9 Must Have Elements in Your Seminar Marketing

After 12 years of promoting seminars, I've identified 9 nthings that you absolutely must have in place to properlynpromote your events.

1 -- A multi-channel marketing plan that spells out what nyou need to do each week to promote your seminar.

If you don't have this in place, you know what happens?
You make it up as you go along. Then you get busy with nlife, developing your content, or a million other nthings ... and all of sudden it's been 3 weeks since you nlast sent out a promo. Or you rush to toss something ntogether ... and your mediocre effort produces mediocre nresults.

Developing a plan increases the likelihood that you'llncontact prospects frequently enough about your event andndevelop a solid message that you can carry through fromnpiece to piece.

Plus, having a written plan means you can delegate nimplementation of the plan to someone else!

2 -- A foundational marketing piece to promote your nseminar -- such as a salesletter, copy for your ndirect-response web site, or even a brochure.

Developing one piece that contains EVERY detail needed nto sell your event is a great idea for a few reasons.
First, it's like having a salesperson on your staff that nyou can refer prospects to 24/7. When prospects have neverything they need to make a buying decision, they nwon't put off registration until they're able to get nmore information from you.

Also, developing this comprehensive piece makes it neasier to create supplementary marketing materials.
All you have to do is lift chunks of copy from your nsalesletter and then polish the transitions.

3 -- One or more follow-up marketing tools to continue npromoting your seminar.

You'll see the best results from your marketing if younnotify prospects about your event more than once. The neasiest way to follow-up is to simply re-mail the first npromotional piece (e.g., a brochure). But modifying nyour copy and/or type of follow-up piece can produce nbig bumps in your response rates. For example, after nsending a salesletter, send a postcard that warns of nan impending registration deadline.

4 -- A plan for building your database of qualified nprospects

When marketing a seminar, the people in your database nare your very best prospects, because they already know nyou. Building your list is almost as important as nmarketing your seminar ... and this activity deserves nits own plan.

5 -- At least one marketing piece designed to build nyour opt-in list

Most people invite website visitors to join their nmailing list. If you want to maximize the growth of nyour database, you should also actively market the nopportunity.

6 -- A system for capturing and keeping seminar nregistrations to prevent last-minute cancellations

After registering for a seminar, many people are hit nwith a case of buyer's regret. If you're not staying nin touch with registrants after they sign up, they might nsee red flags warning them to stay away from your event.
At the very least, be sure to confirm registration nwithin 2 business days ... immediately if possible.

7 -- A system for tracking all of your responses, so nyou gather the data you need to make educated decisions nabout your marketing for future seminars.

Most new promoters have questions like "How can I tell nif I'll get enough registrations to run my seminar?"
"Will this promotion really be worth the effort?" "How nmany times do I need to contact a prospect to get them nto sign up?" Although there are general rules of event nmarketing that you can follow when getting started ... nyou will need to discover what works for YOUR audience nand YOUR seminar specifically. Tracking results is how nyou gather the data you need to answer these questions.

8 -- A plan for capturing testimonials and valuable nfeedback from seminar attendees.

Testimonials are one of the most powerful marketing toolsnat your disposal. But if you don't have a plan in place nbefore your seminar, chances are good that you won't ncapture as many testimonials as you could if you were nprepared ... and the ones you do get will be bland.

9 -- A plan for staying in touch with prospects and past nseminar attendees throughout the year

Getting someone on your list isn't enough. You have to nkeep your name and expertise in front of your growing nlist if you want to remain relevant ... and if you want nto increase the likelihood that people on your list will nwant to attend your future events.

As with your list building and seminar marketing activities,nhaving a written plan makes you more accountable -- and nenables you to outsource this portion of your marketing.

So ... here's the question of the day: Do you have all of nthese elements in place?