How to Host a Live Webcast—A Step-by-Step Guide
Are you looking to launch or demonstrate a brand-new product to a global customer base? Is your goal to deliver a large volume of information to as wide an audience as possible?
Before we discuss how to host a live webcast, it’s important to know what a webcast is. People think webcasts are synonymous with webinars, but that’s a misconception. The word webcast is a contraction of “web” and “broadcast.” In essence, it is a media presentation distributed through streaming media technology over the internet to a large number of simultaneous viewers.
Sounds similar to a webinar, right? While a webcast is almost identical to a webinar on many counts, there are significant differences. Firstly, webcasts involve non-interactive one-way communication. There’s little to no speaker-attendee interaction. Secondly, the focus of a webcast is primarily the presentation of a large volume of information. Unlike a webinar, where engagement is a key concern, webcasts aim to deliver as much information as possible rather than establish two-way communication with the audience.
Now that you’re familiar with what webcasting entails, let’s look at how to host a live webcast.
Also Read: How Do You Record a Live Webcast
How to Host a Live Webcast: 10 Simple Steps
1) Determine your goal
It’s crucial to have a set goal when you want to host a productive webcast that yields the desired results. The first step in our how-to host a live webcast guide is to pen down a clear goal for your webcast. What do you wish to achieve with this webcast? Write it down in a few words and build the rest of your webcast planning and hosting process around this established goal.
2) Choose a topic
The next step is to choose a topic for your webcast. When coming up with a topic, make sure that it’s relevant to your industry. Also, keep in mind that the topic you choose should, to some extent, reflect your company values. Create an attractive and exciting title, so that it gives a clear idea about the skills that the attendees of your webcast will acquire.
3) Set a budget
Like any live in-venue event, you must have a set budget for your webcast. Take into account the cost of renting or buying equipment like cameras, microphones, and lighting, and the cost of the webcast software of your choice, among others. Set a budget and stick to it to avoid getting carried away and undermining your company budget.
4) Pick a target demographic
What is a webcast without the right audience? Carefully choose a target audience who you think would be interested in the subject of your webcast. People will attend your webcast only if they’re getting something out of it. So, ensure that you’re picking the right demographic and direct all your webcast promotions toward them.
5) Invest in the right webcast tool
The webcast tool is the platform on which you’ll be hosting your live webcast. Different platforms have different features on offer and come at varying price points. Look for features that you’ll need to deliver a quality presentation on your chosen subject. Also, keep in mind your established budget and choose a platform accordingly.
6) Plan out your content
Without a plan, the chances of your webcast not turning out the way you expected are high. We strongly recommend chalking out a detailed outline of your content. An outline will provide a structure for you to follow and ultimately lead to a polished and professional presentation.
7) Promote your webcast
Promotion is one of the most essential parts when learning how to host a live webcast. The ultimate turnout numbers for your webcast hinge largely on how well you promote it. Leverage blog posts, social media channels, and email marketing to reach as broad an audience as possible.
8) Set up the necessary equipment
Set up your equipment like cameras and microphones in advance. Prepare the space with sufficient lighting and minimal distractions. Conduct dry runs to test your equipment and overall set-up at least once before the main event.
9) Go live
Once you’ve followed all these steps, you’re ready to go live!
10) Follow up
Do not forget to follow up with your participants. Post-webcast follow-up is just as crucial as a post-webinar follow-up, if not more. Especially since you’re not interacting with the audience during the webcast. Send thank-you emails, on-demand recordings of the webcast, and relevant materials for brownie points.
Need help getting the hang of webcasting? Contact Webinar.net today.
If yes, then a webcast is just what you need. Webcasts are rising in popularity by the day, and for a good reason. They’re an extremely effective marketing tool that is growing increasingly more relevant in this era of rapid digitalization.
However, this begs the question—how to host a live webcast? Many people believe webcasts involve a complicated setup procedure, but we’re here to tell you otherwise. Hosting a live webcast is no rocket science. You can successfully host a webcast in just ten simple steps. Here’s how.
What is a Webcast?
Before we discuss how to host a live webcast, it’s important to know what a webcast is. People think webcasts are synonymous with webinars, but that’s a misconception. The word webcast is a contraction of “web” and “broadcast.” In essence, it is a media presentation distributed through streaming media technology over the internet to a large number of simultaneous viewers.
Sounds similar to a webinar, right? While a webcast is almost identical to a webinar on many counts, there are significant differences. Firstly, webcasts involve non-interactive one-way communication. There’s little to no speaker-attendee interaction. Secondly, the focus of a webcast is primarily the presentation of a large volume of information. Unlike a webinar, where engagement is a key concern, webcasts aim to deliver as much information as possible rather than establish two-way communication with the audience.
Now that you’re familiar with what webcasting entails, let’s look at how to host a live webcast.
Also Read: How Do You Record a Live Webcast
How to Host a Live Webcast: 10 Simple Steps
1) Determine your goal
It’s crucial to have a set goal when you want to host a productive webcast that yields the desired results. The first step in our how-to host a live webcast guide is to pen down a clear goal for your webcast. What do you wish to achieve with this webcast? Write it down in a few words and build the rest of your webcast planning and hosting process around this established goal.
2) Choose a topic
The next step is to choose a topic for your webcast. When coming up with a topic, make sure that it’s relevant to your industry. Also, keep in mind that the topic you choose should, to some extent, reflect your company values. Create an attractive and exciting title, so that it gives a clear idea about the skills that the attendees of your webcast will acquire.
3) Set a budget
Like any live in-venue event, you must have a set budget for your webcast. Take into account the cost of renting or buying equipment like cameras, microphones, and lighting, and the cost of the webcast software of your choice, among others. Set a budget and stick to it to avoid getting carried away and undermining your company budget.
4) Pick a target demographic
What is a webcast without the right audience? Carefully choose a target audience who you think would be interested in the subject of your webcast. People will attend your webcast only if they’re getting something out of it. So, ensure that you’re picking the right demographic and direct all your webcast promotions toward them.
5) Invest in the right webcast tool
The webcast tool is the platform on which you’ll be hosting your live webcast. Different platforms have different features on offer and come at varying price points. Look for features that you’ll need to deliver a quality presentation on your chosen subject. Also, keep in mind your established budget and choose a platform accordingly.
6) Plan out your content
Without a plan, the chances of your webcast not turning out the way you expected are high. We strongly recommend chalking out a detailed outline of your content. An outline will provide a structure for you to follow and ultimately lead to a polished and professional presentation.
7) Promote your webcast
Promotion is one of the most essential parts when learning how to host a live webcast. The ultimate turnout numbers for your webcast hinge largely on how well you promote it. Leverage blog posts, social media channels, and email marketing to reach as broad an audience as possible.
8) Set up the necessary equipment
Set up your equipment like cameras and microphones in advance. Prepare the space with sufficient lighting and minimal distractions. Conduct dry runs to test your equipment and overall set-up at least once before the main event.
9) Go live
Once you’ve followed all these steps, you’re ready to go live!
10) Follow up
Do not forget to follow up with your participants. Post-webcast follow-up is just as crucial as a post-webinar follow-up, if not more. Especially since you’re not interacting with the audience during the webcast. Send thank-you emails, on-demand recordings of the webcast, and relevant materials for brownie points.
Need help getting the hang of webcasting? Contact Webinar.net today.
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