Un-suck your webinars (so people actually watch them)
Jan 24, 2023Webinars get a bad wrap. So many people are bored of them, and even more people avoid them all together because the word webinar has become synonymous with sales pitch.
But honestly, that is what a webinar is, and thats not a bad thing. The problem is that people are doing webinars so badly that people don't care.
But good news! I don't believe webinars are dead, and I would even venture to say that a webinar (done well) can be the most valuable asset in your business!
Let's dig in!
If your webinars suck, you're probably doing it wrong.
And its not your fault- you have just listened to outdated advice. But today I am going to change that.
There a few key mistakes I see people make with their webinars.
First of all, your webinar is too damn long.
90 minutes is too long. 60 minutes is too long. Lord help me if you tell me you are talking at people for more than 90 minutes.
Here's the thing. People are busy! And when they are watching your webinar, they are investing their time and attention in YOU. And that is a big deal! They could be watching netflix or sending Tik Toks to their husband sitting on the other end of their couch, but no. They chose to sit down and watch your webinar. Don't take this lightly!
So why don't you respect their time by not going on and on and on for an hour and a half, k?
You are spending too much time on your intro.
This is straight out of the Bro McMarketer playbook. And here's why they teach you this. Old school strategy (aka bro marketing strategy) led with the webinar. So they did NOTHING to educate the buyer on who you are and why they should listen to you. We don't do that anymore. Not only are people not new to the internet anymore, like they were in 2016, but people don't opt into webinars from people they straight don't know anymore. Your leads are following you on IG, they are reading your blogs (hi there!) they are listening to your podcast- they know who you are!
You do not need to give your whole life story to get them to trust you.
You are teaching too much.
Ouch. But its true. And here's the thing- I get it. You are an educator. Its what you do. You want to teach people. And somewhere along the way, someone told you your webinar is "bAsIcAlLy A fReE tRaInInG" - they lied to you.
Your webinar is not there to TRAIN anyone on anything.
It's there to educate a potential buyer on WHY your offer is the best one for them.
Teaching on your webinars is not only demolishing your conversion rate, its actually hurting your leads.
You panic at the pitch.
Cue the 8th grade public speaking memory when you are shaking like a leaf, gripping tight to your flash cards trying to deliver a speech on the economic impact of factory farming.
If you freak out when the pitch slides come up, your audience can feel that! Or worse, you aren't pitching at ALL! ouch!
Having a smooth, effective pitch is key to creating confidence in your buyers and helping them get off the fence about their next steps.
Prefer to listen? Check out Episode 122 of the podcast!
Feeling called out? Its cool. Let's fix it!
It is worth the time to fix your webinar, because when you have an effective one it can become a cornerstone of your funnel, and become the most valuable asset in your business!
When you have a well constructed webinar, you can use it to launch your course on any given Sunday (or Tuesday). You can take it on tour, and serve other people's audiences with a partner launch! You can stick it in your funnel to sell your course on evergreen. You can use it as a free gift when you speak on podcasts.
The possibilities are endless!
First thing's first, shorten that shit.
90 minutes is too long. The sweet spot for a webinar is between 35-55 minutes. I would even say the perfect length is about 42 minutes, which happens to be the same length as a standard TV show. That's on purpose.
42 minutes has been PROVEN to be the length of time normal people can hold their attention. And even then, most shows have cliff hangers, and plot twists that keep you on the edge of your seat. And if you are running a boring webinar for 42 minutes, people aren't going to make it.
Keep in mind that your webinar is vying for someone's time and attention. And right now, that attention is at a premium! They have kids, or dogs, that are definitely getting into something. Their family text thread is blowing up because cousin Timmy just started soccer. Their IG notifications are on fire because their bored husband who also now works from home is blowing them up with reels. You have to be aware of what is competing for their attention.
