Team Canada’s theme was “Own The Podium”. Now, I wasn’t 100% in favor of that message as I thought an athlete’s journey was important too, but in the end it was effective. 14 golds, woo hoo!

As speakers, we need to own our podium. By this I mean stage or platform or even the room. The minute you enter the room, you should be “on” and in full swagger. And when you step on the stage, it should be with 100% confidence. Be bold!

Does that mean we should become something we’re not?

No way.An audience can spot a fake a mile away.

It means that we should be THE best, THE most powerful version of ourselves.

A self-assured speaker conveys that vibe to the audience and it puts them at ease.

One sure fire way to gain confidence is to know your stuff. That one helps me every time I speak at a CAPS or NSA Chapter.

I know a few colleagues that after 20 years still get nervous. But you would NEVER know it when they walk onto the stage. They ooooze confidence.

Next time you enter your meeting room, tell yourself “I’m owning this podium!”

See you soon Wealthy Speakers!

PS: Seasoned Speakers: we still have spots available in Club Catapult. If you’re interested in taking your business to new heights, check out this powerful group coaching program. http://speakerlauncher.com/clubcatapult.html

New Speakers – Club Quick Start is FULL. To be placed on the wait list, please e-mail me at jane@speakerlauncher.com

Whether it be from the platform, or in follow up with clients, most of us are lousy at asking for the business.

And, if you were to do a quick calculation, you’d see the cost.

Just imagine if every audience could provide spin off to 3 more engagements….

And if each of those audiences held 3 more engagements…. and so on.

And you didn’t ask for the business from the first audience…. yikes, that’s alot of business lost!

So here’s my suggestion from the platform – refer to page 133 of The Wealthy Speaker http://speakerlauncher.com/tools.html Kudos to Thom Winniger for this tip 18+ years ago.

Right before you begin your closing story, you stop and say “as you can see I am passionate about (your topic). If you know of any group or association who could benefit from this material, please come and hand me your business card after the presentation”.

That’s it. Two lines and you go on to deliver your awesome closing story.

Why does this work?

1. Because people generally want to help but they usually don’t know how to help. You are guiding them specifically on what to do.

2. If you have done a good job*, then they probably want an excuse to come and talk to you.

* If you ask every time and still do not get the business, your speech may need work.

Asking for the business is the #1 way to build momentum. I hope this will be the kick in the butt you need to do it!

PS: In the spirit of asking, I have something to ask you. If you are a new speaker, my next cycle of group coaching (Club Quick Start) is about to begin on March 17th. Join us? Here are the details on this terrific program. http://www.speakerlauncher.com/quickstart.html

PPS: If you have been speaking awhile, and are interested in a group dynamic, please e-mail me now. I am putting together something new called Club Catapult and would like your input on a couple of features.

It’s rare that they remember the speaker’s name.

But frequently they will tell me a story that the speaker told and we’ll be able to piece together the identity of that person.

Often, when we leave a speech, we’re feeling like a rock star and think that they will never forget us!! But the truth of the matter is that by next month or next week, they most likely will have forgotten our name!

What is it that you are doing within your performance that will allow people to remember you?

And more importantly, how will they tell others? (I believe this to be the key to more spin off).

We’ve talked about the “thru-line” before. http://tiny.cc/LiBEh

It’s typically a short phrase, word or gesture that you use throughout your presentation. You integrate it so well that the audience is saying it back to you by the end of your program.

I remember many moons ago going to a Tony Robbins event – I wanted to see what made this guy tick. He used the term “step up” so effectively in his talk that even now, 10 years later, when I say those words I have a physical response.

You’ve also heard me talk about that famous Joe Calloway speech where Joe used the term “let it go”. Let it go took on a life of it’s own and people still reference it many years later. BTW, if you’ve wondered what all the hub hub about that speech was over, check out the DVD that inclues the full speech and the dissection… Diary of a Killer Keynote.
http://speakerlauncher.com/killerkeynoteDVD.html

If you’ve got something that is really working for you in your speech, I hope you’ll share it. Comment below!

Be memorable!

Ashridge Business School

There’s that old saying, what goes up must come down.

And if you believe the philosophy behind the S curve in business, you’ll understand why.

In last months Voice of Experience (NSA’s monthly audio) Mike Rayburn talked about the S curve and how you need to re-engineer your business before you get to the bottom of the cycle.   Sage advice.

For those of you on the way up, you can still use this guide to prepare.

But I have a suspicion that if you’ve been in the speaking business for more than 7 years, this snake like curve has lashed out to bite you in the butt a time or two.

Often (as Michael Gerber so eloquently puts it) we are working IN our business so much that we forget to work ON our business.

Many speakers can’t see the forest for the trees because they are simply too caught up in the day- to-day of the biz.

So here’s one idea…..

