According to AdWeek, “in 2000, consumers averaged a 12 second attention span. Today, the average attention span has dropped to only 8 seconds – less than that of a goldfish.” While there are many reasons for these shortened attention spans, one thing remains constant: it’s critical that marketers differentiate themselves quickly in order to grab their audience’s attention. To achieve this, marketers must deliver relevant and engaging content across multiple channels, using different mediums.

One medium that is often overlooked is the webinar. While not a marketing breakthrough, webinars present a unique opportunity to capture a consumer for extended periods of time. Webinars also allow you to bring your followers from different social platforms together. This allows you to engage with your audiences from all platforms and gain priceless feedback. Talking with your potential customers will give you insight into your brand perception and lead nurturing. This feedback also enables you to learn how you can more efficiently guide your leads through their buying journey.

Of course, hosting a webinar comes with its own unique challenges and it can take a lot more work than anticipated. Producing and hosting a webinar is more than a simple demonstration or gathering of experts that speak for an hour. A successful webinar requires careful planning, promotion, content creation, and collaboration from every party involved.

Before you commit to running a webinar, do your research and make sure it is the right marketing tool for your business. Would your audience benefit from the interactivity of a webinar, or would your energy be better spent on a blog post, whitepaper, or e-book? Don’t rack your brain, below are some points to help you decide if the capabilities of webinars outweigh the time and effort for your business.

When do webinars work for your business?

When... 

• A good webinar topic is one that can potentially be confusing to your consumers or audience if explained on paper, but is a critical part of your businesses success. Instead of creating a long e-book, a short webinar tutorial might make more sense. The conversational nature of webinars adds value for your audience by making them feel like they are involved in more of a workshop than a simple tutorial.
• If you want to create an engaging series of webinars, you should make a list of topics that not only demonstrate the capabilities of your business, but also your industry knowledge.

Your audience enjoys conversation 

• There’s simply no better tool to get a focused conversation going than a webinar. While social platforms like YouTube allow for comments and questions, they’re not in real time and answers aren’t immediate.
• Conducting a live Q&A can help you address questions about your topic and facilitate more engagement between your brand and audience.
• Running an engaging webinar can also help your social media efforts. Whether you decide to promote your webinar with a specific hashtag, or ask attendees to answer questions during the webinar via twitter, constant connection will help keep the conversation exciting and relevant.

You're able to partner up

• Creating content with a partner is a great way to reach a new audience and boost your brand or product. Having an expert with industry-specific name recognition will help you gain more registrants and attendees. Another option could be to pull in an influence marketer, or someone your prospects trust who isn’t a part of your company.
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• If you can obtain an expert speaker, think about possible topics that would allow each partner to voice their expertise and ultimately add as much value for viewers as possible. Webinars are unique in that they allow for multiple inputs and insights on any given topic at the same time. This collaboration and conversation can spark interest and boost your webinars engagement.