Writing Engaging Content for Webinars

“Drop your location in the chat” is not how you create engagement in your webinars. Asking where everyone’s dialling in from doesn’t build connection. It doesn’t help your audience get into the right headspace. And unless you’re running a travel meetup, it’s just not relevant to your webinars. What you ask in the first 30 seconds of a webinar sets the tone. So ask something that: - helps people focus. - helps you understand who’s in the room. - opens up the topic. Here are 12 options you can borrow instead. 1/ “One emoji to describe how your relationship with [topic] is going.” 2/ “Which best describes you: 1) Curious but new, 2) Been trying for a while, 3) Already crushing it?” 3/ “Finish this sentence: I’m here today because…” 4/ “What’s one thing you’ve tried already that didn’t work?” 5/ “Quick room check: Are you here to learn, get unstuck, or see how others approach this?” 6/ “On a scale of 1–5, how confident do you feel about [topic] right now?” 7/ “One word to describe how your week is going. I’ll go first… Your turn.” 8/ “Finish this sentence in the chat: I’d consider this session a win if…” 9/ “Pop a ✋ in the chat if this is your first training on this topic. 🙋 if you’ve been down this road before.” 10/ “Be honest… how many tabs do you have open right now?” 11/ “I’m curious… what’s one thing you’ve Googled / asked ChatGPT recently about this topic?” 12/ “Which one feels most true today: 1) I’m winging it. 2) I’m overthinking it. 3) I’m just here for moral support.” These will give you better energy, better chat replies, and better insight - a TIIIINNNNY fix that makes a big difference. Reshare ♻ to help others do better webinars. PS: I share daily webinars, marketing and AI tips at Jakub Michalski

Too many marketers treat webinars like one-off lead gen plays. Run the event, send the recording, plan the next one. But the teams getting the most out of webinars treat them like content engines, using multiple touchpoints to promote them and creating multiple assets from each one. Here’s how: 🔹 Before: plan & promote. Design the webinar around what you want the final content to generate. Think about how you can pre-plan the moments to clip later. Start outlining that blog recap now. And when it comes to promotion, don't stop at email invitations. Find ways to embed the registration link into existing content channels — a new or popular blog post on an adjacent topic, the bios of all your social channels, etc. (At SparkToro, I can consistently add 100-200 extra registrants by embedding the registration link in a new blog post.) 🔹 During: reward active engagement. Having live attendees is nice; having active chat participants is even better. Invite people to engage directly in the live chat. Ask open-ended but simple questions that are easy for people to respond to. Make sure you're also using that chat in real-time — drop notes, reactions, answer quick questions that don't need to be verbally addressed during the presentation. 🔹 After: remix & reassign. One recap email isn't enough. A single well-run webinar should become multiple LinkedIn posts, a blog post, YouTube clips, and sales talking points — assets that serve social media, content marketing, and sales. Give each content asset a new job. This mindset has mattered a lot for SparkToro Office Hours, which typically gets ~1,200 signups. It’s also very aligned with how Goldcast talks about online events too — not just hosting webinars, but turning video into clips, blogs, social posts, and more. Link below in the comments to learn more. #GoldcastPartner

Regardless of how great your ideas are in your virtual sales pitch, webinar, or team meeting… People are most likely checking their email, browsing social media, or working on other things while you present. How can you prevent that and actually get your audience to pay attention? Here are 4 of the most powerful techniques we use for our own virtual training courses: 1. Win the first five seconds According to research from the University of Toronto, people need only five seconds to gauge your charisma and leadership as a speaker. In virtual environments, this first impression is even more critical. To establish instant rapport: - Keep your posture open and inviting (avoid fidgeting, crossed arms, and closed-off postures) - Use open gestures that welcome the audience into your space - Gesture with your palms showing at a 45-degree angle - Speak with clear articulation and energy from the very first word The quickest way to lose your audience? Starting with tentative body language that signals you’re unsure or unprepared. 2. Design your presentation for virtual viewing When designing slides, assume varied viewing conditions. Design for the smallest likely device and the slowest likely Internet speed. Make your slides accessible by: - Using larger fonts (24-32pt) - Applying higher contrast colors - Limiting each slide to ONE clear idea - Adding more space between lines when using smaller text - Stripping excess content (you can provide additional information in a separate document) 3. Vary your delivery Our research shows the optimal length for linear presentations is just 16-30 minutes, while interactive ones can maintain engagement for 30-45 minutes. People’s attention will go through peaks and valleys during that time, so try these techniques to keep their attention: - Vary your speaking pace (faster to convey urgency, slower to express gravity) - Use intentional pauses to let key points land - Adjust your vocal tone (lower pitch for authority, higher for approachability) - Shift between slides, stories, and data at regular intervals Each change helps reset your audience’s attention and signals importance. 4. Build in structured interaction Don’t make your audience wait until the end of your presentation to interact. According to our research, presentations that incorporate audience engagement through polls, chat responses, or breakout discussions maintain attention longer. For the highest engagement: - Use a variety of interaction types throughout your presentation - Incorporate breakout rooms for small-group discussions - Switch modalities regularly to keep it interesting Remember: In virtual environments, you need to recreate the natural engagement that happens in person. Your virtual presentation success isn’t measured by perfection…it’s measured by action. Master these techniques and your audience won’t just pay attention, they’ll respond. #VirtualPresentations #CorporateTraining #WorkplaceLearning

