Online Meeting Do’s and Don’ts for Bloggers

Online meetings are relatively new, but with people networking with one another further across the planet than ever before, they’re certainly becoming a part of life for just about everyone – even bloggers. Although many bloggers already take advantage of one of the best ways to promote their blog, which is by using social media, a Twitter feed or Facebook page can become dull and even lose followers if it’s not interesting enough.

That’s why online meetings can be very beneficial for a blogger, because whether it’s a live meeting or a recorded one, it brings what they want right to them, and what they want is to learn from or be entertained by their favorite blogger – which is, or will soon be, you.

Creative online meeting for bloggers

Here’s a few do’s and don’ts to get you started on that path:

Choosing an Online Meeting Provider

Do: Consider the following when choosing your online meeting platform: Can the meeting participants join you via their mobile device? How much does the service charge and how many people can join the meeting for that cost? Is it possible to record your meeting in case you’d like to save it for others to view later? Opt for an online meeting service that incorporates cool features like simultaneous chat translation or meeting room rebranding (put your company logo and color theme on the meeting’s interface).

Don’t: Don’t only consider free meeting services. Free may feel like the best way to go, however, if you go with a free provider, make sure that you look into who can and cannot connect, and what you get for “free.” Many free services limit how many participants can join the meeting, as well as where they can join from (such as international meetings). Sometimes a small investment in a premium service is worth the business you’ll gain.

Using Online Meetings with Social Media

Do: Combine online meetings with your social media activities. Why? Because your fans are fans for a reason, they like you and whatever knowledge it is you have to share with them. Let’s face it, they wouldn’t follow you unless you had something they were interested in, even if it’s just your sparkling personality. Whatever reason it is, figure it out and use it to create a fabulous online meeting or webinar that keeps them interested in what you have to say.

Don’t: Social media followers like to be entertained, so one of your biggest don’ts is this: Don’t ramble on and on and bore them to death. Make sure that the meeting is going to be fun and entertaining. To keep yourself on track, write down all of your ideas, but then just pick the 5 or 10 best ideas to share.

Having an online meeting
photo credit: Citrix Online

Recording a Meeting aka “Webinar”

Do: Record your meeting and share it on your blog and social media accounts. Why? Did you know that by adding a video to your post that it is 3 times more likely to attract an inbound link than a plain text post? That alone is one big reason to record your online meetings. It’s also easier to share later, and better than having to repeat yourself by having the same meeting over and over again, so there’s a lot of pluses to recording your meeting.

Don’t: Don’t only record your meeting just to share it on your YouTube channel. By linking to it or embedding it in a post on your blog you’re better off, not just because it’s more attractive to those linking to you, but also because it brings people to your blog.

Final Tips for a Successful Online Meeting

An online meeting, especially a recorded one, is one of the quickest and easiest ways that you can generate more followers for your blog. To make sure that your meeting will be successful make a list of ideas of what you know and ask your followers which ones they’d like for you to share with them.

If you’re stuck and don’t know what to do for a meeting or webinar, here are a few ideas: Share an interview you have with someone that specializes in your niche, offering a free training service in an area you specialize in, or offering a question and answer time that they can participate live in or watch later if they missed it. No matter what you choose to share, if you involve your followers all along the way and make them feel a part of it, your meeting is sure to be a success.