Leveraging Virtual Event Marketing as a Tool for B2B Lead Generation
B2B Lead Generation

Virtual events and webinar services are not new to the B2B customer outreach processes.

Virtual events and webinar services are not new to the B2B customer outreach processes. As buyers have pivoted to digital events and channels to find answers to their pain points, gather information, and even speak to different brand representatives to find the best-fit solutions. While forward-looking businesses have already embraced different forms of virtual event marketing as a tool to build thought leadership, grow brand awareness, and drive engagement with key influencers in their targeted accounts, there is still untapped potential to be extracted out of the virtual event format.

Webinars are a great way to engage with existing clients and educate new prospects by breaking down the one-way cyber engagement and allowing for an interactive, informative flow of communication. It breaks down the geographical barrier and enables businesses to meet with their audience from every corner of the world. 

Why Virtual Events and Webinars Are Essential for B2B Lead Generation?

Virtual events and webinars provide a unique opportunity for businesses to connect with prospects and build relationships. By hosting webinars and virtual events, businesses can showcase their expertise, address pain points, and provide solutions to potential customers.

According to a survey by InsideSales.com, 73% of marketers and sales leaders say webinars are the best way to generate high-quality leads. Furthermore, a study by Demand Gen Report found that 68% of B2B buyers prefer to research independently online before engaging with a sales representative. Virtual events and webinars offer an excellent opportunity for businesses to provide the information and solutions that potential customers are looking for. Moreover, virtual events and webinars offer several benefits over traditional in-person events, such as:

Increased Reach: With virtual events and webinars, businesses can connect with a global audience, regardless of their location.
Cost-Effective: Virtual events and webinars eliminate the costs associated with in-person events, such as travel expenses and venue rental fees.
Flexibility: Virtual events and webinars offer flexibility in terms of scheduling, allowing businesses to host events at a time that works best for their audience.
Data-Driven Insights: Virtual events and webinars provide valuable data-driven insights, such as attendee engagement and feedback, which can be used to optimize future events.

Capturing High-Quality Sales Leads through Webinars

Let's look at how you can run a digital event to capture and nurture high-quality sales leads:

Define your target audience and campaign objectives 
When it comes to executing webinars with the objective of B2B lead generation, you're ordinarily targeting a unique set of audiences. They may not have followed your brand before and may have stumbled upon your webinar on social media or through other promotional channels.

In this scenario, it is critical to invest extra time in your webinar to warm up your new audience, introducing them to your brand by sharing your story and building a solid rapport from the word go.

Get the right speakers and influencers  
While selecting the speakers/panel members, it is important to have relevant industry influencers speak about the topic at hand. While the host can be one of the brand representatives, the right influencers will deliver fresh perspectives and exposure that will educate and engage your audience while tying them authoritatively to your brand.

Promote 
As is important with any event, the right promotional tactics are necessary to attract as many high-quality leads as possible to attend your webinar.

Leverage email marketing, social media, press releases, and telemarketing to connect with your existing customers and prospects.

Follow up post-webinar 
Webinar is just the first step in creating a long tail of engagement with your ideal buyer lists before eventually pulling them into your sales funnel. Therefore, it is mission-critical to keep following up with them and continuously engage them with quality content to foster a strong relationship.

Leverage telesales or a lead nurturing email sequence to communicate with all the participants. Make sure to send out a recorded link to the webinar for them to rewatch it and perhaps share it with other peers.

Keep educating 
Since webinars are digital events, the content can be refurbished and recreated in different possible ways to be leveraged across different digital media outlets. You can always repurpose the webinar for your content marketing efforts and disseminate them among your B2B contact lists and customers.

Conclusion

Webinars can be an effective way to generate leads, but it takes a lot of resources and effort to deliver an experience that builds your brand reputation, credibility, and trust. Once you've captured your audience's attention, it's important to nurture your relationship with them and encourage them to spread the word about your products or services.
To nurture leads effectively, it's important to personalize your communication and tailor your messaging to the needs and interests of your prospects. Additionally, providing valuable content can help keep your leads engaged and interested in your brand.