I just released a report called "Public Speaking (*as you know it) Is Dead!" that states my view of the last couple of years of the public speaking industry.
If you have not read the report and want to get a free copy, see the resource box at the bottom of this article.
The information in the report is just my opinion but the research shows that the facts support it. Also, well-known speakers are agreeing with my conclusions.
Well-known speaker and author, Jim Cathart, CPAE, a Past President of the National Speakers Association, recently commented that:"Scott Dennison has nailed it. The problem in our business is that it's not there anymore. The needs are still there and our skills are still valuable, but the ways in which people buy our services has permanently moved. It's time to go where the buying is happening."
So what can public speakers do to survive in 2010 and beyond if the old model of public speaking is dead? Here are three tips that will help you.
1) Since we've moved from a time when speakers delivered their message in meetings and conventions and commanded high fees to do so, to one where meetings that require a speaker are reduced, we all have to respect and adapt to the new rules.
However, the Audiences who are used to attending meetings and conventions are still hungry for information on your area of expertise. They want to access your specific knowledge and are seeking content from you - so give it to them. What this means in short is that you need to think like a publisher or content provider, not just a speaker.
2) Seek to find out what the Audience loved about you and about your information. Then build relationships with only those individuals who are passionate about your topic.
Because of the Internet, you Audience is not limited to those who would or could travel to the convention or meeting where you were presenting your information. Access to your work is now available to people all over the world with the only barrier being that persons access to the Internet. If your material fills a need your content can be distributed everywhere on earth.
3) Provide your consumers access to content in multi-media formats. This includes video, Audio and text. This way you are able to meet the needs of each person who wants to learn from you and do it according to the style in which they learn best.
More and more these days a speech is recorded in high-quality video and is then repurposed into Audio CDs, turned into a book, distributed as a series of articles or even as blog posts. While that might sound difficult and possibly a lot of work, its very easy and can be quite profitable to do.
Instead of thinking you need tens of thousands of people to hear you speak to make a great living, imagine building strong relationships with only 1000, who each like what you do so well they invest $100 per month to learn from you. If you do the math on that, you'll understand that THERE IS life after the death of public speaking.
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