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Two trends to act on
NOW
Two market dynamics are reaching critical mass
in 2006. Here's the impact to and opportunities for
experts and what to do to take advantage.
Trend #1: Event-driven
marketing
Recent studies last year proved
the buzz is true: events create a controlled marketing
environment that drives sales. As a result, three things
are happening that bode well for experts.
- Meetings from the marketing department are booming,
along with webinars, conference calls, anything that
brings people together. Attendance drives success
for these meetings, and experts are seen as the key
factor to filling the room (or call).
- Sponsorship spending is skyrocketing, as Corporate
America uses already-established venues to "engage"
potential customers. Associations are jumping on the
bandwagon, opening the door for more speakers to be
sponsored in these conventions.
- Attendance to outside conferences and seminars continues
to be one of the top ways employees get trained. This
not only creates more opportunities for experts to
speak, but also the chance to conduct their own events.
(Interested? See the next article.)
Put together, more opportunities exist not only for
speaking, but all forms if your expertise is disseminated
appropriately. The challenge: the bar has been raised
on the expert's brand and visibility. This market will
separate the sophisticated strategies from the brands
built by default.
Trend
#2: The power of the personal brand
The obsession with celebrities is also a boon for experts.
(Thank you, Paris Hilton!) The ability to cash in on
a personal brand has created these changes:
- Credibility is redefined. The market is now willing
to buy products and services from those who get big
results in unrelated areas. Example: Authors Jim Loehr
and Tony Schwartz created The Power of Full Engagement
concept from Loehr's work with athletes.
- Endorsements are expanding. Agents for the famous
acknowledge that celebrity goes beyond Hollywood and
sports, and is defined as anyone who can influence
buying habits. Couple that with the rise of soft-sell
PR deals, and experts now have out-of-the-box ways
to increase revenue. (If NASCAR can promote anti-wrinkle
cream, anything is possible.)
For experts, the
key issue is new revenue streams from relevant credibility.
Message is out and manifesto is in. Brands that drive
influence will create opportunities in many unrelated
directions. Revenue streams will expand in ways no one
has expected.
Your new
to-do list
What's your priority for 2006? Revisit
these areas:
- Apply your brand. Ask yourself: does my brand influence
buying decisions? Does my book springboard a larger
brand that drives influence? If not, make your platform
a priority.
- Expand your offerings. Look at how you can cash
in on your point of view and visibility. Can you launch
a series of seminars or events? How about a product
line that goes beyond the educational and actually
creates tools that implement your point of view? What
kind of endorsements are your comfortable in making?
Experts have more opportunities than ever before to
build their empires. Now is the time to act on these
trends.
The New Role of Seminars
and Bootcamps
Vickie's note: Armand Morin is the genius behind
The Big Seminar, considered THE event for his industry.
Not only is this event contributing to Armand's brand,
but it also drives $1M in revenue. Yep, that's right
-- $1M in revenue for one event. He's got my attention....
What
changes do you see in store for the traditional seminars?
The biggest change is the heavy
emphasis on content. In past seminars, people have been
bombarded with blatant sales pitches. The market has
become smarter and people are tired of getting a preview
of content and then a pitch to buy product. What people
are looking for now is a system, a certain method that
is time-tested and proven to work. You can't present
a prototype or test model.
Let's
cut to the chase: What's the secret behind you generating
seven figures from one event?
The magic is in the system and
the selection of content. Is there a theme or topic
for your audience? We start our events with the simple
messages and then move to the more complex, deeper content
later in the event. You have to drive the agenda by
the content.
We also have a system for every aspect of our event.
This holds down costs and avoids innocent mistakes that
can cost a lot of money. Our success is about making
a lot of little things work. We have a checklist of
requirements for everything. Once you learn the system,
you only have to learn it once.
Let's
go to the dark side: What is the most common mistake
experts make? What do newbies need to watch out for?
The biggest mistake is when
someone wakes up one day and says to themselves: "I
think I'll put on a seminar." There's a system
to making this business work and reinventing the wheel
can get expensive.
Again, it's the little things that create big disasters.
There are many pockets of pitfalls that cannot only
wipe out profits, but also lose money. The first event
I ever put on had 161 attendees. Everything went smoothly.
With registration and back of the room sales, I just
broke even. Why? All those little costs ate away my
profits. For example, running an extension code costs
$100 per day. I ordered an extra screen -- that's over
$450 per day. Hotels love to accommodate extra requests
because they charge a lot of money for those things.
If you know the insider stuff up front, you can make
your event more profitable by brining in your own equipment.
What
is the most important thing someone needs to know before
creating their own seminar or bootcamp?
First thing to figure out: is
your topic seminar worthy. Some topics are not fit for
this venue. For example, a gardening expert will be
great at the home and garden shows, but their credibility
won't be enough to carry a stand-alone seminar. Most
people won't pay for that topic. So you need to ask:
who will invest money in your topic? The most popular
topics are those that create big results, usually financial
results.
Second, you need to be able to promote the event. you
have to get cheeks in the seats and they need to be
your targeted audience. Without people in the audience,
you won't have an event. Too many promoters rely on
others (speakers, affiliates, friends, etc.) to promote
the event. It is not their job to fill an event -- it
is the promoter's responsibility. Building a list is
essential to the success of your event and your business.
What
tools do experts need to cut their implementation curve?
Many experts are the creative
type; they are good at creating content and teaching.
They are good in front of the stage. But you also need
someone who will take the event and run with it. Someone
must be in charge of the administration part of your
event. Running the event is different than managing
the event. So, a central contact person is a key part
to making sure the event is profitable and well run.
You don't have to hire full-time staff -- there are
resources you can contract for, but you have to know
what you want in order to tell these people what you
want.
Another part is coordination. Don't plan your event
on top of another event. Even established seminar promoters
mess this up. Talk to other organizations in your industry
to coordinate calendars. Scheduling events at the same
time just takes away from everyone.
2006 will be the
year of...
Changing business models. The magical convergence of
trends will create the most exciting (and still hidden)
opportunities in this ever-changing market. What's your
next step? Learn the best systems and make them your
own. If public seminars in any form are your future,
you can't miss this opportunity to learn from the masters.
Check out the Promoter's
Boot Camp.
(And, yes, I'll be there.)
19 years?! It can't
be!!
Time flies when you're having fun. And thanks to you,
I've had a blast serving experts this past 19 years.
So let's party -- and I'm bringing the gifts!! Click
here to get a small token of my appreciation for
the opportunity to work with your brilliance.
On the road again...
Just when you thought it was safe, I just might be in
your neighborhood this Spring. Starting in March, I'll
be sharing the latest market intelligence and positioning
processes in Los Angelens for the Speaker's
Summit, in DC for the National
Speakers Association, and again in Atlanta for the
Promoter's
Boot Camp . Click on any of these links for additional
information. Tell them I sent you!
I've received a call for
presenters from a national association. They are asking
almost $2,000 to present! What is going on here? Should
I really pay that much to speak?
A: Welcome to the world
of event-driven marketing. The trend of using events
and education as a marketing and branding tool has caught
on like wildfire in Corporate America. And this is the
association market's way of getting into the act. And
it's working: larger organizations are willing to pay
to play.
What can you do to avoid this pitch? Three ideas: first,
don't brand yourself as a vendor. If the association
even thinks you're trying to sell something, you'll
get their offer for "sponsorship". Second,
share the spotlight with a member -- the more visible,
the better. Make it politically incorrect (or dangerous)
to suggest to this member that they have to pay to speak.
Third: get a sponsor who will pitch you to the association.
Best place to look: where your credibility is already
established.
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