning sheet has more than eighty things we consider when planning an event!Some things to consider; is your event going to only be in your native tongue? Do you need moderators in other languages for that specific audience? We were involved recently with a two-day multi-national event that started in India with speakers and moderators working in Hindi, then it flowed to Africa, Europe (switching to English), then into the Americas. Do you need interpreters? And more.Are you doing social postings? Are awards involved? Breakout rooms? Casual networking rooms? Do you need someone to manage each breakout room? Will presenters help? How will you handle it when a speaker doesn’t show, or has connection issues?How will you introduce speakers? Will you use a host? An introduction video (cartooned intros are fun!)?What will you do to keep the event fun, interesting and keep people from ...
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    10 mins
  • Where DO I promote my webinar?

    Where DO I promote my webinar?
    Aug 29 2022
    Welcome to episode twenty-eight of “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. Today we’re going to talk about “Where DO I promote my webinar?!”How do I start might be the subtitle! Stay tuned… In the last episode (twenty-seven) I talked about WIFFM and why it was important. If you missed it, head to TheWebinarGuy.com and look for episode twenty-seven.Today we’ll discuss some of the many ways you can market your webinar, virtual learning or virtual training event, and your virtual summit. Will this be an exhaustive list? No it won’t. In fact, I’m tossing in a bit of a twist. But I want the thinking or strategy behind this to be what is learned, not necessarily to use this tactic to do that.In our current world, being “followed” or “liked” is the thing (social media wise!). I think the first most important thing to know is the makeup of your current “following”.How many people are in your influence circle? Ten? Ten Thousand? Not only is there a huge difference in those numbers, but there’s also a huge difference in the way you market and approach that difference.I’ve touched on the subject in several past episodes, by the way- take a gander at episodes eight, nine and eleven. Episode seven was even more specific, where “Filing the seats” was the title. Valuable to catch up on if needed, but I didn’t go deep on purpose. I want to add on today.Let’s assume you’ve listened to Episode seven, so you know most of the options. Above I alluded to whether you have fewer followers or small audience capture, or a larger following. And for no reason other than normal marketing and sales numbers, let’s call that number five hundred.----AD---But before we dig in too far, a word from our webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me). When you decide to approach your first webinar, and think you need marketing assistance, we have many resources and would love to help you! Hit me at WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! We’d love to work with you! Thanks for listening to my commercial! This episode I’ll concentrate on those of you with fewer than five hundred in your sphere of influence. Here’s the first problem with that number. Most of us have that many in our sphere with just business and social contacts, not even trying for reach or growth. But it’s likely you’re not maximizing that number or just not realized it’s that big.We’ve all heard the saying that “Content is King”. Yup sure is. High quality content where your audience wants more of your stuff is crucial! So how do you build your audience for better promotion?The topic on this episode is “Where do I promote your Webinar?” Start with what you have where you are. But I think you need to start six months or more before your event. Why? Social credibility is all about people seeing, sharing and yes, liking your content. Six months gives you the space to start posting content that engages people to follow you.On Facebook you have so many friends and so many followers. Yeah, kinda weird but people that aren’t your “Friends” do follow what you post. Instagram is even more that way. Then we have Tik-Tok, YouTube, WhatsApp, WeChat, and even more. And that’s only the top six! If your content is more business oriented, add LinkedIn to your list.Many of us are on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and maybe TikTok and Twitter and even Reddit. There is no shortage of places to waste your time and efforts. Why do I say that? Learning the nuances of every platform can drive you nuts and waste time. So Don’t. For this first effort, concentrate on the place or places you already have the most traction. Again, I’ll swing towards Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.You’ll want to get people having conversations. So, posting what you had for dinner or your baby blowing bubbles isn’t what we’re going for here.Posting a great quote, or sharing another post isn’t going to cut it either. Start with a piece of advice. Show people something and ask a question (start the conversation). Here’s the simplest rule for ANY platform; Get Engagement and don’t take people off THAT platform. Engagement is people commenting on your content, sharing your content, their friends commenting on their comments, and their friends sharing your content.That engagement is the path to people following you. You can look at stats and ask people to “follow you” and such.So technically we’re not yet promoting your webinar. What we’re doing is establishing social credibility. Once you are known for “X”, people start asking you for advice and/or you’re seen as the expert. Having your closest twenty friends on a webinar is great, especially for practice, but you’ll likely not be able to build a business model around that. You need twenty, one-hundred twenty, FIVE-hundred twenty and more in your ...
