Even the experts bomb
It seems so obvious!
If you're holding an association meeting, why wouldn't you invite an industry expert to speak?
If you're holding a business conference, why wouldn't you invite someone who made a fortune or took a company public?
And if you've got the budget, celebrities are always a great draw.
What could go wrong?
That's the innocent mistake so many meeting organizers make. They hire speakers who, more often than not, have zero training in how to engage an audience.
Even the exerts bomb!
Their content is good — maybe even valuable — but somehow, the energy level never quite gets off the runway.
💣
Experts have useful information to share, but do you have any idea how many years of preparation it takes to deliver an inspiring AND valuable experience on a keynote stage? Most presenters know their subject matter well, but when it comes to presentation skills …
And yes, I get it. There is another side to this problem. We've all sat through presentations where a powerful-but-100%-content-free speaker gets the audience on their feet on Saturday night … and leaves them unable to remember what they'd gotten so excited about by Monday morning.
It might surprise you to hear that many of my speaking colleagues and I cringe when people refer to us as “motivational speakers.” Sure, we inspire and motivate your audiences, but real professional speakers offer value in excess of their fee.
So what's the solution?
If even the exerts bomb, how will you find and attract the best presenters—the ones who know how to engage your attendees and help them discover new, game-changing concepts?
How will you produce a high-energy event that leaves the audience feeling like they've become stronger and better professionals?
Easy!
Even the exerts bomb! When you engage a speaker, ask them about their speaking experience and not just about their expertise. Professional speakers will happily share testimonials and videos of past performances. And if you're bored by these videos, it's not you; it's them!
Ask a speaker what transformation they'll deliver. If they don't understand the question, you may be setting your audience up into soporific slide into a mind-numbing data-dump slumber session.
Comments
Even the experts bomb — No Comments
HTML tags allowed in your comment: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>