How would you fill this seminar?
I really enjoy speaking in front of groups and doing large scale teaching. I'm a dog trainer and have had opportunities to do so with my own clients in Utah.
More frequently, as of these past few years, I've been hired by people in other states to come in and work with them for a few days to work on more advanced training that is pretty unique in the market. Obviously I have to charge quite a bit for that and most people can't afford it.
I'm looking to do a seminar where I'd come into a city for a few days and work with a ton of dogs and owners. We're currently living in Costa Rica while employees mind the store back in Utah so I've got some time to dedicate to filling a seminar like this. Looking at ticket prices I'd be looking to do this in Dallas, Miami, or Tampa. The problem is, though, I'm worried about putting a date out there, allocating resources in advertising and marketing, nailing down a location, investing in flights and a hotel....and then not being able to get enough people out.
I think I'd price it in the neighborhood of $200 early registration, $250 mid-registration, $300 final registration. I'm thinking of a two day intensive seminar. I would also do upsells of my dog training DVDs, training equipment, and dog food.
I'd love some ideas on how to fill the seminar. In my own brainstorming I've come up with the following methods and the challenges with them and would love any feedback to flesh this idea out:
- PR. I've been fairly successful in the past at getting on TV, radio, and in print for my company. I've never done PR on a deadline but I'm guessing I could get some press for this type of event.
- FB and Google PPC ads. I've never done FB ppc. I've done some Google PPC but I wouldn't say I'm good at it. I'm guessing that this would be the quickest and cheapest way to target dog owners in a certain area, correct?
- Postcards. I'm thinking this could be too expensive? If I did 2500 postcards I'm looking at $1700 in cost, or so, meaning I'd have to sell 6 or so slots to break even. That is a quarter of 1% response rate. I know a lot of people say they look for a 1% response with post cards but I'm nervous about banking on that and shelling out a couple grand.
- I've got an admin assistant in Utah that could devote some time to calling veterinarians and groomers in the area and then sending out posters or promo material. What kind of material would you do? A nice poster? Or take home fliers? Both?
- My own site- Dog Training and Puppy Training Online. I get about 150,000 uniques a month so I've got decent traffic. I could put a peel away ad up top to make people aware of the seminar. Obviously it wouldn't appeal to most as I'd be geo-targeting. I've also got a large list although, admittedly, it's not terribly responsive due to my own ineptitude in list management.
- Take out local ads. I could do ads in local publications like newspapers or magazines. Lead time on magazines is pretty big, though, and it's pretty pricy. I'd have to check and see if there are pet related local mags.
- Craigslist and local classifieds. This would be a given as it's free. Not sure if the response would be great but it's a no-brainer to do it anyways.
Those are the ideas I've come up with. If you were tasked with getting 20-50 people into a seminar like this what would you do?
Thank you.
What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?
Salt Lake City, Utah Dog Training
What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?
Skunkworks: noun. informal.
A clandestine group operating without any external intervention or oversight. Such groups achieve significant breakthroughs rarely discussed in public because they operate "outside the box".
https://short-stuff.com/-Mjk0fDExOA==
Salt Lake City, Utah Dog Training
Salt Lake City, Utah Dog Training
David Alger
Thumbtack Bugle We Get the Word Out
Salt Lake City, Utah Dog Training
What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?
Salt Lake City, Utah Dog Training