|
Speaker Services News, March 2005 http://www.speakerservices.com To leave list:see details below Content: Content: 1. A Note from the founder, Susan Levin 2. New & Renewing Speaker/Authors 3. Tips and Advice & Info 5. Article: Productizing Your Expertise: The Secrets To Positioning Yourself as an Expert in Your Field by Pete Nelson  A
Message from Susan LevinWell spring is just around the corner. In Los Angeles we have been having so much rain that I think I live in Seattle. It did stop a few days ago and I am so happy. Everything is green and growing and I can go walking again. You may know that I am a marketing consultant for speakers and authors for the past 14 years. My interest is to provide you with resources and inform help you grow your businesses through speaking. This month I am including an artictle on Productizing Your Expertise by Pete Nelson. Michelle Howe of Word Magic shared Pete's article with me. It is full of great tips and she is also offering a FREE teleclasses with Pete on March 9 plus a few others you might be interested to be part of. See all info below. If you want to know how to get $100,000 worth of PR for your expertise, products or services the teleclass we are offering on 3/14 will provide you with the information you need to move forward. Robert Smith will take the mystery out of his tricky topic. Sign up on our website at http://speakerservices.com/teleclasses or order the CD if you can't make it. Do you need a 3 camera Video Demo? Contact me as we still have spaces available for April 17 in Los Angeles. One of vendors reduced his fees and we are passing along a $200 discount to the first 10 folks who sign on with us. Save Oct 1 & 2 for a very exciting seminar called Get The Word Out in Los Angeles. It's for all professionals who want to speak, get booked by various media. the latest info on online information, many experts plus media coaching and pitching to talk show producers. I will be telling you more about it in future e-mails. Susan Levin Speaker Services 877-773-2800 toll free local-310-822-4922 _______________________ NEW & RENEWING SPEAKERS/AUTHORS- 3/05 See all speakers http://speakerservices.com David C. Aaronson, Greater Los Angeles Area Former Oracle and General Electric exec inspires you to get in touch with your real self and real goals and bring balance and meaning to both work and personal life. Business Building, Sales, Success http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/114 Christy Diemond; Author, Northwest area of Washington State Consumer advocate reveals how to make a difference by making informed choices with your purchasing dollar. Consumer Awareness, Environmental, Politics in Medicine http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/156 Dr. Christine Hoffman, S. California Board Certified doctor of natural medicine, chiropractor and kinesiologist reveals how to listen to your body so you can hear its early warning signs and prevent disease from developing. Alternative Healing, Healthcare, Women's Issues http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/158 Tara Khandro, Santa Fe, New Mexico, Nationwide, International Gifted healer and intuitive inspires you to liberate your spirit and live a free and joyful life. Inspirational, Motivational, Spirituality, Personal Development http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/157 Dr. Victoria Simon & Dr. Holly Pedersen, Los Angeles and surrounding areas Experts show how Fearless Communication empowers you to speak your truth with confidence and achieve successful relationships with lovers, friends, family, work colleagues - even the boss! Communication, Professional Development, Relationships http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/116 Pat Sendejas, Author, S. California, Nationwide Daily news columnist for “Today Magazine” and Interior & Environmental Designer of 25 years, Feng Shui expert, wellness home consultant and author teaches how to optimize health & wealth Environmental, Feng Shui , Interior Design http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/6 Bob Young, Northeastern Colorado Former Lockheed group president shows how to crack the code to extraordinary results with ordinary effort. Leadership, Motivational, Professional Development http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/76 _______________________ TIPS AND ADVICE Send your news, tips or advice to tips@speakerservices.com How to Get F'R'E'E Publicity Without Ever Writing a Press Release? - Robert Smith 3pr@ureach.com Did you know it's possible to get publicity and do tons of newspaper and magazine interviews without writing a press release? All you have to do is read any publication you want to be featured in and send a follow up pitch letter. The best stories to do this with is those on the front or second page of anysection and those are 3 pages or more. (The most important stories are on the first couple of pages.) Stories with this much coverage stand a good chance of having follow up articles over the next few issues. And since there will be follow up stories reporters will need additional sources or experts to speak with. Here's a sample follow up letter that has gotten great results. Dear (Name of reporter or editor) In your coverage of potholes in our city I'd like to recommend a follow up story. As a leading expert on car repairs I've noticed that potholes are causing tremendous damage to local resident's automobiles. The problem is caused when your car tires are....(you go on to explain the problem. Use statistics and facts if you have them.) If you would like to follow up or for a future story please keep me in mind. Sincerely, Jack Doe Jack Doe Auto Repair 888-3333 Follow up pitch letters should be quick and to the point. And for best results send early in the day. Pub Note: Robert will be teaching a teleclass on 3/14 on how to get $100,000 worth of FREE PR. To register http:speakerservices.com/teleclasses _______________________ FREE TELECLASSES offered by our speaker Michelle Howe - michelle@wordmagic.biz Productizing Your Expertise: The Secrets for Positioning Yourself as an Expert in Your Field Special Interview with author and productization expert, Pete Nelson of The Valeo Group. Wednesday, March 9, 2005, 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. PST Writing That Makes Your Point, Say it With Fewer Words Tuesday, March 3, 2005, 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. PST Are You Making These 7 E-Mail