The Skinny on Hosting a Low Cost Workshop

Years back when I first started in sales I used to work for an insurance company selling coverage to Medicare recipients.

Understanding that the elderly wanted to be well educated about their insurance buying decisions my company set up and promoted weekly workshops at various times and locations throughout the state.

For me it was a sales person’s dream. The marketing was done, the location was set, all I needed to do was show up, host my presentation and close the sale.

Why do workshops work so well? Because they’re one of the best ways to educate and connect at the same time.

Now that I’m an online business owner I love incorporating hosting live events into my marketing plan as well. Even though I love hosting webinars and teleseminars, I think there’s nothing better than making an in person connection.

Since I’ve hosted many before and feel comfortable doing them, I’m really not afraid to tackle them. But when I suggest them to clients they often ask me what are the best ways to pull them off.

So let’s cover one of the biggest challenges, cost.

Workshops don’t have to be expensive. In fact if you’re just starting out I beg of you not to host a massively expensive event. You may not get the return back on your investment.
Instead, here are three ways to host a low cost one day workshop:

1. Host Your Event in Your HomeThink about how easy it would be to invite 20 people to your home. Host a presentation, offer snacks and beverages and give them an opportunity to learn more about you and what it is you offer. It’s been done for years in a variety of businesses. Think about how cheap this can be, maybe you pay someone to clean your house and supply the snacks and beverages. It’s quite possible you could do this for under $150.
2. Host an Event at Your Local Library There’s nothing wrong with using free resources. The library is a perfect example. Simply make sure you adhere by the guidelines. Get their early to clean the space and leave it in better shape than when you arrived. If you’re able to provide snacks and beverages you can host this for under $150 as well.
3. Find an Inexpensive Meeting Room I’m fortunate to have found a meeting space in a smaller, privately owned hotel.
   My upcoming Talk Design Workshop is being held there. They love getting my business and because I host so many events with them they often give me great deals. You can host an event where you have them cater a continental breakfast or provide snacks and drinks. I’ve done this plenty of times where the cost of attendance has more than made up for the room and snack and beverage costs.

The point I’m trying to make is that you can easily host a low cost workshop and easily set it up to make back much more in sales.

If you’d like to see a one day workshop in action then feel free to check out the one I’m hosting on April 24, 2015. Just click the link here.

In the comments below, I’d love to hear from you. Have you ever hosted an event? How did it go? What would you differently next time? If you haven’t and want to, what keeps you from doing it?

Ready to learn how to design a profitable talk? Join me for The Talk Design Workshop. Click the image below to learn more.