How to Use a Free Workshop to Grow Your Business Part 4 of 4

This article is all about maximizing your return on investment (an investment of your time and effort) in planning and executing a successful free workshop or presentation.

One of the caveats of hosting a free event is that you can't count on everyone who registers to actually show up for the date of your event. The statistics seem to vary depending on industry and type of event, but generally speaking, anywhere from 30% to 50% of all free presentation registrants typically attend the event for which they've registered. In other words, it's important not to get too excited if you have 100 people register for your event, because only about 30 to 50 will actually show (according to generalized historical data). Using the ideas from the last installment can help ensure that you maximize attendance from your registrants, and here is a somewhat "advanced" strategy to boost your attendance.

Upsell a Workbook or Similar Relevant Product

This approach requires a bit of preparation beforehand, but it can be well worth the extra effort. You can make your event free, and upon registration, participants can choose to purchase an optional workbook (or something else of value, related specifically to the event. For example, a DVD or CD of the video / audio from the event itself, that they can refer back to at a later time). This can provide you with some income to help offset your costs, as well as incentivizing people to show up on the day of the event (to claim what they've purchased).

To create a sense of urgency, state in your registration process or paperwork that this workbook (etc.) will sell for $___ (a price at least double that of the registration pre-purchase) on the day of the event. For example, you can sell a "comprehensive workbook" that covers everything you plan to cover in your presentation, plus exercises, fill-in-the-blank guides for your key talking points, contact information, a list of helpful resources, etc. for $10 prior to the event and $25 the day of the event.

The purpose the workbook is multi-fold. First, when people are paying for something (like a workbook) that they won't receive until the day of the event, they are more likely to attend to get what they paid for. Secondly, the pre-sale of a workbook gives you a pretty good idea of how many folks will attend (as well as how many workbooks you should have printed). Third, the pre-sale of workbooks provides you with some income to help offset your costs (printing the workbooks, renting a projector, providing snacks if you so choose, etc.) Fourth, the workbook keeps people engaged during your presentation, which makes them much more likely to retain and understand the material you're presenting. Finally, they can walk away from the event with something of value, which builds trust in you and may help you win their business.

Collect Information and Follow up with Everyone

At your event, post a sign-in sheet and give folks a way to sign up for your newsletter or mailing list. Put out your business cards and collect theirs. It's not enough to just collect information, you've got to follow through by following up with everyone who attends. In this way, you can close more sales, grow your business, and truly make your free workshop a success.