Imagine pouring your heart into designing a retreat— only to find that people hesitate to sign up. Maybe you've successfully hosted retreats before, but your immediate network has been exhausted, and your warm leads have cooled. Now, you're reaching out to brand-new audiences—people who haven't yet experienced your magic. They may need a way to connect with your work before they feel ready to commit.
Most people don’t make decisions in an instant—especially when it comes to something as immersive as a retreat. They need a journey, a sense of trust, and a way to experience the transformation before they commit.
That’s where a pre-retreat course comes in. Instead of asking participants to take a leap of faith, it offers them a guided path—an introduction to your work, a taste of the breakthroughs they’ll experience, and a connection that builds over time. When done intentionally, a course doesn’t just educate; it prepares. It shifts mindsets, overcomes hesitations, and helps participants see that your retreat is the natural next step in their evolution.
The Journey Begins Before the Retreat
Retreats are about transformation, but that transformation doesn’t begin the moment someone arrives at the venue—it begins the moment they say yes to the experience.
A pre-retreat course gives them an opportunity to begin integrating small shifts before they ever step foot in the retreat space. They don’t just hope the retreat will be worth it—they know it will be, because they are already seeing the enormous impact in working with you.
Some real-world examples of organizations that offer online courses as introductions to their in-person retreats include Onsite Workshops' Courses (self-guided emotional health courses) Strozzi Institute's Courses (weekly somatics classes), and Zen Mountain Monastery's Online Programs (Zen Buddhist practice). These programs allow participants to sample the material at their own pace before committing to a more immersive, in-person experience.
Advice on Pre-Retreat Course Design:
If you’re ready to harness the power of a course to guide participants toward your retreat, here are some steps to get started:
1. Address Questions and Build Trust
Think about the questions and hesitations your audience might have:
Is this the right retreat for me?
Will I really get value out of this?
Do I have the time or resources to attend?
Use your course content to address these concerns proactively. Reflective exercises, testimonials, or sneak peeks of the retreat experience can help participants feel confident in their decision. For example, include a module that offers a behind-the-scenes look at the retreat location, or a video where you answer FAQs in a personal, conversational tone.
2. Set the Stage for Transformation
By including elements that inspire self-reflection and invite small, meaningful actions, you lay the groundwork for the larger breakthroughs a retreat promises.
Each module should subtly build anticipation for the retreat through storytelling, sneak peeks of the experience, and interactive activities that spark curiosity.
Reflective prompts or exercises, for example, can encourage participants to imagine how a retreat could amplify their growth, setting the stage for the experience.
3. Use Your Course to Showcase Your Brilliance
Your pre-retreat course is more than just a funnel—it’s an opportunity to showcase your voice, your energy, and your unique approach to transformation. By delivering small but meaningful results through the course, you demonstrate your ability to guide participants toward breakthroughs.
This makes the decision to attend your retreat feel like a natural next step, rather than a leap of faith.
4. Partnering to Amplifying Your Impact
Your course can also open doors to collaboration. Sponsors, partners, or affiliates are more likely to support a retreat when they see the intentionality and engagement you’ve built through your course. Consider how your course can integrate sponsor resources or highlight shared values, such as wellness, personal growth, or community-building.
Action Steps to Create Your Pre-Retreat Course
If you’re ready to harness the power of pre-retreat courses, here are some steps to get started:
Build an Experience: How can your course mirror that journey for participants?
Design with Intention: Create modules that build trust, address hesitations, and prepare participants for transformation.
Use Storytelling: Share authentic stories that resonate emotionally and highlight the retreat’s value.
Collaborate: Partner with aligned sponsors or affiliates who can help amplify your reach and support your audience.
Promote Strategically: Share your course through speaking engagements, social media, and collaborations with other thought leaders.
When you combine the power of intentional online courses with the transformative experience of a retreat, you’re not just offering an event—you’re creating a journey that builds trust, fosters connection, and inspires lasting change.
How the Multidimensional Leaders Can Support You:
We are thrilled to to support you in creating incredible content for both your courses and retreats!
We’ll be sharing monthly resources designed to help you develop engaging, high-quality material and strategies to elevate your content creation process - so be sure to check back on our substack and email for exclusive trainings and more!
Opportunity to Partner with Us
If you are planning a retreat and have already created a high-quality course (or can repackage some online material to create one), we’d love to partner with you! Why this is a good idea:
Increased Exposure and Reach: We'll feature your high-quality course within our private portal, exposing it to our established network of learners.
Affiliate Partnership for your Retreat: This allows you to leverage our marketing efforts to promote your retreat and increase attendance and revenue for your event.
Streamlined Operations: We handle the backend distribution of your course within our portal, saving you time and resources. This frees you to focus on the content and management of your retreat.
Enhanced Credibility and Trust: Being featured on our platform lends additional credibility. We will spend considerable effort to vet and understand our partners offers before advertising them as this reflects on our brand as well.
Feel free to reach out to support@multidleaders.org or reply to this post if interested or you have any questions.
Together, we can create a thriving ecosystem of unique transformational learning and experiences!
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