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Seminar leaders and promoters who make most of their revenue via back-of-the-room sales often don’t care how much they make on ticket sales. Their primary goal is to get bodies in the room, no matter what it takes.

If that describes your marketing goals, one way to instantly boost attendance is to give away a free seat with every paid registration. Likewise, if you know that participants are more likely to implement the information and skills you teach them if they attend with a team of co-workers, their boss or even their spouse, giving away a free seat with each paid registration can make sense. It allows them to easily create a relationship with an accountability buddy who will help them follow through on implementing all they learn at your event.

This tactic works especially well if you’re marketing to entrepreneurs and small businesses or if you’re marketing a high-priced event – a $1,500 seminar suddenly looks like a much better deal if you know that you can bring your spouse, a co-worker or even a client with you to the event.

But note that how you phrase your offer can make a big difference in how it’s perceived by prospective attendees.

Let’s say you’re charging $500 per head for your seminar. You could say “When you sign up for this seminar, you get to bring a guest for free. That’s a $500 value … yours absolutely free as a thank you for registering.”

Or you could say “Two tickets to this event are available for the special price of just $500.”

With the first offer, the extra seat is positioned as a gift. Attendees can use this valuable bonus as justification for registering. Plus, you’re perceived as being generous.

The second offer is too vague. What if a prospective attendee doesn’t have anyone they’d like to bring? As stated, the offer tells these folks, “Sorry, you have to buy two seats – that’s the only ticket package we offer.” You might have a chance to save the sale, IF a prospect calls to inquire about single-ticket pricing and you give him/her a seat for $250. But recognize that most prospects won’t be motivated enough to pick up the phone to ask.

Offering free tickets to your seminar is an easy way to fill extra seats. Be careful in how you position the offer, so that it is perceived as a bonus gift, rather than misinterpreted as a way to squeeze more money from participants.