10 Things I Learned From My First Webinar
This past Wednesday, I held my very first webinar. So far, the feedback has been excellent and apparently it was good enough that it taught both beginners and advanced some new things about keyword research and search engine optimization. A huge thank you to those of you who attended, and especially those of you who took extra time to email or message me with your appreciation.
A replay of the webinar will be available very shortly for those of you who missed it or who want to watch it again. Please make sure to follow me on Twitter, or join me on my Facebook Page (which just surpassed 2000 fans!) for a link when that becomes available. It was supposed to be available today, but there were some technical problems which I’ll talk in more detail about below.
Update: The Webinar Replay is now available!
It was definitely a fantastic learning experience. I was used to shooting videos and screencasts for YouTube, so it wasn’t a total “OMG what am I doing” type of thing, but the fact that there are people watching you LIVE makes it so much more interesting, and honestly a lot more fun too.
If you have an audience base (or even if you don’t, and you want to expand your audience base), I definitely recommend holding a webinar. I can imagine it being somewhat scary, especially for those of you who are shy and nameless behind your blogs and websites, but it’s like what Tim Ferriss preaches in the 4-Hour Work Week: you have to learn how to put yourself in uncomfortable situations if you want to get anywhere with your business, and in life. Or, as I like to say it – take bold actions.
Below are 10 things that I learned from my first webinar experience that you can use to be ahead of the game when you do your own.
1. GoToWebinar is Awesome
I did a lot of research on different webinar hosting services, and GoToWebinar (a branch of GoToMeeting.com) has everything you need. What’s nice is that they have a 30 day Free trial, so for your first one you can do absolutely free (or as many as you can do during the 30 day trial). That being said, you can only have a maximum of 100 attendees (not registrants) per webinar as long as you are in the free trial.
2. GoToWebinar isn’t as Awesome for MAC Users
As good as GoToWebinar was for the webinar hosting experience, it did lack 2 important features for me as a MAC user:
- The ability to practice your webinar before it goes live. And by practice, I mean actually using the webinar hosting interface that you’d see when doing it live; and
- The ability to record your webinar.
I did perform a couple of practice runs before the webinar went live (going through the content and what I was going to share on my screen), but I had no idea what the GoToWebinar interface would look like or how it would feel to host a webinar until it actually happened. Fortunately, it wasn’t too complicated to figure things out once it finally started.
Not having the ability to record the webinar sucked. I wanted to record it, obviously, so I could have it for a replay to show those of you who couldn’t catch it live, so I tried to be slick and use Camtasia for Mac to record the screen on my side.
Of course – it didn’t work. Camtasia only recorded the first 15 minutes and then nothing else. I was missing an entire hour of content!
So the following day, I re-recorded the entire webinar again as if it were live because I realize how important it was to have a replay to show. THAT is exactly why the replay is delayed a little bit, and I apologize for that.
3. Not All Registered Participants Will Actually Participate
I had about 160 people signed up for the webinar, but less than half actually showed up (70 total). Apparently, this is always the case with webinars, and you can’t really expect everyone to show up.
There are things you can do, however, to maximize the attendance of your webinars:
- Make sure you use the GoToWebinar email settings to send notifications before the webinar starts to remind people that it’s coming up in a week, a day, in a few hours, etc. Some people will just simply forget and these emails will make sure that doesn’t happen.
- In your emails, make sure to tell people to arrive early because space is limited. This will put a little extra reminder in their heads that will make sure that they not only remember when the webinar is, but also that they should show up early.
- Make sure you are clear on when the webinar is. Always tell people the time zone and the time in other time zones as well, so there is no confusion as to when it starts.
- Don’t publicize beforehand that there will be a replay. If it’s widely known that there’s a replay, then people won’t show up. Along the same lines, if you do announce there is a replay, you can tell people that there will be special content just for the live viewing that will not be available in the replay.
4. Make Sure Your Audio Is Working Correctly
During my live webinar, my volume was very low for the first 15 minutes of the session. Luckily, I had the right mind to check the chat room comments and saw that many people were commenting that my volume was low. I turned it up, and then it was better.
I guess this is the one good thing about having to re-record my webinar, because I could make sure the sound was perfect the second time around, but honestly that shouldn’t have happened in the first place.
Ask your audience in the beginning, or hold a practice session (if you’re on a PC) with a friend and have that person tell you if the volume is adjusted correctly.
5. Time Flies Like Crazy
I initially expected to have 45 minutes of content and 15 minutes for questions on the tail end of my webinar. Well – after an hour I hadn’t even finished my content, so I had to extend the webinar a few extra minutes.