A few things you can do to keep them focused on you-
1. Let them control the recording. If your webinar isn't live, let them pause it. You know someone just asked them to wipe their butt- let them hit pause so they don't miss anything!
2. Don't gatekeep the offer. So many people opt into a webinar to just SEE the offer. Let them see it! I ALWAYS put my webinar recording on a sales page- so they can scroll down and see the details. They deserve it.
3. Follow up. People get distracted. Remind them to come back. Give them the important details in their inbox. Don't make people jump through hoops to buy from you.
Shorten your intro.
One slide is enough. Your webinar is not their first exposure to you. And if it is, you have some follow up emails to get to know them better. Here is the thing no one telling you.
People who are watching your webinar already want to buy something. They are there to see if they want to buy YOUR something.
People watching webinars are solution aware, and they are just vetting different solutions!
Keep this in mind! Tell them what they need to know to trust that YOUR solution is the one for them, and thats it.
Tell them how long you have been an expert, how you got your expertise, and how you help other people get those results. That should be good enough.
Stop teaching on your webinars.
I know, don't panic. If you aren't teaching, then what the heck are you supposed to do?
Educate them on your offer.
I reach two different strategies when it comes to the core content of your webinar.
A framework webinar, and a roadmap webinar.
A framework webinar outlines your messaging framework. This overviews the 3 core pillars of your framework, and shows them how those 3 things combined yield the result they want.
A roadmap webinar outlines your methodology, and shows them the steps they will take to get the result they want.
A framework webinar works best for problem aware leads, a roadmap webinar works best for solution aware leads. Either is a good place to start.
And most importantly, with either thing, you are not teaching them anything.
When you teach on your webinar, you think you are giving them valuable information that will make them trust you. What really happens is they walk away saying "omg that was so valuable, I am going to take what I learned and try to do it myself! I don't need the course!" and then they are going to get started and realize you left out somethings. There are key pieces they are getting stuck on, and they feel more confused with the pieces of the map than they did before they saw your webinar.
And rather than say "I should go buy her course to get the full process" she will say "well damn, her process doesn't work- I am going to go find someone else to help me."
You're cringing right now because you know its true. There is a really solid chance if you are the over-deliverer you have heard the phrase "Thanks! I am gonna try what you taught us and see how it goes!"
Its not going to go well.
So instead of teaching them, you create demand for your offer.
Instead of saying "Here is step by step how to create a webinar", you tell them what they need to learn, you help them see why that thing is important, and how it will help them once they know it. Then you highlight some common mistakes they might be making around it, and assure them you have a process to help them learn that thing, which you teach them INSIDE your course.
And I like to give them a real life example or story to anchor the information.
This is going to create demand, not overdeliver. They will walk away hungry for more, not waddling out of the buffet with their pants unbuttoned, with a road roll in their jacket pocket.
Treat your pitch like the latest Amazon kitchen gadget you can't wait to share!
If you go into your webinar pitch like you've just coaxed these people into a timeshare presentation and you won't let them leave the room until they invest- you're doing it wrong.
First, they came to your webinar willingly.
Second, they made it to the end because they want to learn more about your offer.
Third, they are looking to you to guide them confidently to the outcome they want. That starts with guiding them confidently through the offer.
You are the expert at your offer. And you know how great it is! Of COURSE you want to share it with them!
Go into that section with that mindset. That you are sharing with them the hack you discovered, that is going to make their life so much better. Like you found the cheat codes to Mario Bros and they can have unlimited coins AND save Princess Peach! You want to tell them all about it!
Now, if you don't feel confident in your offer, that's another story. And if you expect to make any kind of headway in your business, it's time to start working on that. But when you intentionally create your course (like I teach in Create your Quantum Course) and you have a tested and true framework that gets people results, you SHOULD feel confident about your course! Your course is awesome!
Here's the bottom line.
When you master the webinar, sales become simple and effortless. And even if you "hate launching" having a dialed in webinar can bring in revenue without all the stress and overwhelm.