Developing an Effective Speaker Program
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©2008 Laurus Technologies, Inc. Developing an Effective Speaker Program Steve Susina, Director of Marketing [email protected] 630.521.8932 March 4, 2008
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Thought Leadership is an increasingly important part of the marketing mix. As the credibility and influence of traditional advertising, direct and telemarketing continues to wane, marketers are increasingly turning to methods that highlight capabilities in advance of a direct sales engagement. Public relations, social media and public speaking are among the ways companies can establish their expertise and generate positive impressions with prospects before the first sales call. Speaking programs are an excellent way to build credibility and demonstrate thought leadership in an increasingly competitive market. Developing an effective speaking program takes time and effort, but there are ways to jumpstart the effort.
Transcript of Developing an Effective Speaker Program
©2008 Laurus Technologies, Inc.
Developing an Effective Speaker Program
Steve Susina, Director of [email protected] 4, 2008
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How did I get involved?How did I get involved?
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Steve Susina Rest of Tellabs
Speeches on the Event Calendar: Circa 2002
I only did it so I could go to conferences!
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Benefits of Speaking Programs: Thought LeadershipBenefits of Speaking Programs: Thought Leadership
> Prospects want to buy—not to be sold.> Information empowers prospects to enter into
relationships with their vendors as informed and knowledgeable consumers
> Trust is builtbefore theinitial meeting
PhotoCredit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/boeke
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Becoming KnownBecoming Known
> Increasingly, customers won’t start building the relationship with you until they know more about you
> Customers want to learn from trusted experts
> Presenting at conferences, trade shows and other venues serve as a proxy for vetting the expertise
Irony—customers want to know you before they’ll even accept a meeting to get to know you!
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How to establish a speaking program:How to establish a speaking program:
> Have something interesting or worthwhile to say.
> Find speakers who are authentic, enthusiastic, reasonably well spoken. Write a strong bio, including all prior speeches.
> Have something interesting or worthwhile to say.
> Encourage speakers to start at the bottom tier events—even if they’re the VP.
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How to establish a speaking program (Con’t)How to establish a speaking program (Con’t)> Have something interesting or
worthwhile to say.
> Develop a list of target events, then widen your net and look further
> Have something interesting or worthwhile to say.
> Document each and every speaking opportunity in which your staff participates.
> Have something interesting or worthwhile to say.
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Things to keep in mindThings to keep in mind
> Build one area of expertise per speaker > Focus on positioning them as an expert > If no experience, start with “pay for play”
> Spend time up front to develop 3 or 4 different abstracts> Examples
> Business benefits> Technology primer> Evolution of the Technology/Market/Customer> Implementation best practices/case studies
> Work with the expert to understand where s/he wants to present> Type of events> Geography> Audience demographics
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The Three Page Abstract: The Three Page Abstract:
> Page 1: > FULL contact information, Speaker and Administrative
contact (you)> Two or three paragraph description of the speech> The Key Phrase:
> “In this presentation, the audience will learn:”> Followed by 3-5 bullet-points of specific audience benefits
> Page 2: > A full page justification for the speech> More detail, background.
> Page 3: > A detailed bio, including education and personal background > A listing of recent public speaking opportunities
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Locating Events to pitchLocating Events to pitch
> Trade Publication calendars> Your competition’s “News & Events” page> Catchpole’s weekly newsletter> Google
> Subject topic + “call for papers” or “call for presentations”> Event producers
> Marcus Evans> IIR
> Your PR firm> Local chapter contacts of professional organizations> Schools> Conferences & Trade show organizers
The wall between the conference producer and the exhibit sales staff is often thin (if it exists at all)!
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Post-event marketing opportunitiesPost-event marketing opportunities
> Post the slide deck on your web site as a resource> Record the speech for a podcast/online video> Develop a white paper around the speech> Send a letter to customers offering to deliver a
“command performance” if they missed the conference or trade show
> Incorporate the content into your Newsletter> Call attention to your speeches as evidence of your
thought leadership
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Social media opportunities:Social media opportunities:
> Slideshare.com> Post slidedecks online, integrate with LinkedIn
> LinkedIn> What are you working on?> “Finalizing presentation on Developing An Effective
Speaker Program to present at Illinois Tech. Assn. Chicago tomorrow.”
> Twitter> “Presenting at the Illinois Technology Association
tomorrow on Developing an Effective Speaker Program. http://tinyurl.com/b62cx3”
> SpeakerRate.com> Speaker rating service for audience members.
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Results?Results?
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Speeches on the Tellabs Event Calendar
Same approach at UTStarcom led to 11 speeches in 2006-07 on FMC product line—8 for me, 3 for others
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