Article: Who's on First:
Selling Your Programs to Education Committees
Published by Professional Speaker Magazine, May 1995 issue
By Vickie Sullivan
Ahh, the good ol' days when you got the engagement because a single decision maker liked your presentation. While this still happens, more and more speakers find that committees are now making the decision. Making this transition is difficult for many speakers. For each decision, there are more people to persuade, many of whom the speaker has no direct access to. That diffusion of decision making will change the marketing approach drastically.
Re-engineering the Speaker Selection Process
In the corporate market, continuous quality improvement has led to increased decisions by committees. With the exception of sales meetings and incentive programs, vendors for customer service, TQM, CQI and other kinds of training are now being selected by education committees. (An interesting note: Once a presenter has worked with a group and formed a bond, the group decision making seems to take a back seat.)
Because speaker selection/training committees are fairly new in the corporate market, many of the committee members don't know anything about hiring speakers or trainers. Therefore, they build a linear process designed to remove the guesswork of selecting topics and vendors. Here is the most common procedure I've seen: develop an assessment tool, gather the results, report the results, choose the topics, develop the specs for vendors (sometimes this step is forgotten, making for some interesting proposals), examine the proposals, make the first cut and then decide. Result: a drawn-out process with very little room for the most common marketing activity -- persuasion over the telephone.
Associations are pros at using education committees, as they have been in place for years. What’s different now is their clout. In the past, the committees would decide the theme or topics and meeting planners would present a slate of recommended speakers. In many cases, the committee would approve the slate unchanged. Not anymore.
Association meetings are more competitive than ever, with pressure from declining pools of members because of downsizing as well as more meetings from outside sources. To rise to the challenge, associations are becoming more member-focused in many areas, including programming. It is the members, through the committees, that drive the selection process. Their decision relies less on an established system and more on creative processes from group dynamics; consensus building and brainstorming. (An exception is when many speakers are being used; for example, the Iowa Health Care Association hires more than 80 speakers a year and its committee has a three-tier system that takes four months to process.)
A Different World
Dealing with some of these differences starts with a major shift of thinking, going from direct to indirect. Your effectiveness lies in your ability to influence others so they can influence others about you. Group dynamics are very subtle and are filled with pitfalls that will keep you from being chosen. (Trying to pass a law through Congress is a good analogy.) Here are some strategies to help you navigate these uncharted waters:
- The interesting thing about committees is that no two are alike. Each committee is playing by a different set of rules. Most of the time, the committee chair makes the rules. Stronger personalities already have speakers in mind and will tell or persuade the committee. They will make changes in the format. More easygoing types will depend on the committee members or staff. They are more willing to get a consensus and will delegate much of the decision making. Don't assume anything-ask questions to find out the chair's working style. Here are some questions I ask:
To the committee chair: "Do you have a vision of what you want the program to look like?" Or "Does the committee decide from a narrowed list of potential speakers or are they open to all suggestions?" (The stronger ones will know what they want before the first committee meeting. Others will wait to test the waters at the first meeting.)
To the meeting planner: "Does the committee look at all the speakers who call, or do you make the first cut?" or "Does the committee look at a list of recommended speakers and make the decision from that, or do they give you a list of speakers to contact?" (This helps determine the role of the meeting planner.) If you find out that the meeting planner is the "keeper of the file cabinet," then ask, "May I contact the chair to see if he or she is interested in previewing my programs?" If meeting planners want you to work through them, then keep calling-for a while. After a few times, when the logistics get difficult, say something like: 1 know this is a hassle for you. Are you sure it wouldn't be OK to contact them directly? I promise that I won't call them all the time if they're not interested." (And keep that promise-if the chair complains to the meeting planner, you'll never get hired.)
To a committee member: "Does the chair already have an idea of who should be the keynote (or wind-down, banquet, etc.) speaker?" or "Would having a video help you show the chair or other committee members what I can do for your group?" or "What information can I provide to help you present me at the committee meetings?" These questions will help you understand what role the member plays in the committee and what he or she is willing to do to promote you.
