DataByte

ICT service provider DataByte uses webinars to profile itself as a knowledge partner and to generate leads. In a first webinar in collaboration with Online Seminar this succeeded very well. This was partly due to an interesting outcome: webinars lower the threshold for participation.

On March 18, DataByte’s first webinar about cybercrime took place. ‘This wasn’t our first webinar ever,’ says Daniëlle van Neerbos, event coordinator at DataByte. ‘Several times before we’ve organized webinars where we’ve arranged everything ourselves. At that time it cost me a lot of time and I feel less at home with the technical part. Because we are an ICT service provider, it is the technology that is important for an online event. The services of Online Seminar took care of this part. I saw Online Seminar’s webinar and thought they looked very professional, almost like a TV broadcast. That professional look also suits our company.’

Added value of webinars

For Daniëlle the usefulness and added value of webinars are clear: ‘We create new content this way: of course they offer an opportunity to generate leads and we profile ourselves as a knowledge partner. We want to show how ICT contributes to achieving business goals.’ Webinars are a good way to go deeper into important themes, she believes. ‘We therefore certainly wanted to continue giving webinars – but in a more professional format.’

“The services of Online Seminar took care of this part. I saw Online Seminar’s webinar and thought they looked very professional, almost like a TV broadcast. That professional look also suits our company.”

Daniëlle van Neerbos, event coordinator at DataByte

No stress on event day

For the first webinar, DataByte had invited a security expert from outside the organization and a customer. ‘Online Seminar helped us a lot, from preparation to evaluation. Business development manager Leon van der Bijl first showed me the platform in detail. That was very nice, also to convince my colleagues internally. This allowed me to properly explain how the webinar would function. I then received step-by-step plans and all the documentation I needed, which enabled me to work in a structured manner. On the event day itself, everything was completely under control, there was no stress at all.’

Objectives of the webinar

DataByte had set a goal of generating 20 registrations. To promote the webinar, the company used their newsletter and social media. They also published a white paper on the topic of cybersecurity that could be downloaded. Interested parties then received an invitation to the webinar. ‘The number of registrations was above expectations. We had 41 registrations, 30 of whom actually participated. Nine customer appointments followed from that. So we were very satisfied with the result.’

Webinars lower the threshold

Daniëlle has noticed that the threshold for participating in a webinar is lower than for attending a physical event. ‘For many people it is difficult to fit such an event into their agenda. Watching a webinar for an hour oftentimes is way more easy.’ Each quarter DataByte holds a campaign around a particular theme, such as cybercrime. ‘Webinars become a standard part of these campaigns. Our goal for a subsequent edition is to generate even more new business. This first webinar was a good starting point.’