I mentioned this in the video, but time really does fly by. I was actually very surprised and it made me re-think the length of the podcast episodes that I’ll be doing in the future.
If you can, run through your content beforehand to get an estimate of the time that is needed to get through it. I only skimmed through my practice runs and notecards, so my estimated time was a little off.
6. If You Get Nervous, Present To a Friend
I’ll admit that I was a little nervous at first. It’s human nature to feel that way when presenting to a group of people, no matter if it’s online or offline.
What made me feel comfortable was actually seeing a comment from a buddy of mine during the webinar, and then pretending to present to only him. After that, I got into a groove and felt really comfortable with what I was doing. I didn’t worry about messing up, and because of that, I didn’t mess up or fumble quite as much.
It’s easier to use this technique when hosting a webinar, because you can’t actually see an entire group of people in front of you. So, if you get nervous, present like you presenting to a friend, and you’ll be all good.
7. If You Can, Prepare a PDF Printout Ahead of Time
I did not do this, but after the webinar I was reading on tips to help improve my skills, and came upon this one here which I wanted to share with you.
Before the webinar begins, prepare a PDF file that is maybe just an outline of what you’re going to be talking about. It could just be a one-page outline itself, or a copy of some of the slides you’re going to show.
The PDF does a couple of cool things:
- If you email it out before hand, people will print it out and have a tangible, physical reminder of when your webinar is. Obviously, you’ll want to include the name of your webinar, the time and date on the PDF.
- During the webinar, people will pay more attention to what you have to say, as they follow along the outline or slides as you present. They can take notes, and will overall have a better learning experience as a result.
For my next webinar, I plan on having a PDF printout – for sure.
8. Get Your Audience Involved
Again, this is another tip I learned AFTER my webinar.
The trick is to get your audience involved, so that they’ll be more attentive and have a better learning experience too.
One way to do this is to simply ask questions and wait for people’s answers. Many people are happy to type in responses in the chat box in GoToWebinar. Read them off, and people get excited when they hear their answers read off live on the webinar.
Also, GoToWebinar has a polling feature. During the webinar, you can have people answer polls, which can be a cool way to present certain types of information to the audience as a whole, while getting them to participate and be a part of the data too.
9. Expect the Unexpected
A lot of my webinar consisted of going into the Market Samurai software and demonstrating some of what it can do related to Keyword Research and SEO. When doing my practice runs, the software ran smoothly, and all inquiries for keyword information happened at lightning speed.
Well of course, during the webinar, things were super slow! I mean like, a snail climbing a 60 degree incline with the wind blowing in it’s face kind of slow.
Okay, maybe it wasn’t THAT slow, but it seemed like it, especially with 60-70 people watching it live. This was unexpected, and I later found out that the reason this happened was because just being on the webinar itself was eating up bandwith and slowing everything else down.
That being said, although this wasn’t planned for, I wasn’t phased. I knew things like this happen all of the time, and you can’t get phased (especially live on a Webinar).Y ou just have to roll with the punches.
So, during the loading times, I’d take the opportunity to give people information about what was happening and what was coming up. Also, I filled people in on some of the questions they had, and read some of the comments in the chat as well.
Expect the unexpected.
10. Just Do It, and Have Fun!
If you’re thinking about doing a webinar, don’t think anymore – just do it. Go to GoToWebinar, get your free trial and get people on your first webinar. Expand your brand, build authority and show yourself as an expert in whatever niche you’re in. Like I mentioned earlier, progress doesn’t happen until bold actions are taken, so just do it.
And lastly, have fun with it! Don’t stress yourself out over the upcoming webinar that you have planned. Think of it as an opportunity to share your knowledge with others, and not as something that you just have to get over with.
I wish you the best of luck on your upcoming webinars. Please send me a registration link, and I’ll do my best to make it. More webinars to come from me, because practice makes perfect.
Again, be sure to follow me on Twitter or Facebook for the link for the replay when it finally goes live, or just to say hello too.
Thanks again for all of your support, and have a wonderful weekend! Cheers!
Posted on : June 25th, 2010
Related posts:
- My FREE SEO and Keyword Research Webinar!
- What I Learned From My First Meeting With a CPA
- My Monthly Report – June 2010
- Do You Pass the Test? An Online Entrepreneur Mindset Exercise
- A Typical Monthly Expense Report
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59 Comments (Click Here to Leave a Comment Below)
Hi Pat,
Thanks for sharing your tips and experiences with your webinar. They will surely help a lot of us who plan on doing webinars in the future!!
I really like how you mention participation of your audience. It will surely make a webinar way more interesting if the audience is also involved. And also, it will also help in connecting with the audience and make it seem more friendlier/natural.
