Webinars: Are They a Thing of the Past?
For a long time, the only way associations could effectively touch base with their members was in person. Often times, personal visits require time investments that busy people simply don’t have the luxury to make. Sure, there’s always the phone, but it’s so hard to convey ideas and explain complicated data when two people aren’t seeing the same thing.
This is why webinars were created! Thanks to webinars, leaders have more leverage, working with people all over their community in real time with awesome marketing and educational tools at their fingertips.
If you’re wondering if webinars are a thing of the past, rest assured this technology isn’t going anywhere! Take a look at a few reasons webinars offer awesome benefits for associations and organizations:
Adding a Personal Touch
Connecting with people via technology is a strange oxymoron. These days, we’re connected to the entire universe 100% of the time via email, text, social media, and the internet at large. At the same time, we’re more disconnected than ever before.
A lot of times, when you’re reaching out to your members, you’re trying to explain new concepts or help them realize benefits of new ideas. Webinars add value to online interactions by allowing you to:
- Have conversations with your audience
- Achieve actual feedback from interested parties as questions and comments arise
- Share personal experiences that are unique to you and your association
Webinars allow you to take storytelling to entirely different levels than hardcopy collateral or emails ever could.
Increasing Member Retention Rates & Engagement
Engagement and retention are directly correlated. As stated by AssocationsOnline.com, “[N]o matter how many members you recruit, if you can’t make them stay, your efforts may be wasted.” It’s a solid phrase that carries a lot of impact, but what does it really mean for your association?
When you roll out marketing events or hold training sessions, it’s not always easy (in fact, it’s usually quite difficult!) to measure your audience’s level of engagement. Are they understanding the material? Do they even care what you have to say? Should you have approached your thought process differently?
Engagement is vital to the health of your association. Engaged members are more likely to contribute more funds and tell their friends about your organization. On the other hand, disengaged members are more likely to leave, possibly bringing with them a trail of negative feelings and bad reviews that keep other potential members from joining.
With the use of webinars, you can enhance member engagement, which ultimately will spill into better retention rates. Reverting back to our first point, it’s all about personalization. People want transparency, and they want to feel connected to you. This simply can’t be achieved optimally by way of cold calls or email overloads.
Webinars boost member engagement (and reduce churn) by way of the following elements:
- Video. This one’s simple, but it should never be overlooked. Most people no longer reach for the newspaper; in fact, a lot of people don’t even read an entire article online. In this age of YouTube and smartphones, video is king, and it’s how you’ll drive your members’ attention to the things you want them to see.
- Interaction. Webinars aren’t yesterday’s boring training videos or overt sales pitches that don’t keep the consumers in mind; they’re interactive places where you can directly interact with your members. Interaction drives transparency; transparency drives engagement and retention.
- Audience size. It’s unlikely you’ll be able to get several hundred (or several thousand) members in one place at one time on a regular basis. With webinars, you don’t have to worry about expensive conference room overhead and travel costs. Everybody comes together to discuss the issues in their own spaces.
Watch a demo to learn how our platform can help you manage all the aspects of your association. We can’t wait to hear from you!