Mistakes? Tuesday, March 15, 2005, 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. PST Thursday, April 21, 2005, 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. PST Sign up: http://www.wordmagic.biz/teleclasses.htm _______________________ Knowbetter.com is a site devoted to E-book reviews and technology reviews - Michelle Price - michelle@athirdmind.com If you are working on an e-book, have just published one, or intend to do so in the future, the News Editor will publish a news release about the book. They are particularly interested in nonfiction titles, especially textbooks, e-workbooks, or any material that you might wish to sell to educational markets. Also, don't hesitate to mail them with other newsworthy events and promotions that you have an interest in making public. There is no charge , and they will correspond with you individually about the content of the release. If your book is featured on a website, they will include a link to that as well. They would be delighted to be the first reviewer of your book. Primary areas of expertise are nonfiction works, literary works, poetry- in fact, anything except romance. Submit your inquiries here: http://www.knowbetter.com/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=62 _______________________ The Number One Way to Get the Word out About Your Book - Judy Cullins- judy@bookcoaching.com If you have spent time and money down the drain doing traditional marketing such as book signings or news releases, perhaps you are now ready to try the # ONE way to promote and sell your book. From "Ten Non-Techie Ways to Market your Book Online." do this first. Write short articles and tips that reflect the gold in your book. If fiction, write an excerpt to entice millions of Online opt-in (no spam) ezine subscribers after they read the tip to either visit your Web site or call your toll-free order number to buy your book. Tip Two The Best Free Way to Optimize your Search Engine Placement and Get Targeted Free Web Traffic 1. Write a how to article or tip. Include your best key words and phrases in the article title and opening paragraph you submit to ePublishers and top Web sites. Search engines pick up these and you get higher in the top search engines. Expand your keywords through visiting www.goodkeywords.com. When you are in the top 20 of search engine lists, many more people will visit your Web site. That eventually translates to sales. _______________________ No More Stagefright - Have Fun Speaking! - Dianne Legro, Dianne@diannelegro.com 7 Tips that calm and center you before your presentation: 1. Breathe and stretch before your presentation for at least ten minutes. This refreshes you, gets oxygen flowing to your brain and releases the hold your mind has on your body which gives you that “pent up” feeling. 2. Bend your knees slightly and bring your torso over your hips, so that your back is long and loose and your tailbone is pointed towards the floor. Let your shoulders drop. This put you directly aligned over your center of gravity and makes you stronger and calmer. 3. Shake your hands loose. This helps with creativity and mental agility. 4. Rehearse your opening and closing. Slowly go over the words you will say so that you are confident. 5. Before you speak, take a deep breath and find a face in the audience to connect with. Smile. Let them know you are glad to be there with them. 6. Remind yourself how important it is for people to receive this information. This takes the responsibility off you and puts it on the subject that they need to learn about. 7. Do a soft humming exercise. Close your lips and softly hum using the letter “mmmmmmmm.” This warms up your resonance and gets your tongue and lips relaxed and loose. Remember, the presentation is not about you. People have come into the room needing to hear the information you have for them. What you need to think about is them and how much they need to hear the information! It helps them and takes your mind off YOU! Send your news, tips or advice to tips@speakerservices.com _______________________ Article: Productizing Your Expertise: The Secrets To Positioning Yourself as an Expert in Your Field by Pete Nelson When it comes to securing new business, if I were to ask you to choose between having clients chasing you for business or you having to chase them…which would you choose? Not a difficult question to answer, right? You want customers chasing you for business. We all do. But the reality is that getting your business to that point is a lot easier said than done. Take for example a series of recent surveys and studies that indicated over 70% of independent (solo) professionals make less than $10,000 their first year in business. When asked what might be holding them back from expanding their business the two primary challenges given were “a lack of time” and “not enough money and resources”. Regardless of the amount of revenue your business brought in last year do these challenges sound familiar to you? What if there was a cost effective way to fully leverage and maximize your experience and expertise through a set of tactics and strategies that would not only grow your business and career in ways you only dreamed of, but would allow you to consistently get your customers chasing you for business instead of it always being the other way around? There is and it’s . . . Productizing Your Expertise. What Is Productizing Your Expertise? Simply defined, productizing your expertise is the concept and strategy of taking the intangible (which is your knowledge and expertise) on a topic relevant to your service and converting it into a tangible, information based product. The intention is to educate your target audience with information relevant to your service in order to achieve the following five critical components to growing your business: 1. Reinforce your credibility 2. Enhance your visibility 3. Bring you closer to qualified and ideal clients 4. Accelerate your sales cycle 5. Create additional revenue streams The most popular and proven methods for productizing your expertise include writing a book, speaking in public, creating audio courses, writing articles and publishing an online newsletter. In many cases, these products have provided a competitive edge to the professionals who use them and proven to be the distinguishable factor in leveling the playing field between smaller, under-capitalized companies and their larger, more well financed competitors. Some of the service industries