Nabeel
Hi Nabeel – I think participation is very important, which is why I think webinars have an edge over podcasts in this respect, although there are still ways to get people to participate in podcasts, just not as many at the same time. Cheers!
Flynn!
Good job on the webinar, although I still have a couple of things ahead of me before I can hold one. Just started out with Lalala Music, it’s going to give insights into artist/product creation, promotion, distribution and live performance. I see a lot of information here that overlaps with what musicians need to get exposure online. Thank you very much and I hope to hear from you for many years to come.
From Pat-to-Pat, I “pat” you on the back. Haha. Greetings to The Family!
Cheers
Patrick
Hey Patrick – your site sounds pretty awesome, and I think musicians going online is a great market because lately normal record sales have been falling off big time, so they’re going to look at other ways to get noticed and make sales.
Hey Pat,
Awesome man. Thanks for sharing the awesome tips about webinar. You’ve done great work Pat. Thanks. Retweeted.. !
~Dev
Thanks for that, Dev – I appreciate it!
Cool!
FYI, GoToWebinar has a Commission Junction account so you can affiliate with them.
-Erica
Ahh – I did not know that Erica. Thanks! Btw, nice new Gravatar picture!
You did an absolutely fantastic job, Pat! I could tell that you were a little nervous, but you pulled it off very well, and there was a LOT of great content in your presentation. Thank you very much for putting this on. In the next couple weeks, I’ll be trying to put this information to good use. I just launched my site about a month ago and have had no traffic. Now I know exactly why…
Thanks Casey – I really appreciate that. Congrats on your new site, and good luck with using the new strategies that you learned. Cheers!
some ass-kicking tips I surely follow for my own webinar, although that will take a while
It’s good that you got out of your comfort zone. Being nervous is actually awesome, it means you care about what you do. There’s always a first time, and after a couple more, you will get a maverick at it.
Yep – I’m found that to always be the case Mars. That’s why I force myself to do these kinds of things, so that I can become an expert and let it become second nature in the future. Just like with blogging and doing online business.
Takes a lot of guts to run live events, even webinars. Congratulations Pat.
Thanks Paul – I appreciate that!
I really like the idea of the PDF Blueprint. It’s good for a number of reasons. A couple that come to mind is that it keeps you on track in terms of what you need to cover (topic wise) Then, for when you get a little nervous, it gives you a fall back. I’ve started using blueprints for a lot of things, versus just doing whatever.
I think you should continue to do webinars on a regular basis. They really are a great way to teach.
Take Care, Mike
Great points Mike about the PDF. I was using notecards, but I probably should have made an outline on a PDF that I could share with the viewers too. I’m learning!
Thanks Pat, these are some good tips. I missed the live webinar but I really look forward to watching the replay.
When you rerecorded the webinar for the replay, did you feel like it went a lot smoother? In other words, were you less nervous (because there was no audience)?
I felt the re-recording was a bit smoother, simply because I had done it a few times already (I practiced before the webinar too). However, you get a different feeling when recording live, and I think more of a connection with your audience can come as a result.
Pat,
You rocked it! I was sold on MS after the webinar. I would appreciate tips on how to stay on the first page of Google results.
Last time I checked I was in the top spot for “inventor blog” with my http://inventionaddict.com site.
Beginners luck.
-Stephen
Thanks Stephen, and congrats on getting that top spot. The question is, how many people are searching for that term, and what other terms could you target that would drive traffic and readership to your blog. Staying at the top just means continuing to do better than your competition, that’s really all what it comes down to.
Hi Pat,
I’ve registered in your Webinar but i couldn’t watch it, because of the time that you’ve started it. Unfortunately i’m from Europe, and Webinar was run too late for me (from 2am do 3am in Poland).
Maybe this big amount of people, that haven’t showed up is from Europe? Are you able to check this out?
Hmm, I’m not sure if I can see where the no-shows are coming from exactly, but I’ve had a few people from the UK tell me they couldn’t make it either because of the time. That’s why the replay is important, which is already live for viewing!
Hi Pat,
Great webinar. You said in #6 that you were a little nervous but it sure didn’t show. You handled everything like a pro and I am hoping that you will do more in the future.
I suggested during the webinar that you might want to turn this into a series. During this hour+ there was a lot to digest. I am looking forward to you putting up a recap so that I can watch again.
The time was great for me. I live in Asian and it started at 9am which is perfect for me.
Keep up the good work and I look forward to seeing more.
- Matt
Thanks Matt – I really appreciate it. There was indeed a lot of material to digest, but I just wanted to give a basic overview of KW and SEO strategies and what Market Samurai can do to help. I may break it down and go into more detail on specific items in the future, so definitely keep an eye out for that. I’m glad the time worked for you – but for some I know it didn’t – hence the replay.