Blow up a diagram of an S Curve (you can google to find one that you like – Ashridge Business School of the UK was kind enough to loan me theirs) and post it on your business bulletin board.

Using stickers, post-its or push pins track where you are in your business with the date and keep moving it each month. Now you can consciously track your business swings.

(Warning, may be related to mood swings!)

When you look at your curve and find yourself at the bottom, trying to figure out how to pick up and start again, (here comes my shameless plug) think about dropping me a line. I am known for helping people out of the forest and I have a whole new host of programs that can help you catapult. http://speakerlauncher.com/coaching.html

Gotta run so I can print my S curve right now!!!

First thing to go? The male booty shake. No surprise there – who wants to see that?

So what’s in and what’s out for this new decade in speaker marketing?

OUT: Positioning as a ’speaker’. The joke is if your topics list is as long as your client list, you are positioning incorrectly.

IN: Positioning as an ‘expert’. Be the expert, the authority in your field. Even if you consider yourself a motivational or inspirational speaker, figure out what the outcomes of your message are and sell those in your marketing.

OUT: Cheesy speaker photos. If your photo has you holding a mic and you are standing in front of a white screen, then you probably need an update.

IN: Live audience shots. Take your photos in front of your perfect audience. If you want to speak to large audiences, have someone take a shot from the back of the room for you so that your prospects can see you speaking live. There is still a need for some close up shots of you, a well done head shot can show your prospects who you really are.

OUT: Hire Me, I’m a Speaker! I talked alot in 2009 about doing a marketing Flip Flop. This is where we move our marketing to be about the client and their outcomes, rather than it being all about us.

Here’s a link to a past tip on this:
http://www.speakerlauncher.com/blog/68/does-your-marketing-need-a-flip-flop/

IN: A strong outcome oriented promise. Let the client know what will change for them if they work with you. Be clear, be concise. Too many different ideas and your prospects will be confused.

I hope this tip helps you get the New Year rolling in the right direction!

PS: If you haven’t picked up your copy of The Wealthy Speaker yet, what are you waiting for? Here’s the link to the special system price: http://www.speakerlauncher.com/tools.html

As we start to wind down for the holidays, you’ll no doubt be thinking about how you want to start off the New Year in your business. And, of course, you want to start it right. Right?

Remember in The Wealthy Speaker, the formula Ready, Aim, Fire?

Ready is – get crystal clear on what you are selling
Aim is – move that clear message out into your marketing
Fire is – roll that out to your target markets.

Many people hit “Fire” without doing the “Ready” and “Aim” work. And by doing this, ultimately, shoot themselves in the foot.

Why? Because you are sending out an unclear message to your market.

So, when 2010 rolls around, my holiday tip for you is to spend some time on Ready and Aim. And then, if you are ready, hit Fire!

With a strong and consistent message, your prospects will keep you top of mind when they are in need of your expertise.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

ps:  Thinking about a gift for a fellow speaker, or some holiday learning for yourself?
Check out my first EVER holiday special!  Purchase any item in the store and receive 20% off.
Whether it be Teleclass MP3’s, DVD’s, CD’s or books, you’ll get 20% off.

Use coupon code HOLLY.
Valid until December 31,2009.

Happy shopping!

In the speaking industry, one wouldn’t expect the fall to be quite as far. But, is it?

About 10 years ago, I was working with Vince (most of you know his story) and we got a multiple booking engagement with a public seminar company. He was going to be sharing the stage with some very big speakers and celebs.

Mr. X (who shall remain nameless out of respect for his near retirement status) was someone I was excited for Vince to meet. Rookie meets famous speaking veteran. I envisioned Mr. X becoming a friend and maybe even a mentor since he was well known for his ideas around helping others getting what they want.

Mr. X fell from my pedestal so fast!!

Upon meeting, he was rude, obnoxious and even went out of his way to ‘dis’ Vince in front of other people. He seemed threatened. Big disappointment.

Fast forward to 2009 NSA convention. A colleague was all excited because her hero (a well known author in her field) had agreed to meet her for coffee. When I ran into my colleague later at the airport, she had been completely bummed out that the guy blew her off – and was a jerk on top of it.

So what can we learn about pedestals?

1. Don’t allow yourself to be put up on one.

You put your pants on one leg at a time, same as everybody else. When getting on that plane heading to the next speaking gig, check your ego at the gate. When people line up for hours to talk to you and get your book, don’t buy into the hype. Keep it real, stay humble.

No one got this lesson more than James Ray this year. James was at the center of the sweat lodge incident which resulted in people dying. Now, I won’t speculate about where his ego may have been during this event, but this tragedy is a fall from grace that will no doubt weigh heavily on his heart forever.

2. Find your grounding. Speakers with small children know that you can easily go from a 1000 person standing ovation to changing a poopy diaper the minute you get home. Treasure the diaper!

