Webinars: Reach and engage your audience with Quickchannel's video platform

Since over the past few years, webinars have been playing a notable role in business growth, you have definitely come across these words such as webinar software, streaming platforms, video conferencing, and webcasting before.

The popularity of webinars has been steadily increasing, and that caused attendees numbers to skyrocket. Data shows that the numbers for online events grew 162% and attendees increased 251% to more than 60 million in 2021. So, it is clear that webinars are a big part of the new normal. However, despite its popularity, you might still not really know how streaming platforms and webinars work. 

A webinar is an online presentation or event that provides both hosts and attendees with information that is engaging and innovative. These platforms allow a large group of participants to get into a real-time conversation from anywhere in the world. Such online events, regardless of live or pre-recorded, have immense potential in the digitised world we live in today. Webinars are suitable to be used for different purposes in all sorts of industries. In fact, there are no limits and the list of purposes are pretty much endless.

Whether it's an online training, educational webinar, thought leadership, product demonstration, lead nurturing, customer onboarding, brand building or another content type, webinars with an intuitive streaming solution have a high potential to create human connections in a more engaging and much more scalable way.

What makes webinars especially powerful in what they offer is that they come in various types to become an efficient tool for every industry and business. However, we need to keep in mind that the right tool has to be chosen to achieve your company’s goal. Once you have the right tool, then a webinar platform has many options to help you create content that is compelling and engaging while also suiting your purpose. 

As an online event, webinars enable you to hold interactions and communications without the need to physically encounter your target audience. This appears to be one of the core elements and benefits in a world where everyone is seeking a way to contribute to a more sustainable environment.

It comes with customisable features as well as support for various content forms, which makes them far more personalised, engaging and interactive for your audience. You are probably asking yourself what the different forms are and how you should differentiate. See below the different types of webinars to suit your audiences wants and needs and how they could help you achieve a specific goal.

Industry expert panel – inviting an expert in your industry to talk about their niche is a great way to attract your audience.

Interviews – hosting interviews with external and internal thought-leaders can be an engaging way to communicate with your audience.

Product demos/pitches – showing your attendees the applications and benefits of your products and services can boost sales.

Q&As – interactive question and answer webinars give attendees the opportunity to pose their own queries and to learn more about your brand and products.

Instructional webinars – showing audience members how to resolve one of their pain points is a great way to showcase your products and services.

Casual chats – this is a great way to get audience members to really engage with the conversation, asking their own questions and raising new discussions.

Case studies – showcasing previous customers or clients who have had a good experience using your product will build up trust in your brand.

Before we look at how to create the most compelling webinar possible, it’s important to know the benefits of hosting one and why they are held.

Webinars are essential in today’s world, there’s no question about that. A remote approach to business, learning and marketing appears to be vital in our highly digitised and constantly developing world. Thus, you cannot miss out on the potential interactive solution it offers you and your business.

Many traditional events just aren't as effective as they once were. People are more educated than ever and have all sorts of information they need to help them make the right decision for their demands.

This means you need to work hard to win their trust. If you are ready to assure customers that you are worth doing business with, one of the most successful ways to do this is by hosting a webinar. 

Hosting one or a series of webinars is a great way to attract a wider audience and reach new people who are just starting to research your market niche, live in different geographic locations or simply haven’t heard of your brand yet. In addition, webinars can be attractive events with customisation features to draw your customers closer to you and help you build better relationships with them.

Connecting with potential customers, building authority, hosting large meetings, coaching or training staff and providing value to your customers are unique opportunities that webinars offer. But what makes a webinar even more valuable?

Unlike face-to-face events, virtual events can provide you with the most compelling statistics which make a strong case for using them in your marketing strategy. These metrics enable you not only to make better marketing decisions for your company but also to make your digital experiences more engaging, informative and entertaining in the future. 

Marketers are generating more qualified leads and customers since webinars provide excellent value for the audience. Personalised content, educating prospects in a more efficient way, and establishing authority are some of the reasons for holding one.

So we started off by learning what a webinar is and why it should be part of your business strategy. Now it’s time to be sure that your webinar is successful and to do so, you need to plan it carefully. 

Before you get to the planning, you should choose your one and only streaming platform that will play host to it. The evaluation process can be time-consuming and intimidating, but it is well worth it. There are a few things to consider when picking the best streaming platform that fits your need, and we want you to pay attention to them; quality and scalability, security, GDPR and WCAG compliance, real-time analytics, interactivity, features and possible distribution options- to name a few. Once you are done with your research and say yes to that one platform, it’s the right time to get down to business.

Planning and hosting a webinar for the very first time, all by yourself might sound a little complicated. That is why we have done the work for you and compiled an eBook that walks you through the entire process. 

Webinars wouldn’t be possible without attendees, right? So, the audience is an essential factor and before scheduling a date or mastering your webinar content plan, get to know your audience first. 

The more you learn about your target audience, the better you can tailor your event's topic to answer your prospects. Probably the biggest and the most challenging step is choosing the right topic. So here you can read about the key elements to take into account when choosing your next topic. 

After you have chosen the perfect topic and planned your content, you may be thinking how do I ensure that my attendees want to come back? Well, choosing the right topic for the right audience goes hand in hand with choosing the right format of the webinar at the right time for the launch. The last thing you want to do is schedule your event at a time when your audience isn’t busy. For more insightful guidance to get your webinar hosting right the first time around, get in touch with our team or book a demo with us.

Since the popularity of webinars had been steadily increasing, that caused attendees numbers to skyrocket. With that being said, why not take advantage of this opportunity and pay attention to what you can do to host a successful online event that encourages sign-ups and keeps your audience coming back for more. 

