Could you make more sales by offering a seminar, webinar, or workshop?

Have you considered offering a seminar, webinar or workshop as part of your sales process? Here are a few more questions:

• Is your product or service too complex to explain, in 30 seconds or less,  to a relative who’s not “in the business” at a casual event?
• Do you sometimes lose sales to a competitor that has an inferior product, because your prospects don’t understand your product well enough to make the best decision?
• Is your sales cycle longer than three weeks?

If the answer to any of the above questions is “yes,” then a seminar, webinar, or workshop is probably a great idea. Most consumers for high-tech and high-end products do not know enough about the product or service to make a confident decision.  It is your job to help them. Why? Unlike most forms of marketing, “education-based marketing,” (including seminars, webinars, ebooks and other items) will appeal to a larger percentage of your potential customers than ordinary advertising. Here’s a harsh reality about your potential customers: Of all of the potential customers who have a need for your product or service, it is very likely that:

• 3% are actually actively shopping for a solution (seeking out an option)
• 7% are open to a solution if one presents itself
• 30% are aware of their need, but have not allocated time or budget to solve it.
• 30% are unconscious of the need for your product or service
• 30% have a need but absolutely will not buy (for whatever reason.)

Ordinary marketing, even with very attractive offers and discounts,* is really only effective with the three percent of your potential customers that are actively shopping for a solution at the time they see your ad. Unless your potential customer is actively shopping, your advertisement is likely to go directly to the wastebasket next to their inbox, or the “trash folder” of their email box, or the long list of websites that they have visited once, never to see again. Even if someone is open to making a purchase, if they’re not strongly inclined to make an immediate purchase decision, your ad won’t be important enough for them to take action before it’s lost to the stream of advertising messages that bombard us each day. An educational-based marketing campaign, centered around a seminar or webinar, can be designed to appeal to that additional 67% of your market than an ordinary campaign is designed to reach. A great headline might prompt even a prospect that is unconscious of his immediate need to respond to an educational opportunity.  The important thing is to frame the webinar so that it captures the attention of someone who may not even realize he needs your product or service:

• Three reasons you may regret buying an aircraft without professional representation.
• How tweaking your maintenance program can reduce downtime and make your fleet safer.
• How your company can save thousands on its travel budget (and make your staff happier!)
• How preheating your aircraft allows you to shave precious minutes off launch times and saves you money.

Of course, it’s important to provide excellent, high-value information. Aviation consumers and decision-makers are very smart and particular about how they spend their time. An infomercial or  “pitch-fest” for your product is not likely to be effective. ABCI provides seminar and webinar to our clients and Master Class members to help them create intensely valuable seminars and webinars that make attendees very glad they spent the time, whether they make an immediate purchase or not. And they convert very well. To make it easier for our members to publicize their events, we’re building an Aviation Services Directory. *Note – Novice marketers often try to solve this problem by discounting the price, thinking this will help them acquire more customers.   This is not helpful, because a lower price will probably not appeal to anyone but the three percent of potential customers who don’t yet have a budget and a decision to actively shop for a solution.  Meanwhile discounting the price can undermine your credibility in the marketplace (particularly with customers who just purchased at a higher price! Aviation is a small world.)   Discounting can also reduce the reserves necessary to keep great product quality, customer service, product development and marketing for future customers. We believe that irresponsible discounting has led to the unnecessary demise of many great companies in the aviation industry. } else {.