3 Tips for Better Webinar Signups and Engagement

NEW! Listen to article

Webinars are everywhere, which means your audience has more choices than ever about which ones to sign up for. And if you aren't getting the attendance numbers you'd like, a few factors may be at play.

A couple of years ago, to learn as much as we could about B2B webinars, the Goldcast team decided to analyze the data we had, including the companies hosting them and what webinar content audiences were looking for.

In our latest study, the 2024 B2B Webinar Benchmark Report, we sifted through exponentially more data on hand to analyze whether things were holding steady or shifting in any specific direction. We considered single-session webinars that were 90 minutes or shorter a "webinar," and excluded any data that didn't fit those criteria.

Here are some things you should know as you plan your webinars in the coming year.

Stop using 'webinar' in your title

Calling your event a "webinar" can lead to a 50% drop in registration rates. That may seem surprising, but it makes sense: People don't want to sign up for the same-old, stale webinars they've seen over and over again. They want new, fresh, exciting content—even if its main purpose is to educate or teach them something.

You have permission to be creative here. Think of energizing ways to frame and present your content, and let the title be the audiences' first peek into the fun to come.

As an example, check out Hootsuite's Social Trends 2024: A Glimpse Into the Future. The event had more than 15K registrants, and you can tell at a glance what the event is about: People are going to get together at a live virtual event, and they're going to analyze current trends on social media and predict what the future holds.

But what if this event were called "Hootsuite 2024 Social Webinar"? Can you see how using the word "webinar" puts an immediate damper on the energy you feel as you read the title?

Keep that in mind as you name your own events, and find ways to more effectively galvanize your audience.

Start planning webinar series (and call them that)

Considering what we just learned, this suggestion may seem contradictory, but the data indicates people want to see more event series—and the best way to get the word out about your series is to call them a series.

When you think about the main ways that you consume content, you likely frequent sites like Netflix, MAX, Amazon Prime, and so on. As viewers, most of us really like being able to binge content with a simple swipe of our finger. Your audience is just like you! Even if it's B2B content they'd be watching, they want bingeable series—so give it to them.

You could host an open series, where you meet on a regular basis, or you might plan a closed series with a preset number of episodes.

Series allow you to build more brand authority on specific topics, and they make it easier to ramp up your consistency (which we'll talk about next).

Consider increasing your frequency

Companies are hosting 22 webinars per year, on average. That's a 69% increase from the first time we published the benchmark report, and it comes out to about two webinars each month.

So if you're hosting fewer than that, you're not benefitting from the exposure and brand awareness benefits that other companies are enjoying.

Of course, you shouldn't rush to put on a webinar if you don't have high-quality content to present, but it's a great time to get more involved. Technology has evolved to make it easier to produce branded, engaging webinars at scale. People are also used to tuning into virtual events, and you can leverage webinars to reach a global audience.

If you aren't hitting the benchmark of 22 webinars a year, consider setting a small stretch goal for yourself. If you're hosting 10 a year, perhaps you aim for one a month (12 total for the year).

Look for ways to streamline the process and automate anywhere you can, so you don't add too much to your current workload.

It's time to think big about webinars

Some people speculated that webinars gained popularity only during the pandemic, but our research debunks that theory. At least in the world of B2B, webinars are still expanding—and leaders would be smart to pay attention.

To stand out and increase the chances of people signing up for and attending your webinar events, consider the data:

Think creatively when naming your webinars.
Brainstorm event series ideas.
Try hosting webinar events more regularly so audiences get used to seeing you and begin to think of you as a thought leader in your respective space.