Summer Goals, Cha-Chings & Flip Flops

I love this post so much I’ve reposted it and there is a bonus at the end, check out the PS!

My summer time goal has shifted quite drastically over the past 5 years.

Where I used to be aggressively thinking about marketing and how to ramp up biz for the Fall, now I base the success of my summer on my flip flop tan line (and my bank account).

If the tan line well defined and I’ve got some money, I’ve done a good job!

Is it silly and not very strategic to base success on a tan line?

Perhaps, but isn’t the point of having your own business to be able to dictate how you spend your time? To me it’s proof that I’ve had fun!

If you are in the early stages of your business and you’re working like a dog – please know that things will get better!

Why not set the goal that next year, you’ll take 2 weeks off? And in 3 years, maybe a month?

(I’d love to hear your goals or your summer time wins – just comment below.)

For me, the best feeling in the world is to be sitting at the cottage on the porch, sipping a glass of wine and I hear “cha ching” from my laptop.

That means I just made a sale.

Closing a deal or making a sale while doing nothing is absolutely brilliant!

So this summer you can be thinking about:

a) what product you can develop to increase your cha-ching

b) what do you need to let go of in order to move your business forward this fall

c) what other passive incomes streams can you consider (clubs, membership sites, online content)

d) and, how can you take more time off next year!

I’ll see you soon Wealthy Speakers.

ps: The Wealthy Speaker is all about creating the lifestyle of your choice.  If you haven’t read it yet, I hope you’ll check out this bonus that includes 2 full Chapters.  And, by all means, please pass it along to other speakers!
http://speakerlauncher.com/PassItOn.html

Winners of the Connection Contest

Choosing the winners of this connection contest was no easy task!

There were alot of really terrific ideas. Really! And if you didn’t see all 42 of them, I would encourage you to take another look.

http://ow.ly/27zmA

The point of the contest?

It was to help people think more about the audience, become more “them” focused.

Based on the responses, someone reading this post will have a lot of great ideas to learn from.

The winners of the book with the top 5 ideas are:

Steve Hughes
Rhonda Scharf
Amanda Gore
Gary Minor
Marion Grobb Finklestein

Congratulations!

How Well Do you Connect? (+ Connection Contest)

In John Maxwell’s new book “Everyone Communicates, Few Connect”, John says…..

“Whether you are communicating one-on-one or with a large audience, asking questions creates a connection between you and your listeners that is vital to releasing energy and raising their interest levels. Because my audiences are often so varied, when I begin speaking…. I pose a question related to the topic I’ll be speaking on. I’m simply trying to get people to engage right away.”

How do you engage your audience?

Are you connecting with them in the first 30 seconds?

One of THE most difficult things for a speaker to accomplish is the “audience flip”. Making it about them (the audience) rather than about yourself.

Art Berg, a speaker who died way before his time, told me that he saw his career change when he caught onto this. It wasn’t easy to make his story “about them” as he was a parapalegic who had suffered a horrible accident. But he did it. Art’s theme was “while the difficult takes time, the impossible just takes a little longer”. Once he turned his speech around and made it about them he saw a major surge in his career.

CONTEST:

During your presentations, how do you connect with your audience?

I’d like to see your ideas posted below by July 1st.  The top 5 ideas will win a copy of John Maxwell’s new book “Everyone Communicates, Few Connect”. (Be sure to leave your e-mail address with your comments so I can connect with the winners).

PS: Someone who is famous for connecting with their audience is Joe Calloway. Joe and I produced “Diary of a Killer Keynote” DVD which includes one of Joe’s most talked about NSA speeches. Right now, we’re offering them at a special sell off price (save $30). Check it out. http://speakerlauncher.com/tools.html

Is Your Writing Aiming Right?

Who is your copy writing designed to capture?

During our coaching, a client and I will often spend time deciding WHO we want to speak to with our website or marketing materials.

Sometimes it can be difficult to pin down.

However, skipping this step will certainly lead to confusion when it comes to developing a strong promise statement and writing the copy for your site.

Many people target the audience, when they’d be better off targeting the decision maker.

