You want to not only keep the attention of those who’ve tuned into your webcast, but also ensure that they stick around through the end of the presentation.<\/p>\n
Key Takeaways<\/h4>\n\n- Most people don\u2019t like to attend online lectures even if they\u2019re informative, so make sure to keep it engaging by being conversational and not academic in your delivery.<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
- Polling is a very effective way to engage with your audience. Create surveys that canvas your audience for information that\u2019s relevant to your presentation.<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
- In order to engage and retain your audience\u2019s interest during your presentation, make sure you speak naturally and look relaxed. That doesn\u2019t mean that you can\u2019t be highly animated, but do so only if that\u2019s part of your personality.<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/em> <\/em><\/p>\nDisclosure<\/span><\/strong>: Although I receive affiliate compensation at no additional cost to you to support this site that compensation in no way influences my recommendations, which are strictly informed by my 10+ years of online business experience consulting for clients large and small. My aim is to always recommend tools that offer the best return for your investment (for more details, read my <\/span><\/em>Affiliate Disclosure<\/span><\/em><\/a>). <\/span><\/em><\/p>\nHow Do You Engage With Your Webinar Audience in 5 Steps?<\/h2>\n1. Use a conversational tone<\/h3>\n
Most people don\u2019t like to attend online lectures even if they\u2019re informative, so make sure to keep it engaging by being conversational and not academic in your delivery.<\/p>\n
Use a casual tone of voice and speak at a natural pace for better engagement.<\/p>\n
When \u200bpresenting a webinar<\/a>, never try to be someone you’re not. Don\u2019t put on an \u201cact\u201d because it\u2019ll come across as disingenuous. Always strive to be authentic \u2014 don\u2019t hide behind the camera.<\/p>\nNever speak in a condescending voice and always communicate at the same level of your target audience. So if your audience is made out of beginners, try not to use advanced language and vice versa.<\/p>\n
2. Make it interactive by using polling for audience participation<\/h3>\n
A very effective way to engage with your audience is to use live polling. Create surveys that canvas your audience for information that\u2019s relevant to your presentation.<\/p>\n
For instance, if you\u2019re talking about three different approaches people can use to solve a specific problem, survey your audience to find which is their favorite, and then use the results of your survey to inform your webinar.<\/p>\n
3. Create a list of questions to engage your audience<\/h3>\n
![\"ask](\"https:\/\/besttech2earnonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/ask-audience-questions.jpg\" "\\"ask-audience-questions\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nAnother way to build engagement with your attendees is to solicit their questions during the webinar and then address them in your Q&A period (81% of marketers<\/a> use Q&A sections in their webinars).<\/p>\nYou could even opt for an interactive session where you let them vote on which topic they’d like discussed next or ask them to share their stories so you can weave them into your content.<\/p>\n
The possibilities are endless when it comes to how you can interact with your webinar audience to create engagement<\/a> using features like chat boxes and polling.<\/p>\n4. When talking directly to the camera, try not to read off a script<\/h3>\n
Earlier, we talked about the importance of coming across as authentic<\/a> during your webinar, so keep in mind that reading off a script while on camera is a sure way to turn people off.<\/p>\nHaving said that, reading a script while presenting slides off camera is totally acceptable, as long as you are not reading what\u2019s on your slides word by word.<\/p>\n
So, unless you have access to professional camera equipment like teleprompters (where the camera is hidden behind the text) you need to be able to speak directly to the camera without looking down to read notes.<\/p>\n
Before you go live make sure you do several dry runs to get comfortable with your delivery.<\/p>\n
5. Be mindful of your body language and gestures as an engagement (or disengagement) signal<\/h3>\n
Have you heard of the 7-38-55 rule? According to language experts, 7 percent of what we say comes across through our words, 38 percent through the tone of our voice and 55 percent through our body language.<\/p>\n
In essence, for a visual medium like a webinar<\/a> our gestures and intonation communicate the vast majority of our message.<\/p>\nIn order to engage and retain your audience\u2019s interest, you need to make sure you speak naturally and look relaxed. That doesn\u2019t mean that you can\u2019t be highly animated, but do so only if that\u2019s part of your personality.<\/p>\n
If you’re nervous, your body language will not appear natural. Once I started watching a webinar where the presenter had a squeaky laugh at the end of each sentence. This nervous tick was so distracting that I ended up leaving the webinar room after five minutes. <\/p>\n
In short, just relax and be yourself!<\/p>\n
Frequently Asked Questions<\/strong><\/p>\nHow do I make my webinar more interactive for my audience?<\/h2>\n\n- Ask your audience yes-no type questions and ask them to reply via chat box<\/li>\n
- Solicit questions via chat to be answered throughout the presentation<\/li>\n
- Conduct polling to make decisions as a group while that you can then expand on<\/li>\n
