#webinarregistration

Strategy Briefing

In this article I’ll show how you can use opt-in links to create a one-click webinar registration in 3 simple steps. One click opt-in links eliminate the need for email subscribers to fill out a lead capture form after clicking through on your email to them. One simple click and they’re registered. With no barriers to entry, your registration rate is guaranteed to soar.

It’s like when you go into your local coffee shop at the same time each day, and the barista knows your order without you having to say a word. It saves you time and effort because they already have the information they need.

Follow along and learn….

How to introduce a one click opt-in link to your Wishpond webinar registration page

How to create the opt-in email to send out to subscribers

How to create a thank you page for webinar registrants

1

Using a One Click Opt-In Link on Your Webinar Registration Page

A one-click opt-in link is a link that allows you to register your current email subscribers to your webinar with a single click. When subscribers click this link in an email, their email address, name and any other information you have about them are passed through the link’s URL parameters and automatically entered into the registration form on the webinar registration page. And if all of the form fields are filled, then the form is automatically submitted and the subscriber is taken directly to the Thank You Page.

This process reduces friction caused by your web form as clicking the opt-in link pre-fills the form with your subscriber’s information and “clicks” the submit button for them. It eliminates the need for them to fill out yet another form after clicking through from your email.

For example if my webinar registration form asked for the subscriber’s first and last name, and email address, and I already have this information, it will be pre-filled. By clicking the link or CTA for the webinar in the email it will register them automatically, just like that. As soon as they click they will be taken to the thank you page for my webinar.

With no barriers to entry for subscribers, your registration rate is guaranteed to soar.

How to Set up a One-Click Opt-In Link with Wishpond

In order to set up your one-click opt-in link you must first login to your landing page editor and create your page. Once your webinar landing page design is complete you need to activate pre-filled fields. Click on your CTA button in the editor to arrive at this screen. Select the Pre-fill Fields tab on the far right of the menu at the top.

Once you’ve arrived at the Pre-fill Fields menu, select the small checkbox next to “Auto-submit form if all fields are filled”. By selecting this feature, anyone whose email you have in your list will just need to click the CTA button to opt-in.

Once you have enabled the auto-submit feature, you are ready to edit your URL string. You will notice that the URL string section has yours already in place. For example mine is "http://www.wishpond.com/lp/232271/submit?your-email-address=add_value."

Where it says “your-email-address=add_value” is where you’re going to enter your merge tag. Merge tags are used in the email you send subscribers using your email provider (like Mailchimp). A merge tag is what allows you to populate personalized content in your campaigns. It will allow your email address field to automatically fill with each individual’s email that your registration page is sent to. In this case, I’m only using the email address field so I will just add one merge tag {{user.email}} to my URL. My URL string can be seen below:

Follow this format when creating your own URL string.

If you have multiple form fields or add additional fields later on, Wishpond will add more parameters to your URL string. You can then enter the specific merge tag for each parameter in the URL string.

For example, you may also have pre-filled fields of the subscriber’s first and last name if you already have this information. In this case your URL string entry box may already look something like this:

Just replace each “add_value” with that field’s merge tag.

If this is all a bit much for you, feel free to send an email to [email protected]. We have a great support team who loves helping our readers.

2

Send a Personal Email to your Subscribers to Invite Them to your Webinar

Your email list is likely already warmed to your content. But now you need to convince them to dedicate an hour of their busy lives to you.

It’s like when you’ve been texting with someone new for a while and want to ask them out on your first real date.

When creating your webinar registration email, there are a number of elements you need to include. Here is an example of the first email we send to subscribers for a Wishpond webinar:

1

Your name, title and company - You want it to seem personalized rather than just a corporate automated email. Be honest and transparent about who you are, it goes a long way to encourage recipients to continue reading.

2

Webinar title - Bold the title and make it clear to anyone scanning your email. There should never be confusion about what subscribers are signing up for.

3

Date & time - Put this on a separate line to make sure it’s clear. If you’re a company with clients all around the world like Wishpond, it’s crucial you include the time zone so there’s absolutely no confusion.

4

Bullet points of benefits & what they’ll learn - Your benefits section needs to convince subscribers why they should sign up. What’s in it for them? Convey exclusivity and the importance of their attendance to their own success.

