To achieve long-term success, an eCommerce brand must have quality products and develop trust with customers. The COVID-19 pandemic helped boost traffic and sales for many eCommerce companies but has also introduced a lot of uncertainty about the future. Consumers around the world have experienced shutdowns and quarantines that pushed them online in search of everyday items. Savvy eCommerce brands are using the opportunity to increase customer engagement, and many of them are using webinars.
Webinars are an excellent marketing tool and can convert, on average, 15% of attendees into buyers. Using live, hosted webinars or pre-recorded sessions, eCommerce brands can use 30- to 60-minute webinars to launch products, provide tutorials, or share company news and special sales offerings. In this post, we’ll explore a few best practices for using eCommerce webinars to demonstrate social proof and boost customer engagement. A webinar is an excellent forum for speaking directly with new or existing customers.
Also read: 5 Ideas Make Successful Virtual Meetings and Webinars
Build Brand Awareness
Webinars are an excellent way to build brand awareness for an eCommerce business. A strong omnichannel marketing strategy will promote products and services across several different channels. A webinar builds engagement by using live presenters, animations, or screen recordings that help customers understand more about what you offer.
Before a potential customer decides to buy, they often go through a consideration stage in the buyer’s journey when they conduct research or talk with friends and family. Webinars are an excellent way to share important information during this crucial stage in the buyer’s journey while generating organic traffic to your company website and social media channels.
Customer Onboarding
The onboarding process is a critical component of a customer journey, and webinars can offer a great deal of value at this stage as well. There’s often a lot of information to share after a customer purchases a product, joins a mailing list, or becomes part of your brand community. You can use a webinar to share details about your loyalty program, share key points that differentiate you from competitors, and describe long-term value. Building brand loyalty is all about trust, and a webinar creates a personal and curated message for customers.
Expand Sales Opportunities
Webinars are an excellent way to introduce discounts and special offers to your audience. Always strive to add value for your customers by providing useful tips and insights and avoid making your sale or call to action the only focus of your webinar.
Some example offers to include upselling new products or features to existing customers, introducing pre-sales specials for new product launches, and cross-selling by introducing complementary products. All of these offers can help you secure more leads for your eCommerce platform while growing your audience. You could also share a special discount for webinar attendees to provide an extra incentive for attending.
Product Testing
Since webinars can be interactive, they’re a great place to test new product ideas. You can launch live product demos or user experience (UX) studies using a webinar to introduce new features directly to your target audience. Collecting customer feedback is one of the best ways to improve your product quality and selection as an eCommerce brand. A webinar is also a great forum for engaging potential beta testers or using polls or a feedback form to collect input directly from attendees.
Also read: Top 10 Live Streaming Apps for Events
Educate Customers
Most customers do research before purchasing a new product and can often be cautious about making a purchase from an eCommerce site. A webinar is an excellent way to help them develop confidence in your brand by providing tutorials and answering questions. You can also use a webinar to introduce testimonials or case studies that demonstrate social proof.
Many software companies use webinars for product walkthroughs, using a webinar platform to provide an in-depth look at features without spending a lot of money on production. An educational webinar should also devote time for Q&As and encourage interactions between hosts and attendees.
Product Features and Interviews
One final idea is co-hosting webinars with relevant influencers or complementary brands. Many marketing campaigns include guest appearances and product placements on blogs, podcasts, and webinars. This is not only an easy way to introduce your eCommerce products directly to another audience, but it also helps you build brand partnerships critical to your long-term success. You could also host industry and product experts in your own webinars to share expertise and provide additional insights for your customers.
Webinars are a valuable tool for eCommerce companies that are trying to strengthen their brand and generate new leads. It can be difficult to connect with customers through online platforms and hold their attention. A webinar can help overcome customer doubts and provide an environment for dialogue and interactions that build trust. eCommerce brands that leverage the strengths of webinars can expand their audience and create new revenue opportunities for their product portfolio.
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