Webinars for small firms: topic, timing and the follow-up that matters

You ran a webinar, twenty people registered, six joined, and nobody rang afterwards. The effort was real and the result was nothing. A webinar works for a small firm when it takes one problem your customers already have, is invited from your own list, runs forty-five minutes, and is followed by a phone call to every attendee. The recording matters least. If you will not phone the people who joined, do not run it.

What topic fills a room?

Pick a problem that keeps arriving in your inbox, phrased the way customers ask it. "How to read your GST notice" suits a book-keeper. "How to choose a solar pump for a borewell that dips in summer" suits a dealer in Bhopal. "An introduction to our services" fills nothing.

Test the topic on three customers by phone before you build slides. If none says "yes, we have that problem", change it.

Whom do you invite?

Start with your own list: customers from the last two years, enquirers who did not buy, dealers, and people who have messaged you on WhatsApp. Send each invite with the person's name and one line on why they would care, and note who accepted, who ignored it and who asked to come later.

Do not buy a list. People who did not ask to hear from you are unlikely to attend and may complain. Where you message people on WhatsApp, check you have their consent, and that every message offers a simple way to stop.

What does the run sheet look like?

Forty-five minutes is long enough to teach one thing and short enough to attend between jobs.

Keep a second person on the chat, answering questions in writing and noting names. If you present alone, you will miss questions.

An invented example: a solar pump dealer in Bhopal

Imagine a dealer in Bhopal who sells and installs solar pumps to farmers and small orchard owners. The first webinar was a general talk on the benefits of solar. Eight people joined, mostly relatives, and none asked for a quotation.

The second was titled "Why a pump runs slowly in the afternoon and what to check before you call us". The dealer invited forty customers and enquirers by personal WhatsApp message with a voice note. Eighteen registered and eleven joined. The session covered panel shade, cable length and pump rating, with photographs from the dealer's own installations. The screen share froze for several minutes in the middle, and two guests dropped off.

The dealer phoned every attendee afterwards. Three asked for a site visit and one asked for a quotation for a second pump. None of the visits led to an order that month.

The first session had a general topic and an audience of friends. The second took one fault farmers had actually reported, and every person who came got a call. Registrations ran ahead of attendance, as they do, so judge the session by the people you can name and phone.

What does the follow-up call say?

Phone attendees while the session is fresh. For those who registered but did not join, send the recording with a short personal note, and call only if they reply.

1. "Thank you for joining. Which part was useful?"
2. "Is there a situation of your own where this applies?" Then listen.
3. "If you send me a photo of that, I will tell you what I think." One specific, small act.
4. Record the answer in your register: name, date, problem, next step.

Do not pitch on the first call. If they ask for a price, give it plainly. If they do not, call again once you have sent what you promised.

What do you check before the session?

• Test the join link on a phone using mobile data, with someone outside the team.
• Large type, one idea a slide. Some guests watch on a small screen.
• Keep a register with a row for each invitee and a column for "joined".
• Photographs from your own jobs only. Strip out customer detail.

Which day and hour?

Ask the customers you phoned about the topic. A trade that closes late is rarely free at six in the evening, and a dealer on a market day will not join at noon. Offer two slots in the invitation and run the one that fills. Avoid the week of a festival or a filing deadline in your customers' calendar, and send a reminder on the morning with the join link.

When should you not run a webinar?

Skip it when your list is under a few dozen people, when nobody on your team will phone afterwards, or when your customers do not use video calls. A visit to a dealer's counter with a printed checklist may serve better. In a regulated trade such as health or finance, keep the content general, avoid outcome claims, and check with your own adviser or regulator, because the rules differ by state and body and change.

What to do this week

Write the problem, the forty names you will invite and the date, and draft only the first and last slides. Phone three customers to test the topic. The webinar content and promotion service is there if you want a second opinion on the topic, the marketing hub lists the rest, and the post on webinars and workshops as a route to clients is the next one to read. To start, tell us what you need.