Are Science Webinars Still Effective in 2023?

Stats and C&EN examples that highlight 5 key reasons why webinars are still an effective way to generate leads and ROI for your science brand

Graphic showing benefits of webinars

As the world had to adapt during the years of the pandemic, we saw a rise in webinars and online events as effective marketing tools. Now, live events are back, but that doesn’t mean you should drop webinars from your marketing plan. The advantages of webinars are vast and as digital marketing continues to evolve, so does the role of webinars in the industry. Not only do they offer immense value in brand awareness and thought leadership growth, but they are also a huge lead generation opportunity.

In fact, an estimated 73% of webinar attendees become qualified leads. Webinars also continue to be a valuable benefit to our American Chemical Society (ACS) members. Out of the ACS members surveyed, 97% found webinars beneficial. By embracing new technologies and niche-specific content, you can leverage the power of webinars and stay competitive in this digital age. Below, we’ll pull in C&EN examples to highlight 5 key advantages of webinars and why they are still an effective marketing tool in 2023. 

5 Key Advantages of Webinars  

C&EN 2023 Webinar Audience Stats
In 2023, C&EN Webinars have seen an average of 600 registrants per webinar with an average participation time of 55 minutes.

#1: Webinars are Flexible and Cost-Effective 

Because webinars can either be hosted in real-time or prerecorded, they cater to people’s busy schedules and provide the flexibility to make it possible for people to attend. We see this reflected in that 84% of surveyed C&EN readers attended a webinar in the last 12 months, with 50% attending 3 or more. Webinars also allow you to target a broader, maybe even global, audience by removing the need to travel to a physical location such as with a live conference or exposition. This provides the ability to scale your marketing efforts and really optimize webinar lead generation. 

#2: Webinars Generate High-Quality Leads for Quicker ROI

Only genuinely interested prospects will take the time to register, provide their information, and tune in to a webinar, meaning those prospects are already high-quality leads when they come in. Apart from re-engaging existing leads, webinars can proactively attract fresh leads and create new loyal customers by optimizing sales conversion, resulting in a faster ROI. You can also incorporate content handouts as a pre-registration lead generator to increase the perceived value of your webinar and make it more intriguing to potential registrants. And with the ability of webinars to be recorded and replayed, they provide ongoing lead-generating opportunities as well as long-lasting value to deliver to prospects with minimal additional effort required. 

MilliporeSigma hosted a C&EN webinar to share how their AIDDISON™ integrated platform can “Unlock the Power of Artificial Intelligence in Novel Drug Discovery.” The webinar delivered more than 1,220 qualified leads and generated 480+ resource downloads. Learn more in our Case Study Library.

#3: Webinars Can Help Establish Your Company as an Authority in the Science Industry 

Webinars are a fantastic platform for telling your science story in a way that showcases your company and the scientific expertise at the head of the industry.

They are also a great way to generate demand by allowing you to establish your company as an authority and put your products in front of the right audience. By doing this, you have an opportunity to really educate by demonstrating product functionality, showcasing upgrades in technology, and explaining complex topics to increase understanding.

More than a quarter (27%) of C&EN readers said webinars are one of the resources they rely on most to keep abreast of new products and technologies. Further, a recent study concluded that video content increases people’s understanding of your product or service by 74%.

#4: Webinars Build Relationships Through Engaging and Exciting Material

With the ability to speak on a more personal and engaging level, webinars enable you to captivate your audience and bring in exciting interactive elements to not only motivate attendees to actively participate, but to also help improve the retention of the material presented.

At C&EN Media Group, our webinar program utilizes interactive features such as Q&As, polls, downloadable resources for attendees, certification of attendance, and video integration to create a more memorable and personalized experience overall. Attendees can also share their progress and updates on social media platforms which creates a sense of community and comradery among peers with similar scientific interests. Finally, webinars give you the opportunity to provide value first which in turn creates a loyal audience that leads to sales. 

Agilent Technologies turned their webinar on “Analysis of Trace Impurities in Hydrogen by Gas Chromatography” into an executive summary, extending the reach of their content beyond its original format.

#5: Webinars Can Serve as Content Hubs

Webinars serve as the perfect foundation to create a series of content around a specific topic which helps reach a wider audience and also engage that audience in multiple ways.

Think about all of the different channels you can use to repurpose a webinar – transform it into a promotional video, white paper or eBook, create a blog post or article around it, or even develop a supporting infographic. In doing this, you are attracting new audiences and helping to reach potential customers to add to the sales funnel. 

Start generating more leads today!

Sammi Wang headshot

Sammi Wang

Account Manager
sammi@echinachem.com

Sammi is the General Manager China of eChinaChem, where she has worked since 2005 and previously served as Vice President and Sales Manager. eChinaChem offers news media, conferences and events, as well as education and training services in the chemical, pharmaceutical, and healthcare sectors in China. Before eChinaChem, she worked at GlobalSources as an Account Executive. Sammi received her MBA from the University of International Business and Economics and her undergraduate degree from Yantai University.

Sales Territory: China 

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Kyra Luttermann

Account Manager
kl@intermediapartners.de

Kyra Luttermann is an IT & AI Specialist with a strong academic background, complemented by deep knowledge in Philosophy. She holds advanced training from the University of Oxford in Artificial Intelligence. Kyra excels in AI prompting, consulting, and sales, effectively helping customers reach their target audiences. Since joining IMP and ACS in 2023, she has been instrumental in advancing ACS’s mission, representing the next generation of innovative leaders in the field.

