7 Proven Strategies to Host an Effective, Engaging Q&A Session for Your Webinars

Webinars and video content, in general, have become increasingly important for businesses across all industries. Brand leaders and marketers fully realize this, too. 

A whopping 86% of marketers who use video as a marketing tool say it has helped them boost sales, while 81% claim this type of content resulted in a noticeable boost in sales. Other research shows that over 40% of folks using webinars in their marketing say they have performed better than their other content assets, as of 2023.

One of the most important parts of webinars are Q&As at the end. This is where you get to gather feedback, discuss pain points, share your thoughts, and build rapport with your audience.

However, hosting an effective and engaging webinar Q&A requires careful planning. You’ll want to take all of the right steps to prepare so your next event is a success.

Today, we will show you why Q&A sessions matter and how you can host webinars that keep people hooked on your content and engaged with your brand.

Let’s dive in!

Why Q&A Sessions Matter

• They Create Real Connections – Q&A sessions are your chance to break away from the one-sided nature of webinars. When you invite people to ask questions, you’re fostering dialogue and making participants feel valued. This interaction strengthens the connection between you and your audience, building loyalty and trust.
• They’re a Window into Your Audience’s Needs – When people ask questions, they are actually sharing their pain points and goals. This real-time feedback can offer insights into what your audience cares about and how you can add value to their lives. Use this information to fine-tune your message, make your offer better, and maybe even use it as content for a new piece.
• They Reinforce Key Points – Answering questions helps the attendees process and recall what they’ve learned. When people actively engage with what you’re covering, they retain it better. By addressing the specific concerns, you can make sure your audience fully understands the presentation.
• They Show You’re the Real Deal – Handled well, Q&A sessions showcase your knowledge and willingness to learn. By providing answers as you think of them, you show you are an industry expert and want to help people. Being relatable and trustworthy also means being approachable and transparent—even when you don’t know everything.
• They Inspire Future Content – Not only can the questions be used for content marketing strategies such as blog posts, future videos, and FAQs, but they also have the added benefit of tapping directly into your audiences’ needs.

How to Deliver Great Q&A Sessions in Webinars

1. Save Enough Time for a Proper Q&A

The timing of your Q&A session can determine if it will be a success. If it’s too long, people will get bored. Not enough time, and people leave disappointed. Neither of these options is ideal.

We suggest setting aside at least 20–30% of your webinar for questions. For instance, if your webinar lasts for an hour, spending around 15–20 minutes on Q&A is an absolute must.

If you’re hosting a long or particularly complicated presentation, it’s not a bad idea to have two shorter Q&A sessions. The one in the middle is designed to clear up any questions and reduce the time it takes to get through everything at the end.

Another reason you’ll want to have enough time is you want to be prepared for questions that require a bit of a longer explanation or dialogue.

Finding the right balance for your webinar Q&A time can be tricky. With this in mind, your best bet is to try the 20-30% rule and adjust as needed.  

2. Start with Prepared Questions to Get Things Rolling

Awkward silences are a Q&A killer, and this is far more likely to happen if you’re just starting out.

We suggest avoiding this potentially uncomfortable situation by preparing 5–7 questions in advance. These are questions you’ve written yourself based on common issues or themes that are relevant to your audience.

You might introduce them by saying, “While we’re waiting for more questions to come in, here are a few we see fairly often…”. This gives participants a moment to gather their thoughts while making sure the session starts off strong.

You’ll also want to make sure your questions are broad enough to benefit a majority of your audience. Avoid overly specific or niche topics that only apply to a small percentage of people because this could cause them to leave early.

3. Use a Moderator to Keep Things Running Smoothly

The right moderator is invaluable for your Q&A. They help things run smoothly so you and your audience make the most of your time together.

Here are a few benefits that come with choosing a moderator to help with this part of your webinar:

• Filter questions – Pick out the most significant and productive questions that address your audience needs.
• Timekeeper – Ensure that the question and answer flow is smooth and doesn’t get hung up on one question.
• Handling disruptions – Handle off-topic or difficult questions gracefully and professionally so you can stay on topic and keep the rest of your audience engaged.

