When you run a course you want people to turn up already looking forward to it and feeling positive about it. So what can you do beforehand to make sure this happens?
You need to build up expectations by letting people know what the course is about and what it will do for them.
Tip 1.
Think of an interesting title for your course.
Instead of just calling it, ” Time Management “, call it ” How To Save An Hour A Day ”
Instead of, ” Health And Safety “, call it ” 10 Ways To Avoid Killing Yourself At Work “
Tip 2.
Send people information about the course in advance.
And I don’t mean the usual admin, the ” Joining Instructions ” which just tell people they are booked on a course, where it is, what expense code to charge it to and how much their office will be fined if they don’t turn up.
I mean send them a taster, some helpful information from the course material, a few tips they can try out.
Stress the benefits of attending. Tell them what they will get from the course and how it will help them.
Make sure the materials themselves are colourful and easy to read.
You could also add a link to a website where you show more information, even an audio or video clip where you welcome them and tell them more about the course.
This is basically marketing. It’s particularly important if you are an internal trainer organising courses and you need people to sign up for them. You can’t just send out a brief description with a boring title and expect people to flock to it.
And, once they have signed up, you then need to do this to create some buzz about the course before they come.
Tip 3.
Send out pre – course questionnaires to ask people what they want to get from the course.
This can help you find out vital information about the people who are coming. But it also shows them that you are interested in them and that you want them to benefit from the training. This in itself will make them feel more positive towards you and the course.
It also allows you to start a bit of a dialogue with people. When they return the questionnaires, you can send them an email back thanking them for taking the time and telling them ( again ) how much they will enjoy the course and how much they will learn from it.
Tip 4.
If the people who are coming don’t know you, why not send some personal information with the pre – course material? Send them a picture so they know what you look like, tell them a bit about your background and why you are delivering the training. It doesn’t have to be like something you would send to a dating agency, just something which will introduce you and break the ice a little before people meet you.
If it’s written in an informal way, it will encourage people to think that they might actually enjoy the training and it won’t all be deadly serious.
So these are just a few of the ways in which you can build positive expectations and excitement before a course. It doesn’t seem all that much to do but, in my experience, it’s far more than most people do to try to promote their courses in a positive way.
