Good news for experts who want more speaking invites: associations are looking to sponsors to pay your fees. That’s a change from previous arrangements, where industry groups courted more comprehensive relationships. Now that Corporate America is tightening the purse strings, associations are willing to take anything. Why speaking fees are a good target: vendors can get in front of audiences with a five-minute mini-speech before the main act. And better ROI (return on investment) than those dang tote bags that get left behind in the hotel rooms.
Archive for February, 2010
How to get paid for association speaking
Thursday, February 25th, 2010A Unique Take on Tradeshows
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010Many associations are concerned about their tradeshows: keeping the vendors and attendees coming back. A business model called hosted buyer might be the solution by combining tradeshows, technology, and sponsorships. Independent College Bookstore Association (ICBA) created PRIMEtime, an event where vendors get precious one-on-one time with buyers at a fraction of the cost of a tradeshow booth. Everybody is happy: vendors get access to buyers and can point to new sales and bigger orders for their participation. Buyers only see the folks they want to see. And the association gets a profitable meeting that everyone wants to attend. Great example of innovative ways to use meetings. Click here for the case study.
Make the most of your track record
Friday, February 19th, 2010Finishing up my analysis on elevator speeches for the upcoming Extreme Mini Makeovers and here’s the biggest aha: people assume that if you have done something more than once, you can do it again. For them. The “gotta have” folks use this assumption to their advantage.
The most intriguing introductions focus on one thing — one specific claim — that opens the door for more conversation. The more specific, the better.
Example: a process consultant could say something like, “I’m Billy Bob Jones, and I develop processes that save XXX companies an average of a bazillion dollars.”
Has Billy Bob done other things? Of course. But he focused on the one thing that would get the most attention. And that’s the second secret: you can have more than one way to introduce yourself. Elevator pitches are like domain names: you can have as many as you want.
Can’t wait to unveil more specifics to creating these powerful statements. If you want to join in the fun, it’s not too late to sign up. Click here to get more info and to register.
Too much too soon
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010Talking with a lot of folks about their elevator speech. What I notice: people are putting way too much pressure on these two or three little sentences. They expect someone to say “Wow! I’m gonna hire you right now!!” Let’s stop and think. Do you really believe that happens? What the “gotta have” people get: a raised eyebrow and a “we need to talk” reaction from buyers they network with. That’s what I’m focused on for next week’s Extreme Mini Makeover call on introductions. Click here to check out my latest video rant on the subject.
What we all want from an elevator speech: to feel confident about how we describe what we do. And when we have that clarity, people we’re meeting want to know more. Hope my ideas can help…
We are what we focus on
Thursday, February 11th, 2010Got into an interesting conversation the other day that got me thinking about focus. Someone wanted to sign up for Extreme Mini Makeovers and had a “what if” question. I pride myself on customer service, so I jumped in and tried to figure out the best way to handle the situation. But then my trusty sidekick, Vicky Likens, asked this billiant question: “What are the chances of this scenario actually playing out?” The answer: very slim to none. Then she went in for the kill with this: why are we focused on figuring out the answer to something that likely won’t happen?
And that answer was even more revealing: I was about to spend a lot of time figuring out a scenario that will likely never happen to make someone else happy. Someone I don’t even know. Someone who kept asking me this same question repeatedly.
Moral of the story: it’s easy to go on a wild goose chase, especially when a potential customer eggs us on. Don’t do it. Not all questions deserve an answer. Sometimes, “I don’t know” is the best answer you can offer.
Meeting trends speakers care about
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010Theme for experts who speak: be a bargain. That’s what buyers are looking for now according to Meeting Professional International’s FutureWatch 2010. Top three concerns: budget cuts, doing more with less, and not having enough staff. Basically saying the same thing in three different ways: no money or time for frills. Get ready for intense negotiations on speaker fees. Your antidote: have no less than five things you are giving away — for free — for every paid speech.
Yes, there is good news: overall, respondents expect a 2.8 percent increase in meetings this year — especially the corporate market, where planners project a 3.6 percent increase. Click here for a free summary of FutureWatch 2010.
Trends of Corporate America
Thursday, February 4th, 2010Interesting findings from CareerBuilder’s 2010 Job Forecast survey. Social media experts will have plenty of work this year, as organizations plan to restore their brands through these campaigns. Other big opportunities loom for hiring experts, as organizations invest in efforts ranging from recruiting a diverse workforce to finding top performers.
Bad news for meetings, especially in the association market: Corporate America will continue to cut travel expenses in this year. Why do we care? Because convention attendees won’t go unless their employers pay for travel. Which means attendance challenges will continue to dog these groups, which means less money for speakers. Their antidote: virtual meeting attendees for association conventions. Stay tuned…
From basketball star to business visionary
Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010After last week’s call on Big Dawg bios, I’m still getting questions about how to tell your story. Here’s a great example of how to use your expertise in one area as a springboard to a completely different place. Here’s how Fast Company reframed Phoenix Suns’ Steve Nash in last month’s issue:
“To watch Steve Nash is to observe someone uncannily at ease with change. Rapid change. (Enter basketball achievements here.) No one better embodies the metabolism of our times, when industries, technologies, and careers are in constant flux. (Enter more basketball stuff here.) Nash demonstrates how to navigate uncertainty — with flexibility, collaboration, and inventiveness. He has developed a gift for finding order in chaos.”
See how they did that? They reframed his success on the basketball court and related it back to what we are all facing. They took this basketball star and branded him as a change agent. Click here to see the entire article.
BTW, it’s not too late to sign up for Extreme Mini Makeovers. We recorded last week’s call so you can get the MP3. Next session later this month will be on everybody’s favorite: those dang elevator speeches and other tricks for high-end networking. Click to hear my latest rant on creating your best bio and to sign up.