or professions that are in need of productization and consequently, benefiting the most from it, are law firms, accountants, business life coaches, chiropractors, Web designers, ophthalmologists, professional speakers and all types of consultants. Of course, any company or individual who sells a service can benefit greatly from channeling their expertise into information based products. What’s important to keep in mind is that it’s not so much the product you create as it is your intention behind creating the product and knowing the market that the product is intended for that counts. Specifically, what challenges and needs are your information products filling for your prospects and clients? Knowing this is a result of doing some basic market analysis and realizing what specific areas related to your service that your market needs the most education on. Uncovering Your Expertise So where do you start leveraging your knowledge and expertise? There’s five specific areas that you can tap into and start transforming your knowledge and expertise into information products. 1. Existing Collateral When it comes to productizing your expertise the first place to look is your existing collateral. This includes everything from proposals, sell sheets, Website content, direct mail pieces, brochures and even client related documents. This is your hidden treasure, just waiting to be leveraged. 2. PowerPoint Presentations Your PowerPoint presentations are your product’s “Story Board”. Expand on the bullet points and begin writing out brief paragraphs for each. This is how I started writing my first book. 3. Articles, White Papers Books Any written piece that taps into your expertise can be leveraged as a terrific lead generator and expanded into everything from audio programs to seminars. It isn’t so much a question of whether you’ve written anything, but how you leverage it that counts. 4. Speeches Seminars Every speech and/or seminar is a book and audio program waiting to be written and recorded. If you have structured a speech, seminar or workshop around a topic you know very well, you absolutely need to transform that material into other lead generating products. 5. Existing Clients Every client you work with is a terrific case study for you to leverage and case studies are a form of productization. Create a case study or white paper based on your best clients. You can even line up a series of clients and interview them on a specific topic and then turn those interviews into a book or article to be published online or offline. Record the interviews and you have an audio program. Of course, you’ll need to get written consent from your clients for this, but that shouldn’t be too hard since you’re promoting them and their business through your products. Making Your Products Work For You Give some thought as to what you regularly educate your clients on, as it relates to your “core” service or “core” product. For instance, if you’re an accountant that works with small businesses you could write, speak about and even record an audio program on “The 10 Most Common Mistakes Small Business Owners Make Using QuickBooks”. The key driving force isn’t just your knowledge or expertise on a given subject. But more so, the breadth and depth of your knowledge and expertise on the market you’re serving. If you are off the mark in terms of what your audience wants, no product in the world is going to help you consistently bring in qualified clients. On the other hand, if you’ve done your market analysis and have your finger on the pulse of your market, the chances of your information products bringing in new and qualified clients dramatically improves. An example of how this works can be found with Dan Coen, a leading call center consultant and customer service trainer. Dan wrote a book titled, Building Call Center Culture, and routinely sends it, along with a cover letter from himself, to senior executives and managers who oversee call centers. Not only do most of the decision makers who receive his book take Dan’s follow up call, but several have turned into clients of Dan and his company. The reason Dan’s strategy works so well is that not only has Dan researched and analyzed his market, but he has created an information product that reinforces his credibility and delivers solutions to the very real challenges call centers face. In essence, he’s leveraging what he routinely educates his prospective clients on, but in this way, he’s transferring that valuable information into not only books, but audio programs that can educate hundreds, if not thousands of prospects simultaneously. Pre-Educating Clients While developing and launching information based products isn’t incredibly difficult it does require some time and effort on your part. How much time and effort depends on how in-depth you want your products to be. Let’s not forget every form of marketing and branding requires time, money and effort. But when it comes to productizing your expertise you will simply be utilizing all three much more wisely. With that in mind, the process of uncovering your expertise and then productizing it is really nothing more than a minor shift from what you’re already doing right now to educate clients. No matter if you’re speaking in public, developing an audio program, writing an article or book, using a brochure or PowerPoint, the intention is still the same. You want to educate your target audience in a manner that attracts, secures and maintains them as clients as cost effectively as possible. Nothing does that as powerfully and as effectively as productizing your expertise. Remember, the ideal client is one that comes to you pre-educated and pre-sold. About The Author: Pete Nelson is an author of three books and a highly sought after professional speaker. He is the creator behind the revolutionary and popular training programs, Selling In Color and Productizing Your Expertise. His clients range from independent professionals and small businesses to large organizations such as Allergan, UCLA and the U.S. Department of Commerce. |
UPCOMING EVENTS 3/14 Teleclass Get $100,000 in Free Publicity for your Books, Products or Services: Get Booked on Oprah & Dr. Phil and more Robert Smith learn more 3/21 Los Angeles Workshop Market Yourself as a Speaker, Susan Levin learn more 4/11 & 4/18 Teleclass The Business of Speaking: Creating a Marketing Strategy, Susan Levin learn more 4/17 Video Demo Showcase in Los Angeles, 3 camera shoot learn more |
