Great point. The idea is to get them hooked on the pastime, not to make them experts overnight (pardon the pun.)

Another thing that I've found with beginner trips is that you might want to use co-leaders (formally or informally), or at least include a good ratio of experienced folks with the right attitudes. This not only lets you split groups into faster and slower, younger and older, etc., sub-groups, it also gives all the newcomers lots of chances to talk to someone and to get a close look at the gear they use. Twelve people trying to talk to a single leader, or elbowing one another to get a better look as he packs or unpacks, can get intense.

I'm friends with a guy who leads such beginners trips locally. While there is never any doubt he is in charge, we've worked it out that I'll function as an unofficial assistant. At breaks, while he's teaching a brief lesson about LNT, I'll be watching people for signs of chilling, or blisters, etc., and deal with those problems. If the group spreads out on the trail, I'll drop back so we've always got everyone in view - that kind of thing. He also tries to get the ratio of beginners to experienced folks to about 2 to 1, to increase opportunities for interaction. And, he makes sure the experienced folk are the right personalities: outgoing, generally friendly and approachable, and the kind who do like Bill mentioned: "Here, why don't you use my poles for a while, and see how you like them." or "Well, there are several ways to do this; I prefer this one, but if you don't, that's OK." Those kinds of attitudes.

Getting the mix right, underestimating abilities, and holding mileage down seem to be keys here.