Have you been thinking about creating your own event? Maybe something that allows you to be in front of your clients and gives you the opportunity to speak. I think that is a great idea. Speaking is a great way to create more credibility and trust with your audience and the people that follow you. Here are some basic tips that you will need to think about when creating your event.

Why are you hosting this event?

What is the purpose for you to host this event? Are you hoping to fill your list, are you selling a product or a book, do you want more clients in your service business? You need to know what your outcome of the event is going to be. This is the key knowing what you will offer and who to invite.

Example – Practice:

When I started speaking I simply wanted more opportunity to get better at it. I created a few 1/2 day events where I could hone the language around my expertise and my products and services. If you don’t want to come across as a ‘pushy sales person’ you need to also create the language that tells people you really want to help them. You want it to feel natural and genuine so this invitation doesn’t feel sleazy. Practicing with the right crowd will definitely make this easier.  The people that want your help will be grateful.

Other reasons:

• Use the content to create a product
• Invite people to a bigger event
• Sell a product or service
• Increase your list of contacts
• Increase your influence, credibility, and expert-level
• Offer additional customer support to your best clients

What Type of Venue?

You will need to know your target market well enough to understand what type of venue they will most likely be attracted to for this type of event. For some events the place will not matter, for others it will be critical. Just a simple business meeting atmosphere is affected by whether it is held in a loud restaurant or a private room with service. You get to decide the learning atmosphere you want you participants to be in.

Items that will affect your choice:

• cost (will you recuperate the cost if it is expensive or do you need to?)
• event length (do you need refreshments, meals, accommodations)
• size (number of expected attendees, seating arrangements)
• amenities
• presentation technology (projector, computer, connectors)
• flip chart
• Smart board
• phone systems or conference ability
• tables for group work,
• internet
• setup provided
• parking

Related Article on Creating an Event

What to Present?

Once you know why you are creating this event and where you want to host it you can then create the event content. This may seem backwards to you but if you are hoping to sell something at the end and your event does not lead into that product or service then there will be a disconnect between the need and the offer. If presented well people will need more of what you have just been offering. So start with the end in mind and work backwards to create your talk topic.

I hope your next event is a huge success. Next week I want to talk about how to plan the marketing for your upcoming event.

If you have other items you know you have needed to create an event in the past please let us know below in the comments.