9 step guide to creating awesome webinars

Samantha Reid Aviña | Gallery Design Studio Editor + Copywriter

Contributor: Rev Ciancio, from Yeah! Management 

Webinars can be a great tool for distributing useful content such as product demos, deep-dive FAQ videos, or thought leadership discussions with other industry experts. Preparing a webinar, however, can get a little overwhelming especially when you have so many other marketing tasks on your plate. This is why we prepared the following guide, to help you stay organized and prepare as efficiently as possible.

Step 1: Content outline

Draft an outline that includes the key takeaways you want participants to leave the webinar with. Organize an outline that walks through the information you are looking to share in a logical manner. Remember the goal is to arrive at your key takeaways, so it’s important to design the content in a clear, direct manner, that leads to your desired conclusion.

Tip: Repurpose content you already have. Depending on the topic, you can pull from previous collateral such as social or email campaigns, white papers, or case studies.  

Step 2: Prepare a deck

Make sure you prepare a deck (on Google Slides for example) that is easy to follow, eye-catching, and informative. Avoid clutter, too much information, and a drab feel. Most of what you say aloud won’t be on the deck, so use copy sparingly. A branded deck will help your team maintain a consistent look and feel with your other materials. 

Tip: Think of your deck as a general map for the webinar, not an overly-detailed handbook. Also, try repurposing some of your other company decks, such as sales decks, and use as a template for your webinar to save time.

Yeah! Management webinar on LinkedIn.

Step 3: Enlist collaborators/interviewees

Reach out to members of your network or industry. Draft a list of specific questions or topics and share them with your collaborators. It’s fine for most of the conversation to be off the cuff, but ensure that all speakers and guests are prepared to discuss relevant ideas. 

Tip: Research the audience and reach of your guests. In addition to checking their numbers, make sure their followers are potential prospects for your service offering.

Step 4: Review deck

Make sure all the necessary content is on the deck. Remember the key takeaways from earlier? They should be clearly articulated in the content. Check that there is a logical arc or narrative that brings viewers to the takeaways. This is also the time to check for typos and make sure formatting is consistent, so your product reflects the professionalism of your organization. 

Tip: Enlist help. Having someone else proofread your deck and your writing is the best way to eliminate typos and awkward phrases.

Step 5: Rehearse webinar

The best actors, speakers, and politicians know the importance of practicing. It’s natural to trip over your tongue or stumble over words or phrases, even ones you use every day. Rehearsing your webinar also gives you the chance to review timing and make sure you’ve got the right amount of content allotted. 

Tip: Treat your rehearsal like it’s the real thing (actors call this dress rehearsal). Set up your technology, wear your outfit, put your drinking glass out of the camera’s eye, and practice speaking directly to the camera. 

Step 6: Record webinar

Download a video conferencing software, like Zoom or livestorm, to video conference and record your screen. Find a quiet room with good internet and if you don't have a professional microphone, use headphones with a mic first. Always test all of the technology before the conference call. This includes everything from the recording to your webcam to your internet connection.

Tip: record webinars so that your audience can revisit and re-watch content at their own pace. Webinars also serve as a great resource for your website's FAQ section and blog. 

Step 7: Edit the video

You want to make sure your webinar reflects well on your brand and organization, having said that, want to let perfection be the enemy of completion. It’s easy to fiddle with video editing until you think it’s perfect, the goal, however, is to produce good content quickly that can be shared widely. 

Tip: have your in-house design team or creative partner help you edit webinars for a quality finish.  

Step 8: Build a landing page

It should be easy for anyone to sign up for the webinar. Create clear and concise sign-up forms that let you track registrants and collect contact information, so you can reach out ahead of time with reminders and updates. You can also use this list later to follow up with drip email campaigns. 

Tip: Use the landing page to crowdsource content ideas. Ask registrants what they would like to learn or what their biggest challenge is, so you can provide the content they want for future initiatives.

Step 9: Promote promote promote

When you take the time and effort to produce webinar content, attendance and participation are crucial. Work with your marketing team to appropriately distribute promotions. You can also take advantage of platforms like Gagglelamp that enable your employees to share a unified message about the webinar on their individual social media accounts. 

Tip: Make sure the purpose and value of your webinar are clearly stated in all promotional materials. 

Medallia webinar email marketing promotion example. 

About Gallery Design Studio

We help B2B marketing teams, in software, financial services, and healthcare, with their ongoing communication design needs. Conveying complex information clearly, concisely and in a visually engaging way.

About the writer

Samantha is a copywriter at Gallery Design Studio. Samantha is passionate about using precise and evocative messaging to connect with clients. She has written for journals, online publications, and blogs.

About the contributor

Rev Cianco, is a hospitality consultant and evangelist who helps technology companies, as well as restaurants, acquire and retain customers. Follow Rev @RevCiancio.