Zoom is the leading cloud platform video communication tool enabling millions of people to stay connected across video and audio conferencing, chats, and webinars. 

A top tool for engaging prospects and customers, Zoom Webinar enables you to reach a larger audience whilst maintaining high standards of communication. Here’s everything you need to know about this popular offering. 

What is a Zoom Webinar?

Zoom webinars allow you to connect live with up to 50,000 people in one go. Putting the presenters and not the presentation front and center, a Zoom webinar allows hosts to connect with their audience in a more personal way. 

With an option to have a number of different presenters and a large body of attendees, it is the perfect solution for businesses and leaders looking to reach their audience virtually. 

Benefits of a Zoom Webinar 

• Unlike a Zoom meeting where anyone can talk and share their camera, a webinar puts the host in control
• A virtual webinar puts less stress on the marketing budget than an in-person event 
• It’s much easier for people to attend so you can attract audiences from around the world 
• Webinars can be recorded and used as evergreen content on your website or as lead magnets for marketing. With Milk Video, you can turn these webinars into video highlights of the best moments.

How Does a Webinar Work? 

To host a webinar you will need to schedule the event and go through a number of customization options before promoting it. First, you need to log in to your Zoom account, select “My Webinars” and “Schedule My Webinar”. After that, it’s a case of going through the steps. 

You’ll need to select the presenters, subject matter, date, and time and decide on your registration options. 

Zoom Webinars have the option of manual and automatic approval for registration via a form or no registration at all (just name and email). However, if you intend to contact attendees after the event or are looking to grow your email list then it is advisable to gain as much information about participants as possible. 

During a webinar, you can invite attendees to ask questions but this feature needs to be selected during set-up. Simply head to “Webinar Options”, check “Q&A” and hit “Schedule”. 

Then are a few other options to choose from, such as hosting a password-protected webinar, before you go on to inviting attendees and publicizing the event across your marketing channels. 

What Are the Features of a Zoom Webinar? 

The main feature of a Zoom webinar that differs from their other products is that the host has full control over the event. 

Other features include: 

• Automatic muting – attendees have cameras and microphones disabled as standard and the hosts choose who to enable 
• Q&A and Polls – panelists can answer questions live from the audience or start a poll to get them engaged with the topic 
• Practice Sessions – with a webinar you have the option to host an unpublished dry run to sort out technical issues and pre-show nerves
• Participant Privacy – only hosts and panelists see the participant list so the attendees’ privacy is kept secure
• Webinar Reporting – track metrics on registration, attendees, webinar engagement, and more to monitor the success of your event
• Background noise suppression – ensure host and panelists can be heard with background noise suppression to maximize audio quality wherever they are
• Virtual backgrounds, studio effects, branding options – personalize the experience to suit your brand’s aesthetic 
• Live stream capabilities – share your webinar across Youtube Live, Facebook Live, and other custom streaming services to reach more people 
• Recording options – record the webinar for on-demand streaming and marketing opportunities later 

Zoom Webinar Pricing 

Zoom Webinars are a separate add-on that does not come with membership as standard. To use them you need to have webinars enabled on your Zoom Meetings paid plan. 

Prices scale depending on the number of participants and range from $400/year for 100 attendees to $64,900/year for 10,000 attendees. To host webinars with 10,000+ people you need to contact sales directly.