Webinars are a powerful tool for connecting with your audience. They offer a platform for sharing ideas, driving discussions, and facilitating audience education. They are also an effective sales tool. According to InsideSales.com, 73 percent of marketing and sales leaders say webinars are one of the best lead generation tools. But, in order to hold your participants’ attention for the full duration, integrating live Q&As into your webinar is key.
With this feature, you can achieve the core foundation of engagement: interaction. When webinar participants are active during the online event – asking questions and sharing insights in real time – you’re likely to have a captive audience. More importantly, the webinar will leave a more impactful impression once it’s over.
If you want to ensure a successful online event, a live Q&A session is the way to go.
Benefits of using a live Q&A session in your webinar
With a live Q&A, you can add a new layer of interest and value to your webinar.
Increase attendee focus
One of the biggest benefits a Q&A session offers is higher interest from attendees. When your audience knows they’ll have the opportunity to ask questions and to dig deeper into the topic being discussed, they’ll take a more active listening role so they’re prepared to find out the information they need with the Q&A.
Share your brand’s personality
During the presentation and screen sharing parts of your webinar, it’s not always easy to let your brand’s personality shine through. With a live Q&A, your audience has a chance to ask questions and to see your authentic, unscripted responses. This can help to build a stronger connection during the webinar.
Establish thought leadership
Demonstrating your organization’s ability to answer tough questions and to take a thoughtful approach to industry discussions is an excellent way to establish your brand as a thought leader. This will give you the opportunity to increase the level of trust your audience has in your brand.
Best practices for optimizing your webinar Q&A session
According to the 2020 State of Webinars report, after presentations and screen sharing, Q&A mode is the third most popular webinar feature. But, what best practices should you use when hosting a webinar to help you make the most out of your online event?
Time your webinar accordingly
Make sure you factor in time for live questions so your webinar doesn’t run too long. The average length for a webinar is 53 minutes, and the most popular webinar length is 45 minutes. If you want to host a webinar that’s long enough to offer value but short enough so your attendees aren’t going to lose focus, set aside 10 to 15 minutes for your Q&A and design your webinar presentation to last for 30 to 45 minutes.
Promote your webinar’s Q&A
When promoting your webinar, talk about the live Q&A session. Include it in your webinar promotions. If you are sending out emails leading up to your online event, be sure to mention the Q&A so participants can come prepared.
To drive even more interest, post questions before the webinar even starts that will spark discussion and debate. You can include this in your webinar messaging on social media, email, and on your webinar’s landing page.
Come prepared with starter questions
What happens if your attendees don’t ask any questions once you open up the live Q&A for your webinar?
Depending on your audience, you may not have anyone jump in with questions right away. What you can do to prevent an awkward start to your Q&A is to prepare a few questions beforehand. Make a list of common questions related to your topic. Think about the specific issues your target audience would be the most interested in. This way, you can start the Q&A segment off strong.
Use a webinar platform with the right features to make the most of your Q&A
Make sure your webinar solution includes a robust live audience Q&A feature that’s equipped with all the tools you need to easily manage and sort questions. It’s important that you are able to organize and edit questions with little effort. This way, you can answer questions live without forcing your attendees to wait for your responses.
In addition to Q&A mode, you can use other advanced webinar features such as live chat, real-time polls, and one-click screen sharing to keep those engagement levels high.
The more you can ensure a smooth, professional experience throughout the webinar, from your opening presentation to guest speaker features to the live Q&A, the easier it will be to reach all your webinar goals.
Kirsten Barta
Kirsten Barta is Sr Marketing Communications Manager at Intermedia
May 21, 2020
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