Investing Seminar

Flip through the newspaper these days and you will find advertisements with the words ‘money’, ‘wealth’, ‘rich’, ‘million’, ‘debt-free’, ‘financially freedom’ or ‘retire early’ printed in big, bold letters.

When it comes to talking about how to invest and make more money, there is practically any topic that can be held at a seminar. Topics range from options trading, property investment, forex trading or stock market investments.

To understand why the seminar circuit seems flooded with audiences, just put the numbers together. Say, the price of a seminar is $4,000. At $4,000 per registrant, 100 participants will ring up $400,000 for the organizers over a three or four day period.

However, few people will pay over $3,000 for a seminar without seeing what’s in store. So, you have the free or low-priced previews, most of which last for two to three hours. Industry players note that, actually participants of the seminar will pay for the freebie previews and advertisements, which are factored into the seminar price.

While seminars may be a quick and condensed way to obtain training and information about investing, there is also a wealth of information available at a cheaper price in good old books. With authors becoming speakers like Robert Kiyosaki, there may be some redundancy for those who have read the speakers’ books, but most of the materials in the seminars are new.

Most books are diluted. Authors don’t want to get themselves into trouble, so they avoid stating certain things in print. However, you can make certain points in seminars. There are also additional benefits such as networking and gaining membership in an investment community for participants at his seminars.

Attending seminars cuts the learning curve tremendously and it may be more effective than reading a book. The three-dimensional approach in a seminar as opposed to reading books or listening to an audio tape may work out best for certain people. You may read something but the experience is different when you hear the speaker saying it with conviction.

Since one has to pay so much money, one has to select wisely the right investing seminar to attend. With so many seminars out there, how do you know which one is right for you? It’s important to do research on the speaker and the seminar because just about anyone can hold a seminar. A good way to find out the credibility of the seminar and its organizer is to ask around. Talk to past graduates and the organizer should be able to give you some references.

The seminar should contain aspects you can relate to and apply to your situation. Some investing strategies that work well in the US cannot be applied in other countries because of different tax laws or certain products that aren’t available.

Another important aspect to look into is the speaker’s profile. Often, the speaker advises based on his past experience and accomplishments but anyone can make a claim to being rich and then hold a seminar. Therefore, find out who the speaker is and if necessary, ask for proof.

It’s also important to do research on the subject of the seminar. Advertisements would normally paint a pretty picture but does the investment vehicle suit your risk profile? Investors should be cautious of advertisements and seminars promising high or guaranteed returns. Such claims are likely to be misleading as every investment comes with some degree of risk.

Normally, you wouldn’t know the contents of a seminar because organizers wouldn’t give the game away like that. What if the contents fall short of expectation? For some seminars, there is a money-back satisfaction guarantee. However, just going to seminars itself doesn’t make a difference. You must apply what you have learnt.

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to