Have you ever purchased a video training product that claimed to be for the TOTAL BEGINNER?
Web Coding 101: Learn how to be a coder, even if you barely know how to use a mouse and think that JavaScript is a new Starbucks coffee blend.
Great, you think, I’ve always wanted to know what it’s like to be a pasty-faced hermit capable of subsisting entirely on Red Bull and Doritos(1)Apologies to any coders reading this, but there aren’t many unprotected stereotypes left in the world that I’m allowed to make fun of. Plus, all of my knowledge of what coders are like comes from watching The Matrix and Mr. Robot. So, really, it’s television’s fault.. So, you grab a pen and paper, and settle in, ready to be learned, good and proper.
You hit “play” on the video and a young, bespectacled gentleman appears. He greets you warmly and jumps straight into the basic precepts of coding.
“For your first lesson in basic coding we’re going to learn how to hornswoggle a fandangle using a basic 409 in a coffeemaker. But first you need to set up your computer so it will allow you to outgrabe the momeraths.”
Okay, so that’s hyperbole, but you know what I’m talking about. It seems like no matter how basic the entry level the teacher is shooting for, if they’re an expert in their field they seem to be incapable of starting entirely from scratch.
And the MORE expertise the person has, the harder they seem to find it to speak in a language that is understandable to the beginner.
The reason for this phenomenon is a simple failing of memory. When you’ve been practicing and immersed in a field for many years, you can’t unlearn what you know. And this makes it almost impossible, without a concerted effort, to remember what it was like to be a complete beginner.
In a nutshell – the experts forget what they didn’t know before they started knowing it.
We experienced this for ourselves when sharing knowledge of how to prepare, promote, and deliver successful webinars. We interviewed, at length, a significant number of webinar experts and milked them for all their juicy tips and tricks.
We unearthed some amazing pieces of knowledge but, reviewing the material now, the omissions are glaringly obvious.
Almost without exception, these experts were so keen to share the really clever, top-level tricks they’d developed, that a lot of basics were never even discussed.
Because, here’s the thing…
What experts call “the basics” are really CRITICAL pieces of information that the Greenies often don’t know ANYTHING about.
With this factoid in mind, we’ve compiled a list of 12 crucially important webinar secrets that you may well have never heard being discussed by webinar experts. They’re simple and, to the seasoned webinar pro, may seem to be obvious. But if you’re a beginner with anything less than a dozen webinars under your belt, you’re going to find them incredibly helpful.
Here’s one example…
| Secret #5 – Set the Stage
Background: First of all, you must have SOMETHING in the background. If all you have behind you is a white wall it creates the impression that you’re presenting from a prison cell, or even a padded cell. Presuming that you’re presenting from your laptop, just move your location to somewhere that has something in the background. Try and keep it relevant if you can. For a business-themed webinar, an office is a natural fit. For a teaching webinar, a whiteboard or a bookcase looks good. But don’t overthink it. As long as what’s in the background isn’t distracting or eccentric, you’re probably going to be fine. Think about news anchors and talk show hosts on television. The background is never empty. Instead, it’s always simple and unobtrusive. Lighting: This is less problematic than it used to be because HD webcams are better at picking up a good visual, even in relatively low light. Just make sure… |
Secret #5 goes on to provide tips on lighting, camera framing, and even what to wear.
Here’s another example…
| Secret #8 – Keep Your Audience
You are always, always going to lose some of your audience during the course of a webinar. You could put on a webinar that features conclusive proof that Elvis is still alive, that the CIA killed Kennedy, and that aliens really exist and are living in the White House, and you would still get some people logging off. Try employing a few simple strategies that will keep your attrition rate to a minimum. 1. Offer your audience incentives to stay: Whoa, whoa, whoa! Am I actually suggesting the offering of a BRIBE to your audience? Well… yes, I am. Why not? Everyone likes getting free stuff, right? Whether it’s a gift, a special offer, a discount, whatever… it’s good for your audience, it makes you feel good to give something away, and it creates goodwill between you and your people. The key is to ask your audience to wait until the end of your webinar to obtain the gift. If you give it away up-front, people might just take the freebie and run. It’s a quid pro quo. Your audience agrees to stay connected for the entire show, in return you thank them with a free gift. 2. Create Anticipation: Curiosity is a powerful tool and if you can create anticipation for what’s still to come, then your audience is more likely to stick around. So, by not saying exactly what the free gift is, I create a little bit of anticipation. And by mentioning it occasionally, it reminds everyone that something great is coming at the end and that it’s worth your while to stick around. Another way to create the kind of anticipation that will keep your audience logged in is to… |
Altogether, Secret #8 contains three simple but powerful strategies that will keep your audience engaged and reduce drop-out rates.
I know I left you hanging on both strategies there, but I can honestly say… It was on purpose.
Download the 12 Webinar Secrets Report… FREE!
The 12 webinar secrets we’ve compiled for you are not flimsy or lightweight. Don’t read words like “basic” and “simple” and mistake them for synonyms of “unimportant”. Every single one of these 12 secrets will have powerful effects on the success of your webinar.
The only thing that’s straightforward about them is the ease with which you can implement them into your webinar strategy.
The last secret, for example (Secret #12), is a webinar presentation strategy that costs nothing to develop and is available to everyone, but in terms of effect, whether or not you master this skill can make or break your webinar.
The 12 Webinar Secrets report runs to around 34 pages. It’s long enough to give you the depth you need to make sense of everything, but short enough that you can consume it in one sitting (though you’ll probably want to keep it handy to refer back each time you begin a new webinar project).
And, yes, you read that subheading correctly. The 12 Webinar Secrets report is absolutely free to download. To obtain your copy, all you have to do is register for our free webinar event called, aptly: 12 Webinar Secrets (that even the experts forgot).
We’ve put a huge amount of effort putting this event together and we’re going to dig into every one of these 12 Webinar Secrets in depth. After which, every attendee will get a free copy of the report, so they can refer back to everything that’s covered during the presentation.
A free webinar, with a free report for every attendee? No reason whatsoever why you should miss out on this one.
Hope to see you there.