Are you considering hosting a webinar? Perhaps you wonder if it is better to live or pre-recorded your presentation.
In this guide, we’ll compare live and pre-recorded webinars and help you decide which option is best for your business. We’ll also provide tips for putting on a successful webinar, whichever route you choose.
Table of Contents
- The Benefits of Webinars
- Live Vs. Pre-Recorded Webinar: The Difference
- When to Use Live Webinars
- When to Use Pre-Recorded Webinars
- Summary
The Benefits of Webinars
Webinars will help you connect with your customers and build relationships. You can offer some free educational content, stream live video conferences or even host virtual events on several platforms. Here’s why webinar hosting might be just what you need, regardless of which type you choose.
- The customizable nature of webinars makes them a great format for delivering content that can be tailored to the specific people viewing it.
- Webinars are the perfect time to convince your audience that they need you more than ever before. With webinar marketing, you’ll get the chance to offer discounts and other benefits to your audience. This is perfect timing because it encourages urgency in sales.
- You can connect with your audience by showing off who you are. Webinars let people see more of the real you. This will increase engagement and build trust among new prospects, resulting in increased conversions.
- You’ll become an expert in your field. You have a unique format for presenting the information. And because you’re willing to get on camera, people view the business as transparent and trustworthy. They know their purchase is safe with you.
Live Vs. Pre-Recorded Webinar: The Difference
A live webinar takes place in real-time, with the webinar host speaking and interacting directly with the audience. It allows you to get immediate feedback or engage directly with your audience. However, it can also be difficult to control for technical problems or disruptions during a webinar that is happening live.
By contrast, a pre-recorded webinar can offer many of the same benefits as a live webinar but without the associated risks. Called on-demand webinars, this is usually recorded beforehand. That means any potential issues can be identified and fixed before they occur. Furthermore, since pre-recorded webinars do not require active engagement from both the presenter and the audience, they are often more efficient in time management.
When to Use Live Webinars
Sometimes, hosting live virtual events can be a better decision for you and your live audience.
Here’s when you must use live events over on-demand webinars:
- Host one-time events. Live events are always the best option for celebrating special occasions. An interactive webinar experience is also a better option when discussing temporary information with little re-use value.
- Engage with your audience. Having a Q&A or prioritizing back-and-forth conversation with the audience is best done live.
- You have enough time to host a live event. Webinars are a great option if you have the right team and enough free time. They require more coordination, preparation, or resources. Thus, it’s best for larger organizations that can dedicate some of their work hours to this type of event.
When to Use Pre-Recorded Webinars
Webinars are an excellent way to engage your audience and generate leads, but they can be time-consuming. If you want more flexibility in using that precious hour of yours each day, try setting up an automated webinar. The automation of webinar recordings will allow you to focus on what truly brings value into your life and free up time for other pursuits.
Here are circumstances when pre-recorded webinars are a better option than live webinars:
- Give people access to see your product demos at all times. Evergreen webinars will allow your audience flexibility. They can use it when and where they want, without constantly being demonstrated how things work.
- Train your team or new hires efficiently. Training new hires can be expensive and time-consuming. But with this innovative approach, you’ll get the most out of your investment. Imagine having just one instructor for six weeklong sessions or online courses. Your team members can now absorb the same material as they join while you continue with business as usual.
- Reach a much larger audience with important information. Whether product updates or company-related news. Pre-recorded videos are perfect if you want to share a relevant message but don’t have the time commitment that comes from hosting live events.
- Repurpose old videos. Take your past videos or webinar content from good to great with a little help from automated webinar software StealthSeminar. This tool will turn those old-fashioned sales pitches into exciting and engaging presentations.
- Avoid burnout. With a webinar recording, you can repeatedly use the same event. You do not have to spend on additional resources. A single session will be enough. Thus, saving you from the inevitable burnout that comes with continuously scheduling new recordings every day or week.
Summary
Webinars can either be live or pre-recorded, depending on what will work best for you and your audience. If you want a more personal connection with participants and want to answer questions in real-time, go for the live webinar. But automated webinars might be better for you if you’d rather have more control over the content and don’t mind spending some extra time on pre-recording.
If you’re not sure which type of webinar to use, consider the benefits of each and think about what would work best for your specific situation.
But whichever type you decide on, make sure that the quality of your webinar is top-notch. Plan and practice your presentation to feel confident when presenting. And most importantly, have fun with it!