Whenever you run a free webinar, you'll find that some people won't turn up on the day. That's not surprising - they haven't made a commitment to it, so what have they got to lose? But you might be surprised at how many people don't turn up! Some webinar presenters say they get as low as 25% attendance of the people who registered.
Somebody recently asked this question on a LinkedIn group about webinars:
"I heard that 50% of the people who register for a live webinar attend, and then an additional 30% watch the recorded webinar. Does anyone know where those numbers come from?"
This is a very broad question, and a single figure isn't useful. But here's my experience...
I run 10-12 webinars a month, of which 2 (maybe 3) on average are free. The attendance percentage at the free webinars varies greatly, depending on the topic and the format (e.g. workshop vs facilitated discussion). I rarely get below 50%, even for the free webinars.
But I also know (because they tell me) that some people are registering KNOWING they won't be attending but will watch the recording - that makes the figures look worse.
On the other hand, I also know some people DON'T register, knowing they can access the recording on my blog - that makes the figures look better.
Interestingly, I think the numbers I get for paid webinars are about the same. Sometimes they ARE as low as 50%, but that doesn't mean attendees are throwing their money away. They might watch the recording (which of course is private, because it's a paid webinar), they might just want the e-book that's bundled with the webinar, they might just want the recorded PowerPoint presentation that gives them an overview, etc.
All of this just goes to show that the attendance rate by itself isn't a useful indicator of anything.
So, what does this mean?
First, expect the numbers to be lower than you'd like.
Second, consider how you can serve the people who don't turn up. For example, if it's a promotional webinar, the people who don't turn up miss out on your sales pitch. But you can still send them a follow-up e-mail later, repeating your offer and perhaps offering them a link to the recording.
Third, if you're really concerned about attendance rates, think of ways to improve this rate - for example:
Send reminder e-mails to attendees before the webinar - for example, a week before, a day before, and an hour before.Give them some preparation to do in advance.Remind them of the value they will get from the webinar.The key is to focus on their outcomes, not yours!
Gihan Perera is the author of "Webinar Smarts", the smart way for professional speakers, trainers, thought leaders and business owners to deliver engaging and profitable webinars. If you want to know how to reach the world with mic, screen and mouse, visit http://webinarsmarts.com/ for your copy.
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