By now you’re probably familiar with webinars and teleseminars. A webinar is an event conducted on a computer, which typically shows slides or a visual demonstration to attendees. A teleseminar is conducted by phone, where participants dial in to a conference line and listen to the host either present some kind of material or interview a guest (similar to a radio show).

There are two primary ways to benefit from hosting these types of events. First, when you host them for free, you can require registration and collect email addresses from attendees. This can be an effective way to build a mailing list and a following at the same time. You can also charge for access to your events.

Some authors host teleseminars or webinars on a monthly or weekly basis, while others host them periodically when they have something new to promote. You are not bound by any schedule and can decide for yourself how often you want to host these. But with each new event that you host, you create something new to promote to your audience and beyond, with one of the goals being to entice new attendees to participate and introduce them to what you do. For many coaches and consultants, hosting regular events is a primary way they attract new clients.

You can also go beyond the one-time event, and conduct a series or a class. Over the years I have used the teleseminar format to teach courses that lasted from three to six weeks (one event per week). When I conduct training courses like this, I give a lecture and assign homework to participants. They also receive the recording after the event. These events become a revenue stream, and participants pay from $99 to $299 depending on the content. Once a course is completed, it also becomes a product you can later sell in digital download format.

You can also use either the teleseminar or webinar formats to host an entire online conference. Since 2010, I have hosted the Nonfiction Writers Conference (http://nonfictionwritersconference.com), a virtual event conducted via teleseminar with 15 speakers over three days. Participants purchase access to the conference and can attend from anywhere in the world. If your industry doesn’t yet have an online conference, why not start your own?

Tools for Hosting Webinars and Teleseminars

Go To Meeting, for webinars: http://gotomeeting.com

Instant Teleseminar, for teleseminars and webinars (my favorite choice): http://instantteleseminar.com

Free Conference, for teleseminars: http://freeconference.com

EventBrite, manage event registration: http://eventbrite.com