Summary of "The $100 MBA Show" Episode: MBA2501 Q&A Wednesday: How Do I Get More Attendees to My Webinar?

Release Date: July 31, 2024
Host: Omar Zenhom
Episode Title: MBA2501 Q&A Wednesday: How Do I Get More Attendees to My Webinar?

Introduction

In this episode of The $100 MBA Show, host Omar Zenhom addresses a listener's query regarding increasing webinar attendance. The episode, titled "MBA2501 Q&A Wednesday: How Do I Get More Attendees to My Webinar?", provides a comprehensive, step-by-step strategy based on Omar's extensive experience in entrepreneurship and webinar hosting.

Listener's Question

Eric poses the central question of the episode:

"How do I get more attendees to my webinar? I'm running live webinars to sell my services, but I ran my first live webinar, put a lot of effort into it, and only had two attendees. How do I get more attendees to attend so I can make more sales?"
— Eric [00:09]

Omar's Expertise and Overview

Omar introduces himself as the founder of Webinar Ninja, a successful webinar software platform acquired by Proprofs. With over 500 webinars under his belt, Omar emphasizes the importance of a strategic approach to drive webinar attendance, focusing primarily on paid marketing funnels for rapid audience growth.

Key Strategies to Increase Webinar Attendance

1. Building a Robust Email List

"The larger audience you have, the larger amount of people that you can reach out to, the better chance you're gonna have to get them to buy anything or attend your webinar for that matter."
— Omar Zenhom [02:17]

Omar underscores the supremacy of email marketing over social platforms like Instagram or Facebook. An email list serves as a direct and controllable channel to reach potential attendees, offering higher engagement and conversion rates.

Action Steps:

• Focus on growing your email list as a foundational asset.
• Utilize paid marketing to accelerate email list growth, especially when targeting immediate webinar attendance.

2. Utilizing Paid Marketing Effectively

Omar advises against directly advertising the webinar due to high cost per acquisition. Instead, he recommends promoting a valuable lead magnet to capture email addresses.

"Instead of driving traffic straight to the webinar, you want to drive traffic to some sort of value you can get access to immediately."
— Omar Zenhom [04:32]

Action Steps:

• Create an appealing lead magnet (checklist, template, guide, etc.).
• Run Facebook Lead Ads to collect names and email addresses without redirecting off-platform, enhancing tracking and optimization.

3. Nurturing Leads with Valuable Content

After capturing leads, it's essential to build a relationship through consistent, high-value content.

"Your job is to build the relationship first so they trust you and they know that you're credible."
— Omar Zenhom [06:33]

Action Steps:

• Develop an email automation sequence delivering valuable content over two weeks.
• Include resources like blog posts, videos, templates, and mini-courses to position yourself as an industry expert.

4. Inviting Leads to the Webinar Strategically

Once leads are nurtured, invite them to the webinar with a structured email campaign.

"This works really well when you do webinars regularly... I recommend you should do a sales webinar to sell your products and services at least once a month."
— Omar Zenhom [07:45]

Action Steps:

• Schedule regular webinars (monthly or bi-weekly) to maintain consistent engagement.
• Send a series of invitation emails leading up to the webinar date (e.g., five emails: one a week out, one three days before, one the day before, one on the day, and one a few hours prior).

5. Tracking Registrations and Attendance

Monitoring who registers and who attends is crucial for refining strategies and follow-ups.

"You have to track who's registered for your webinar and who's attended."
— Omar Zenhom [10:37]

Action Steps:

• Implement systems to track registrations and actual attendance using your webinar tools and email marketing software.
• Analyze conversion rates to assess and improve the effectiveness of your campaigns.

6. Reinviting Non-Attendees and Unconverted Attendees

Maximize opportunities by following up with those who didn't attend or didn't convert into customers.

"Sometimes it's going to take more than one live webinar for them to be convinced."
— Omar Zenhom [15:10]

Action Steps:

• Send targeted follow-up emails to non-attendees, highlighting what they missed and encouraging them to attend future webinars.
• Engage with attendees who didn't convert by inviting them to upcoming webinars and addressing any objections or questions they might have.

Closing the Webinar: The Final Step

Beyond attendance, the ultimate goal is to convert attendees into customers by delivering exceptional value during the webinar.

"Your job now is to close. Your job is to give great value, is to show them what your product and service can do..."
— Omar Zenhom [16:00]

Action Steps:

• Ensure the webinar is highly engaging and interactive through questions, polls, and chats.
• Present your products or services compellingly, demonstrating how they solve attendees' problems effectively.

Bonus Tips for Success with Ads

Omar provides additional advice to optimize ad performance and webinar engagement:

1. Test Different Variations:
   "It's all about differentiation. It's all about A/B testing experiments with different copy, different images, different targeting options."
   — Omar Zenhom [16:30]

2. Optimize the Lead Ad Area:
   Ensure that the Facebook Lead Ads are fine-tuned for maximum conversions.

3. Engage During the Webinar:
   Maintain high engagement levels to increase the likelihood of conversions.

4. Focus on Providing Value:
   Ensure attendees feel the webinar was worthwhile, enhancing brand loyalty and trust.

Final Thoughts and Recap

Omar reiterates the importance of a systematic approach to filling live webinars:

"Create and run paid ads. Nurture the lead with valuable content on your list. Send your webinar invitations, track your registrations and attendance, and then follow up with non-attendees and attendees that did not buy yet."
— Omar Zenhom [17:10]

He emphasizes that live webinars offer numerous benefits beyond sales, including customer insights, brand building, and increased brand awareness.

Notable Quotes

• Omar Zenhom [02:17]:
  "Email is still king when it comes to leads, when it comes to your audience."

• Omar Zenhom [04:32]:
  "Instead of driving traffic straight to the webinar, you want to drive traffic to some sort of value you can get access to immediately."

• Omar Zenhom [06:33]:
  "Your job is to build the relationship first so they trust you and they know that you're credible."

• Omar Zenhom [07:45]:
  "I recommend you should do a sales webinar to sell your products and services at least once a month."

• Omar Zenhom [10:37]:
  "You have to track who's registered for your webinar and who's attended."

• Omar Zenhom [15:10]:
  "Sometimes it's going to take more than one live webinar for them to be convinced."

• Omar Zenhom [16:00]:
  "Your job now is to close. Your job is to give great value, is to show them what your product and service can do..."

Conclusion

Omar Zenhom delivers a robust framework for increasing webinar attendance, centered around building a quality email list, leveraging paid advertising effectively, nurturing leads, and executing strategic follow-ups. By implementing these strategies, listeners can enhance their webinar's reach and conversion rates, ultimately driving more sales and fostering sustained business growth.

For those seeking further assistance or with additional questions, Omar invites listeners to email him at omar@100mba.net to be featured in future Q&A sessions.

Learn more and access additional resources at https://100mba.net.