Speaker Services E-News - 2/09
Training, Marketing and Development
http://www.speakerservices.com

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Content:

In this Issue
- Note from Susan Levin
- New & Renewing Speakers & Authors
- Article: 3 Reasons Why Great Clients Leave and How You Can Begin Winning Them Back


Note from Susan Levin, founder
 

I have been doing tons of social networking from the comfort of my home office for the past year or so.  Often I am asked how much time do I actually devote to it and do I actually get business.  For me the answer is not a lot of time and YES I am getting business through the social networks.  Join me on February 12 as I interview Donna Gunter of OnlineBizU  on How to Build Your Speaking Practice with Social Networking 30 Minutes a Day.


On Feb 23 I am thrilled to interview Kathleen Gage on Teleseminars for Money- Generate Six Figure Income.  If you're like most people, you have a wealth of information that your customers and clients would benefit from learning. Information that can change the lives of your customers and make you lots of money.  So what's wrong? Why do some people make tons of money with their information while others struggle to do so? Find out when I interview Kathleen Gage, Internet Marketing Advisor. Learn the very strategies she has been using to generate thousands of dollars every time she hosts a teleseminar.  See her program  .  Check out the teleclasses page for further info http://www.speakerservices.com/teleclasses.

Psst: Teleclasses are free for Speakers' Community Members. Not a member?   Join now to access the calls with my special FREE 2- month Speakers' Community trial.  (Past members can re-join at regular monthly rate.
 
Last week I interviewed Rita Emmett about  Stop Procrastinating and Get Your Book Done. It is available for purchase see http://www.speakerservices.com/products (scroll down to the bottom of the page).  She has a great do it yourself system for you to get your book done see http://tinyurl.com/7ysb5c

We are enrolling the Speakers’ Bootcamp for LA which is March 4-8.  I still have a few spaces open.  Portland, Maine is in May and I am so pleased that we have several sign ups.  Do you know anyone in Maine?  Please tell them about the Portland Bootcamp.  Here are a few comments from former Bootcamp clients:

Jack is the Wizard of Oz for speakers. Every person had a profound transformation and walked away with marketable branding and a solid speech foundation. Thank you Jack, for your heart and soul. We’ll take part of you with us out into the world.
- Barbara Niven, Actress, Writer, Director, Speaker

I have learned so much- the information the style, techniques, humor and getting out of my comfort zone. The training was more then I expected and thanks to Susan and Jack for helping me to get to the next level so quickly.
- Julie Thong, Author, Speaker, Entrepreneur

Every Monday the Speakers’ Summit09 team meets to discuss the 4th annual Summit in May in LA.  I have a long list of items for today. Good news is that almost all of the speakers are confirmed.  Look at the list of stellar speakers we enrolled: Jack Barnard, Susan Levin, Lisa Sasevich, Linda Hollander, James Malinchak, Daniel Hall, Sheryl Roush, Geoff Zimpfer,  Jean-Noel Bassior, Nancy Marmolejo, Ellen Reid, Rob Schultz, Alex Carroll, Lisa Cherney.

Workshops include: Finding your Ideal Client, Social Networking, Get Booked in Colleges and Cruise Ships, Radio PR, Corporate Sponsorship, Solid Gold One Sheets, Webinar Marketing, Book Publishing and more.  See the website which is a work in progress. http://www.speakerservices.com/speakerssummit09 and most importantly save May 1, 2 and 3 for the Speakers’ Summit. Oh I forgot to say it is very reasonably priced.

Susan Levin
Speaker Services
susan@speakerservices.com
310-822-4922 PST
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February '09 FEATURED SPEAKERS/AUTHORS

J.J. Flizanes, Author, Video, Audio Clip   -- S. California, Nationwide
Celebrity personal fitness trainer reveals how to manage your time, effort and waistline and make your fitness plan fit your life.
Corporate Wellness, Fitness, Health

Nancy Solari, Video, Certified Webinar Leader  -- S. California
Motivational speaker and success coach Nancy Solari lives her life full out ─and you can too in 90 days or less!
Disabilities, Inspirational, Self Empowerment, Women's Issues

Joyce Schwarz, Author- S. Californa
Visionary author and futurist shows it’s never too late to make your dreams come true for your business, your career and your life − despite the economy, despite your fears!
Business Building, Career, Marketing, Personal Development

SEE ALL SPEAKER LISTINGS

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ARTICLE

3 Reasons Why Great Clients Leave and How You Can Begin Winning Them Back By Vickie Sullivan

In volatile economies, it's critical to keep current clients.  Unfortunately, many professional service firms are hearing "no thanks" from long-time clients who love their work. How can this happen? It's a sad mixture of bad news and your brand. Below are the three most common scenarios behind a client's decision to leave and how to get back into the game.

1. We're Moving in Another Direction

When the economy swoons, many people start hoarding their smelling salts. Money starts to drift to new line items as budgets become more centralized. Buying decisions move up the food chain and the distance between the buyer and the end user becomes an abyss. Cost-cutting is everyone's business now, and competition for project funding is fierce. And it's easy to cut out the experts that the new buyers don't know much about.

