Do you feel this way about internet marketing seminars? That you pay up to $5000, spend a bunch of money on plane tickets, hotel rooms, food, and possibly even extra child care – then find yourself being sold to every 90 minutes by somebody new?

I know I feel that way a lot of times when I go to a seminar, although I’ll tell you that I never let that get to me, or prevent me from having a life changing experience every single time I travel.

Going to a seminar or a workshop is an incredible experience as a student of internet marketing. Most importantly, it’s a chance to meet people face to face that you’ve been talking to online for a while. It’s a great way to meet the mentors, your forum buddies, and your customers/subscribers (even if you just have a few, it’s a big ego boost when one of them comes up to you and thanks you for what you do!).

I enjoy hearing the speakers, too, even when they are ultimately trying to sell me something. This is because I want to watch and learn how they do it – how do they capture the attention of 400+ people, provide them with what they came to hear and continue that relationship after the seminar with ongoing education. It’s really not about the money for me, but being able to wipe out my debt in 90 minutes would feel pretty awesome.

Of course I am not so naive or blindfolded to believe that every speaker does what they say they will do, that there are never any refunds afterwards, or anything like that. And I certainly have my BS meter on whenever I’m in a room where a pitch is going to be made.

So how do you know when a seminar is going to be a pitch fest? And so what if it is?

Well, first of all, if the ticket to attend is less than $1000, then the seminar organizers are relying on “during event” sales to make their profits. Even seminars over that amount can turn into pitchfests, too, but it’s especially likely if the cost of entry is low.

If you go to an event that’s $100 to get in for 3 days, and there are 15 speakers, you can bet that you will see at least 15 sales pitches and plenty of vendor booths. If this upsets you, I must tell you that you likely aren’t going to get very far in business – expecting organizers to put on a seminar without a profit motive would be like expecting you to work a 9-5 without getting paid what you are worth. Oh wait, you may already be doing that… :)

The question though becomes, should you let a “pitchfest atmosphere” stop you from going? Of course not.

I like to go to seminars because I get to meet new people, see a new city (at least from the hotel window), and clear my head a bit from the day to day grind of sitting at the computer. For example, when I drove 10 hours to Orlando last month for Strategic Profits Live, I met a couple of fitness guys, filmed a few segments for my new blog (Fit Money Makers – With Scott Tousignant), and helped several people get clarity for their businesses.

I drove 8 hours back with one of my clients (saving her over $5000) and received great feedback on my products and services while helping her understand why her hobby is likely a better business for her long term success and happiness than her original plans.

On several occasions I met up with a seminar promoter from Australia who gave me some great ideas for my business (even though he didn’t like “Bob The Teacher” as a brand), conversations which could eventually lead to my first trip Down Under in 2009.

Spending time with my mentors, like Mike Filsaime and Jeff Walker, provided me with some insider info that few people know about this far in advance (the new PayDotCom is going to be sweet for instance, not to mention Product Launch Formula 2!).

As for the pitch fest itself – well, I look at my finances before I leave my house, and I set a budget for what I can comfortably spend on any of the big ticket packages I might be tempted by later on. So far, my budget has been $0 each and every time (5 seminars now), and I’ve held to that every time. Of course, during two of The Internet Marketing Main Events, I did give to charity (breast cancer one year, microfinancing the second) but that’s not quite the same.

So what does this rant have to do with you?

Well, first I’d like to know what you enjoy about seminars and workshops. Hit the comments below with your impressions of your favorite seminar, or a great story of meeting people who affected your business positively.

Second, I’d like to get your opinion on the workshop I am putting together later in the summer – the 2008 IM Success Workshop for up to 30 people. I’ve created a quick survey for you to tell me exactly what you’d like to see in a “perfect” workshop so I can customize it to make it a killer event.

Can you do that for me? Click here to tell me what your perfect workshop would look like.

I appreciate the ideas and suggestions, and look forward to reading what you have to say, even if you think you would not be able to spend time with me teaching you about growing your business this summer.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts, and for reading my latest rant!

Bob Jenkins

p.s. If you aren’t able to travel to a seminar or workshop, please look for an email from me on Monday about my next “virtual workshop” on creating your own profitable teleseminars.

p.p.s. Be sure to leave your seminar/workshop story below – but complete my workshop survey now so I get your answers to very specific questions to help make the 2008 IM Success Workshop a stellar event.

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