- Just when you learn the rules of the game, they change. And they change fast. The "it's a new world after every committee meeting" scenario makes a group very hard to qualify. Again, don't assume. The first questions to ask any contact during the process are: Has anything changed? Are you still looking for _________? Am I still in the top ____ candidates? Is the committee still interested? How does the situation look to you? What is your assessment of this situation? What's our next step?
- Many committees in the corporate world use requests for proposals, especially for TQM, CQI or re-engineering. Only one problem: Many are used as "fishing expeditions" when the committee hasn't developed specific needs. Others are used to present to another committee that will only look at price. Proposals can be very time-consuming and costly. I will do proposals only after my speaker is through at least one cut and if the committee truly has a specific plan of what it wants. My way around large proposals: If the committee doesn't know what it wants, I will only propose a smaller meeting or "retreat" lasting no less than two days. The first day is laying the foundation and the second day is facilitating to create an approach for future training. The client's cost is much less risky and cuts down on "sticker shock"; it also allows my speaker to showcase for two days. This idea got one of my clients a 30-date contract on TQM; the committee felt that all the employees deserved the same kind of training they got.
First, Let's Kill All the Videos
Amid all the rule changes and longer processes, there are some common influences in all committees. Tap into that system, and you have a better shot at getting the committee's attention.
Have you ever wondered what really goes on in those committee meetings? After interviewing both corporate and association planners and committee chairs, here's a typical scenario: The chair will call the meeting to order and say, "We need to start deciding on speakers for the topics we developed at the last meeting. Any ideas?" Names start popping up with comments like "Oh, I heard her at the XYZ conference. She was great!" or "One of our managers heard him at their association convention. He was hilarious!" A lot of dreaming goes on at this stage, when committee members think they have the contacts to bring in a celebrity at no cost. (One group honestly believed they could get a former president because someone on the committee knew somebody, who knew somebody, who knew somebody else ... )
From that brainstorming session, several names are passed along to the meeting planner to contact for more information. Often, material that the meeting planner has gathered is not examined by the committee. That's right, all the time you spent with the planner qualifying the lead didn't get you to first base. Who is being considered? The speakers who have been heard by committee members or someone they know. For this reason, the No. 1 way speakers are hired by committees is through the preview.
"The committee usually chooses speakers who they have used before or someone has told them 'You need to get this speaker,'" explains Susan Taylor of the Tennessee Association for Home Care. "With the fees you have to pay for a good speaker today, it's hard to justify using an unknown when you have someone tried and true recommended to you."
There are occasions when a speaker that no one has heard gets hired. What got the committee's attention in the brainstorming stage? Their reputation in general or in a specific industry. Tom Peters is an excellent example. His latest best-selling book full of fresh, new information, along with glowing media reports and stories of speaking successes, was enough to get on everybody's "A" list. This name recognition is the second most common way to get hired. There are many ways to achieve this; volumes have been written and many programs given at NSA on this topic alone. Researching through the NSA best-sellers catalog and the NSA library is a good way to start. (My personal favorites: Dave Richardson, CSP, and CSP, CPAE Tom Winninger's programs at NSA. Get the tapes.)
Where does that leave your promotional material? Because many committee members don't see it, your material is practically worthless unless it is used as backup for interest generated from the preview and the name recognition. Your material still needs to meet the high production standards you see now in the marketplace, but its role has turned upside-down. Instead of getting initial interest, your materials now sell past the initial interest and are used to support your selection.
As for the video, the same issues apply. One of the biggest changes in this trend is in the use of the promo video. Because so many speakers now are being previewed and recommended, committees are choosing the safe route over the video. Even a great video of an unknown speaker can make the first or second cut. In the final moment, when the most subtle things can make or break the decision, the speaker who has been previewed will get hired over the ones who only have a video. Taylor explains the sentiment: "We hired someone through a video a year ago, and they bombed."
