You’ve scheduled the speech. It’s the day of your presentation. You’re about to time your arrival so that you’re helpful without getting there too early or too late. What should you do when you arrive?
It’s different with each person and each presentation. But here are a number of things to consider…
- Talk to the organizer (duh!). Offer to help her out in any way you can; confirm the time of your presentation and any other odds and ends.
- Ask the organizer about the officers or board of the organization and make sure she either points them out to you or makes an introduction.
- Check any AV equipment to make sure it works, especially if it’s not yours.
- If you’re recording the program (and you should record!), do a one minute test and play it back to make sure your recorder is working.
- If there is no microphone and the room is small, have one or two of the organizers make sure they can hear you in your ‘normal presenting voice’ from the back of the room.
- Check sight lines from around the room to make sure all seats can see you. This includes any sight lines to your PowerPoint screen and where you may be standing – make sure you plan to stand in a location where everyone can see the screen.
- Introduce yourself to people as they arrive. Make mental notes of names and businesses, and any related story they mention. Chances are you can reference it somewhere in your speech: “When I was chatting with Jim earlier, he mentioned that his tradeshow marketing really benefitted by using this technique…”
- If there’s a meal involved, plan on either skipping or eating light (eat before or after).
- If there are handouts from the organization that relate to your topic, review them for errors or updates.
- Give your pre-written introduction to the person that will introduce you. This ensures that you will be properly introduced. It should be succinct, but thorough enough to cover the reason(s) you’re speaking to them today: brief background qualifications and title or topic of the talk.
- Take a deep breath. Smile. You’re here to have FUN!
Podcast: Social Media Monitoring
Communication Steroids: ‘Goin’ Mobile’
Before Communication Steroids Goes Mobile
If you’ve caught any of our podcasts lately we discussed the prospect of making our website more ‘mobile-friendly.’ With more smartphones being sold this year than standard computers, we’ll have more and more people having the capability to access our website (and others) via the iPhone, Blackberry, Droid and more.
One question to ask: why bother? Seriously, why should you want to put up a completely different-looking site with the same information for the people who access your site on-the-go from a smartphone? Because if your site is smartphone-friendly, you’ll find that people who are mobile will tend to come back to your site more frequently. And they’ll tell others.
To make it easier, we finally tracked down a WordPress plug-in that does exactly what we want. There are a number of websites and services that promise to create a new website for you and put it on a .mobi URL. Nice, but…some of them want you to pay a monthly fee. Others give you a freebie but it’s a limited scope site. Not only that, you have to create the site from scratch, so it’s a separate ‘stand-alone’ site from your main site. That means when you update one you have to update the other. Uh-uh. Who wants that much extra work?
Well, it turns out that getting the .mobi URL was not necessary. You can easily access this site with the new mobile look by just logging on. That’s all there is to it.
Finally the search for an easy-to-install, functional WordPress plug-in was successful. It’s called Carrington Mobile and while the installation instructions are a bit different than a typical plug-in or theme, it’s a very easy 2 or 3 step process. And as far as we can tell, it works great.
AFTER Communication Steroids Went Mobile
One other thing. I thought I’d take photos of the ‘before’ and ‘after’ looks of the site just to compare. After snapping a couple of photos that frankly didn’t look to good I got to thinking: what are those other guys on places like Gizmodo doing to get those cool screen shots of their iPhone?
A quick Google search (and I mean one or two clicks) and I found this short article that informed me there’s already a screenshot utility on the iPhone. Whodathunk?
Are you trying to communicate with your audience? Are you anticipating that many of them are going mobile and you need to make the move? It’s great that the move is that easy for a WordPress blog. If that’s how your blog is set-up, check out the plug-in and see if it works for you.
Check out the before and after shots of the site…and let us know what you think. And feel free to chime in on the subject: are you ‘goin’ mobile’ and accessing the web via a smartphone? Are you hoping to in the near future? Do you think that’s where the world is going?
Podcast: Salem ShowBiz 2010 DeBrief
After our first-ever tradeshow appearance at a local show in Salem, Oregon last week, we dissect what was good and maybe not-so-good about it. We look at our expectations, our execution and see what worked and what didn’t.
Had Your Assumptions Challenged Lately?
I came across a newsletter this morning that made me stop and question my assumptions. Again.
I think many of us indeed DO question what we assume about the world. But probably not often enough.