Sales Territories: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Ireland, Scandinavia, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, East Central Europe and The Middle East

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Uwe Riemeyer

Uwe Riemeyer is a seasoned Global Media Specialist with over 25 years of experience in media sales, consulting, and planning, primarily for the global chemical industry. Since 1997, he has been affiliated with ACS and operates his own successful media business in Germany. Uwe’s expertise spans all B2B industry segments and related media outlets, supported by a solid foundation in economics and an initial career in the automotive industry. His comprehensive knowledge and strategic insights make him a key player in media planning and consulting.

Sales Territories: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Ireland, Scandinavia, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, East Central Europe and The Middle East

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Jim Beckwith

Account Manager
j.beckwith@jgeco.com

Jim Beckwith brings his skills to ACS after a lengthy media consulting career in both for-profit and non-profit media. He specializes in helping advertising partners “connect the dots” between their marketing/lead generation objectives and the wide range of opportunities in the ACS Media portfolio. Jim works with advertisers based in the Southeast and Eastern U.S.

Sales Territories: US East Coast and Southeast 

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Beth Kurup

Beth Kurup is an Account Manager based in Los Angeles, California. She handles marketing programs for clients in the Western United States. Beth’s media and marketing background aid her in creating strategic plans for clients with a focus on details and meeting objectives.  

Sales Territory: US West Coast Sales

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Pete Manfre

Account Manager
p_manfre@acs.org

Except for a brief hiatus in 2022, Pete Manfre has been a fixture at ACS since 2015, helping clients navigate the complex B2B digital landscape. Over the years, Pete has gained the trust of many science marketing leaders with his honest and straightforward approach. His unique insights and expertise have benefitted the small companies looking to gain traction with new potential customers and the well-known industry brands looking to elevate their thought leadership and capture bigger market-share.

Sales Territories: ACS Meetings Exhibition and Sponsorships (ACS Spring, ACS Fall and Pacifichem) 

Chris Nolan

Chris Nolan

Chris Nolan has been creating solutions for C&EN and ACS advertisers since 2017. After growing the western US territory to $1.6M from $800k, he was promoted to national sales manager in 2021. He is based in Chicago and covers the central US and Canada. His background in media solutions includes successful production for such well known global media brands as Fortune, INC, Fast Company, The Nikkei, the FT, and The Globe & Mail.

Sales Territories: US Midwest and Northeast East Coast; Canada; Australia; New Zealand and South America

Mariam Agha 

Account & Marketing Manager
CENBrandLab@acs.org

Mariam is an account manager here at C&EN BrandLab. She works with our clients, art and production teams within C&EN to deliver effective ad campaigns. 

Jordan Nutting Ph.D.

Senior Editor
CENBrandLab@acs.org

Jordan is a Senior Editor at C&EN BrandLab. While earning her Ph.D. in chemistry she also pursued her passion for writing and communication, including a stint as a science reporter during the COVID-19 pandemic. She now funnels her love of words and chemistry into creating compelling science stories and content.

Jesse Harris

Senior Editor
CENBrandLab@acs.org

Jesse Harris is a Senior Editor at C&EN BrandLab. He has been creating internet content since 2016, and has Master’s degrees in both chemistry and chemical engineering. He loves helping STEM experts communicate their science more impactfully.

Shane M Hanlon Ph.D.

Executive Editor
CENBrandLab@acs.org

Shane leads BrandLab’s strategic initiatives and projects. As a conservation biologist turned science communicator and storyteller, Shane brings years of creative and relationship-building experience to BrandLab from his work in the federal government, the National Academies, and scientific membership nonprofits. He is an adjunct professor at the University of Pittsburgh, from which he obtained his B.S. in Ecology and Evolution, and holds a Ph.D. in biology from the University of Memphis.

Heather Lockhart-Neff 

Account & Marketing Manager
CENBrandLab@acs.org

Heather co-leads account management at C&EN BrandLab. She utilizes efficiency and strategy when working with our clients and production teams within C&EN to deliver effective and engaging campaigns. Heather has a passion for telling dynamic stories through multimedia communication channels and brings creativity, curiosity, and charisma to BrandLab partnerships. She obtained her B.S. in International Relations from The College of Wooster in Ohio. 

Cynthia Graham-Tappan 

Managing Director, Sales Strategic Partnerships
CENBrandLab@acs.org

Cynthia Graham-Tappan is an accomplished sales leader with over 15+ years’ experience leading global B2B sales teams within the publishing & media industries.  She has held executive positions with The New York Times, Dow Jones, Agence France Presse, Hearst Corporation and currently oversee Sales & Strategic Partnerships for ACS.   Cynthia has a proven expertise in crafting strategic partnerships, steering high-performing sales teams, and propelling revenue growth. Cynthia also has extensive experience in performance management, market research, digital media monetization, and business development.

Cynthia received her B.S. degree from Towson University and recently completed Executive Education courses with The Yale School of Management and London Business School.  Cynthia resides in Maryland with her husband, and she is a proud mom of four kids.

Kenneth Phan 

Creative Director
CENBrandLab@acs.org

Kenneth is a creative leader with 20 years of experience in in-house and boutique design agencies. He is currently senior creative director for the American Chemical Society’s marketing and communications team. Previously, he was senior creative director for ACS Publications, an international scientific publisher that serves chemistry and related sciences. Kenneth is passionate about translating client business goals into impactful and innovative advertising solutions. Under his leadership, ACS has won numerous awards and accolades for its exceptional design work.