Helping your Advocates Help You
In response to intense competition, marketing efforts have focused on building relationships, creating many advocates. Unfortunately, those contacts don’t yield immediate results unless the advocate has a specific meeting in mind. By asking just one question differently, the focus can shift from a "nothing yet, but let’s keep in touch" response to opportunities that close quickly.
The key: to broaden the thinking beyond established venues such as conventions, where all the other speakers are working with their advocates to get booked.
Many speakers focus on building relationships but limit how those relationships can serve.
Same process, just a different focus
Consultants and trainers do this all the time with current clients: they will see an additional need while in the field, make a suggestion to the client and instantly, more business is created. The best news: no one else was considered because the project did not exist until the need was discovered. Speaking engagements can be obtained in the same way by focusing prospective clients on ways to use content vs. looking for a meeting in which to speak.
Just one question
Many advocates believe in your message and want to help you get an audience – they just don’t know how. Broadening the focus will not only create introductions into specific meetings but also create opportunities to speak and train "from scratch."
Key strategy: Begin the conversation with: "Thanks for your kind words about my work. How can we use my expertise to create value for you or for your customers?" Use this question instead of the standard "Do you have any meetings that hire speakers?"
The golden triangle
According to the Springboard Marketing ™ model, every ally has three avenues to help you. Called the "Golden Triangle," these areas can plant seeds with advocates regarding how to "help" or "get the message out."
Their organization: This is the most direct connection, thus the most competitive. One underused outlet: customer outreach efforts, using your expertise as a "gift" to top customers or distributors. Companies do this on a case-by-case basis with only existing vendors, so there’s usually no competition. The decision-makers here are the VP’s or Director’s of Sales.
Peer Associations: These are associations and other nonprofit entities that your ally is active in. They are among peers in these associations, like a speaker in the National Speakers Association. These associations don’t necessarily have to be industry related – they could be personal charities as well.
Vendor Associations: This is like a cousin to the customer outreach programs. It is the least used of the areas but best if approached after work in corporate settings. If your ally is involved in sales, this is a natural connection.
Good luck and happy creating!
Getting Great Help
Helping experts speak for fun and profit is a booming business. "Experts" abound to help you do it all: videos, marketing, brochures, presentation skills, etc. Some are good, many are not, and a few will be good but not a good fit. How to choose who is best for you?
Track records separate doers from the talkers, but you must delve a little deeper.
Famous People
Folks already successful are great for pearls of wisdom. But can they make you famous as well? Keep in mind that making yourself successful and helping others whom are different than you succeed are very different skill sets. Specific strategies in presentation skills as well as sales are not applicable in all situations.
Key strategy: go beyond the celebrities’ success by learning the value and results of those they have helped.
Specific Roles
Don’t assume that because someone worked with a high-profile speaker, they made that person successful. There is a big difference between taking incoming calls for a popular speaker and creating new business for an up-and-comer.
Key strategy: If name-dropping occurs, find out exactly what role they played and at what stage.
Then and Now
Things change – demo video formats or brochure copy that worked five years ago may not work now. Don’t assume that the strategies that worked when the "expert" got started would work for you.
Key strategy: Learn if and how their recommendations have changed due to changes in the market or industry. Ask: Are you doing anything different in light of new market conditions?
Check out Applicability
I’ve heard of a PR firm outside our industry charge hefty fees to their speaker client for this idea: get bookings through speakers’ bureaus. (Bad news: the speaker’s topic wasn’t appropriate for bureau work.) Be careful of firms who expand their scope into the speaking industry without expanding their expertise. There’s a big difference between a track record in getting talk shows booked and getting speeches booked.
Key strategy: ask about talent and track record for specific expertise.
How much should a speaker charge in order to be "credible?"
The idea of charging a higher fee in order to be "credible in the marketplace" can cost more credibility than any one thing a speaker can do. Fees have to do with expectations in the marketplace, not the budget of the prospect.
There are different expectations at different fee levels – what is considered great at the $2500 level will bomb big time at the $5500 level. If a speaker doesn’t know that they are speaking at a $1500 level and one of their allies hires them at $2500 because that’s the budget … guess who just bombed?
Instead, compare yourself with speakers who are getting the fee you want. Be objective. Not only look at presentation style and content, but also the visibility and positioning as well. When you can compete effectively with those speakers, that’s the time to move into the new fee level.
|
