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Live Webinars

by Techie Turtle
6 replies
Hey all,
This may come off as a rant but believe me, it's just an observation. If you host live webinars, take from this what you will.

The internet has been evolving around our convenience, to give us on-demand books, movies, music, how-to guides, recipes, you name it. Netflix (even though I dislike their service) knows the value of giving their customers what they want, when they want it. You don't have to log in at a specific time to watch any movie. YouTube is the same: you watch on your terms.

For some reason I keep getting a lot of "join us this [specific day] for a live webinar to learn all about [method/system/product]" Usually it's limited to xx number of participants and the email states that it won't be re-played. :rolleyes:

I believe this to be an outdated model. Yes, the GoToMeeting people would have you believe otherwise, but really... in this day and age it's all about convenience. We all come from different walks of life, some are single parents, some are married with kids, some are students, some work full-time, others part-time. The list goes on and on but the point I want to make is, live webinars really limit the hosts' audience (those that have 1 hour to spare at any given specific time).

Here's my life: work overnights, wake up in the afternoon, run/bike late afternoon (training for marathon, duathlon, triathlon), early evenings I have personal/church meetings, every-other weekend I have my 2 kids, my girlfriend gets home in the evening and we spend quality time together. I have zero time to sit at such and such time on Tuesday for 1 hour. Really, I don't. To take it a level further: when I get an email that states, "hey, watch this 'cause it's awesome" the first thing I do is check the duration. I just don't have the time or patience to sit for 90 minutes, watching a video.

Maybe it's just me but I'm pretty sure we're all the same. I keep hearing how there's just not enough hours in the day to do everything that needs to get done. I'd like to hear everyone's feedback on this.
#live #webinars
  • Profile picture of the author Techie Turtle
    I know that I should have provided a solution along with my critique: offer a re-play of your webinar as an MP3. My training runs are usually 1 to 2 hours and I'm not opposed to listening something interesting while running.

    For those that do record MP3's, take note that it requires you to paint a visual picture of whatever you're seeing. You can't simply say "go up here, click on this, and when this box opens, be sure to put in your email address, then click OK and you should see this screen next..."
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    • Profile picture of the author Will Edwards
      Originally Posted by Techie Turtle View Post

      I know that I should have provided a solution along with my critique: offer a re-play of your webinar as an MP3. My training runs are usually 1 to 2 hours and I'm not opposed to listening something interesting while running.
      Hi TT

      I think most people do provide recordings of their webinars. But, my criticism for anyone doing them would be to make sure you are providing something of value and do not simply attempt to abuse the privilege by making a glorified sales pitch.

      Will
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      • Profile picture of the author Techie Turtle
        Originally Posted by Will Edwards View Post

        Hi TT

        I think most people do provide recordings of their webinars. But, my criticism for anyone doing them would be to make sure you are providing something of value and do not simply attempt to abuse the privilege by making a glorified sales pitch.

        Will
        Hi Will! Thanks for your reply. Yes, you're correct about providing value and not merely conducting a live webinar just because you can.

        The question is, what's "valuable"? For some, it may be "how to set up a Wordpress blog and install plug-ins." For others, it may be focused on a specific piece of software that can do great keyword research. I guess it's all relative.
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  • Profile picture of the author ashloren
    I think that replays of live webinars should always be made available for download, but maybe not right away and probably not indefinitely.

    Because then it's just ANOTHER video of something floating around online.

    The appeal of a live webinar is obviously the chance to interact with the presenter and participate on some level. While it would be awesome for this to be possible around the clock for everyone's convenience, it's obviously not.

    Besides, live webinars are perceived as more of an EVENT than simply a video to watch. They have a scheduled time, they won't be live a second time and they build anticipation. People mark their calendars for it and don't want to miss it.

    Participation = engagement. People are starved for this, which is why I believe webinars work and they work well.

    Offer a limited time download of the replay for anyone who can't make it to the live recording.
    Signature
    -Ashly Lorenzana
    AshlyLorenzana@gmail.com
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    • Profile picture of the author Techie Turtle
      Originally Posted by ashloren View Post

      Besides, live webinars are perceived as more of an EVENT than simply a video to watch. They have a scheduled time, they won't be live a second time and they build anticipation. People mark their calendars for it and don't want to miss it.
      Thanks for your reply, Ashloren. My calendar is pretty marked up, as is most of us due to our busy lives. Adding a "let me get home at 7p to watch a sales presentation" to my calendar is not priority #1 with me or my circle of friends. Yes, I know there are people that do make it a point to attend the live event. I argue those are just a drop in the bucket compared to those that wanted to attend but couldn't.

      You're 100% correct though: make the content available for a limited time. But, as I understand it, the live webinars usually have an immediate call to action for the attendees. The sales pitch usally goes something like, "for those of you that buy right now, during this call, you can get the entire system for only $xx." So, having a replay wouldn't work in that regard.
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      • Profile picture of the author ashloren
        Originally Posted by Techie Turtle View Post

        Thanks for your reply, Ashloren. My calendar is pretty marked up, as is most of us due to our busy lives. Adding a "let me get home at 7p to watch a sales presentation" to my calendar is not priority #1 with me or my circle of friends. Yes, I know there are people that do make it a point to attend the live event. I argue those are just a drop in the bucket compared to those that wanted to attend but couldn't.

        You're 100% correct though: make the content available for a limited time. But, as I understand it, the live webinars usually have an immediate call to action for the attendees. The sales pitch usally goes something like, "for those of you that buy right now, during this call, you can get the entire system for only ." So, having a replay wouldn't work in that regard.
        I definitely hear you there. I realize people have busy lives, even if I'm not one of them. I may be single, have no kids and no real responsibilities, but that's not reality for most people. True enough.

        The second thing you said is true. There is usually a time-sensitive offer at the end of the webinar. However, the ones which I have attended that were actually worth my time all offered so much valuable information IN ADDDITION to the ending sales pitch....that it didn't really matter if you didn't get to take them up on the deal offered during the live event.

        One awesome example of this was the webinar Jon Morrow did for BoostBlogTraffic.com. He even told people that they didn't need his coaching program which he offered at the end. He explained that it would make it easier, but wasn't necessary at all to implement the things he covered in the webinar. And he was right.
        Signature
        -Ashly Lorenzana
        AshlyLorenzana@gmail.com
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