Hosting a live event can scare the pants off many entrepreneurs! I know that – I hear it all the time. But what I also know for sure is that by hosting a live event, entrepreneurs can grow their business in record time.
Why would you even consider doing this? You would want to becauseyou can leverage your time, attract a large audience, generate a great amount of revenue which can set you up for the year, have fun, get lots of exposure and get your information out to many people at one time.
Hosting a live event ‘takes a village’ though because it is not typically the area of expertise of every entrepreneur. And you don’t necessarily want to start off by hosting a large 3-day affair either. I started small – by offering half-day workshops and have grown my business to a stage where we now host 3-day events annually (along with the half-day and full day workshops leading up to this).
HERE’S WHAT I KNOW FOR SURE WHEN IT COMES TO HOSTING A LIVE EVENT:
- GET YOUR TEAM TOGETHER
It does take a village. In the beginning, even with half-day events, it’s important to have support in the areas of administration, graphics design, registration support, and help with logistics. As you grow the business, it is critical to hire an event management company – who will work with you on hiring an audio-visual team, a videography team – and it continues through to photographers, make-up artists, hairdressers, graphics team, your own support team and so on and so on.
- HAVE A PLAN
This may sound simplistic – but I’m talking about all the details here – from setting the date, finding the location, creating your vision/theme, having your team in place and sharing the vision with them, get your finances in order (at least a year in advance), get hotel contracts signed (at least a year in advance, too), identify your revenue target, create your marketing plan and mapping it all out so everyone knows roles and responsibilities. This is the same process whether you are hosting a one-day workshop or a large 3-day event.
- CREATE YOUR CONTENT
Most entrepreneurs already have a ton of content ……in their head! There is no better time to get your intellectual property out of your head and into a workbook format than when you are planning a live event. And many entrepreneurs really under estimate the time it takes for that transfer of knowledge to happen! That is one reason that I go into seclusion, quite a few weeks in advance of my events, to get the content pulled together and the workbook created. Once that is done, phew! On to the marketing to attract the ideal audience.
- GOAL-SET THROUGH ……
I remember after my first big 3-day event in Toronto a few years ago, many people asked if I was going to take a vacation. Well, I certainly felt like I deserved one because hosting a large event is no small feat! It takes everything you’ve got! But, it is critical to goal-set through the event – THAT is when a lot of the action takes place! That is a critical point in the sales cycle. Goal set through for you and with your team to create a time frame of what will happen, who will handle it, what do you want to accomplish and ensure that communication is at its best!
Hosting live events is an amazing way to grow your business, generate lots of revenue and share your content with a large audience. It is a smart way to leverage your time and your information.
HAVE YOU HOSTED A LIVE EVENT YET? TELL ME ABOUT IT …..
Please share your thoughts!