Thanks again Matt!
Nice post Pat. I really do like the GoToMeeting applications, they make telecommunication a breeze!
Definitely! It’s amazing what technology can do nowadays to make our lives easier and more dynamic.
bummed that I missed it. I’ll catch the replay when you release it, or maybe I won’t. I love what you do and how you do it, it’s just that when I hear terms like ‘SEO’ and such, my non technological mind freezes up. If I want to build a solid audience for my work, and I do, I know that I will have to learn and understand these tools. I’m sure it will be easy to follow, as I find your style of presenting info (even stuff I don’t “get”) easily digestible. Thanks for all you do!
Hey Mike – I know what you mean about the technical stuff and how the mind freezes up sometimes – it was like that for me too, and sometimes still is. The webinar went well and I think I did a good job of simplifying everything, like I always try to do, so I definitely recommend you check it out if you get a chance. At least the first few minutes before you turn it off. Cheers!
Pat now you’ve got me wanting to do a webinar. I have only done live video using ustream but gotowebinar seems to allow for so much more, like screen capture and the ability for listeners to call in on a phone. I will definitely be checking it out.
I am sad to say I missed your webinar but am looking forward to seeing the rerecorded version.
Keep up the great work!
Ustream is just as good, and I’ve seen other people use Ustream while screen sharing as well, but it’s not quite as easy to do as GoToWebinar. Hope you get a chance to view the rerecorded version! Cheers!
I’m still settling in after the move, so I haven’t been able to take part in the webinar. I’ll definitely have to watch the screencast.
Hope the move is going well! Welcome to SD!
Great tips Pat. Webinars are definetly something we are exploring and they seem to be a great tool to connect with current and potential subscribers. I hope people realize how lucky we are that you kind of “test drive” all these things out before we dive in!
That’s what I do! Cheers Vance!
Man I’m bummed I missed the live show, but thanks for taking the time to re-record it. I really appreciate all the good tips you provide.
No problem Blake! Glad you find the tips helpful. Good luck on any future Webinars that you may do. Cheers!
I got to give it to you because making use of the Bamboo pen and talking as you do so fluidly at the same time is difficult, its like trying to read and drive at the same time. i have tried it, and I like the end resulting videos it creates. Again I have got to give it to you because on top of the difficult you conducted a webinar so it’s like reading, driving and being on the cell phone at the same time.
Hopefully maybe you can give some insight and tips on how to use the bamboo tool and adobe photoshop while on the same time conducting a live webinar.
I guess I have to keep using mine to get better at it, LOL sometimes the Bamboo pen has a mind of its own.
@Pat, I just finished watching the webinar replay – how were you jumping back and forth between the bamboo pen, Adobe Photo Shop and the Marketing Samurai website? please advice on the short cut keys that you used or any tips you think might be helpful.
I am also curious why you used the Bamboo pen instead of just a Powerpoint slide? I wonder how a Prezi slide will work within the Gotowebinar system? If you have come across any webinar wherein they used Prezi to create the slides please let me know. thanks
To jump back and forth, all I did was click on the icon at the bottom of my screen (for a Mac) to bring that window to the front. I think you can also click command + tab (or ctrl + tab) on a PC to switch b/t programs.
I went with the bamboo pen style because I think powerpoints are boring, and people are used to that style from me with my YouTube vids. I’ll definitely try out Prezi though. It might help with the fluidity of the presentation.
Thanks, I tried using CTRL + TAB to switch between programs and it changed between opened tabs on my Mozilla Firefox browser. Turns out on Microsoft Vista the shortcut for changing between programs is ALT + TAB.
As per your point with creating non-boring webinars, I think your webinar is the first time I have actually seen someone use the bamboo pen, it definitely was unique and interesting. I definitely need more practice with mine to get to your level.
As per Prezi, I like the fact that one can create very dynamic flash based presentations. They are great for screen captured videos, as per webinars I wonder if the Gotomeeting software will work with it? I will ask them and once I get a response I will be sure to update you.
Keep inspiring me!
Ahh – thanks for clarifying that for PC users.
Any program that you use on your computer can be used along with GoToWebinar because all you’re doing is sharing your screen with the attendees. So, Prezi would definitely work.
Hey Owen – Thanks a lot. it definitely is a little tricky to talk and write and teach at the same time, but I did practice a few times, and doing it with my YouTube vids too did help a lot. Just keep practicing!
Yeah, I figure i am going to have to keep practicing. So have you decided the schedule for the webinars if its going to be weekly, biweekly or monthly?