- Survey your attendees with information that you can then use in your presentation to make it unique to your audience<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
What can I do instead of a webinar?<\/h2>\n
There are many alternatives to webinars.<\/p>\n
Some of the most popular are web conferencing calls, like Zoom meetings, Group FaceTime calls, Group Google Meet video calls and group audio calls.<\/p>\n
Can the instructor see you in a webinar?<\/h2>\n
No. Webinar tools are not set up to use the webcam on the audience\u2019s devices.<\/p>\n
The only way for an instructor to see you is by setting up a video call<\/a> with a tool like Zoom Meetings or FaceTime.<\/p>\nHow do you make virtual events more fun?<\/h2>\n
<\/em> <\/em><\/p>\n Disclosure<\/span><\/strong>: Although I receive affiliate compensation at no additional cost to you to support this site that compensation in no way influences my recommendations, which are strictly informed by my 10+ years of online business experience consulting for clients large and small. My aim is to always recommend tools that offer the best return for your investment (for more details, read my <\/span><\/em>Affiliate Disclosure<\/span><\/em><\/a>). <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n Most people don\u2019t like to attend online lectures even if they\u2019re informative, so make sure to keep it engaging by being conversational and not academic in your delivery.<\/p>\n Use a casual tone of voice and speak at a natural pace for better engagement.<\/p>\n When \u200bpresenting a webinar<\/a>, never try to be someone you’re not. Don\u2019t put on an \u201cact\u201d because it\u2019ll come across as disingenuous. Always strive to be authentic \u2014 don\u2019t hide behind the camera.<\/p>\n Never speak in a condescending voice and always communicate at the same level of your target audience. So if your audience is made out of beginners, try not to use advanced language and vice versa.<\/p>\n A very effective way to engage with your audience is to use live polling. Create surveys that canvas your audience for information that\u2019s relevant to your presentation.<\/p>\n For instance, if you\u2019re talking about three different approaches people can use to solve a specific problem, survey your audience to find which is their favorite, and then use the results of your survey to inform your webinar.<\/p>\n Another way to build engagement with your attendees is to solicit their questions during the webinar and then address them in your Q&A period (81% of marketers<\/a> use Q&A sections in their webinars).<\/p>\n You could even opt for an interactive session where you let them vote on which topic they’d like discussed next or ask them to share their stories so you can weave them into your content.<\/p>\n The possibilities are endless when it comes to how you can interact with your webinar audience to create engagement<\/a> using features like chat boxes and polling.<\/p>\n Earlier, we talked about the importance of coming across as authentic<\/a> during your webinar, so keep in mind that reading off a script while on camera is a sure way to turn people off.<\/p>\n Having said that, reading a script while presenting slides off camera is totally acceptable, as long as you are not reading what\u2019s on your slides word by word.<\/p>\n So, unless you have access to professional camera equipment like teleprompters (where the camera is hidden behind the text) you need to be able to speak directly to the camera without looking down to read notes.<\/p>\n Before you go live make sure you do several dry runs to get comfortable with your delivery.<\/p>\n Have you heard of the 7-38-55 rule? According to language experts, 7 percent of what we say comes across through our words, 38 percent through the tone of our voice and 55 percent through our body language.<\/p>\n In essence, for a visual medium like a webinar<\/a> our gestures and intonation communicate the vast majority of our message.<\/p>\n In order to engage and retain your audience\u2019s interest, you need to make sure you speak naturally and look relaxed. That doesn\u2019t mean that you can\u2019t be highly animated, but do so only if that\u2019s part of your personality.<\/p>\n If you’re nervous, your body language will not appear natural. Once I started watching a webinar where the presenter had a squeaky laugh at the end of each sentence. This nervous tick was so distracting that I ended up leaving the webinar room after five minutes. <\/p>\n In short, just relax and be yourself!<\/p>\n Frequently Asked Questions<\/strong><\/p>\n There are many alternatives to webinars.<\/p>\n Some of the most popular are web conferencing calls, like Zoom meetings, Group FaceTime calls, Group Google Meet video calls and group audio calls.<\/p>\n No. Webinar tools are not set up to use the webcam on the audience\u2019s devices.<\/p>\n The only way for an instructor to see you is by setting up a video call<\/a> with a tool like Zoom Meetings or FaceTime.<\/p>\nHow Do You Engage With Your Webinar Audience in 5 Steps?<\/h2>\n
1. Use a conversational tone<\/h3>\n
2. Make it interactive by using polling for audience participation<\/h3>\n
3. Create a list of questions to engage your audience<\/h3>\n
<\/span><\/p>\n4. When talking directly to the camera, try not to read off a script<\/h3>\n
5. Be mindful of your body language and gestures as an engagement (or disengagement) signal<\/h3>\n
How do I make my webinar more interactive for my audience?<\/h2>\n
\n
What can I do instead of a webinar?<\/h2>\n
Can the instructor see you in a webinar?<\/h2>\n
How do you make virtual events more fun?<\/h2>\n