For instance, a promise that says: “Have fun at work, get along well with others” (speaks directly to the employee)

While…. “Build strong teams who communicate effectively” (speaks more to the leader)

While…. “Building a cohesive workforce that delivers exemplary service” (speaks to the leader AND speaks more to outcome)

When you get a clear idea of who you want to attract to your website, it’s much easier to develop language for them.

See you soon Wealthy Speakers!

What’s the New Normal in Speaking?

While traveling to Kansas City this past week, I noticed a new normal in air travel.

We pay extra for checked bags, we pay extra for carry on, we pay extra for aisle seats, we pay extra for snacks.

The new normal in air travel is “we might give you a cheap ticket but we’ll squeeze you everywhere else”.

In hotels it’s the opposite. Before, some hotels were nice and modern. Now many, if not most, boast awesome beds and sheets, flat screen tv’s and upgraded rooms. More and more have free wireless.

The new normal in hotels is that you have to be updated just to be average.

So what’s the new normal in speaking?

Before: Standing on a stage with good presentation skills and an engaging style was enough.

Now: Today’s audiences demand fresh, relevant content and WIIFM. If you haven’t taken the time to make it about them, you’ll lose them.

Before: Fees were on the rise and client’s pockets were deep.

Now: Clients are nervous about spending. You must demonstrate return on investment and value. And even then, you might still need to negotiate to win the business. (see my article “The Fee Factor” in Speaker Magazine for more on this). http://speakerlauncher.com/about.html

Before: Being great was a bonus for the client.

Now: If you’re not great, your audience will Tweet their boredom while sitting right in front of you. You need to combine solid content with powerful, engaging stories.

The new normal in speaking is that we have to stay sharp, we have to be unique, and our content must be moulded to the needs of our audience.

How do you measure up to the new normal?

Feel free to comment below…..

See you soon Wealthy Speakers!

Good News on the Speaking Front

I just got back from speaking at the NSA (National Speakers Association) Northern California Chapter. Several speakers told me that they saw their business improve in the last quarter.

And I’ve been hearing some rumblings to that effect myself.

Are you experiencing a shift?

I asked Joe Calloway what was happening with his business, he said… “The phone started ringing off the hook in the last two weeks and we were able to turn keynotes into bigger projects that were more fun and more profitable. I’m finding that being a resource to help companies advance their strategies, rather than just speaking, is a huge advantage.”

I’d like to know what’s happening with you so if you have some news, please leave a comment at the end of this post. On Saturday, one speaker asked me ‘are you going to talk about a recession strategy’?

Although I can do little about whether or not clients are scheduling events with speakers, I can share with speakers how to position correctly so that when the market does shift, they are ready and waiting to capture the business. (For a step- by-step positioning strategy, read The Wealthy Speaker Chapters 3 & 4).

http://www.speakerlauncher.com/tools.html

And for those who are positioned correctly (as an expert with a clear promise), the following tips may help:

1. Add Value: Rather than negotiating your fee away, find a way to create more value for your client. Add an extra session, follow up with webinars or teleclasses, supply articles or learning materials that they can use post event. Sweeten the deal with books or other products. And as Joe said above ‘be a resource to your clients, rather than a speaker’. Solve problems for them.

2. Be Good: This applies in any economy but mostly now. There is no better strategy than to have kick butt content and presentation style.

3. Sharpen the Saw: And speaking of your content, now is the time to ensure that it’s fresh and cutting edge. If you haven’t updated recently, then be like Nike and just do it!

4. Develop new products and income streams. Why not write that next book or develop a new product? And consider expanding your income streams to include non-speaking profit centers.

My post awhile back called ‘Are you Stuck in Your Business Model’ covered some ideas on this. http://www.speakerlauncher.com/blog/298/are-you- stuck-in-your-business-model/

In this uncertain climate, we need to take action around the things we can control and (try) not to worry about the things we cannot.

All the best,

PS: Don’t miss our next teleclass on Thursday Sept. 24th at 1pm Eastern ‘Avoid the 3 Things that Will Stunt your Business (and Annoy Your Clients)’ with guest expert and bureau owner Brian Palmer. No one tells it like it is more than Brian and you’ll learn exactly what you need to do (and not do) to get booked more. http://www.speakerlauncher.com/teleclass.html