5

A personal, conversational tone - You want your subscribers to feel like they will let you down by missing your webinar. Once again convey personality and be friendly to make them want to attend your webinar

6

A Call-to-action (CTA) button - Make sure that it stands out and is obvious to any email readers. Use text such as “Reserve your spot” rather than “Submit” or “Sign up” as it makes it more specific to this particular webinar (and also continues the feeling of exclusivity). It’s clear what will happen by clicking that button. Email subscribers will know that just by taking action they will be ready to attend.

How to Add your One-Click Opt-in Link to the Email's CTA button

As we discussed above, the one-click opt-in is a link that allows existing email subscribers to register with a single click. By connecting your email’s CTA button to your webinar registration, clicking the CTA will automatically register subscribers, sending them through to your webinar thank you page.

Again copy your autosubmit URL string from the CTA button on your registration page, such as “http://www.wishpond.com/lp/232271/submit?your-email-address=add_value.” We need to take that URL string and add in the merge tag which refers to the email address of the person receiving the email. For example, in this case mine would read "http://www.wishpond.com/lp/232271/submit?your-email-address=*|user.email|*."

Copy this URL into your email to subscribers. You may choose to have it just as a normal link or in the Mailchimp email editor you can choose to generate a CTA button and add the link to that button.

Pro Tip

Send out your first email the week of your webinar. Only 34% of registrants sign up for a webinar more than a week before the date.

Testing Tip

Improve the Performance of your Subject Lines with A/B Testing

In A/B testing you test two variations - subject line “A” and subject line “B”. Send the email with subject line “A” to a sample of your email list. Send the email with subject line “B” to a different sample of your email list. If one subject line has significantly greater open rates, use it to send to your entire subscribers list. Here’s how to do it with: Mailchimp, Constant Contact and Get Response

3

Send your Registrants to A Thank You Page

Every webinar experiences registrant drop off. You can’t avoid it. But there is one way you can beat the 50 - 70% drop off that most see: Your “thank you” page.

A thank you page, or post-signup page, is the page people are sent to after they register for your webinar. Most just have a simple “thank you” message. But we know you can do much better.

Your thank you page is the last impression you will make on subscribers before they attend or don’t attend. Think of it as the text you send someone the day before a blind date.

“If the only thing you do for a visitor after they submit a form is provide what they asked for, you’re missing the opportunity to engage more deeply with that visitor and move them closer to becoming a customer.”

- Marketing Land

The 4 step Formula to Optimizing your Thank You Page:

1

Use video to create a relationship - If you allow subscribers to match a face to a name, you create a stronger personal connection. A video introduces you to each registrant and makes them realize that a real person will be waiting for them to show up the day of the webinar. Use the video to sell yourself on why you’re the best person to present this webinar. It should be just under a minute in length. That’s enough time to Introduce yourself, mention the date, discuss what the webinar’s about, etc.

2

Use a previous attendee testimonial to boost authority - A registrant who trusts you, likes you and respects your authority, is a registrant who will actually attend. People trust people who are just like them. Use this influence to your advantage by adding a testimonial from a previous attendee. Learn how to create a killer testimonial here!

3

Get registrants invested in your webinar with social sharing - If your webinar registrants share on social that they’re going to your webinar (rather than simply promote it) they have some skin in the game. Give them the option to spread the word about your upcoming webinar. Personalizing your Thank You Page’s “click-to-tweets” with “I” subconsciously obligates your registrants. They’ve told their Followers that they’re attending your webinar and can’t back out. For example “I’m looking forward to hearing from [your webinar host or guest] this coming Friday at [your company’s] webinar.”

4

Include a what to do next section - Most people live by their calendar. Make it easy for registrants to add a reminder with a one-click “Add to Calendar” call-to-action. You can also provide a worksheet for registrations to bring with them to the webinar. A simple fill-in-the-blank document gives registrants a way to follow along and build a personalized strategy to take action after your webinar. It also gives them a teaser of the specifics that they’ll learn, more reason to attend. You can also plug in a Facebook comment section. Everyone has Facebook, so use this as another opportunity to engage with attendees.

Read our full article on Thank you pages that convert here.

Conclusion

By following this 3-step formula you will double your webinar registration rate and get your email subscribers invested in attending.

It’s time for you to give one click opt-in links a shot. Start optimizing and make your next webinar a smashing success.

- Written by Claire Grayston