Webinars continue to increase in popularity amongst marketers, as they have been proven to be beneficial in regards to growing a business. This new craze is a great way to reach a larger audience and expand your companies’ brand awareness. Furthermore, webinars provide valuable information to your current and potential customers, which helps establish positive company/client relations.
With that being said, it is obvious as to why many companies have jumped on board and currently host webinars on a monthly basis. A current study conducted by ClickMeeting, a firm that provides online meeting services and statistics, revealed that on average 35% of companies host 1 to 6 webinars each month. When asked why they allocate resources towards webinars their answers were consistent: to associate value with their product or service and generate business.
Through multiple surveys conducted by ClickMeeting, participants were asked to list some detailed reasons explaining why they create webinars. 85% of companies stated that they utilize webinars to educate their existing and potential customers. In addition, 60% also said that webinars help their business establish a strong position in the market, and 54% use them to convert new contacts into customers.
It is clear that webinars are beneficial, however to get some more insight and advice on how to successfully utilize this marketing tool we interviewed Tom Alavi, Ash City’s Trade Marketing Specialist.
Tom has been with Ash City for a year and a half and throughout his time here he has continued to apply innovation and excitement into his profession. By constantly coming up with new ideas, he has proven to be a leader in producing marketing strategies that are always unique and motivate clients to act.
He enjoys working with the Ash City team and collaborating with different departments. Applying creativity on a daily basis and dictating the direction of different marketing strategies is what makes his career fulfilling and challenging at the same time.
Through this short interview Tom offers information and advice about webinars and how to successfully create and utilize them to grow your business.
Can you describe the kind of work you do as a Trade Marketing Content Specialist?
I have the opportunity to work on a variety of different projects. Our team helps with any creative requests that come in from our internal team (inside sales, outside reps & key account specialist) as well as our client base. We tend to cater to projects that require a little bit of “spice” to help seal the deal. This can include anything from storyboards, to custom flyers or even marketing material like postcards and banners. This is more of the reactive approach.
We also try and look to see what specials we can highlight and how we can better educate, articulate and excite our growing client base. This is more of a pro-active approach.
Regardless – everyday is a new challenge and another day to add some more excitement to such a wonderful product line.
How do webinars differ from online meetings?
How do webinars differ from online meetings?
Webinars have become a staple in my role. The best way to describe webinars is as an engaging educational tool. It is almost like a podcast. Webinars are meant to have the host teach and engage the audience, where as an online meeting facilitates more of a group discussion.
How can webinars help generate sales?
There are many different webinars that Ash City hosts that help optimize sales.
We have created a variety of webinars that focus on the client, product or even industry specifics that address a variety of points.
I have always been a proponent for education. Therefore our main focus is providing value to the customer by educating them through webinars. This helps empower our clients to become leaders in product knowledge, which essentially helps them fulfill their own sales goals. When they are able to take the knowledge we have provided them and directly apply it to optimize growth in their business they associate a positive stigma to our products and company.
A great example of this is when a client who recently attended one of our webinars, walked away learning more about some of our products and our decoration methods. Later that week, she pitched what she had learned in the webinar and landed a 1000 piece order.
A great example of this is when a client who recently attended one of our webinars, walked away learning more about some of our products and our decoration methods. Later that week, she pitched what she had learned in the webinar and landed a 1000 piece order.
How do you keep webinars exciting for clients? What techniques do you find useful?
I like to add something that will differentiate myself from all the others. Whether it be a quote, a funny picture or something my audience can relate to. In addition to that, keep your topics light. Emphasize on the points that matter the most and be informative but also brief. The audience will become bored if the content to too lengthy and scripted. For fun, I always like to include references about what is popular in today’s society and always include a joke to lighten the mood or relax the audience.
What is an essential feature that you believe every webinar should have?
It is important to do some research and really have a strong understanding of whom you are speaking to. The content should always reflect the audiences’ interests and situation. For example, if you are doing a webinar to clients in San Antonio – don’t bring up the fact that the Heat won the championship. If you are talking to a client in a warm weather climate environment – don’t spend your time pitching them insulated jackets.
You can gain so much from doing a bit of research and knowing your audience. It shows your audience that you respect them. It also makes it much easier to create positive connections with them.
What do you hope customers will gain from attending your webinars?
What do you hope customers will gain from attending your webinars?
I hope they walk away empowered with the tools to be successful. The information given during these webinars can really help satisfy a client’s needs and if the audience grasps the right information (with my help pointing them out), we are all the beneficiaries.
Another thing I hope the webinars inflict is a desire to want more. Hoping that once they see the power of how our company can help fulfill their goals – they will become motivated to work with us.
What advice would you give to someone that is hosting his or her first webinar?
Be yourself. Plain and Simple. Have confidence in yourself and you will surely impress your audience!
No comments:
Post a Comment