Now you know what you should be looking for when choosing a streaming solution, so, it’s time to discover what else you need to follow about creating compelling events. More specifically, you will have to take care of some things prior to your webinar in order to really make it effective. 

Let’s dive right in.

1. Ensure you have selected the right and secure streaming platform which suits your business’s requirements. A reliable streaming software like Quickchannel, can solve a lot of your issues; give access to interactive features and solutions, and simply take your webinar experience to the next level. If launching your first webinar is still ahead of you, it’s worth taking a look at this blog to see what steps you could potentially take in advance to avoid repeating the mistakes of others. 
   
   
2. Try to keep your webinar under 60 minutes and choose the right person to present it. In addition, consider scheduling your event for a midweek day between 11 am to 2 pm to accommodate most attendees. After you have followed the best practices, it is time to choose an SEO- optimised title so that your webinar can easily be found online.
   
   
3. Once you have planned it, it’s time to market it. To do so, you need to make a landing page, run an email marketing campaign and promote your webinar on social media channels. As you can imagine, the list goes on so,  Download our eBook to learn more about how to follow up on a webinar you held and ensure that you pull out all of the stops to make sure it stands out from the crowd.

A webinar is an interactive, visually stimulating event that turns a presentation into a real-time conversation from anywhere in the world. Webinars allow presenters or a large group of participants to engage in online discussions or training events. Webinars are the perfect tool for sharing knowledge, introducing new products or services, and establishing thought leadership in your industry.

Quickchannel is at the forefront of the streaming industry with its flexible and intuitive streaming solution. So this is your chance to choose the best technology to grow your business, attract new customers, increase your marketing reach, lower your marketing and traffic cost as well as create a trusted brand. The key to success, however, is to choose the right streaming solution that provides you with the tools and features you need to create a one-of-a-kind experience for your audience.

Webinars and webcasting are providing one of the most popular business events for companies to engage with their target audience. But how can you be certain that you are choosing the right platform to go all out and impress your attendees? Continue reading to find out why we believe Quickchannel has the best practices for your streaming needs.

So, before deciding on the best webinar platform for you, consider the following questions: 

• What will the experience be like for you?
• What will the experience be like for your audience?
• Will it be difficult to set up?
• Would it be secure for my organisation and my data?
• Will my brand stand out and create a memorable experience?
• Am I able to control the environment or is there a possibility that my competitor's ads will appear?
• Will I be able to measure the performance?
• Will I get the results that I’ve been promised? 

Regardless of whether you have ever done a webinar before, we are here to let you discover the next generation of streaming solutions by providing you with training videos and detailed guidance which hold your hand every step of the way. As a result, here we have compiled some of the factors to consider before making your final decision to ensure that you have done everything possible to create an amazing audience experience: 

• A unique viewing experience
• Video player branding according to your graphical profile
• Scalability and quality
• Content storage, management and your own channel
• Security
• GDPR compliance
• WCAG compliance
• Data and analysis
  
  

A unique viewing experience

An effective and engaging webinar starts with a role; promote participation by a unique experience. You need to make sure that the chosen streaming platform is capable of creating engagement through interactive participations and through inclusion conversation. The advantage of webinars over standard webcasts is that webinars build a better human connections. Your body language can help you engage your audience. When you make eye contact, maintain a confident posture, your presentation will be more dynamic, and you will be able to connect with your audience. Quickchannel by providing a dual stream viewer experience keeps your attendees thinking, asking questions and comments.

Video player branding

Branding is another key for making a long- lasting positive impression. That means you should be looking for a streaming solution that provides a customised video player that matches your branding and allows you to stand out from the crowd. Therefore, it is important to choose a webinar software that won't have competitors ads such as Facebook or YouTube.

Scalability and quality

Not every webinar that you host will be for the same number of attendees or have the same requirements in terms of features. That means you should look for a streaming solution that is scalable to suit the needs of each individual event without ever compromising on quality. You need to be sure that the option you choose can provide your audience with the best possible viewing experience with a flawless video experience at the highest possible bitrate using CDN and eCDN even if there is limited bandwidth.

Content storage and management

Once the webinar has been held, it doesn’t mean that you are done and dusted. The content in your webinar can be very useful. The right streaming platform would give you all the control that you need over your video’s lifecycle, starting at the creation and editing process right through to distribution and management, including storage of that content for on-demand viewing and future use. At Quickchannel you can create your own Play channel where you organise and publish all your video content. The content can be categorised and searched by your audience. The channel can also be branded with your graphical profile. Quickchannel Play is a Netflix-like portal for your organisation's video content. A channel can be set up for internal videos on your intranet and an external channel for the website and external visitors.

Security

Of course, it goes without saying that security is always paramount these days, and with the risk of cybercrime increasing year-on-year, you need to be certain that all of your user data and content remains fully secure at all times. At Quickchannel we work closely with councils, government organisations, and municipalities to make their communication and political meetings more transparent than ever. Over these years, we have worked hard to tailor our platform suitable for these organisations. So, when choosing your streaming solution, you need to ensure that it will allow you to remain compliant with GDPR and WCAG and that it will enable you to guarantee a high-level security and quality of your user’s information.

GDPR

GDPR and Schrems II should be kept in mind when choosing a platform, as well as when you are promoting your event. To help you navigate through GDPR, Schrems II, marketing consent and data protection we’ve invited a GDPR expert to enhance best practices.

WCAG

Another important part is making your video content accessible, in other words, WCAG compliant. WCAG is a series of web accessibility guidelines for designing and developing web products and services. Quickchannel's platform has been compliant since autumn 2019 after being evaluated by experts at Access Lab. Are you intrigued to find out more about WCAG? Say no more!