Using Web Video Conferencing to Host an Effective Online Sales Presentation: 6 Best Practice Tips

Although the most effective way to build strong relationships with your customers is still face-to-face, that’s not always practical. Fortunately, web video conferencing can be almost as effective. Even if your potential customer or prospect lives on the other side of the world, you still need to set up sales meetings and presentations – the impersonal nature of email will only get you so far.

There are several great and easy-to-use solutions for hosting your online meeting or webinar. I have personally used and participated in WebEx meetings many times and have always had a positive experience, although its costs can add up quickly as meetings become larger or more frequent. There are more affordable, equally capable and reliable web video conferencing options, also for online meetings or webinars.

Here are my top 6 best practices for making the most of web video conferencing for successful sales presentations:

1. The first thing to remember is to treat your web video meeting as you would a “real” face-to-face meeting: dress professionally, plan your agenda carefully, don’t multitask (close your email and other apps before the meeting starts so you don’t have distractions).
2. Choose a service provider carefully – you need to make sure that they can meet your goals for the meeting in a professional manner;
3. Be considerate of participants’ time: In a web video conferencing session, they are not a captive audience and will be distracted by email and other business demands if you don’t keep their interest;
4. Put together a clear agenda, with meeting objectives and strategies to achieve them;
5. Have a plan to encourage live interaction. You might have a few questions to ask your customer to stimulate discussion, or include someone whose role is to ask the first questions or add comments to start the interaction;
6. Have a clear call to action at the end of the meeting. Too often, web meetings end abruptly (after all, since you’re not face-to-face, there won’t be the usual opportunity for small talk or a discussion of next steps as the client walks you out the door). Include time in the agenda for recap and next steps, with clear action items for attendees.