What's a webinar invitation and why do they matter?

A webinar invitation is an email (or series of emails) that lets people know about your upcoming webinar and gets them to sign up. It’s your first shot at grabbing their attention and making them interested in what you’re offering.

But it's about more than just filling seats. You want the right people—the ones who’ll actually turn into customers later.

A good webinar invitation attracts the people who are genuinely interested in what you've got to offer.

Trickle-down conversion rates

Since your webinar invitations are so near the top of your funnel, they set the stage for everything else.

If you send just one invite instead of three, you might cut your attendees in half. That’s fewer people hearing your pitch, fewer leads, and fewer conversions at every stage.

It’s a domino effect. Nail the invite, and you’ll see the impact all the way down the funnel.

Best practices for webinar invitations

Webinar invitations vary enormously depending on the industry and type of webinar, but here are some best practices to bear in mind.

When to send your webinar invites

There doesn't seem to be a general consensus about the best timing for webinar email invites, but there are some best practices across the industry. Generally, people send a long-term invite, a short-term invite, a reminder email, and a final call.

For example, your schedule might look like this:

• Long-term invite - 5-30 days before the webinar
  (Depending on how much notice people might need to block out the time on their calendar. 7 days is common.)

• Short-term invite - 1-3 days before the webinar
  (Again, this depends on how much notice people might need, but 24 hours prior is common here.)

• Reminder email - half a day before the webinar
  (For example, you'd send a reminder in the morning if your webinar is in the afternoon/evening. If it's a morning webinar, you'd send the reminder the night before.)

• Final call - 1-6 hours before the webinar
  (The later you leave this email, the greater the sense of urgency—but the greater the risk of people not seeing it in time to attend. 3 hours prior is usually a good balance.)

But remember, these are just rules of thumb. The only way to know what timing works best for your audience is to test in real life.

Choosing the right webinar subject lines

As with any subject line, there are three goals to focus on. Nail all three objectives and your emails will get opened.

Goal 1: Get noticed

Most people open their inbox and immediately see 20+ unread emails. Before opening any, we usually scan through the subject lines looking for any that stand out as particularly important.

The goal is to make our email stand out in the initial sweep.

That means going against the grain—which varies from niche to niche, and changes over time. But if they zig, you need to zag:

• Length: If most of the subject lines in their inbox are long, try sticking with 1-2 words. If they get plenty of short subject lines already, yours should go long.

• Capitals: Do all of their subject lines start with a capital letter? Try all lowercase. If they're all title case, try sentence case. (Just avoid all caps or you'll get marked as spam.)

• Emojis: If they rarely see emojis in their inbox, include them in your subject line. But if they already see plenty (especially from marketers), stick with plain text.

But don't stop there, because if you do—you'll probably just look like a marketer and get ignored. You must hit the other goals too.

Goal 2: Sound like a human

Think about it:
When was the last time you sent an email from your Gmail that didn't get opened because your subject line wasn't good enough?

When we're being normal, most of us get 100% open rates every day. Because most people always open emails if they know they're one-to-one.

But most of us go kinda weird when we try to write marketing subject lines. So here's my advice for you:

1. Open the Sent folder in your own email client.

2. Look at the subject lines that you manually write every day (probably getting near-100% open rates without you even thinking about it).

3. Take note of any patterns you see.

I'll bet your subject lines look a lot like mine:

They're short, dull, syntactically incorrect—and human.
Which is why they get opened without even thinking about it.

Goal 3: Open a curiosity loop

One of my favourite jokes goes like this:
"Did you hear the one about the magic tractor?"

I'll tell you the punchline in a sec, but first let's talk about open loops and how they work in copywriting.

Open loops are when we introduce the start of a narrative but don't immediately provide the resolution. They're useful in copywriting because open loops often leave readers with a lingering sense of incompleteness that they feel an urge to resolve.

It's like introducing an itch but not letting them scratch—yet.