Engagement goes beyond information and design. It comes from keeping learners in a consistent learning GROOVE. Think of a great song - it doesn't work if it's all climax or all verse. A good producer knows when to build tension, when to drop it, when to keep you moving. Your course needs that same rhythm. Three things drive engagement: clear content, good design, and easy navigation. But there's a fourth thing most people miss. Groove. It's the pulse underneath everything. The pattern that keeps learners' brains alert and interested—without burning them out. Groove is rhythm. It's switching between different types of mental work. A learner's brain can't stay focused at full intensity for an hour straight. It needs to breathe. Too much relaxation and they zone out. Too much pressure and they crash. Three Rules for Building Groove 1. Switch Between Hard and Easy Hard → Easy → Hard → Easy. After a tough explanation, give a practical example. After the example, ask a question. After the question, a small exercise. After the exercise, time to reflect. This switching keeps the brain active. It doesn't get bored, but it also doesn't overload. 2. Use Repeating Patterns Quick check-ins. Questions to think about. "Pause and think" moments. Fast facts. Repetition isn't boring—it's comforting. The learner starts to expect the rhythm, and that predictability helps their brain stay relaxed but alert. The groove becomes familiar. The groove becomes trustworthy. 3. Use Contrast Don't let the format, speed, or amount of information become the same. Change things on purpose. Video, then text. Long form, then short. Dense, then simple. Lots of visuals, then clean space. Contrast isn't chaos. It's the difference between a groove that works and one that just sits there. A 15-Minute Groove (Example) A smooth 15-minute lesson can look like this: Entry Reflection (30 sec) Why It Matters — Expert Video (2 min) Lesson Goals (30 sec) Core Idea — Short Text (1 min) Concept Explainer — Video (2–3 min) Mini Article / Carousel (2–3 min) Application Cases (2 min) Quiz or Mini Simulation (2 min) Wrap Up (1 min) That's 15 minutes. Not boring. Not rushed. Groove. Build 10–12 lessons with this rhythm, and something shifts. Learners stop fighting the course. They move through it. The rhythm carries them. Ask yourself: Does your course have a pulse? Or does it just exist?

Over the last month, I joined 47 live webinars run by B2B SaaS companies with $100M+ in revenue. Here's the breakdown of what the best teams are doing—and what most are missing. 🎯 The Format 68% are still running PowerPoint-heavy, yawny formats. Top 10% use interviews, live demos, and hot takes. because it’s a conversation, not a lecture. 🎤 Who’s Talking? 54% had internal speakers only. But webinars with external guests or customers saw 2.3x higher engagement. 📅 When They Happen 82% of webinars are on Wednesdays or Thursdays at 10-11 AM EST. ⏱️ Length Sweet Spot Under 30 min? Too rushed. Over 60? Audience drops off after minute 42. 🔥 Best Practice: 28–38 minutes + 10 min Q&A = chef’s kiss. 💌 Reminder Sequence Only 31% send more than 1 reminder. But high-performing webinars send: 1️⃣ Day before 2️⃣ 1 hour before 3️⃣ 5 minutes before (And it’s worth it—27% higher live attendance.) 📈 CTA Strategy 72% pitch the product at the end. But the webinars that crushed it? They didn’t “pitch”—they planted. Here’s what they did instead: Dropped real wins from actual customers. Shared frameworks that subtly link back to their product. Used phrases like: “Here’s how [Company X] solved this—without 500 meetings.” “Want to see how we set this up in 3 clicks?” "Here's how [Company X] improved [Metric X] by 38%" 🧲 It wasn’t a pitch. It was curiosity bait. 💡 Lesson: Don’t pitch. Prime. Prove. Plant the seed. Then let your product be the obvious next step. 🚨 Hot Take: “Webinar” is a dirty word. Top brands don’t even call them webinars anymore. They say: “Live AMA” “Customer Roundtable” “Product Masterclass” “Industry Deep Dive” 🧠 It’s all about the perception shift. People want experiences, not broadcasts. If you're running webinars in B2B SaaS and wondering why your attendance or replay views are meh... these are your clues. The full breakdown + playbook is coming 🔜 Want early access before it goes public? Drop a 🔥 and I’ll hook you up first. #webinar #live #interview #event #marketing