3. Don’t place others up on a pedestal. I’ll say it again, we all put our pants on one leg at a time. Some people are just waiting to catch someone slipping up.

An old friend in Dallas was a Delta Airlines gate agent. He and I both followed spiritual author Wayne Dyer who flew through DFW a lot.

My friend told me that Wayne always stopped and had a kind and thoughtful conversation with him. In Wayne’s words though ‘it’s a short distance from enlightened to a**hole’. Mr. Dyer held up to the pedestal test that time, but many people do not.

So what’s the point? Sure we need heroes, but pedestals don’t serve a purpose. Meet people where they are. If they are good, acknowledge it, but don’t give them some God like status that they can never live up to.

PS: Feel free to comment, below!

Our guest expert Laura Roeder felt really bad about having to reschedule. So she wanted to pass along this exclusive video as an apology.

It’s about how to set up a Social Media Listening Station. I’ve used this, it took 11 minutes, and it’s very cool for those of you who are actively online and want to know what’s being said about you. Here’s the link (a bonus to all). http://www.lauraroeder.com/speaker-launcher- exclusive/

THE NEW DATE FOR THE TELECLASS IS:

Thursday, January 7th at 1pm Eastern
Topic: Creating Fame Using Social Media
Guest Expert: Laura Roeder

If you didn’t sign up for the call today and would like to join in on Jan. 7th, click here to register: http://www.speakerlauncher.com/teleclass.html

If you did register and can’t make it, a free MP3 audio will be made available to you. (Just drop me a line).

See you in January!

PS: Pricing Note: It surprises me that a few people still pay to participate in my teleclasses. Wealthy Speaker purchasers gain access to these classes at no charge. Why would you pay $19.95 to be in the class when the book is only $17? (And you get an incredible book!)  I’m just saying…..

And it was a very tough decision!

Drum roll please……..

THE WINNING WEBSITE IS: www.toninewman.com

Here’s what the panel saw in Toni’s website which made it stand out:

1. A clear promise and expertise. The minute you come to this website, you understand that it’s about innovation. And, Toni positions as an expert who happens to speak.

2. A topic that is needed and bookable. Innovation is something that corporate and association audiences need consistently.

3. A unique and innovative site. Toni’s site smacks of originality. You don’t see alot of the “same old – same old” speaker look or lingo.

4. Solid video.  The demo video on this site is well done and the speaking clips within are a solid representation of Toni’s platform talent.

5. Website has what a decision maker needs This site provides the decision maker with the tools they need to make their selection. She appears client friendly and easy to work with.

CONGRATULATIONS, TONI NEWMAN

Toni wins a one hour coaching session with Jane.

And congratulations Richard Tremblay for nominating this site Richard wins a one hour marketing makeover or 5 copies of The Wealthy Speaker.

RUNNERS UP

There were about 10 really great sites.  We thought that these two runners up deserved honorable mention.

http://www.laughyourway.com/

Mark Gungor’s website is very topic specific (Laugh Your Way to a Good Marriage) but the panelists agreed that it was unique and authentic. And the communication piece could work for corporate audiences. More importantly it was written with the audience in mind (rather than the, ‘book me I’m a speaker’ approach).

www.danthurman.com

We all agreed that Dan’s website is really nice looking, and has a great feel to it. The video is high energy and solid and Dan’s home page is very effective with many effective features. Great job!

***

Let’s not forget that websites are very subjective. Some of these you’ll love, some you won’t. I hope you will look at the criteria of this contest and measure it against your own website. There is much to learn here!

PS:  Wondering why your website didn’t win?  Consider a Focus 40 session with Jane to work on tweaking or making over your site.  Here’s the link http://www.speakerlauncher.com/coaching.html

You see, I don’t want to drive people away from my site (over to Facebook, LinkedIn, etc) I want to keep them with me until they take the desired action.

In an effort to be deemed current, I think we all jumped on the social media bandwagon. But did we do it with strategy?

Remember that old saying a confused buyer never buys? Well, a distracted buyer won’t buy either. He or she will hop on that social media train and will be off your site faster than you can say ‘YouTube’.

So we have to work hard to keep people engaged with our website from whatever page they come in on, right through to the desire outcome.

Now the argument could be made that if they are linked to you on a social site that they may find there way back to your site again, perhaps.

Or maybe we lead them to our social sites through other means?

How about through our eTips or our blog for example?  I’m not saying which way is right for you, just to give your social media strategy some thought before placing those live links on your site. And keep your prospects around until they take the action that you desire.

PS: I can’t miss this opportunity to get to know you better. If you’d like to connect with me, here are some options:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/speakerlauncher
LinkedIn: http://tiny.cc/linkedin992
Twitter: http://twitter.com/janeatkinson