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From: "Ken Aitken" <>
Subject: Speakers hosting their own seminars
Date: Fri, 4 Nov 2005 16:14:07 -0600


I have been reading Len Wood's book,
_Profitable Seminars 195 Tips on Designing, Marketing and Delivering the
Goods_
(Rancho Palo Vedes, CA: Training Shoppe, 2002)
and finding it most interesting.

I am aware that some of our members do this, but am curious about just how
many do this.

When I look at how little I really make from speaking at conferences and
workshops across the continent, I figure there's got to be a better way to
do things than depending on $150 per lecture and less speakers fee/s. It
particularly irks me when I see how badly volunteers can screw up things
like publicity, or conference location, making mistakes that others should
have taught them to avoid if there had been real consequences to failure.
Don't get me wrong, volunteers do a wonderful job, but speaking in the same
room, around the same four pillars, on three occasions because no-one
remembered what was wrong with the room from one event to another,
illustrates the point.

So why not take charge of my own roadshow: design the program, do the
research, do the marketing, deliver the program, do it right and take the
profit? I examined my lectures and found several that could be easily
expanded into 2.5 and 3 hour workshops, and several if strung together with
learning activities, case study problems or whatever, would make 6 hour
workshops. But what would I charge to make it work?

How many people pay $79 (or $129 or whatever) for a day of intensive
training on a genealogical subject? How many people would take to make it
work? I was thinking of teaching smaller groups 16 to 25?

Has anyone given any thought to this? Or tried it out? I would be interested
in your thoughts

oh, and by the way, take a look at this book. My library borrowed it for me
from a library in Illinois! Its been worth every page of reading. Great
ideas.

Kenneth G. Aitken
Family History Education Services
Regina, Saskatchewan




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