Open a loop in your webinar email subject line, and it can make people want to open the email just to close the loop. For example:

• "Is this you?"

• "In case you haven't heard"

• "Can't believe it took me this long to realise this"

If they want to close the loop, they'll need to open the email (which should always close the loop in a reasonable timeframe).

Oh and here's the punchline:
"It went down the lane and turned into a field." (sorry)

Using one-click webinar registrations

One-click registrations are exactly what they sound like. If they're already on your email list, people can sign up for your webinar with a single click. These are super handy because they reduce barriers to entry, making it easier for people to say "yes".

• Why they're good: The easier it is to sign up, the more people will do it. You'll likely see higher registration rates because people don’t have to fill out a form.

• What to watch out for: While you might get more sign-ups, not all of them will show up. People who register with just one click tend to not be as committed, so attendance rates are often lower. But even with a lower show-up rate, you’re still likely to get more total attendees because of the higher number of registrations.

One-click registrations can be a game-changer and I strongly recommend using them if you can. Just be prepared for the trade-off between attendance rates vs absolute attendees.

Excluding existing webinar registrants

Once someone registers for your webinar, you don’t want to keep sending them invites. It’s redundant and can be annoying. Registrants should be moved to a different email sequence.

If you keep sending invites to people who've already registered, they might unsubscribe from your list out of frustration.

You'll need to set up your email system to automatically exclude registered participants from further invites and instead start sending them nurture emails and reminder emails.

Replace unsubscribes with opt-outs

Some people will know right away they’re not interested in your webinar. Instead of letting them unsubscribe from your entire list, give them an easy way to opt out of just the webinar invites.

• Why this works: A prominent opt-out link for webinar invites lets people stop those emails without unsubscribing entirely. This keeps them on your list for other content.

• How to do it: Place the opt-out link where it’s easy to see, above the usual unsubscribe link. That way, those who aren’t interested can opt out of the invites but stay subscribed to everything else.

This helps you keep subscribers while respecting their preferences. The last thing you want is people unsubscribing just because they weren't interested in one webinar.

Webinar invitation email templates

These templates are designed to help you write effective webinar invites. Use them as a starting point, but feel free to tweak them.

Email 1: Pain-based webinar invitation

This template is about speaking to your audience's struggles and showing them how your webinar can help. The goal is to connect with their pain points and position your webinar as the cure.

Suggested subject lines

Our goal with the subject line is to make this sound like a 1:1 invite.

• Option 1: "Hang out tomorrow?"

• Option 2: "I think you're going to like this"

• Option 3: "Are you free tomorrow at [time]?"

Email invite body

Quick note: Never shy away from tweaking templated copy if it needs rewriting to make your message flow well. Copy templates only work if you look at what each part is doing, then use your best judgement to apply that to your own situation. Don't be too rigid!

Hi [Name],

Do you struggle with [pain point]? Perhaps feeling [negative emotion] because [problem state]?

If that rings true—you're not alone.

And the most important step you can take right now when it comes to [achieving desired outcome] is to [whatever the webinar teaches].

So I've put something together to teach you how to do exactly that. :)

On [Date] at [Time], I’m hosting a free training called How to [Achieve Outcome] in [Timeframe] Without Having to [Sacrifice Important Thing].

Just click here to register and save your spot.

What you'll miss if you skip this [webinar duration] session:

• The (easy to make) mistakes that keep people from ever reaching [achieve outcome].

• Why [unexpected action] is the key to overcoming [common obstacle].

• How to finally stop [negative outcome] by avoiding [common mistake].

• The crucial steps even the experts overlook when it comes to [unquestioned activity].

• And more...

We're starting soon, so if you're serious about [topic] – you won't want to miss this.

Click the link below to save your spot now:
Save my spot!

My promise to you?

I'll show you eactly how to [escape problem] even if [limiting belief].

See you there!

– [Name]

P.S. Space is limited on this training, so be sure to save your spot now before the spots fill up.

P.P.S. Not interested? Click here to opt out of these invites.

