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Over the past two years, 290 ISV and Partner-sponsored sessions provided data on roughly 20,000 webinar registrants. The data, compiled and analyzed by MSDynamicsWorld (MSDW), reveals trends that ISVs and Partners can use to improve their webcast strategies.

You can watch PARTNERTALKS host Rick McCutcheon, MSDW Co-founder Adam Berezin and MSDW Editor Jason Gumpert dissect the data AT THIS LINK.

But, let’s dig in here to summarize the most important findings.

MSDW compiled data from two years of live and simulive* webinars. Each of the two years contained 150 webinar sessions.

*Simulive webinars are pre-recorded and then broadcast as live events.

From Year A to Year B, MSDW saw a 24% increase in total registrants, with a 22% average increase in registrants per session. In total, 19% more people attended webinar sessions in Year B.

MSDW dissected the data with four goals in mind:

• Assessing registration and attendance metrics
• Evaluating how live sessions perform compared to simulive sessions
• Determining which types of sessions resonate
• Examining live session options

Live sessions work best when attendee interaction is a priority.

Simulive sessions can be run multiple times for attendees in numerous time zones and marketed to those time zones, increasing potential attendance.

From Year A to Year B, live session attendance increased by 286%, partly due to a higher number of live sessions being held. Per session, registration grew by a still-impressive 51%. The attendance rate, however, decreased by 16.2%

Note: Anecdotally, “many people” sign up for live sessions and then wait for MSDW to post the session’s recording, watching the recording on-demand.

In Year B, 2% more people registered for simulive sessions than in Year A. Year B’s per session registration also increased by 19%. Year B saw a 12.5% increase in simulive attendees.

MSDW’s available data shows that the best time to hold a webinar is Thursday at 9 am.

Mondays have no Year A data, as MSDW did not hold webinars in the 2022-2023 year. In Year B, it performed the worst.

Tuesday: From Year A to Year B, registrations grew by 24.1% and attendance rates improved by 4.1%

Wednesday: Mid-week registrations increased the most, at 43.1% growth. Attendance rates, however, did not change.

Thursday: Registration numbers did not change from Year A to Year B. Attendance did increase by 2.0%, though. Thursdays are the best-performing day, when it comes to attendance.

Friday: From Year A to Year B, registrations decreased by 16.4%, and attendance declined by 2.3%.

9 am saw the most registrants and attendees in both Year A and Year B.

Noon webinars grew in popularity in Year B both in registration and attendance but still came up short of morning sessions.

3 pm sessions performed poorly in both years.

These sessions involve in-depth product demos and discussions about the products. They tend to attract people in the later stages of the sales cycle.

Average registrants: 54.82

Average attendance rate: 49%

MSDW’s top-performing session in 2024: 148 registrants

In these sessions, users learn about new technologies, ideas and strategies.

Average registrants: 123.50

Average attendance rate: 49%

MSDW’s top-performing session in 2024: 428 registrants

Partners learn about new products in these sessions.

Average registrants: 109.55

Average attendance rate: 37.3%

MSDW’s best-performing session in 2024: 173 registrants

NOTE: MSDW held most of its Partner Education Sessions in a live format, which skewed the numbers.

These sessions are thought leadership-focused. They don’t necessarily provide a lead, but they do build credibility for the host organization.

Average registrants: 77.75

Average attendance rate: 48.2%

MSDW’s best-performing session in 2024: 151 registrants

Both user and Partner case studies are effective. These tend to attract people who are late in the sales cycle.

Average registrants: 60.62

Average attendance rate: 48%

MSDW’s best-performing session of 2024: 101 registrants

The processes we use to run webcasts are as important as the webcast’s content.

In its native webcasts, MSDW uses a three-part approach:

1. Editorial collaboration

MSDW uses its editorial knowledge to help the Partner or ISV choose the hardest-hitting topic

2. Efficient logistics and executions

MSDW’s experts handle the technical backend of webinar hosting to ensure that the event runs smoothly

3. Hyper-targeted audience promotion

MSDW uses its database to advertise the webinar to people who are the most likely to attend

While, due to webinar fatigue, attendance may have dropped off following the COVID-19 pandemic, anecdotal evidence suggests that users, Partners and ISVs have begun returning to the medium.

By leveraging MSDW’s learnings, we have the chance to present our webinars as an opportunity instead of a slog.