Webinar opening script
script template

People join a webinar across a five-minute window, half of them from a phone, most of them doing something else at the same time. Almost everything that decides whether they are still there at minute thirty happens before minute five. This is that opening in order, from the rolling waiting room line to the bridge into the content.

229 words as written 28 places to fill in 6 versions

Opens the free teleprompter with the script already loaded. Nothing is uploaded, and your camera never leaves your device.

THE WAITING ROOM LINE, REPEAT EVERY MINUTE

Welcome in. We start at [TIME] exactly, so you have [NUMBER] minutes.While you wait, two things. Put [YOUR CITY, OR YOUR BIGGEST QUESTION ON THE TOPIC] in the chat, and check you can hear me by [THE SIMPLE CHECK].We are covering [THE THREE THINGS, SIX WORDS EACH]. If that is not what you came for, say so in the chat now and I will see what I can do.

THE OPEN, FIRST NINETY SECONDS

Right. It is [TIME], and we are starting.By the end of the next [LENGTH] you will know [OUTCOME ONE], [OUTCOME TWO] and [OUTCOME THREE].Here is why that matters right now. [THE CHANGE OR THE PROBLEM, TWO SENTENCES. SOMETHING TRUE THIS MONTH, NOT A GENERAL TRUTH.]Most people respond to that by [THE COMMON RESPONSE]. It does not work, because [THE REASON].What I am going to show you instead is [THE ALTERNATIVE, ONE SENTENCE].[PAUSE]

THE HOUSEKEEPING, THIRTY SECONDS

Three quick things and then we start properly.One. We finish at [END TIME]. I will not run over.Two. The recording. [EVERYONE GETS IT / THIS ONE IS LIVE ONLY. SAY WHICH, AND MEAN IT.]Three. Questions go in the [CHAT OR Q AND A BOX] as they occur to you. I stop at [WHEN] and answer them.

THE CREDIBILITY, THIRTY SECONDS

Quickly, why me for this.[THE ONE FACT THAT PROVES YOU CAN DELIVER THIS SPECIFIC PROMISE.][THE SECOND FACT, WITH A NUMBER.]That is the relevant part. The rest of it is on [WHERE], if you want it.

THE FIRST ENGAGEMENT ASK

Before I start, one thing from you.In the chat: [THE ONE WORD ANSWER YOU WANT, FOR EXAMPLE WHERE YOU ARE JOINING FROM].[READ THREE OF THEM OUT BY NAME.]Good. [ONE LINE CONNECTING WHAT THEY TYPED TO THE TOPIC.]

THE BRIDGE INTO THE CONTENT

So. [OUTCOME ONE] first, because everything else depends on it.The thing to understand before any of this works is [THE FOUNDATION IDEA].Here is what that looks like in practice. [THE FIRST SLIDE OR THE FIRST DEMONSTRATION.]

Why it is built this way

A rolling waiting room line, repeated every minute

Arrivals are staggered, so the first thing most people hear is not your first sentence. A short line you repeat orients late joiners without you having to start twice.

Open on the outcome, not the housekeeping

The thirty seconds after you go live decide whether the tab stays open. Spending them on audio checks and slide logistics tells everyone this is going to be admin.

Name three specific things they leave with

Drop-off is highest when people cannot see the shape of the hour. Three named takeaways turn an open-ended commitment into a countdown they can follow.

Answer the replay question before it fills the chat

Somebody asks within two minutes, and every repeat of it costs attention. Decide the policy in advance and say it plainly, including when the answer is no.

Get one small action inside the first two minutes

Someone who has typed once in the chat is far more likely to type again later. Ask for something trivial and specific, then actually read a few answers out by name.

Credibility tied to the promise, thirty seconds

Your background only matters as evidence that this specific promise is safe in your hands. Say the part that proves the claim and leave the rest of your career out of it.

Name the finish time and honour it

People stay longer when they know when it ends. Overrunning is the fastest way to lose the audience for the part you actually care about.

Delivering it

·Log in twenty minutes early and read the waiting room line once to an empty room. It is the only rehearsal that catches a broken microphone in time to fix it.
·Have a second person watching the chat if you possibly can. Reading chat while presenting off a prompter is the thing most likely to derail you.
·Put the teleprompter directly under the webcam and move the slides to the side. Looking at your own slides means looking away from the audience.
·Write the first ninety seconds word for word and improvise none of it. Nerves peak in the opening, which is exactly where a script pays for itself.
·If ten people turn up, present to ten people. Performing to an imagined crowd is audible, and the ten who came can hear it.

Frequently asked questions

How do you start a webinar?

With the outcome. Say what people will be able to do by the end, why it matters now, and when you finish. Audio checks and introductions can wait until you have given them a reason to stay.

How long should a webinar introduction be?

Five minutes at the outside, including housekeeping and credibility. If the introduction runs to ten, the people who joined for the content have gone before it starts.

Should you say whether there will be a replay?

Yes, early and honestly. It gets asked within two minutes either way, and dodging it costs more attention than the answer does, whichever the answer is.

What do you do if hardly anyone turns up?

Run it exactly as planned and record it. A webinar with a small live audience is still a recorded asset, and the people who did turn up can always tell when you have written them off.

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