Although there are instances where the video put the speaker over the edge into the hired category, the video now is used to help the person on the committee to support your hiring. But where do you find those people?
Make Friends and Influence People
One of the worst things about committee decisions is that the speaker can't participate in the discussion directly. Only under very rare circumstances are speakers invited to the committee meetings. When they are invited, it's usually to audition. So the next best thing to being there is having someone whose personal mission is to get you on the program. These allies are the speaker's newest and most potent marketing tool. They are the people who are willing to attend all the committee meetings and rave about your programs. They are the people who will arrange to have your promo video previewed by the rest of the committee. Developing these relationships is critical. It is for them you go through the expense of producing the video and promotional materials.
"More than the information, we look for a speaker that is motivational and inspirational, then go for the topic," says Beecher Hunter of Life Care Centers of America. "The way we determine that is by someone seeing them."
So, how do you find these angels? The most common source of allies is your audiences. The person who has heard you speak and honestly thinks you walk on water is the perfect candidate to be your cheerleader. This is the second reason that previews are becoming more critical. Recommending a speaker is risky business, not done by many who haven't heard the speaker themselves. "I feel really responsible when I recommend a speaker," explains Sandy Sippel, program committee member of several health care associations. "If they don't do well, I haven't done my job as a member of the committee."
There are specific things speakers can do to create more allies. Obviously, do a good job every time you speak. Here are a few more "backdoor" approaches:
- Change what you are already doing to create contacts who can turn into allies. One of my clients, Larry Johnson of Phoenix, uses the evaluation form to gather information about potential allies. It's one of the oldest tricks in the book: On the bottom of your evaluation form, ask the question "Would you like more information about my programs?" I call everyone who says "yes"; I use their comments on the form to break the ice. I thank them for their great feedback; then I ask, "Is this information for your company or for an association you belong to?" This question plants the thought about what associations they are active in. I then ask, "Are you on the committee that designs the program?" You find out quickly how strongly this person feels and what lengths they are willing to promote your programs. I end up sending two or three different packets out to the same person. Follow up on the status and offer to help in any way possible. I have helped many groups promote their meetings by sharing contacts in their industry or geographic area that have expressed interest in my speaker but can't afford the fee. This goes a long way with some associations trying to justify your fee.
- The second best way to establish allies is to invite "potentials." Instead of cold-calling association meeting planners, ask the switchboard operator who the convention chair is. When they ask why, explain that you want to "personally invite them to my presentation on . 11 You get the name much easier when you're not directly selling, but merely inviting for a preview. The committee chair may not be available to see you. But that's OK-he or she may want to send another committee member.
- Conducting research on your speaking engagements can also parlay into industry allies. When customizing your topic for an association, don't just ask anyone; ask people on the national board. These folks usually play a pivotal role in their companies, and are probably on some task force or committee. You can continue your relationship with them by mentioning them by name during the presentation and thanking them after the presentation. If they are not on the committee, they will probably know who is and refer you. This new contact will be a good person to invite for a preview.
Working with committees can be like running a maze-it's so easy to get lost or just spin your wheels. Just remember: Learn the rules and be ready for changes; develop your allies and keep their excitement going; and last (and most important), keep those previews coming. With extra effort and patience, you too can work with committees as effectively as with individual decision makers. Good luck!
Since 1987, Vickie K. Sullivan, President of Sullivan Speaker Services, has generated millions of dollars in speaking fees, book advances and ancilliary income for her clients. Sign up for her free market intelligence at http://www.SullivanSpeaker.com
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"Before working with Vickie, I marketed my speaking the same way everyone else did: hired someone to make phone calls. Vickie showed me why that strategy would never work for me and gave me a completely different approach. I ended up booking and making more money in the six months after consulting with her than I had made in the previous two years. It was incredible."
Dr. Bill Kerley, Houston Texas
1997-98 President, Houston Chapter, NSA
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