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    9 mins
  • What’s a WIIFM and why is it important?

    What’s a WIIFM and why is it important?
    Aug 16 2022
    Welcome to episode twenty-seven of “Zooming to Webinar Success!”Hey, I’m Grant: My clients call me The Webinar Guy. Today we’re going to talk about WIIFM!What’s WIIFM? Stay tuned… In the last episode (twenty-six) I talked about using polls and chat interaction in your webinars and virtual meetings or presentations. If you missed it, head to TheWebinarGuy.com and look for episode twenty-six. So, what is WIIFM? We ALL suffer from WIIFM now and then. At least from the side effects of not knowing what it is and how it affects all we do.If you’ve been around business or marketing very long, you already know what it is, if not, WIIFM is an acronym for “What’s In It For Me!?”What’s In It For Me strikes at the base of Maslow's hierarchy of needs! Maybe not literally, but wanting to know how something will benefit us is so very deeply rooted we may not even give it conscious thought.We are always looking for things that are pleasurable, make our lives easier, that are fun, taste good, earn us more money and so on. Remember in this instance we are on the subject of holding webinars, on-line meetings, virtual summits, self-improvement workshops, virtual master classes, virtual podcasts, and so on. So What IS in it for me? Well, define first define “me”. Because you first need to know what is in it for you.WHY go to all the work of assembling a webinar, writing the script, creating a powerpoint deck, planning, scheduling, finding a moderator and/or host. Planning and creating all the collateral where needed and more!By the way, as an aside that list is woefully short of what’s really needed. Our webcast and podcast sponsor, TheWebinarGuy.com! (Yeah, that’s me), has a free PDF with the steps needed to cover when you want to get all the details right. More than eighty items to consider. Want a copy? Hit me at WebinarPro@TheWebinarGuy.com, or visit our website (TheWebinarGuy.com) and use contact form! I’d love to send you a copy! Thanks for listening to my commercial! Back to the subject; Why would you go to all that work? What is in it for YOU!? You should know the answer. “Just deciding” to do a webinar or virtual event is fine but know why you’re doing it!Why do I do these videos and podcasts? Yes, I’m a bit altruistic and want you to have great webinars and I hope this series helps you. But let’s be frank; I want your business! I want you to look at all those details and think, “I just want The Webinar Team to do it! Yeah, I’m contacting The Webinar Guy!I’m in this to gain customers plain and simple.Why do YOU want to have a webinar? What’s in it for YOU. If you’re not real sure, maybe go hit TheWebinarGuy.com and look for episodes four and five. I talk about Purpose and strategy.Okay, after you figure that out, you better know “What’s in it for ME”- your audience- or “What’s in it for them?” Why would they bother to take part of their day to listen to you? What’s your expertise? What will you offer? What will they gain?To drive your webinar attendance you must be able to answer that question. Why would someone care?!I’ve presented or hosted webinars, such as; employment webinars where interested candidates find out about a company and why they’d want to work there.For a trucking industry consulting company, why drivers would want to become owners instead of just being drivers (it’s to build wealth).For a consultant on relationships: How to manage a relationship with a narcissist. If you’re in that type relationship, you need her workshop!Several for the elder care market, where one client helps current communities manage them better and another on helping those communities help their elder members build memories.A client that is treating Bi-Polar disorder with laughter, trying to help others with the same challenge.MANY companies that want you to invest in their bitcoin operation! I host, present or moderate several hundred webinars each year. There are several common threads; Helping people, selling people, developing authority and trust, generating leads, broadening your current audience and more.When you know why you are doing your webinar and you can really define “What’s in it for THEM”, you’ll be way down the road on your marketing, your scripts will be better, you’ll have better engagement and the audience you draw will be more open to your message!What’s in it for me? My goal is more clients and broadening how many people know about the services The Webinar Guy.com offers and sell those services.What’s in it for you? I want you to hold amazing webinars and have massive success! So what do we know now that we didn’t earlier? There are two “me’s” for lack of better definition. What’s in it for me as the presenter, speaker, consultant, etc. And the “What’s in it for me” that is really “them”, your audience. Take time to define those for zooming to YOUR webinar success!  ----- ----- This ...
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    8 mins