Boost Event Attendance: Proven Tips for Effective Host Coaching - TIA

[Miss Cori]

I have a lady who wants to have a show, and it is my chance to get out of the friends and family. What does everyone do to increase attendance besides the regular host coaching stuff. Any tips can help. TIA

 

[chefann]

Offer a gift to each guest who brings a friend who wasn't invited.Mostly, it's just host coaching - making sure the host has a lot of different groups represented. (A host of mine invited mostly church people and there was some sort of crisis the night of her show. Only the non-church friends came. So it's really important to mix up the crowd.)

 

[janetupnorth]

I agree with Ann...prizes for bringing friends...(I give a prize to the friend AND the guest)...that gets them a little motivated...

...and OVER invite...is there such a thing????? Naw, you can NEVER overinvite to a PC party!

Keep emphasizing what she gets from them being there along with upcoming host specials if they book...

 

[KellyTheChef]

Same as above...get them to bring a guest to get something special.
But, something that has increased my attendance by a TON is mailing out the invites myself. Then, I know two things (1) How many they have invited (coach them to get me more names if not enough) and (2) I know that the invites were mailed out 2 weeks before the show. Too many hosts get busy and never get them mailed at all! You can ask to be reimbused for postage, or write it off as a tax deduction. I think I am going to start telling them if they give me 40+ names, I WILL PAY THE POSTAGE, otherwise, they will need to reimburse me. Maybe that will get them to think of lots of people!

 

[beepampered]

Find out about her life and then use that info to suggest people to invite.

"Have you thought of inviting your daughter's dance teacher, your son's soccer mom, your husband's co-worker, how about the neighors you lived near a few years ago?" You can only give such specific suggestions without knowing your host and her lifestyle....

 

[ChefBeckyD]

I read something once - I think it was from Christie Northrup (The Lemonade Lady) To make sure that your host has several (like at least 5) Zip Codes represented in her guest list - Don't know why, but that seemed to stick w/ me, and it seems to be right on....when a host has alot of different ZC's she seems to have a better attendance....

 

[dannyzmom]

A little trick I picked up last year was when I am printing up the invites...instead of mailing it to:

Becky Deemter
123 Main St
Grand Rpids MI

Address it to:

Becky Deemter & Guest
123 Main St
Grand Rapids MI

seems people are more compelled to being a friend when it appears assumed that they will. See, Dad??? All that $$ you spent sending me to college & grad school to get my psychology degrees is finally paying off!!

 

[ChefBeckyD]

A little trick I picked up last year was when I am printing up the invites...instead of mailing it to:Becky Deemter
123 Main St
Grand Rpids MIAddress it to:Becky Deemter & Guest
123 Main St
Grand Rapids MIseems people are more compelled to being a friend when it appears assumed that they will. See, Dad??? All that $$ you spent sending me to college & grad school to get my psychology degrees is finally paying off!!

Hey Carolyn - at first glance I thought you were inviting me to a show!(I address my invites this way too....one of the many reasons I like to send them out myself!)

 

[DebbieSAChef]

Wish list

I have a lady who wants to have a show, and it is my chance to get out of the friends and family. What does everyone do to increase attendance besides the regular host coaching stuff. Any tips can help. TIA

I really think it's very helpful to get the host to make a wish list. That way she can aim high and earn as many of those items on her list for FREE.
Encourage her to ask as many people as she knows who she might not have invited to anything else before or hasn't even had over yet. This is a good way to meet them and have them in your house (neighbors, teachers, hair dresser, secretary at dental/doctor office, etc..in addition to friends and family).
Also the prize thing is a great idea. You can give her the sheet with the boxes that she can fill in to win something for herself. An 8 * 11 sheet of paper with about 16 or 20 squares, however many you want, each square contains a description of someone to invite to the show:
Pregnant woman
Person who has four or more kids
Person who lives in a two story house
Person who drives a minivan
You can make them up and have her find the people to invite. If she gets them all you give her a prize. I have had hosts actually fill them all up and I gave them a $20 item (of course you put it under their host order and get up to a 30% discount). Or have them choose from gifts you already have.

Just some ideas
Debbie

 

[pamperedinAlaska]

Now that sounds fun!!

I really think it's very helpful to get the host to make a wish list. That way she can aim high and earn as many of those items on her list for FREE.
Encourage her to ask as many people as she knows who she might not have invited to anything else before or hasn't even had over yet. This is a good way to meet them and have them in your house (neighbors, teachers, hair dresser, secretary at dental/doctor office, etc..in addition to friends and family).
Also the prize thing is a great idea. You can give her the sheet with the boxes that she can fill in to win something for herself. An 8 * 11 sheet of paper with about 16 or 20 squares, however many you want, each square contains a description of someone to invite to the show:
Pregnant woman
Person who has four or more kids
Person who lives in a two story house
Person who drives a minivan
You can make them up and have her find the people to invite. If she gets them all you give her a prize. I have had hosts actually fill them all up and I gave them a $20 item (of course you put it under their host order and get up to a 30% discount). Or have them choose from gifts you already have.

Just some ideas
Debbie

Great idea Debbie...it's like a scavenger hunt!

 

[PCGINA]

I second that!! GREAT idea Debbie...

I also like Carolyn's idea of printing guest on invite...

 

[Brandie]

Loved this ideaI just loved this idea--here's the flyer I came up with!

 

[ChefBeckyD]

Brandie!

Thanks for doing that!
True confession: I am an editor at heart.... So I took your wonderful scavenger hunt, and just cleaned up some typo's - here it is after I edited:

 

[tlennhoff]

And I just had to PDF it for those that don't have word.

 

[Brandie]

Thanks for the editing--as a former English teacher, you would think I would have edited it myself before posting it! I was just so darned excited!!!

 

[lacychef]

Same as above...get them to bring a guest to get something special.
But, something that has increased my attendance by a TON is mailing out the invites myself. Then, I know two things (1) How many they have invited (coach them to get me more names if not enough) and (2) I know that the invites were mailed out 2 weeks before the show. Too many hosts get busy and never get them mailed at all! You can ask to be reimbused for postage, or write it off as a tax deduction. I think I am going to start telling them if they give me 40+ names, I WILL PAY THE POSTAGE, otherwise, they will need to reimburse me. Maybe that will get them to think of lots of people!

I totally agree with this.
I like your idea of reimbursing if they don't have 40 names; I currently just pay for postage...
of course by doing this method, I haven't had too many under 40 for awhile

 

[klsnyder]

A little trick I picked up last year was when I am printing up the invites...instead of mailing it to:

Becky Deemter
123 Main St
Grand Rpids MI

Address it to:

Becky Deemter & Guest
123 Main St
Grand Rapids MI

seems people are more compelled to being a friend when it appears assumed that they will. See, Dad??? All that $$ you spent sending me to college & grad school to get my psychology degrees is finally paying off!!

I love this idea...I am gonna start using it TODAY!!!