6 Tips To Get Results with Interactive Webinars

Whether you are a solo entrepreneur, franchise owner or part of a global corporation, webinars are on the rise. If you've been sitting on the sidelines, now is the time to get into gear.

Webinars are being used in many new ways to market businesses. One of the most popular ways to promote your business is with a series of free webinars. These educational events help clients and prospects understand the value of what you are offering.

What makes an effective webinar? Interactive story telling. A well-told narrative is the essence of a successful educational webinar. A good story arouses curiosity and entices participants to participate. By adding real-time interaction, more people will make the extra effort to be on the live webinar–rather than waiting for the replay.

Think about how this could help your business, service or solution. A short webinar is the ideal way to share tips and insights about how your products. It is a time to show how your services solve real-world problems. It is one of the fastest ways to add value and show how what you offer makes your client's life easier.

Present your message in a webinar and promote your business–with a personal touch.

Here are a few tips to get started:

Tip 1. Be Personal
Speak directly and openly to your viewers. Talk as you would to a close friend or business colleague. Hint: literally talk to a friend to prepare. Practice speaking naturally. Find a balance of professionalism and informality. You'll be much more believable in your tone, body language and expression.

Tip 2. Be Brief and Engaging
While you may have been in business for decades and have tons to offer, your viewers have short attention spans. Limit your short promotional webinar to 30-minutes.

Tip 3. Be Memorable
Include your company name with recognizable branding. Be sure to highlight your business colors, fonts and your company logo. Every webinar contributes to your brand identity–even if you are a solo entrepreneur. Make sure people recognize what you are doing. Be bold and stand out as highly memorable.

Tip 4. Be Interactive
Give attendees something to do. This may be as simple as taking notes, sketching an idea or participating in a poll. Alternatively, you can simulate participation by giving examples, telling stories and answering questions that participants send in. Stretch your creativity. Focus on increasing interaction. It builds rapport and bridges the chasm between you and your virtual participants.

Tip 5. Be Yourself
Not everyone is naturally charismatic or great on a web cam. So don't try to be a champion all on your own.

The good news is: you can learn how to give professional-quality webinars. In fact, you can learn the ins-and-outs right from the convenience of your home or office. Just sign up for a quick and easy instructional webinar to learn all about giving highly effective webinars.

Tip 6. Plan with a Storyboard
Working with a storyboard, you can quickly plan a very effective script and message. This builds a foundation that makes your delivery work much easier.

A storyboard also helps you manage your time. You won't digress, ramble or lose track of time. Keeping a good pace, starting and ending on time are all ways to build credibility and be professional in giving webinars.

If you're looking for a breakthrough in your business in 2011, get the presentation skills you need to succeed. With the right skills, you'll find that giving webinars is a perfect business strategy for having the best year ever.