Here’s what I read in the newsletter from Rob Stokes @ Quirk:
“I’ve just come back from Bucharest where I spent a week with the Quirk UK Team training one of our clients on eMarketing and in particular Social Media and Web Analytics. It was a fantastic trip and we learnt a huge amount about Romania – its friendly people and its truly fantastic Internet access, which was without doubt the best I’ve ever experienced anywhere in the world. Not only is it lightening fast, but it’s free pretty much everywhere. A geek’s paradise indeed.”
Uh – lightning fast – and FREE – Internet access in, of all places, Romania?
Gee, I don’t think I get out enough. I shouldn’t be surprised at this, however. Living here in the USA, it’s easy to think that much of what we have is the best and the fastest – no matter what it is.
Even if you don’t travel much (and I don’t – at least not as much as I’d like) it’s easy to get complacent about what’s going on ‘out there.’ When I see a brief anecdote about how lightning-fast the Internet access is in Romania, it’s a good eye-opener.
When I read that Japan’s computer technology, especially cell phones, is a couple of years ahead of the US, it makes me wonder why the US is lagging.
When I hear that students from many schools around the world are beating the academics of American students, I wonder what it is we’re doing wrong.
All of that is for another discussion in another time or place. My thoughts in this piece are really about how the rest of the world probably doesn’t live up to (or down to) our expectations. There is a lot of fantastic things out there – and the instant communication and sharing brings those stories to my desktop on a regular basis.
It’s good to know what’s happening elsewhere because it gives me a better perspective on what I have. Or don’t.
What about you? Are you making assumptions about the rest of the world that may ultimately prove to be wrong?
And if you are, are those assumptions getting in the way of your understanding of other cultures and places? And does it impact your efforts to communicate with them when the opportunity arises?
Communicating with people from other locations on the globe brings its own set of demands, not the least of which is to keep an open mind about virtually everything to do with that communication.
Is your mind open? Or is it shut?
photo credit: paulgalbraith
Podcast: Communicating By Keyboard
Unfortunately, a lot of ‘communication by keyboard’ falls woefully short of even basic grammatical standards.
Roger and Tim discuss them in this podcast.
How to Give a Good Media Interview
So you’ve been asked to be on a radio show. Or you’ve been asked to sit down for an interview with a newspaper or magazine reporter. Or a podcaster send an email asking if you could be on their podcast.
Now what?
If you haven’t given interviews of this type, or if you’ve only done a few and went away wondering ‘what happened there – and how can I do better?’ here are some useful tips.
1. Remember – it’s THEIR interview, not YOURS!
Don’t get caught up in the outcome. Yes it would be nice to have a great flattering article written about you. Of course you want to do a good radio or TV appearance. But keep in mind you’re just the subject, not the interviewer.
No matter what you say or how you say it, the reporter, writer or radio host is going to have their own agenda. You may not even know what that agenda is until you’re through and see the final article.
Now, of course radio and TV are immediate, so you’ll at least have the control of what you say going unfiltered. But in the situation of doing a live appearance you’ll need to be prepared and know your material up and down, forwards and backwards. Of course it’s YOUR material, so you SHOULD know it that well. And the more interviews you do the more experienced you’ll get.
2. Be Prepared
Like any good Cub Scout or Boy Scout, you should be prepared. Unless you’re caught in the midst of a breaking news story that relates directly to your expertise, you should have time to prepare.
For instance if a newspaper reporter calls and says he wants to talk to you, schedule the interview at your convenience. Chances are she will understand and accommodate your schedule (as long as you don’t put them off too far). Ask if they might e-mail sample questions to you so you can review them. This will give you time to prepare and it will also help to understand where the reporter is coming from.
While it may be tempting to do the interview ‘on the spot,’ you’ll be much better off if you can get them to call you back. Even if you only buy a few minutes time it should help when you do finally talk to the reporter.
LIVE APPEARANCES
Doing radio or TV is much different than answering questions for a newspaper, magazine or blog article.
Here the banter is snappy and quick, the pace might even be frenetic, and the time short.
TV and radio – while both live mediums – have different approaches.
Radio is typically a longer, drawn-out interview – especially if you’re a guest on a talk show.
TV more often wants their segments to be short, tight and bright.
So, follow their lead:
If the host asks you to expand on a subject, don’t be afraid to launch into a more elaborate explanation of the topic.
If she says to wrap it up in 20 seconds, give your elevator speech version of the topic. You do have a 20-second version of your book or expertise prepared, don’t you!?
After the interview is over, whether radio, TV, or print, suggest to the reporter that they can find out more by checking the media section on your website.