We’re looking to scale out our webinar program this year. It’s been a really good source of high-quality leads for us. The problem is I used to spend way too many hours building out webinar registration pages, promo emails, and social posts. We’re a lean team and I only have so much bandwidth—so I built an AI workflow that cuts production time by about 90%. IMPORTANT NOTE: The key to this whole thing is the quality of your human-written content brief—it determines everything downstream. Most people try to shortcut the brief and end up with generic, junky AI content. Here's what actually works: 1. Start with a killer content brief that includes: - Core webinar value props and specific audience pain points - Speaker credentials that actually matter - Key learning outcomes with concrete examples - Technical depth and complexity level - Brand voice requirements and list of AI “no-no” words 2. Feed that quality brief into strategic prompts for: - High-converting registration page - 4-email promo sequence (2 weeks, 1 week, 3 days, 24hrs) - Post-event follow up emails for attendees, registrants, and non-registrants - LinkedIn posts engineered for engagement - Asset consistency guidelines AI handles content scaling and variations, but only after you've built the strategic foundation. Been testing this for months—the correlation between brief quality and output is nearly 1:1. Rushed brief = generic AI content. Detailed brief = compelling assets that drive registrations. The workflow includes specific prompts for maintaining voice consistency, building credibility through concrete benefits, and avoiding the typical AI content red flags that kill engagement. 🔗 Want the exact process? Grab the complete workflow with brief templates, prompts, and implementation steps in the comments below. [No need to comment “workflow” for the asset. That’s lame.) Running webinar campaigns with AI right now? Drop your questions below. Always testing new approaches to refine this process. P.S: Track your brief quality scores against registration rates. The data will show you exactly where your brief needs more detail. #AI #Marketing

Here’s my step-by-step guide on how we produce highly attended (700+) webinars that result in customers, influenced pipeline, and nearly instant raving reviews from the audience. 1. We decide on the shell/theme of the series → Our content is focused on inside the deals → We want expert guidance from senior leaders → Highly tactical → No thought-leadership talking heads → If someone shows up, they should leave with something they can actually use 2. We lock the topic and the guest intentionally Either we: → Start with a very defined topic and find the right guest → Or define our dream guest and fit the topic around where they’re strongest 3. I run a mini brainstorm with the SME (1:1) → Get their thoughts out on what the content should be 4. I use AI to speed things up → I take the AI meeting transcript from that SME brainstorm (love you, Granola) → Grab relevant LinkedIn posts from the SME and the guest → I drop everything into a defined AI work project with context and have it outline a deck for me → I try to take the first stab to take as much work off the SME and guest as possible (they're being generous with their time!) 5. I create a detailed run-of-show doc Every single detail. Broken out by: → Minutes → Sections → Who runs what → I include bullets and talking points and encourage both the SME and guest to add to it → I want guests to feel extremely prepared before we even meet for the first dry run → I also find it helpful for everyone to have in the background to reference during the event 6. I create the first draft of the deck → It’s not fully flushed out yet → The goal is to take work off the SME and guest’s plate before we meet 7. We have a 30–60 minute working session with the guest We walk through: → The event → The topic (more info to feed into AI afterwards with their content/expertise!) → The run of show → The deck → And get their feedback before locking anything in 8. I finalize the deck and get sign-off → These decks are MEATY on purpose → They do not follow traditional deck best practices → We’re building a tactical leave-behind. Basically a playbook → My biggest goal is that if someone spends time with us, they can implement something the very next day to help hit their quotas or goals 9. We run the event → I try to actively facilitate engagement in the chat throughout → Especially early, with a warm-up 10. Immediate follow-up We create a post-event deal room with: → The recording → The slides → Extra materials → Any examples or content referenced → Speaker and company info (plus any special offers) → We send this out as soon as possible with a very short email → One to two sentences max Why I think our webinars work so well: ✨ They’re well prepared ✨ They’re intentional, with a clear topic and goal ✨ They’re extremely actionable and teachable, from top talent

