According to Inside Sales, 73% of sales and marketing professionals list webinars as one of the most effective tools for generating high-quality leads. But the truth is, that’s really only half the battle. After all, just gathering leads won’t amount to much of anything if you’re not actually turning those leads into paying customers. So, what’s the best way to ensure that those prospects don’t end up in post-webinar limbo? Give the following tips a try.

Assess readiness through polls.

Polling your audience during your webinar is an easy and effective way to gain insight into where your prospects stand in terms of need, interest level, etc. You can then use this info to segment your audience for nurturing purposes. For instance, you can separate those who are interested in learning more about your product, service or company from those who are more actively ready to buy and market to each group accordingly. Tailoring your approach will help you gain more ground and get better results.

Involve sales in the process.

Keeping your sales team in the loop is another simple, yet often overlooked strategy for improving your conversion rate. When sales is involved in the process, whether it’s helping to put the content together or simply staying abreast of what webinars will be hosted and when, they can be much better prepared with their follow-up communication. Some companies even go as far as having someone from sales sit in on webinars to help field questions from attendees.

Follow up right away.

The expression “strike while the iron is hot” can easily be applied to webinar lead conversion. If your content is compelling, your attendees will leave feeling eager to take that next step. Follow up while it’s still fresh on their minds. Include a recording of the webinar and any ancillary documentation. You may also want to include links to other relevant content, such as blog posts, that might add value. At the very least, it will help you start building and fostering relationships.

Pamper hot leads.

Obviously, the warmer the lead, the greater the likelihood of conversion, so handle your hot leads with extra care. When you hand them off to sales, do so with specific instructions for exactly how to proceed. Not only should follow-up communication be relevant to the webinar, provide value and contain helpful information, but it should also be as personalized as possible based on what you know about each prospect. The more effort you put in, the more it’ll pay off.

Nurture and retarget warm and cold leads.

Webinar attendees who aren’t necessarily ready to buy yet can still become customers down the road if you play your cards right. Stay in touch with a focus on adding value. You can either place warm and cold leads into your normal sales funnel or create a webinar-specific nurturing strategy for these prospects. Either way, keep the conversation going. Build that relationship. Retarget whenever possible. This will help solidify your brand and keep you top of mind, improving the chances that when those prospects are finally ready to pull the trigger, it’s you they’ll want to buy from.

According to a recent study by GoToWebinar relating to content engagement, people are willing to spend more time on webinars than any other type of content. Capitalize on this by applying the above lead-nurturing strategies and watch as your sales soar.