Increasingly, webinar platforms are getting rid of old-fashioned software and switching to a browser-based service. Chicago’s BigMarker is a great example of what can be done using just your browser. Since 2010 the service has provided users with reliable, marketable, and highly customizable webinars. It doesn’t matter what kind of webinar you want to host – live or on demand, automated or recurring – BigMarker does it all. Where the service really shines is in its range of call-to-action tools, like allowing you to display exclusive offers to your attendees. BigMarker offers various pricing plans for its service to suit anyone who wants to host small webinars or much larger ones with thousands of attendees. Prices are more than reasonable when compared with the competition and anyone tempted by BigMarker’s offer can test the service first through its 7-day free trial.
BigMarker hosts every kind of webinar you can think of. As you would expect, it’s possible to run regular live and on demand webinars (like every other service) but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. BigMarker offers the ability to create a series of webinars for one group of registered attendees – ideal for summits. There are also automated webinars, where you can carefully craft a timeline of events that give the feeling of attending a live webinar. These automated webinars can be left running around the clock – what BigMarker calls ‘evergreen webinars’ – or it’s possible to run a 24/7 live webinar channel. Finally, if you want to expand your horizons, BigMarker allows you to livestream on Facebook or YouTube. Every type of webinar can be grouped together as part of your own branded channel, so subscribers will stay up to date with all your content
Naturally, you want your webinar to be as engaging as possible and BigMarker makes that possible. BigMarker offers four different types of live chats: a public one for all to see, one just for presenters, a private chat for one-on-one conversations, and a Twitter chat. There are also Q&As and polls that can be queued for future use. Presenters are also able to distribute handouts and share screens. Conveniently, you can pre-load all your handouts and media files first, and you’ll have no space issue as BigMarker provides up to 1TB of storage. We particularly like that you can create pop-up offers – a perfect addition for any sales webinar.
When it comes to integrations, BigMarker has all your bases covered. There’s Google Analytics, Mailchimp, PowerPoint, and Constant Contact just to name a few. Elite and Premier users also get access to Aurthorize.net and Stripe, so any Basic package users looking to monetize their webinars will need to upgrade. If that’s not enough, you can access a further 500 integrations via Zapier. Finally, users have access to the API, so you’re able to create your own app.
Although BigMarker‘s dashboard is neither the most modern nor attractive, everything is in a logical place. We do like that the dashboard gives you a ‘system check’ which checks your operating system, browser, and internet speed to make sure you’re able to host the best possible webinar.
When you get around to setting up your webinar, you’re first given a choice of what type of webinar you want to host. As we mentioned, BigMarker hosts just about every type of webinar imaginable, so you’re spoiled for choice. After choosing your time, date, and other basic information it’s time to choose a webinar landing page. BigMarker allows you to either thoroughly customize your landing page or choose from one of its 15 ready-made and professional-looking templates.
In fact, everything about your webinar is customizable. BigMarker offers a test room so you can practice your webinar first. There’s also the ability to customize and manage registrations, create a waiting, transcripts, and monitor attendance – pretty much everything is adjustable to your own specifications.
When compared to other services, BigMarker lags behind in security as it doesn’t provide the industry standard advanced end-to-end encryption. That isn’t to say that BigMarker is unsafe, though. On the contrary, the service uses SSL and HTTPS encryption, so it is certainly secure. Indeed, BigMarker is verified by PayPal and Authorize.net for financial transactions.
Naturally, a browser-based webinar platform works for any device that supports a compatible browser. But not any browser will do — BigMarker recommends its users upgrade to the latest version of Google Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, or Opera. Internet Explorer 11 is also an option if webcast mode is enabled. Other browsers work, but you may encounter some issues while watching streams. When it comes to presenting a webinar, Chrome and Firefox are the ones BigMarker recommends.
Unusually for a service that claims to be download-free, BigMarker does provide a downloadable app for iOS users. The app is ideal for joining webinars but doesn’t provide the full features that you get from using the desktop version, so you’re better off using one of BigMarker’s recommended browsers instead.
BigMarker offers three different pricing structures to fulfill most people’s needs, although there are more advanced options for heavy-duty webinar users. Prices begin at $99 per month for the Starter package, but choosing an annual plan gives you a 10% discount taking the price down to $79 per month with annual billing. Still, the price is fairly average when compared to the competition. This gives you one host license and the ability to broadcast to up to 100 attendees, although Starter users don’t have access to advanced customization or every type of webinar.
If you need a bigger plan that unlocks all the key features, then the Elite package comes to $189 per month. However, this price can be reduced by 20% down to $159 per month by choosing annual billing. Elite users also have a second host license and an increased capacity of up to 500 attendees. Then there’s the Premier plan, with four host licenses and up to 1,000 attendees at $399 per month, or $299 per month with annual billing. If 1,000 attendees aren’t enough for you then there are two further plans — White Label and Enterprise — aimed at heavy webinar users and businesses, but you’ll need to contact BigMarker’s sales team directly for prices.
Payment is accepted through all the major credit cards, including Discover, or through PayPal. Of course, you can test out the service first through BigMarker’s free 7-day trial.
Getting in touch with BigMarker’s support is mainly done online either by email, live chat, or help bot. Chat reply times are generally fast, so you should have no problem getting a timely response. There is a phone number available but unfortunately, it’s reserved only for sales calls. Alternatively, you can get in touch with BigMarker via the company’s Facebook and Twitter profiles. Finally, there’s an online BigMarker community but strangely we found it to be completely empty when we visited.
What’s really impressive about BigMarker is the huge number of resources on offer. The help center provides you with an FAQ and thorough documentation about the product. Since there are so many customizable features, it’s well worth reading them thoroughly. If you really want to go in-depth then you can download BigMarker’s free eBook, which also has a lot of useful tips for webinar marketing. If you prefer to learn in a more interactive way you can join one of BigMarker’s regular free demo webinars. But if you can’t make one of the demo webinars, you can always go to BigMarker’s YouTube page which is full of helpful tutorial videos.
Browser-based webinars are a great alternative to software-based webinars, and BigMarker might be the best of the lot. Perhaps the most impressive aspect is the wide range of webinar types you can choose from, including live, on demand, evergreen, 24/7, and more. Unfortunately, to access all types of webinars you will need to upgrade from the Basic package to the more expensive Elite or Premier plans. We also love that that just about every aspect of BigMarker is customizable, meaning you can truly make your webinar your own. This is perfect for sales-driven webinars, especially when you combine it with all the interactive and call-to-action features that BigMarker provides. If you’re not totally convinced yet, we recommend you test out the service yourself through BigMarker’s 7-day free trial.
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