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In the fast-paced digital world, webinars and podcasts offer great opportunities to effectively engage with the audience. While webinars offer a platform for live interactions, podcasts are great to engage with the ‘on-the-move’ audience without any interactions. To determine which format will work for you, determine what you want to achieve with the platform, the format best suited to communicate with the target audience, and the metrics required to measure success.

Today, we are going to explore each platform separately to get a better understanding of how they work and what are the benefits and some shortcomings. We will do a comparison of both webinars and podcasts.

Webinar Overview
A webinar is an amalgamation of two words “web” and “seminar”. It is an online transmission of seminars, presentations, or similar content in real-time using video technology for a certain set of audiences who may or may not be at the same location. Any exchange that takes place between a speaker and a participant is usually via a webcam and microphone or through a chat window, surveys, and Q&A sessions. Webinars have a start and an end time which is provided in advance to the attendees.

How does a webinar work?

Before a webinar can take place, the host must schedule a time and inform the target audience. Participation is usually based on registration for the event after which details for the webinar are shared with a link to access the session. A common practice followed for this platform is to send a reminder on the day of the event before the start of the webinar. Once connected, follow the live broadcast and the contents shared, take part in any polls if they are conducted, and interact with the speaker through live chats and Q&A session. The duration of a webinar is usually between 45 to 60 mins. The host may provide recording of the webinar later.

Technical requirements for a webinar

A webinar is an online transmission of a seminar; hence it requires a stable connection with sufficient bandwidth to ensure easy and uninterrupted broadcast of video and image content through the use of a software program or a web browser. There are many software programs available with different features and price to choose from. In case of a web browser being used, ensure that it is updated to the latest version. Microphone, headsets, and webcams (in some cases) are used for webinars.

Key Advantages of a Webinar

• Webinars are a popular medium to build relationships with the current and potential audience. They have the ability to draw audience who are genuinely interested in the content which can lead to higher conversions/sales.
• Webinars provide a platform to interact with the audience. This may be done through face to face interactions, live chats, Q&A session, or through polls and surveys. Polls and surveys provide an opportunity to get feedback from the audience in real-time.
• Webinars keeps the audience engaged for its duration through the use of audio, visual as well as text content. Webinars provide high retention with the average view time of a webinar being 56 mins.
• Webinars tend to have a good registration to attendee rate of 55 percent
• The presentation feature allows for documents and visuals to be shared and provide an opportunity to make notes on the presentation. Similarly, the whiteboard feature allows to make notes, draw, and share important key points. Screen sharing can be used to share slides, infographics, and other data in a quick and easy manner.
• Webinars offer an opportunity to earn money through paid webinars. The link to the webinar is shared only after payment is done.
• Simulated webinars provide the flexibility of using pre-recorded content, thereby giving the flexibility to use the same content for recurring events like product orientation, employee training, etc.
• Webinars are an attractive way to save costs of organizing the event and it saves time as well. All that is required is an internet connection to be connected.
• There is no limit to the number of participants, although this would depend on technical conditions.
• Call to Action feature allows to provide a call to action button during the seminar directing the participant to the place for the desired action.

Drawbacks of a Webinar

• Preparing for webinars can be a time-consuming process.
• Webinars are live events which do not offer the option to skip sections to the attendee.
• Technical problems can lead to the event being cancelled and at times prevent the attendees from joining.
• It is difficult for the speaker to assess the attention and the motivation of the attendee.

Podcast Overview

A podcast which is a short version of a “broadcast on the ipod” is primarily a free recorded piece of audio available to the user at any given point of time. There is no limit to the number of people who can assess this platform. Anyone with a computer or a smartphone can assess podcasts.

How does a podcast work?

Podcast is a series of audio files that are stored with podcast hosting company that can be accessed from a smartphone or a computer. Subscribing to podcast makes it easy for the user to get notified when new content is available.

Technical requirements for a podcast

A podcast is a free recorded piece of audio; hence it requires a good quality microphone and headphones. Recording and editing software are required for editing post production. An ID3 editor helps in tagging the podcast to allow you to store important information like the title, track number, and the artist and will allow the album art work to appear when people download it.

Key Advantages of a Podcast

• Podcasts are popular among commuters and multi-taskers. As these are pre-recorded audio files, they do not require any registration and can be accessed anywhere, anytime. It is estimated that 65 percent of podcasts are heard in the car.
• Podcasts are able to draw large audiences as they do not need to tune in at a specific time.
• Podcasts can be edited and the quality of it can be refined after recording it.
• They provide a platform to highlight expertise, along with discussions and interviews.
• A series of podcasts can be done to build a consistent audience. Creating hype about future content can help the audience stay engaged.
• Subscription helps in fostering a relationship with the audience.
• It has the potential to go viral, given that it can be shared on social media.
• Podcasts have relatively low production costs in comparison to other media formats.

Drawbacks of a Podcast

• The audience do not get to interact with the brand in real time.
• As it is distributed in audio format, the lack of visuals restricts the topics and market reach.
• Audience may not be as targeted as in the case of webinars.
• The audience may not pay complete attention while listening to the podcast as they can be involved on other activities.
• Podcasts can never be monetized, although sponsored events can be hosted.
• Video has become more popular than audio in recent times.

Webinar Vs Podcast

To identify which platform is best suited for you will depend on your end objective with the content you offer. Then determine which platform will help achieve the objective and the metrics needed to measure success keeping in mind at all time the audience you want to target. Let us look in detail at the factors influencing the choice of platform to be used webinar vs podcast.

1. Identify the need – Webinars and podcasts are very different in there reach and the value they provide. Identifying which one to use will largely depend on what you want to accomplish with the content you share. Webinars are interactive pieces of content where the audience participate in some way or the other. There are many formats to a webinar like workshops, meetings, panel discussion as well as educational. The reach of the webinar is somewhat limited in comparison to a podcast which has a much larger reach. Podcasts offer the flexibility of listening in at per the time and convenience of the target audience. Although webinars can be recorded and shared their reach is not as wide as the podcasts. There are different formats to podcasts too like panel discussions, one-on-one interview, storytelling, co-hosted discussions, and solo commentary.
2. Approach that best communicates your subject matter – What works best for you whether a webinar or a podcast will depend on the audience and the subject matter. Webinars are virtual events that offer visual content related to topics which leads to higher engagement. Podcast on the other hand can be useful in subjects where visual cues are not needed. Podcasts are great for conversations, stories, and thought leadership where the presenter puts it across in an entertaining manner to keep the audience engaged. Having said that, holding the attention of the listeners can get challenging. Which format best suits you in conveying your content will largely depend on the buyer personas and what suits them best.
3. Ideal measurement metrics – What are the metrics you want to measure will determine the platform you use. Webinar help capture some important personal information as there is a registration process in place which helps in the customer relationship management. This helps in finding out the conversion rate of the attendees to customers. Podcasts on the other hand do not capture any information of the listener that can be used for effective customer relationship management and finding out the conversion rate.

Webinars and podcasts are both becoming increasingly popular for brands to connect with their audience. Whether you are looking to cast a wide net or looking to make a deeper connection with the audience will determine the use of podcast vs webinars. Each has its own strengths and drawbacks. Having said that, webinars have an upper hand as they provide visual content and allow the brands to interact with the target audience.