Competing with Celebrities
They’re now a major player in the keynote slot – celebrities, who use their fame and fortune to speak at association and corporate events. Has the meetings industry joined the rest of the world in celebrity mania? Although formidable competitors, there are ways veteran speakers can get those slots back.
The first mistake speakers make is that they compete with celebrities in areas where they can’t win. Speakers try to match drawing power by trying to become celebrities on the same grand scale, using authorship as a vehicle. This strategy only works when the publisher has promised national media campaigns, a big promotion budget, the moon and all the stars … and even that doesn’t come through. Even industry experts can’t match the draw power of former presidents.
The good news is that you don’t have to. Instead, let’s look at the weaknesses of celebrity speakers and compete on those grounds.
Areas of Weakness
Associations like the draw and possible media coverage, but are getting stung by the "not as good as I thought" evaluations created by boring delivery and platitudes. Corporate decision makers are also questioning the the exorbitant fee for a lackluster experience.
A key strategy for veteran speakers: create an effective trade off for the smaller scale draw by shifting focus towards the message itself. Use success not as a means to an end but as a memorable experience to convey the potent.
Success as a Vehicle
The celebrity speakers (like the mountain climbers, the athlete, etc.) focus on their story and in essence, themselves. Audiences will soon tire of the travelogue, because there’s nothing that really speaks to or involves them. Speakers use their own success as a vehicle to show something that the audience can have too. How? By narrowing the scope of stories, linking those stories to an overall message, and thus making the message itself the mainstay rather than a past event.
Examples: Warren Greshes’ speech at the 7/97 NSA convention. (tape # 65) He turned a high profile story into a series of "mini stories," each with their own punchlines that wove into a great message. He linked all of them with effective call backs that were hilarious.
At another NSA workshop, Dwight Jones shifted focus from "how great I am" storytelling to using his photographs from National Geographic to illustrate creativity and vision. I still tell people about that speech!
Get Significant
Why do so many celebrities speak in platitudes? Because they don’t know what’s considered old material. Take advantage of this by using the old to illustrate new points. Ask: "Why are people stuck on this issue?" And use the answer to generate new material. Another question: "What keeps people from doing what they say they want to do?"
To effectively compete with celebrities, we can no longer sit back and say "nothing new has been said." Perhaps this is a wake up call to invite us to create more value for our audiences.
Reality Check for Videos
Time to update those old clips or even completely redo that demo video? Here’s the straight scoop from Andrianne B., who hires hundreds of professional and industry speakers per year. Her clients are association trade shows and conventions and speaker fees range between $2,000 - $10,000.
Only Two Minutes
That’s all the time you have before Andrianne makes a decision. "Anything beyond that is just to reinforce my views." She explains. That’s why she wants clips of your best work, not a long introduction. "I want their name, their topics and a little bit about their expertise," she states. The intro should be no longer than 15 to 30 seconds; entire video no longer than 15 minutes.
Never Do This
Don’t apologize for the video. "Your video must be something that you are proud of, your best stuff." She says. "If I select a speaker, I show the video to my boss and say "Here’s who I like and you’ll like them too." Another don’t: trying to talk her out of getting one. "I know that speakers think that a video will hurt more than help," she says. "I don’t use any speaker that I can’t get a video from, period. "
Interact and Customize
According to Adrianne, the first things to go is footage of those staged programs. "We can tell that there’s no audience there." She explains. "I just viewed a video from someone who did this and I turned it off within the first minute." Why? The footage doesn’t show how you interact with the audience, and your style can be different.
Adrianne’s favorite footage are the ones that show how you can customize. Footage that contains industry jargon is OK, as she assumes that you will do the same for her group.
Crowd Shots OK
So, what about those crowd shots? Andrianne likes those, because she checks out the group. "I am fully aware of the demographics of my audience … I want to know that a speaker has experience with a similar group." Interaction shots are the best, but dump the video testimonials. "I know that nothing bad is going to be on the tape "she says. "The letters are good enough."
Forget the Personal Touch
It seems like a great closing: an intimate conversation between you and the viewer. No one really cares, according to Andrianne, who has heard it all before. "Speakers will say anything, that they’re funny, they’re inspirational. I want them to prove it on video."
Dump Media Footage
Another cut is footage of media interviews. "It’s so silly," she says. "I just want to hear them speak and interact in front of an audience."
Last tips from Andrianne:
Don’t forget covers – man videos arrive damaged.
Broadcast quality isn’t critical but crisp sound is.
I am considered an authority in a specific industry. How can I branch out to a more general corporate market, where I’m relatively unknown?
Many people call me about this — they’re already successful but their market is either tapped out, no longer fulfilling, or the fees are raised as high as they can go. The good news: you can recreate your success in another market. The bad news: it’s going to be neither cheap nor quick.
Two obvious ways to get into a more general market: media and associations. Both of these outlets allow you to showcase your talents in a low risk environment. A less obvious way: put on your own showcase! Think about this: recent NSA-MPI research shows that 94% of the business is obtained through personal preview and referral. Yet decision-makers are reporting to me that the only invitations they get to preview speakers is from speakers’ bureaus.
Partner with non-competing speakers and invite both association and corporate planners. (Some will travel to showcases.) Combine your mailing lists to cross market. Send out a broadcast fax at least two times because of busy schedules. During the showcase, focus on your success and strategies, not where you generated that success.
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