So you’ve decided to run a webinar. Maybe you committed to being a webinar host after attending one and seeing how effective it was. Maybe after months of hearing how webinars are marketing gold, you’ve decided to finally try it out. Or maybe, you just really want to share your expert knowledge with the world (and get a few fresh new leads in the process).
But, after the excitement of signing up for a webinar platform wears off, the night sweats might creep in . . . what on earth are you going to present?
While the content of your webinar is incredibly important for repeat viewers and simply keeping viewers online, your topic is arguably even MORE important. The reason being that your webinar topic is what draws people in to watch in the first place.
Here are five fantastic strategies for coming up with a webinar topic that will have people clamoring to attend.
1) Just ask
It’s so simple, yet most people never even think of this easy way to come up with a topic that your audience will love. Just ask them what they want.
Create a short survey with 2-3 questions, such as:
- What is something you’d like to know more about in XYZ niche?
- What’s your biggest obstacle in XYZ?
- What are you most confused about regarding XYZ?
Then, send this survey out to your list or post on social media for your followers to respond. Often times, you’ll get topic ideas you’d have never thought of, and you may even run into a (good) problem . . . not being sure which of the MANY topics to present first.
If this happens, go ahead and create a poll and ask your followers again to vote on which topic they’d like to see presented first.
2) Look At Your Blogs
Creating a webinar doesn’t have to mean going back to the drawing board. In fact, it’s a great opportunity to explore a topic you’ve previously discussed in more detail.
Go back and pore over your blogs (or at the very least, your social media). Look for your most popular or commented on content. If you have a lot of articles and don’t want to spend hours digging, just visit Buzzsumo.com and type in your website. In a matter of seconds, you’ll see the four most shared blogs on your site.
This will not only give you great insight into which topics your audience finds interesting, but it already has half your webinar laid out for you. Now you just need to go deeper into the topic and figure out how to present it in a way that is engaging and interactive to a live audience.
3) Scan The Internet
Maybe you don’t have a big following yet (after all, you’re using webinars to build that following), and it’s possible you don’t have an archive filled with content. Well, grab a cup of coffee (or two) and a comfy chair. You and Google are about to have a nice date.
Spend some time searching your niche and looking at what people are asking about online. Look at threads on Reddit and Quora and find your customers’ pain points. For example, maybe you’re a social media consultant. If you go online and search, you’ll find thousands of questions about how on earth to get Instagram followers. So you, as the expert, will give them an answer. Create a webinar on how to do just that, and position your services as an above and beyond step that will give them unbelievable results.
Or, maybe you’re in the fitness industry and you stumbled across a thread where people are discussing their insecurities about going to the gym. Create a webinar about how to workout from home, set up your own (inexpensive) home gym, and then position your online coaching services or your workout-from-home fitness guide as a way to stay on track.
4) Fill in the missing information
If you sell funny t-shirts, there’s likely not many questions your potential customers will have (they either like it or they don’t). But, if you’re selling a more intricate product (especially if it’s on the expensive end), such as a SAAS software or consulting services, there’s a lot of information your leads will want to know before they dive in and buy.
A webinar is a perfect place to fill in the gap and answer the what and why for your product. For example, if you sell a neuroplasticity course for $300, most people aren’t just going to say “yes please.” They need to know what the heck neuroplasticity is, and how it can help someone like them. A good webinar will answer these questions as well as interject success stories from people who have used neuroplasticity in the past. By the time your webinar ends, your attendees should know exactly what your product is about and want the results you offer — they just need your product first.
5) Survey Your Support Team
Last (but certainly not least), talk to your amazing team of support agents. They are on the ground floor with customers every day, listening to what confuses them and troubleshooting any issues.
So no one knows the most frequently asked questions better than your team of agents. They can provide you insight on where you need to dive deeper. For example, if you run a business selling essential oils, your support staff may see a lot of questions come in asking about the therapeutic benefits of a specific oil, or if the oils are topical only versus edible. This paves the way for a webinar on how certain oils can be used in homeopathic medicine or recipes for edible essential oils.
Go Forth And Find Your Topic
Whichever route you decide to go down, it’s important to realize that you need to forget about what YOU want to talk about and think more about what your audience wants to hear.
For example, maybe you have an awesome new software tool. Your audience probably doesn’t care to join an infomercial where you tout its amazing benefits. What they are probably more interested in, however, is a webinar that solves a pain point for your industry and weaves in your software as one great solution.
Once you place the emphasis on benefiting your attendees (rather than lining your pocket), your topic will attract registrants like moths to a light.