Also how many days before a webinar will you advice me to send out a notice of it to my email subscribers?
The webinars aren’t scheduled – that was just one I wanted to do for those who were interested in Market Samurai. If there are similar things that people have questions on that I can share my screen for, I’ll probably announce another webinar, but nothing is scheduled at the moment.
I’d recommend at least a week (at least) to get people prepared for a webinar.
Congratulations on your webinar, Pat
I’m sure that this is just the first of many.
You sure are walking your talk – taking Bold Action.
These are some fantastic and useful tips if I ever get up the courage to host my own webinar. I’m bookmarking this page for reference.
Thanks for sharing these tips,
Karen
Excellent job Pat. Loved the webinar, you took control like a pro.
You also sold me. I bought the full version. The thing I found odd was that if you clicked the link to buy the full version from the webinar page, it made you pay the full price. I had to download the trial version to save the money, then register it. 
I like your point about email reminders. I agree that they really increase the chances of having people actually attend the webinar. I believe these short emails can also be applied to live events.
Pat,
Thank you for showing us the reality of your webinar. Too often, people like inflate the number of people actually on the call and listeners think they are among thousands. Webinars can be such a powerful selling tool, since you have the audience’s undivided attention for a full hour. There is no other on-line medium like it for really high returns (as long as your sales message is powerful in the end).
-Joshua Black
The Underdog Millionaire
Thanks Joshua! I dare not inflate my numbers, and I’m all about honesty here on SPI, because I want people to know what’s really possible and what’s real. Thanks for the insight! Cheers!
Many people have heard of child prodigies. Pat is an adult webinar prodigy; he just didn’t realize it until after his first one (evil grin).
I’ve been testing the webinar waters with dimdim (hint: it has a recording feature and you can share a link). It is browser based, so attendees don’t need anything but their browser (mac or pc) and the URL to enter the room. It is free to use up to 20.
There are so many products I want to try out. And I am one of those rare breed of consumers that never returns a purchase. For marketers, a webinar would allow someone like me to see the product in action, live and then decide, “Yep, I have to buy this.” Far less merchandise returns imho.
I haven’t been able to review the entire webinar yet, Pat (mentor). I will. Oh and I didn’t think it was possible to dog-ear a digital ebook, but yours even has coffee stains on it from so much use.
Awesome comment Leon! Thanks!
I definitely wouldn’t call myself a prodigy, but I’d definitely call myself an action-taker. I’ll definitely take a look at dimdim based on your recommendation.
I’m glad you’re enjoying the eBook – it makes me happy to see people putting it to good use. Cheers Leon, and I hope to hear from you again soon. Enjoy the replay!
What would you call a giant among giants? An extra tall giant? Not me. A giant among giants is Pat Flynn, the mild mannered husband and father throughout the day and “super hero” ebook creator during his creative bursts of prodigy-ness.
You should take your cast off clothes, have them restitched into “sidekick hero” capes, then sell them on ebay. Not only would these cloaks keep the vampires away and other denizens of the night, but it would allow us mundane mortals access to some of your super powers too. You know the super powers I’m referring to: 1) Ebook creation, 2) Teaching, 3) Webinar(ing) … The list is endless.
Hello Pat,
I have been reading your blog on and off for a while. I downloaded the webinar which and watched it. Loved the content. I have been looking for a tool like Market Samurai to help with my SEO, and this really is great.
The most interesting thing I found is checking the back-links of competitors sites. Often there would be an obscure comment in a blog post from one competitor, further down the comments you would find more competitors with their fluffy thank-you messages.
It’s like dogs pissing on trees all over the neighborhood.
(I do understand that I am essentially doing the same thing.)
Hey Pat sorry buddy that I missed the live set, but I did just down load the file so I will check It out. I great review above for anyone that may not have seen It yet.
Thanks V.H.
It’s true that you will only get a small percentage of people showing up for any webinar you set up. Most of it is because people can’t get on a computer or happen to forget it and that is why it is important that you record it. I for one signed up for your webinar but only made it to the last five mins
Did you ever think about recording part of your webinar? I dunno how people feel about that but if you have a good recording of a keynote presentation – you can sandwich that between a live intro and live question and answer part.
Of course you stay live during the webinar to answer questions or troubleshoot but it can def take some pressure off.
Some great tips – and helped me refresh before my webinar today… only 69 registrants, but 36 attendees… 1 week of promotion. In general, very pleased!
David
You realize, I hope there were far more blogs like this one, I really love this article posted here
Hi Pat
I use screenflow to record my Webinars on my mac – works a treat – yar boo sucks to Camtasia !!
Ian