Put simply, a good moderator helps you, the host, to stay on track, answering questions without getting bogged down in logistics. You can choose to work with one of your team members to moderate or a volunteer who regularly shows up and participates in your webinars.

4. Use Technology to Make Participation Easy

Having the right tools at your disposal can make a difference in holding a really effective Q&A session. Like any job, the right tools in your belt will help you work quickly and effectively.

We suggest looking for Q&A-friendly features on webinar platforms like live chat, Q&A panels, upvoting, polls, surveys, and other forms of engagement. These are very helpful for getting people involved, even if they don’t have a direct question.

Before your webinar begins, be sure to test everything. Have team members jump into a private call and experiment with all of the different webinar features so you can be sure things go smoothly when you’re live.

If you really want to take your webinar to the next level, Airmeet’s engagement and networking platform can help you reach your goals. You can start the right conversations with your audience by tapping into their list of engagement tools that will make attendees feel like an active part of the show. 

You can add emojis, calls-to-action, and resource hubs in just a few clicks. You can even record your webinars so people who couldn’t attend can still check it out. The best part is getting started has never been easier.

5. Give Clear Instructions for Asking Questions

You should also make sure the participants know how to ask any question and use these interactive features. This could be something you announce toward the beginning of the event.  

Here are a few ways to announce this:

• “Please feel free to throw questions in the Q&A box as the presentation goes along.”
• “We will try to prioritize any questions that fall under or are related to [specific topic].”
• “You’ll see our survey pop up in between segments; please give your honest feedback so we can continue improving!”

Announcing these guidelines and expectations helps set your audience to ease into the presentation and keeps them engaged all the way through.

6. Deliver Thoughtful Answers That Build Trust

Now, let’s talk about how you communicate with your audience. When you answer, be clear, brief, and absolutely authentic. You want people to feel like they’re talking to a friend, not a stranger. Otherwise, it will be harder to earn their trust and show that you want to help. 

Here’s a simple structure that works well:

• Restate the question for everyone to understand.
• Give your answer with your main points or points of interest.
• Connect the question back to your main topic at the end.

When faced with difficult or unexpected questions, pause and take a deep breath. There’s nothing wrong with letting the audience know that you’re not positive about something.

“I’m not sure, but I’ll find out and get back to you.” This is a great, honest answer that will help you win people over.

7. Follow Up After the Webinar to Keep the Conversation Going

Once the Q&A portion of your webinar is over, start finding ways to keep the conversation going.

There are a ton of ways to do this. You can publish all of the answers in a new blog post or through a marketing email. Both strategies are effective and come with their own benefits. And no rule says you can’t do both!

You can also take their questions and add them to the FAQs of existing, relevant content. This ensures that others who have the same question can quickly and easily get an answer to a question they didn’t even ask out loud.

We also suggest reaching out and asking for feedback. A follow-up email that simply states, “We hope you enjoyed our webinar; we would love to hear from you and see you at our next event.”

Then, you can attach a link to a feedback form where they can share their thoughts about your webinar, including the Q&A. Take all of that feedback and look for common patterns that you can use to optimize your webinar strategy.

Each of these steps communicates to your audience that you listened and want to provide the best experience possible, which is one of the best ways to win people over.

To make this process more efficient and organized, consider using content planning tools to map out your blog posts, FAQs, and email campaigns, ensuring you address audience needs while staying consistent with your messaging.

Final Thoughts 

As you can see, a good Q&A can turn a webinar from boring to interactive and engaging. The ripple effect from these events can result in more traffic, sales, and engagement, which is something brands across all industries want to achieve.

If you want to make the most of your next event, consider the potential benefits and strategies we’ve outlined above. It takes time and patience to get things just right, but with the right mindset and skills, you can host an event that has people talking long after it ends.