Email 2: Desire-based webinar invitation

This template focuses on tapping into your audience's aspirations and desires. Instead of highlighting their pain points, it’s about showing them how your webinar can help them achieve something they really want. The goal is to inspire them.

Suggested subject lines

The goal with this subject line is to imply that something is happening soon that they might need to be aware of.

• Option 1: "Quick reminder..."

• Option 2: "Before our meeting today"

• Option 3: "Looking forward to later"

Email invite body

Don't forget to switch out any merge fields where needed. It's something of a rite of passage for email marketers to eventually bulk send "Hi {{first name}}" to their whole list, but let's avoid it where we can!

Hi [Name],

How great would it feel if this was the year you finally [achieved desired outcome]?

If you want to make that happen, the single most important step you can take right now is to [whatever the webinar teaches].

And that’s exactly what I’m going to help you with. :)

Today at [Time], I’m hosting a free training called How to [Achieve Outcome] in [Timeframe] Without Having to [Sacrifice Important Thing].

Just click here to register and save your spot.

In just [webinar duration], you'll get an insider's view into:

• The simplest methods [role models] use to consistently [achieve outcome].

• Why [unexpected action] is your best bet when [common scenario or complicating factor].

• How to avoid [negative outcome] by steering clear of [common pitfall].

• What you're overlooking about [unquestioned activity] that could change everything.

• What even the pros don't know about [unquestioned activity].

• And more...

This [webinar duration] event is starting soon.

Click the link below to grab your spot now:
Save my spot!

My promise to you?

You'll get [desirabled outcome] even if [objection].

See you there!

– [Name]

P.S. Space is limited on this training, so be sure to save your spot now before the spots fill up.

P.P.S. Not interested? Click here to opt out of these invites.

Email 3: FOMO-based webinar invitation

This template is all about creating a sense of urgency by leveraging the fear of missing out (FOMO). The idea is to make your audience feel like they’re on the verge of missing something valuable if they don’t act quickly.

Suggested subject lines

The goal with this subject line is to make the reader feel like they’re about to miss out on something important, but we'll also write it as an open loop by only referring to "this".

• Option 1: "You're about to miss out"

• Option 2: "Don't miss this"

• Option 3: "Can you afford to miss this?"

Email invite body

Remember to include a sequence opt-out link more prominently than your general unsubscribe link. Including it as a P.S. is fine.

Hi [Name],

My free training on [achieving desired outcome]?

You've almost missed it.

Here's the deal:

• You're [experiencing pain point].

• You're probably [making common mistake].

• This training teaches you how to fix that.

But I'm taking it down soon.

What you'll miss:

1. The basic mistake that's almost definitely sabotaging your [unquestioned activity].

2. My (foolproof) step-by-step framework for [achieving desired outcome].

3. How to [achieve desired outcome] even while [external/situational obstacle].

Grab your spot before this disappears:
Save my spot!

Hope to see you on the inside,

– [Name]

P.S. Not interested?
Click here to opt out of these invites.

Email 4: Urgency-based webinar invite

This template is all about creating a sense of immediate urgency. It’s designed to push those who are on the fence to take action right away. We want them to feel the clock ticking.

Suggested subject lines

The goal with this subject line is to imply urgency. Simple.

• Option 1: "Last chance"

• Option 2: "3… 2…"

• Option 3: "This can't wait"

Email invite body

Keep this one brief. We'll use the same points from the previous email but condense it so it's super direct and to the point.

Hi [Name],

This is the last call for my free training on [achieving desired outcome].

In a few hours, it'll be gone.

Which means you'll miss out on:

1. The basic mistake that's almost definitely sabotaging your [unquestioned activity].

2. My (foolproof) step-by-step framework for [achieving desired outcome].

3. How to [achieve desired outcome] even while [external/situational obstacle].

Grab your spot quickly here:
Save my spot!

Hopefully see you very soon,

– [Name]

P.S. Not interested?
Click here to opt out of these invites.