Kevin's Case Study #1 - Getting people to pre-register

[litekepr]

This one is my favourite too. I think people often just feel a number and not important. So if you take that small amount of time to contact them and make a connection, they feel that they matter to you.

Wendy

I've found that you don't need to make a big deal with most people - a simple and meaningful contact can be a great step in building that relationship. I contact many blog owners and website owners each month and there are two things that really stood out to me-

1 - the number of blog owners who have no way for people to contact them
2 - how few actually respond - not even an "I'm not interested"

Neither of those things are good ways to make a decent impression on others. I'm not even asking for a detailed answer - just click "reply" and say - "I'm not interested". I do a lot of that and it doesn't take a minute.

Shri

[jvprosperity]

kevin,

Here is a post by Seth Godin on the topic of Free. In your case it could be Free Seminar seats are bad!

Seth is holding an internship program and is asking people to apply and submit a fee for it. At the end you get your money back = free.

But he's charging upfront because he believes it changes the dynamics of the relationship.

read more here: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog ... about.html

[ChrisH]

kevin,

Here is a post by Seth Godin on the topic of Free. In your case it could be Free Seminar seats are bad!

Seth is holding an internship program and is asking people to apply and submit a fee for it. At the end you get your money back = free.

But he's charging upfront because he believes it changes the dynamics of the relationship.

read more here: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog ... about.html

There are too many times when people just don't see the true value of something they can get for free. I like the idea f charging up front and then issue a refund once they attend the seminar. I went to a seminar that charged a fee and then they issued a credit voucher for double the registration fee for something each attendee needed.

Chris

[BizLoanz4u]

I read through most of these posts and the first thought that popped into my head Andy already posted. Charge a fee to register, that will be refundable at the end of the seminar. This will ensure they show up and STAY for it.

[jvprosperity]

I'm not sure if ChrisH was referring to this but i'll state it more expicitly ..

Charge upfront and offer a refund of double the value back in "Credit" towards your Product or Service you have for sale at the end of the event.

[ChrisH]

I'm not sure if ChrisH was referring to this but i'll state it more expicitly ..

Charge upfront and offer a refund of double the value back in "Credit" towards your Product or Service you have for sale at the end of the event.

Sorry - that was what I meant - it also creates more value in the seminar and the product. When I do things it is to create interest and value in what I have to offer Thank you for the clarification

Chris

[Kevin Lee]

Hi Kevin - I like that idea.

You could also have them fill out a profile online the deals with the topic at hand and for them to get the results of their survey they need to show up to the event.

How about getting better seats if you pre-register online? Or an extra session with the person delivering the seminar?

In the signup page if you ask them a targeted question and get them more involved they are more likely to come as well. For example if it's on marketing you could ask them to fill out their top 3 marketing challenges. Make it a required field. You may lose a few people who don't want to fill it out but those who do fill it out will be more committed and more likely to come out. It also gives the expert delivering the seminar targeted information to work with at the event.

How about giving them a link from the website so they can promote their business if they actually show up?

Just a few ideas kicking around my head before taking off for the SEO for Africa event. Hope it helps!

Hi Evan,

While I like your idea about answering a question submitted by those who pre-register...where would the distinct benefit be if people who didn't pre-register were also allowed to ask their questions during the Q & A session? Since time is limited, I guess the speaker could give priority to answering the questions of those who pre-registered first??

The idea about getting better seats (or a guaranteed seat) isn't bad either since the size of the conference room may not be able to accommodate all the attendees at times. If all the seats are taken, those who didn't pre-register could be forced to stand against the wall (like when all the seats are taken at Church during Christmas and Easter:).

[Kevin Lee]

The FastTracktoCashflow seminar held in Toronto usually charge a $35 fee and then refund it at the end of the Seminar.

I know this will cost your client the processing fees but a couple of dollars person is nothing compared to the lifetime value that person may become to your clients business.

Hi Andy,

I definitely see your point, but the problem is that these business seminars are being advertised as "free". Moreover, having to enter your credit card info (even if you're refunded later) for anything on the web typically turns away many "would be" participants. For instance, if you see a product at Futureshop or Best Buy that is $100 after a $50 mail in rebate, would you still be enticed to buy it and wait the 6-8 weeks for the cheque in the mail? Or would you just look for a place that sells that same product for $100 with no hassle? Personally, I would opt for "no hassle" since I know that many of these companies are hoping that the customers are too lazy to send in for their rebates

[Kevin Lee]

Hi Kevin,

Do you consider one person to come along from a business? Often an additional business partner can see something quite different at the presentation.

People know people, so how about, if they bring along another business partner or even a client/friend.?

Recently I went to a presentation all day long, had lunch included. When registred, paid like $100, but got it back in an envelope. However, if I cancelled after a certain date, would had to forfeit it.

Regards

Beat

www.wealthtreasures.com

Hi Beat,

From my understanding, these business seminars are open to everyone and no one is turned down even if the number of attendees exceeds the planned seating. This seminar company is sponsored by big companies, so the more attendees the better!

[Kevin Lee]

I'm not sure if ChrisH was referring to this but i'll state it more expicitly ..

Charge upfront and offer a refund of double the value back in "Credit" towards your Product or Service you have for sale at the end of the event.

Sorry - that was what I meant - it also creates more value in the seminar and the product. When I do things it is to create interest and value in what I have to offer Thank you for the clarification

Chris

Hi ChrisH,

The only problem is that this company isn't really selling a product or service, since their seminars are free and they're getting paid by sponsors. However, I guess they could offer credit in the form of 1 hour private business coaching, but that could be overwhelming since their seminars are nationwide across Canada and attendance per seminar can range between 1 person to over 100.

[Kevin Lee]

I would suggest putting yourself in the shoes of your ideal client/attendee. Ask yourself what you would want if you were the attendee.

Hi Tami,

If I were to put myself in the shoes of a seminar attendee, I would want to know who else was going? For instance, there's no guarantee that the business seminar would be interesting or speaker would be helpful. BUT, if I knew that there were going to be other people I wanted to connect with at the event or a friend/existing business contact, it'd surely motivate me brave the cold Toronto weather and 2 hour travel time via public transit (trip there and back from uptown to downtown) to get there.

Those who pre-register should not only be notified/reminded prior to the event (as suggested by Wendy and Louis), but they should be given a list of names and companies who will also be attending.

[Kevin Lee]

Wow! Thanks for the detailed answer Takuya, and I'll be sure to highlight your response to the seminar company. The only problems that I could envision about inviting a guru speaker are a) this company wants to brand its owners and trainers as the "gurus" and b) they offer seminars all across Canada on almost a weekly basis, so it'd be difficult to get that many gurus.

Incentive is nice, but it might draw greater number of attendance if a guru speaker can come. Instead of thanking people for attending, it'll make the seminar to look more of a privilege to attend.

To expand on this point, perhaps they could advertise that seating is limited and notify those who pre-register how many seats are remaining to emphasize how it's a privilege to attend. Moreover, I believe that showing that most of the seats are taken will act as a "call to action" and get others excited about taking part in the event.

I don't know what your friend's budget is, but if you happen to be promoting something real high end, instead of inviting a guru speaker, you could offer Ipod, too.

I believe the sponsors of these seminars include Staples and Bell, so the prizes from their contest draws are already high end items.