There Is a True Art to a Webinar That Fully Engages Attendees.
Webinars can be quite dry, even boring. The human attention span continues to shrink as we are all pressed to our limits with television, social media, and email vying for our attention. It is important to take special care to select webinar vendors, features and components that will elevate webinar content and actively engage the target audience. Key elements to consider revolve around the camera angles, content, speaker interaction, and audience interaction.
1. Camera Angles
A common mistake made by many when it comes to webinars is the choice to employ a single camera. This set-up is certainly affordable and it will get the job done in a pinch. It does not provide the most interesting experience to the webinar viewer. A multi-camera setup is a better choice. This setup allows for different shot types and the dynamic switch from shot to shot. Variations provide the audience with a more exciting experience similar to what they may find when they watch television.
2. Content
Many think the content is the content, and audience engagement does not come to mind until later…wrong! Content is king. Think of the target audience as the content is being created. Ever heard the phrase a picture is worth a thousand words? The human mind is set to record memories in the form of pictures, so mimic this concept when the presentation is being built. Use graphs, images, icons, charts, and to demonstrate primary messages. Build brand recognition by including brand assets throughout the presentation template. Keep the copy on each slide short and to the point. Also, be sure to select a font type and color that will be easy for the webinar audience to read.
3. Speaker Interaction
The creation of an engaging webinar goes beyond the need for consumable content. The selection of savvy presenters and how they are presented will also be important considerations. Set aside time for speaker rehearsal. Encourage presenters to implement vocal inflection and use hand gestures to prevent monotony. Consider a program format that allows for multiple personalities, speakers or even an on-screen host. Webinars that go beyond a single-presenter format to provide Q&A interview with a guest expert or several panelists are considerably more memorable.
4. Audience Interaction
Most live events offer a chance for attendees to network, ask the presenters questions, submit questions to a moderator and submit survey feedback. Deploy these same interaction concepts to a webinar. Many web platforms offer a chat feature where attendees can connect or submit questions to a presenter, administrator or moderator. Allowing attendees to interact with others takes a webinar from bland to engaged. Letting attendees connect with similar minds around the world in real-time is powerful. Seek out a webinar platform that offers the ability to polls or quiz the audience. This feature can dramatically increase engagement as it is a call to action that can be used to keep attendees at the ready. These tools can benefit event planners as well, as they offer a way to measure content reception, aggregation and traction.
A little thought can go a long way when planning a webinar. Remember to plan with the audience in mind. Seek out speakers, recording setup and a webinar platform that will help the content shine. Contact us to discuss our custom webinar platform with the most up to date features and branding capabilities.
