Marketing for Coaches In the Spotlight: Speaking

Speaking is a great way to get known, build your network, and show your work in action.
As someone who speaks to groups and organizations more than 50 times a year (mostly virtually), here are five things to consider in creating a WOW presentation:

1. Understand your audience: What is important for them about the topic you are speaking on? Consider the topic from their frame of reference. What are the key takeaways or exploration points they are going to find valuable? In any speaking topic there may be a range of angles/points of view you can approach the presentation from. What’s important for the audience you are speaking with?
2. Connect your audience quickly: We often talk about the WIIFM – What’s In It For Me? Whether we are a leader or a presenter, connecting people to WHY something is important and relevant to their world is foundational for engagement. We usually have a very small window to get people’s attention and keep it. What’s going to make this a valuable use of their time?
3. Open – Body – Close. The structure of your presentation is critical and forms the pathway of moving people through the conversation. In speaking we often say there are three components - the open, the body and the close. If’s often referred to as “Tell me what you are going to tell me” (the open), “Tell me” (the body), and “tell me what you told me” (the close). What are the soundbytes you want to include in the open and close? Are there 2 - 3 main points you want to make sure you reinforce throughout?
4. What’s your call to action? An often-overlooked part of presentation is the call to action. What do you want people to do next? Are you asking them to create an action plan? Do you want them to check out a resource or program you offer? Do you want them to join you at your newsletter or Facebook page? What’s the call to action?
5. How do you want to make people feel? In speaking we often say that people remember how they feel but not what you said. What’s the feeling you want people to leave your representation with:

• Inspiration?
• Motivation to try things out?
• Confidence?
• Clarity?
• Connection?

​Speaking can be a great way to start the conversation with your clients. It can be as interactive and dialogue based, or one-way as you would like. Regardless of whether it’s in person or virtual, I hope that today’s post gets you thinking about some of the practicalities and considerations when speaking.
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There’s more for you to consider around the marketing strategy of speaking in Section 3 of the Coaching Business Builder. If you have a copy of the book, be sure to read through and work through the exercises on pages 77 and 78 of the Coaching Business Builder.

Enjoy your conversations!
Jennifer

​Jennifer Britton, PCC, CPCC
Author multiple books including the Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner (2018), Effective Group Coaching (2010)
Potentials Realized
Phone: 416-996-8326
Check out the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series of daily prompts for your work and business over on  Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder.
A quick reminder that the Coaching Business Builder/PlanDoTrack Facilitator training begins on July 9th. This 18hour virtual train-the-trainer program will equip you to deliver your own training with clients. Grab a last minute spot!