How to Prepare a Marriage Seminar

A marriage seminar provides a couple with much needed information to rekindle their marriage and/or become aware of problem areas. As a presenter, getting ready to address an audience filled with couples wanting to improve their life together is no easy task. Knowing this makes the preparation stage of the marriage seminar even more vital. It is during this stage that the foundation for it is laid. In addition, the planning phase gives the committee the opportunity to identify and include the most important topics.

Things You'll Need

• Brochures
• Flyers
• PowerPoint slides
• Press release
• Meeting place

Instructions

1. 

   Develop a Marriage Seminar committee.

   Select a committee, choose a leader, and assign specific tasks to each member. This allows the preparation stage of the marriage seminar to start with structure. Select one person to provide snacks and another to get the printing and copying chores done. Someone should handle advertising and marketing the event. Allocating duties keeps members from fussing over a favorite job making sure that everything gets done. Once a member finishes a task, let her help one of the other committee members.

2. Determine the needs of the audience. Brainstorm possible marriage themes with the committee. Subject matter provides the key ingredient of the seminar, so choose an important point. Check the news or library to find out the top concerns of married couples. Address several major issues. Canvassing the neighborhood with a short answer survey months in advance might prove beneficial. Work this out during planning and settle on the issues that you will cover as quickly as possible to establish the marriage seminar course or outline.

3. 

   Make both husbands and wives feel welcome.

   Make sure that the seminar remains free from bias. Keep its tone impartial by addressing the issues of both men and women. Introduce topics of interest to them as individuals and as a couple. Individually, men may want more time with their friends to enjoy sports and women may want a girls' night out. As a married couple, the husband may want his wife to attend church with him or the wife may want her husband to attend more social events with her.

4. Know what you want the audience to feel or experience as a result of the marriage seminar. If you want them to walk away with a better understanding of each other's needs, prepare the seminar to meet that goal. Talk to and interview people in the field, such as social workers and ministers who frequently conduct marriage counseling or workshops. Approach them and ask them how you might accomplish your objective.

5. 

   Prepare quality slides and print materials.

   Prepare slides, brochures, and handouts. Decide the type of handouts that are best suited for a marriage seminar. Choose brochures or fact sheets for easy and quick reading. Detailed slides provide the attendees with pictures to accompany the speaker's message. This guides the attention of audience members and helps them to focus on the material and understand it more fully. It also gives them something to remember after the seminar ends.

6. Settle on the time and length of seminar. Find out the best time to begin and end the event. Many audience members want to get to the workshop and find out what they must do to improve their marriage and then they want to get back home. Print the program to meet this need. They must be able to look at it to see when it ends and who speaks when and for how long. Be sure to schedule the session for a day and time when people will most likely attend, for instance, Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

7. Evaluate seminar locations, keeping in mind budgetary concerns. Get a credenza or folding table for refreshments and set it just outside of the room. Make sure that the acoustics and the public address system work properly. Check electrical outlets for the overhead projector or if using a laptop, for PowerPoint slides. Choose surroundings that are comfortable both indoors and outdoors with easy access to the facilities along with plenty of parking.

8. 

   Liven up the seminar with a guest speaker.

   Contact a professional marriage counselor or therapist to speak at the seminar. Check his credentials and skill set. They should match the subject matter of the seminar. For instance, a topic on marital infidelity should be covered by a therapist trained in that area. Ask for one of his recent videos. If one is provided, check it out with your Marriage Seminar committee members.

9. Be proactive and prepare a checklist of possible disasters. Examples: the guest speaker may cancel at the last minute or the caterer may show up late. Have a back up plan: engage two speakers careful not to list the name of either on the program. If the main speaker doesn't show, the alternate can easily step in as a replacement. If the caterer is late simply call to find out what's wrong and if they can't meet the commitment, pull out the name of another caterer who will deliver fast. Keep phone numbers of all guest speakers and vendors on your person.

10. 

    Use the media to get the word out.

    Broadcast the event. Get the word to the public through a press release, radio announcement, newspaper advertisement and distribute fliers about the marriage seminar. Make sure that the time, location and admission price appear in the notice. Also include the type of refreshments being served in the print and radio content, which helps to attract an audience.

References

• "The Exceptional Presenter"; Timothy J. Ko"The Exceptional Presenter;" Timothy J. Kogel; 2007
• "A Checklist Seminar"; Ellen Freedma, CLM; 2005

Resources

• Family Life: Marriage and families
• Family Dynamics Institute: Ideas for program topics