What will I be doing?

People profit from learning. If you have knowledge that others can profit from, consider offering a seminar service. If not, produce seminars that employ experts.

A seminar service designs, produces, coordinates and markets seminars on specific topics of value to others. If your expertise is in childcare, for example, produce a short seminar for parents or those who work in the profession. Or hire an expert to teach in a seminar you produce.

There are many good opportunities to teach and to earn an attractive income with a seminar service.

What will I need to start?

To start a seminar service you first need to have some knowledge to offer—then you need to identify a group who will benefit from that knowledge. It may be in a field where you are an expert or it may be one in which you have an interest. You will then organize the information for use by others and present it to them in a way that helps them retain it.

You will also need a meeting place. Some cities have popular seminar meeting sites either in a convention center or at a popular hotel. Others hold seminars at schools or colleges. You’ll need to identify and learn about renting such a site.

You will also need to reach potential customers of your seminars. This may be through newspaper advertisements and publicity or by contacting local business associations.

Who will my customers be?

Your customers will be those who will benefit from what you have to teach. In many cases, the greatest benefits are to those who financially profit from your knowledge, such as businesses or investors. They can make money with knowledge so they will pay more for that knowledge than someone who only gets pleasure from your knowledge.

A professional writer may offer a seminar to would-be writers. A security consultant can offer seminars on improving home security or on alarm installation. An experienced truck driver may offer a seminar on how to drive to stay alive. Define your topic and your best customers.

How much should I charge?

Seminar fees are $35 to $80 an hour, priced by the value of the seminar, time and competition. Of course, the cost is split among all attendees. For example, a seminar that requires 16 hours of preparation and four hours of teaching at $40 an hour has a cost of $800. If split among 50 attendees, the price per attendee is $16. Add snacks and beverage service, room rental and a factor for no-shows, and your seminar fee may be $30 per person.

How much will I make?

Most of your time will be billable to one seminar or another. Overhead costs range from 15 to 45 percent depending on whether you’re including travel expenses and need expensive advertising.

Some seminars reduce costs by negotiating a percentage rental fee for the meeting site. A hotel may agree to free rental of a conference room in exchange for 10 percent of the seminar fees collected. Another may offer the room free if the seminar brings in 10 or more overnight guests.

Your actual income from this venture depends so much on your ability to organize and market. The range is $25,000 to $100,000 a year, but it can go even higher once you’ve developed your reputation as the producer of valuable seminars.

How can I get started?

The first step to starting a successful seminar service is to learn from the successes of others. If you haven’t already done so, attend various seminars in your area. Study how the seminar is organized and conducted. Calculate estimated costs and income from fees to estimate whether it is profitable. Decide how you would do it better.

Then try organizing your own seminar through local community colleges or adult education resources. The administrator may help you plan and market the seminar. Keep lots of notes. Learn from failures. Do better.

How can I use computers to increase profits?

Seminars are typically promoted with mailers or brochures sent to a specific group of potential attendees. Computer software and the Internet can help you design and write the mailer, find valuable mailing lists, and even print the address labels for the mailers. In addition, you can promote your seminars using your own web page.