Of course, this assumes you HAVE a media section on your website! If you don’t, it’ll pay off later to spend some time to prepare a press or media section.
What should you include there:
- Press releases
- Bio’s – short and long
- Photos – high-res and low-resolution
- About this website/company/organization
- If a publicly traded company, offer information for investors and stockholders
If a private company, reveal as little or as much information about your business success as you prefer
Bonus for Readers/Viewers/Listeners
If you can set it up ahead of time – and you have a book or product to sell – set up a special page where you can send listeners. If you can work your host’s name into the page, they’ll love it.
For instance, if you have a book that you’re promoting and your host’s name is Barbara, the page could be www.yoursite.com/barbarabonus.
Make sure your host knows about it ahead of time, so they can mention it on their own as well.
The page could offer a freebie bonus or a special discount on your product.
Finally, some common sense reminders that you may or may not remember:
- Act confident
- Dress Appropriately (TV or in-studio radio)
- Project positive body language (again, TV mostly)
- Speak strongly and confidently
- Don’t be afraid to take a stand on your topic – that’s why you’re there!
The more interview you do, the more you’ll get asked so YES, you will get better, and your support (media or press section, special bonuses, etc.) system will operate smoothly.
Podcast: Our Favorite Women Speakers
Have you ever sat down and thought about your favorite women speakers? At first glance, the speaking world appears to be dominated by men. But there are (and have always been) powerful, polished and passionate women speakers.Prepping for Salem ShowBiz 2010!
We’ve spent a lot of time the past few weeks getting it together for our first tradeshow appearance. The photo to the left is the small pop-up booth with graphics that we set up in my living room over the weekend!
But as in any tradeshow appearance, you get out more when you do a lot of preparation. For instance, we’ve done a mailer to several local folks that we’d love to do business with, inviting them to our booth at the show this Thursday, May 13th. If they show up and say they got our letter, or show us the letter, we’ll give them one of our new audio CDSeminars which normally sells for – well, we haven’t exactly put a price tag on it yet! But we will soon and you’ll be able to order them through our website.
We’re putting together mini-questionnaires to help qualify (and disqualify) the visitors to our booth. The goal at a tradeshow booth is to talk to as many people as possible, figure out which ones are the ‘hot’ and ‘warm’ leads, get info on them on how and when you’ll follow-up, and move on to the next visitor.
So here’s a benny for you: if you are in the Salem are this coming Thursday, the 13th of May, come by the ShowBiz tradeshow at the State Fairgrounds between 3 and 8 pm, say you read about this on our blog, and we’ll also give YOU a freebie CDSeminar. Not a bad deal, eh? Make sure you mention where you read it.
We’re sharing the booth with SalemBusinessNetwork.com, a new Salem (Oregon) business referral, networking and lead-generation organization. Come see us – we’re in booth 1104!
“…Once upon a time…”
“Let me tell you about the time I spent in the mountains all night by myself – unexpectedly…”
If you really want to draw your audience closer to you, tell a story. It should be a story about yourself or somebody you know.
Try NOT to repeat a story you’ve heard elsewhere – even if it is a great story. It’s still another person’s story, and you lose something by telling another person’s story – especially if there’s a chance some of your audience has heard it before.
The magic of telling a story is that once you’ve set the scene, your audience is hooked. They want to hear the end of it, so they’ll listen literally on the edge of their seat.
Stories enrapture, they engage, they thrill…
Even though I recommend using your own stories, IF you don’t have stories of your own, you can judiciously use stories from another source – but only sparingly, and only until you’ve amassed enough stories of your own.
So how many stories should you have? According to Scott Ginsberg, The Nametag Guy, you should compile fifty of your own stories.
I think that’s a great idea. When I read that a few years ago, I started a file called ’50 stories’ and whenever something keyed up in my memory, I’d jot it down in my file.
Some stories were okay, some I thought were good, others I figured I’d eventually toss out.
But the idea is to just start compiling stories – no matter what they’re about. Chances are at some point you’ll find a use for them in your speaking career.
Another great thing about telling a story to support a point in your presentation is that it’s your story. Nobody else’s. It makes your speech unique and more personable.
Plus – if it’s your story, it’s easy to remember! You’ve lived it and internalized it.
Keep adding to your personal story file. Over time you’ll remember things that would make a good story: the time your cat vanished for a month and then came back. The time you climbed a mountain. The time you spent in high school as a drummer.
Whatever – just compile them, polish them, and you’ll find places where they’ll fit in your presentations.