Translation: This phrase is code for, "Who moved my budget?" Either your champion didn't have the juice to keep the project (and you) onboard amidst the change, or the rug got yanked out from under their feet. Many will use this phrase to save face. This scenario happens when your brand is limited to your buyer who is no longer the buyer, when you are not branded in the C-suite.

What to do next: The phrase gets bandied about a lot in political situations. It becomes a knee-jerk reaction to fear. But there's a big difference between "California will drop off into the sea before we work with you again" and "sounds good, but not right now."

Find out if this is a done deal or if there is an opening. My favorite phrase: "Really? Wow, that sounds like a big change. I'm just curious….what happened?" The answer can show you an opening to the new priority. If it doesn't, get direct. Ask, "What's on the radar now? Are you excited about the new initiative?"

You'll get more inside scoop than most because of your relationship. Use that information to get your ally's help in reaching the new buyer.

To prevent this from happening, one of the best ways to get branded into the C-suite is to help your client become the "darling." You progress as they progress. Second, I advise firms help their buyers keep the project visible throughout all phases. It's easy to axe something that a C-suite forgot was there. Anything you can do to involve the C-suite in the development phase is good too.

2. We Don't Need a [Consultant, Coach, etc.,] Right Now

When buyers face uncertainty, they tend to compartmentalize as a way to get control over their situation. They can get myopic real fast. The line of thinking: we can't afford a high-priced (fill in the blank) right now. In this scenario, it doesn't matter how well you are regarded. Or how valuable your past contribution. If your budget line is cut, you're on the sidelines.

Translation: When you hear "we don't need (insert your services here)" you are branded in a small (and sturdy) box. The buyer sees your expertise based on a role and not based on a contribution.

Here's an example: If you are a consultant, you only work on consulting assignments. The buyer can't afford consulting, so they look for a speaker (whose fee comes from a different budget) who can give tips/ideas for them to implement. If you've only done consulting work, your client may not assume that you can hold an audience.

What to do next: Keep in mind that while the budget may go away, the need does not. Buyers tend to go for "good enough" solutions because they know the objectives still need to be met.

Given your good relationship, you have a chance to facilitate your way out of the box. Ask your buyer "OK, so you are not going to get any outside help. What's the plan? What are you going to do to (enter need here)?"

Be prepared to back up your new role with fact rather than "I can do that." A good response to the above example: "Oh, so you are looking for speakers? That's exactly what (name your other client) did. We created a great workshop on XXX and we designed it so they had enough information/processes to do it on their own for a while. It was a great stop-gap measure until the budget came back."

3. This Isn't a Priority

Navigating tough times forces us to focus. Even when projects get rave reviews, if they don't put out the current fire, the project gets cut. Anyone who is associated with the project is labeled "dead man walking." This happens a lot in general training contracts or middle management projects. The value or the quality of your work is not the issue. What really happened: your brand is too closely aligned to the doomed program.

Translation: You got labeled as a "nice to have but not critical" resource because you were branded by the project and not by your expertise, your buyer didn't apply your contribution outside the project. Your services were valuable to the end user in the past, but got cut because your project (and therefore, you) did not apply to a top priority.

This happens a lot to generalists with champions who can't describe the expert's value. The default assumption is, "They did very well in this project." The previous buyer knew your worth but didn't know your brand, they knew your contribution and thought it was valuable, but they didn't know all that you could do. And because of that, they couldn't sell you as a resource for the new priority. Example: the number-crunching CFO says "cut all projects that don't do XXX now" and your champion didn't know how to move you to the new priority.

What to do next: It's easy to assume that when we do good work, our brand is set. The reality is that we proved our competence in that situation but not our overall brand. Buyers don't have time to figure out new ways to use you. They are in no mood for generalities. There must be a specific need that is urgent enough to stop putting out the other fires and act.

Again, this is a facilitated conversation. The same questions can be used from the first scenario. Find out what happened, then use examples from other projects that show you can do the work. Your biggest asset is your relationship. Use it to "talk shop" and get the information you need to make the new connection between the priority and your expertise.

Branding Beyond Our Current Projects

Hearing the word "no" from our favorite clients can come as a shock. It can shake our assumptions about our work and our relationships. And when we look past the initial disappointment, we find that the client's decision has just as much to do with our brand as it does their situation.

To compete in uncharted territory, it's critical that we not only measure our effectiveness but also brand ourselves beyond the scope of our current projects. When we do that, we open doors to move from priority to priority, from project to project. And isn't that the true meaning of being a trusted advisor?

Vickie Sullivan, President of Sullivan Speaker Services, Inc. is nationally recognized as the top market strategist for experts on the professional speaking circuit. Since 1987, she has worked with thousands of experts in a wide variety of industries to launch their big-fee speaking, professional service and book/product empires in highly lucrative markets. Contact Vickie by e-mailing info@sullivanspeaker.com.

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AND IN THE BLOG:
www.speakerscommunity.com/blog

- Negotiating with Speakers

- Top Five Rules for Creating a Successful Video Blog for Business

- What You Don’t Know About The Internet Could Be Costing You a Fortune

- Best Blog Post Ideas for Small Business Blogging