Add Referrals To Your Educational Events By Bill Cates

Conducting educational seminars can often be an effective method of
acquiring new clients. By conducting these events, you position yourself as
an expert in your industry. People tend to trust people who teach them. And
trust, as you know, is a critical ingredient in getting someone to commit to
doing business with you.

Many of your clients who may be reluctant to give you referrals in the
traditional way, may be perfectly willing to give you names and addresses of
their friends and/or colleagues to invite to your seminars. If they like you
and your work, this is usually a very easy referral for them to give.

To take this idea a step further, you can ask some of your satisfied clients
to send letters to their friends and colleagues endorsing your seminars. You
offer to pay for everything (letterhead, envelopes, and postage). They write
a letter urging their friends and/or colleagues to attend your seminar. In
with their letter can be your invitation. Or the letter can foreshadow the
invitation that will be “coming in the mail soon.” Either way, you
leverage the trust your clients have with their friends and colleagues. If
your clients are likely to be attending your seminar, they should state that
in their letter (“Hope to see you there.”)

Collect Referrals at Your Seminars

Here’s a real-world example of how I coached a top producer who wanted to
leverage his seminar programs.
Michael Flanagan hosts about 8 seminars per year. Before we worked together
on a referral program, he was getting people to attend in two primary ways:
1) through direct mail, and 2) through his weekly radio show on personal
finance. Since he had to pay for the radio air time, and since direct mail
can be rather expensive (though worth it if it produces the desired results),
his cost per lead was very high. I suggested that if he added the element of
referrals to this process, his cost per lead would drop significantly. And
his seminar program would become more profitable immediately.
We printed special invitations that were made available to all his seminar
attendees. These special invitations were to be given free to anyone they
thought should experience Michael's powerful ideas.
The success was overwhelming. People asked for two or three. They called in
later to have others sent to their friends, colleagues, and family members.
The percentage of his attendance went from 10% referral-based to over 40%
referral-based, making his business significantly more profitable.

When Do You Bring Up Referrals at a Seminar?

With about 5-10 minutes left in the seminar – after you’ve given them
some important things for them to think about – ask them what about the
program they found valuable. If you have them discuss it briefly with a
partner first, they’ll be more inclined to share it with the group. Then
say something like, “I’m glad so many of you found value in this program.
That was my goal. As we went through the material this evening, you
probably thought of others who should have been here. True? Well, you can
give them a gift. You can let them know about this valuable program.
“We have special invitations for our next seminar – next month – that
you can hand deliver or mail to people you think should hear what we have to
say. If you have their addresses with you, we’d be happy to take care of
the postage. Just be sure to write a personal note somewhere on the
invitation so they know it’s from you. Kathy – wave Kathy – has as
many invitations as you’d like, just see her as you leave.”
If you’re hosting seminars and not leveraging them for referrals, you’re
clearly leaving money on the table!


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