The webinar isn't dead. YOUR webinar is dead. Because you're still running it like it's 2019. Here's the format we ran last year that actually converted. Before the webinar we picked one specific problem the audience was already dealing with. Not a product pitch. A real operational pain point. Sent a pre-webinar survey asking where that problem shows up for them. Used the answers to shape the conversation. Briefed the host on how to facilitate, not present. During the webinar we ran 15 minutes of content. Enough to frame the problem and give people language for it. Then one question: Where does this actually break down for your team? 20 minutes of open conversation. Chat. Mic. Let people talk to each other, not just at them. After the webinar we segmented follow-up by engagement. People who spoke or asked questions got a different sequence than passive attendees. Sales had context before the first call. Not just a name on a list. The metrics: 180 registrants. 94 showed up live. That's a 52% show rate. Industry average sits around 35 to 40%. Average attendance time was over 30 minutes on a 35 minute session. Most webinars lose half the room by minute 15. 11 qualified pipeline conversations booked within two weeks. Not leads. Conversations. With people who already understood the problem because they'd talked about it live. Pipeline sourced from those conversations closed at 2x our normal webinar rate. The format worked because it didn't feel like a pitch. It felt like a room full of people with the same problem. Most webinars fail because they're built for the presenter, not the audience. Flip that and the metrics follow.

B2B tech companies are addicted to getting you to subscribe to their corporate echo chamber newsletter graveyard, where they dump their latest self-love notes. It's a cesspool of "Look at us!" and "We're pleased to announce..." drivel that suffocates originality and murders interest. Each link, each event recap and each funding announcement is another shovel of dirt on the grave of what could have been engaging content. UNSUBSCRIBE What if, instead of serving up the same old reheated corporate leftovers, your content could slap your audience awake? Ego-stroking company updates are out. 1. The pain point deep dive: Start by mining the deepest anxieties, challenges and questions your audience faces. Use forums, social media, customer feedback and even direct interviews to uncover the raw nerve you're going to press. 2. The unconventional wisdom: Challenge the status quo of your industry. If everyone's zigging, you zag. This could mean debunking widely held beliefs, proposing counterintuitive strategies or sharing insights that only insiders know but don't talk about. Be the mythbuster of your domain. 3. The narrative hook: Every piece of content should tell a story, and every story needs a hook that grabs from the first sentence. Use vivid imagery, compelling questions or startling statements to make it impossible to scroll past. Your opening should be a rabbit hole inviting Alice to jump in. 4. The value payload: This is the core of your content. Each piece should deliver actionable insights, deep dives or transformative information. Give your audience something so valuable that they can't help but use, save and share it. Think tutorials, step-by-step guides or even entertaining content that delivers laughs or awe alongside insight. 5. The personal touch: Inject your personality or brand's voice into every piece. Share personal anecdotes, failures and successes. 6. The engagement spark: End with a call to action that encourages interaction. Ask a provocative question, encourage them to share their own stories or challenge them to apply what they've learned and share the results. Engagement breeds community, and community amplifies your reach. 7. The multi-platform siege: Repurpose your anchor content across platforms. Turn blog posts into podcast episodes, summaries into tweets or LinkedIn posts and key insights into Instagram stories. Each piece of content should work as a squad, covering different fronts but pushing the same message. Without impressive anchor content, you won't have anything worth a lick in your newsletter. 8. The audience dialogue: Engage directly with your audience's feedback. Respond to comments, ask for their input on future topics and even involve them in content creation through surveys or co-creation opportunities. Make your content worth spreading, and watch as your audience does the heavy lifting for you. And please stop with the corporate navel-gazing. #newsletters #b2btech #ThatAshleyAmber

Before creating content, ask "what does our audience need?" not "what should we talk about?" I used to spend hours every quarter piecing together a content calendar, totally guessing about what might resonate. Now, our audience tells us. Here's how we're turning our marketing at StoryBrand into more of a two-way conversation: - Webinars: we use Demio to run 1-2 live sessions every month. Our team engages with attendees and we export every comment, question, and poll result. The chat is a goldmine — our last two webinars generated 20 new content ideas for us like: "How do I pick the right customer problem to focus on?" "How do I position my business when I sell a wide variety of products?" "How can the StoryBrand Guide Certification help me scale my business to support more clients?" - Email: we send short emails to our most engaged segments asking questions like "what topics would you love to see us cover next?" Our reply rate increased 60% over the past 90 days. - Sales call transcripts: we use Avoma to record all calls and analyze trends, FAQs, and objections. We choose webinar topics based off of common challenges our prospects are struggling with. Registrations have increased over 40% in the past 90 days. (Attendance also increased by 66% — but that's mainly because we stopped offering replays... a post for another day) Now we don't have to guess what our audience finds valuable. We use their own words and can write with more specificity. Our best content often comes from conversations, not a pre-determined calendar.