How to host a successful B2B webcast

Joanna L. Krotz writes about small-business marketing and management issues. She is the co-author of the "Microsoft Small Business Kit" and runs Muse2Muse Productions, a New York City-based custom publisher.

By Joanna L. Krotz

Now that the costs are reasonable, the technology friendly, and the hosting services hassle-free, it's hard to resist the benefits of webcasts.

As a result, demand is growing. The worldwide market for real-time and team-based collaboration technologies is now about $681 million and expected to top $1 billion by 2008, according to market researcher Gartner.

Business-to-business marketers of all sizes and types are discovering they can save money and boost sales by engaging in collaborative web conferencing. It's worth checking out. Here are six things to know before you do.

What is a webcast, anyway?

Online conferences or Web seminars — webcasts — use the Internet to broadcast a live or delayed audio and/or video transmission to a targeted group of users who log in for the event. The online meetings are interactive and collaborative. They're in real time so there's two-way communication via instant messaging applications or other software between a participant and the conference leader or across the team or group, depending on how you customize the meeting. You can instantly share content and visuals, watch and listen to presentations or ask questions and make comments — often simultaneously.

When relying on a webcast hosting service to run the show, such as Microsoft Office Live Meeting, participants need only a phone, a computer and an online connection, whether dial-up or broadband. Most providers also allow for recording or archiving the presentation, so it's available on-demand after the event. Typically, promotional webcasts are invitation-only and free. Sign up for a free trial of Live Meeting to see how it feels.

What can webcasts do?

Versatile and efficient, webcasts can train staffers or customers, introduce products or brands, educate media or serve as press conferences, inform analysts or investors, research markets, generate leads, reward loyal customers and lots more.

But, webcasts can't replace in-person meetings. Instead, you need to play to the strengths of this unique medium. Webcasts can:

Webcasts also are useful to reach clients or influential buyers who may be unwilling or unable to meet face to face. Rather than suffer cold calls, you can mount surprisingly creative marketing.

For example, Colleen Knapp, marketing manager for Microsoft Office Live Meeting, tells of one liquor distributor who hosted a virtual wine tasting via a webcast. Several days before the event, the distributor shipped samples of the tasting wines to all the participants. Then, at the appointed hour, everyone logged into the conference and sipped in unison while learning about the wines they tasted.

How about preparation?

As with any marketing tactic, your return on investing in webcasts will be determined by planning and by setting appropriate goals. "Figure out what you're trying to accomplish and have a crystal clear objective before planning a webcast," advises Live Meeting's Knapp. "Be able to answer the question: 'I will be successful if . . .'"

The next step is to market the event so that you can attract the participants you want. Identify your target. Research direct marketing or association lists, if necessary. Start early so there's time to recruit and confirm an in-demand speaker or to research the topic that will draw your targets. Also allow time to announce the event, whether with e-mail notices, mailed postcards or both.

Announce the webcast about a month in advance. "Send reminders at the two-week midpoint, the day before and the day of the event," suggests Debra Newton at Newton Gravity Shift, an e-marketing agency in Pennington, N.J. Expect to have a sizable drop-off rate, as well. Some people who register won't show up because they forget or can't make it or experience some technical glitch.

What about costs?

Costs vary depending on the presentation, number of "seats" or participants and the duration and number of webcasts. A small company can purchase a subscription or pay on a per minute/per participant basis. For example, Live Meeting's services can be purchased on a pay-per-use basis or on a plan that covers a specified number of seats per month.

Calculating "seats" is a tough decision because you must commit to filling a certain number when you purchase services. "For B2B, unless you have a big-name draw speaker, keep it conservative," says Kathleen Glass, director of marketing at ProfitLine, a telecom administrative services provider in San Diego.

What content works best?

Webcasts can be as simple as a speaker with a white board or as sophisticated as multimedia streaming. Webcast tools are never the hard part, experts say. (Webcast reception, of course, will vary with each user's technology and your choice of hosting tools.) But what mostly stumps marketers is the challenge of creating and delivering engaging content.

Think of webcasts as "illustrated radio," suggests Sydney Rubin, who recently sold her Washington D.C. high-tech PR agency, Ignition Strategic Communications. "They should be well written, lively and paced to hold the attention of the participants."

For one client, Ignition set up a webcast to inform participants about changes in a federal law that required some companies to add new technology. She recruited a panel that consisted of a well-known attorney, who was also a talented speaker, a technology guru and an executive affected by the law. Presentations were short and to the point, with a moderator interviewing the speakers, the way a talk show host does. "We made sure there was banter between participants," Rubin says. "Slides moved quickly and a great many of them had no words at all, just pictures illustrating the points being made in the script. You had to watch, or you'd certainly miss something."

What kind of follow up should you do?

Once the event is over, don't miss the opportunity to capture leads and further market the audience. "Keeping contact with participants is vital," says Scott Harris, president of Growth Masters, a Dallas interactive training company. For e-learning or training, you can assign homework or set up online bulletin boards. Other marketers can follow up with additional or more advanced webcast invitations, special discounts for products or even premium access to information or services.

Also, if you record the webcast, you can send notices to participants who dropped out, letting them know they can access an archived version of the event they missed.

Obviously, you want to think through the details of an event like this and get it right upfront. But you clearly gain a lot of reach with your dollars. And when you work with a hosting service, basically all you need worry about is your list and the content.