As this series has progressed and I’ve chatted with some of you, I’ve thought we really ought to get to know each other. So, this post is a “lecture,” and the exercise will be to discuss in the comments. To participate:
- If you have an “about” page on your site, or any other description online, link to it in a comment below.
- If you don’t have one yet, you will. :-) So git to work: draft something in a comment, and we’ll all offer suggestions.
Don’t hold back thinking your current status isn’t good enough – that’s why you’re in school! Empowered people act, knowing they may need to learn and adjust.
Some tips on your intro as a conference speaker:
- The tone can be professional-sounding, academic-sounding, casual, playful, edgy, confrontational – it’s your first impression on people. Be yourself, as you want them to think of you.
- Start with the single most important thing you want them to know. At first you only have one moment of their attention.
- It’s no tragedy if they read it and say “Nope”! You’re not trying to make everyone like you – you’re trying to find a good fit.
- Then you can flesh it out with more info, if there’s reason to.
Here’s an important tip my dad (VP of Sales at a division of 3M) taught me about resumes:
Nobody ever got hired based on that one document –
the only thing it can do is get them to contact you.
So don’t feel that you have to say everything; that won’t help your cause. Instead:
- Be yourself. As you read others’ examples you can learn from them, but don’t feel obligated to be like them.
- The best thing about being yourself is that if people like it, it’s easy to deliver more.:-)
- Be honest: don’t say “internationally recognized” if the truth is “I’m building a career as a professional speaker.” Update it as your status evolves.
- Give enough info to help them decide if they want to contact you.
Here are two example pages; cadets, add yours in comments!
Who started this?
This post is triggered by the newest member of our audience, Karen Nicole Smith, a PR professional who’s had multiple conditions since she was 18 and who, two years ago, was being advised to consider palliative care. Let’s just say that’s not the direction she chose. :-)
Her hospital was one of my speaking clients this year, and suggested she get some advice on making a business of all the talks she’s been doing. Welcome!
Here’s Karen’s blog. Note that her blog’s About page is fine for a blog-author intro, but it’s not an introduction to herself as a speaker. I imagine Karen will be working on that now. :-)
Your turn!
Next in the series: #12: “Slaves of the Internet, Unite!” (NYTimes Sunday Review)
Thanks for the introduction! I have looked at the two About pages you listed as examples. The bar is set HIGH. Look for a new about page from me very soon.
> The bar is set HIGH
Well, people can get scared off by such talk, and that doesn’t help anyone.:-)
I’m glad you’re taking it as a challenge to do your best, but everyone’s gotta start somewhere!
I’d have it no other way. I want the bar high. But yes, I do understand some people may be intimidated. In my case I am looking at your example as a general format to use – with the injection of my flavor and vision.
About page has been updated! This is it’s first incarnation – and I will update and tweak as needed. Thanks for getting me motivated! You are very generous to mentor us like this.
Karen,
That’s a MAJOR upgrade, for these purposes! My main area of concern right now is that the improved page may not be instantly findable on your menu bar, because although it’s correctly your About page, that title no longer reflects the punched-up “Who I am as a speaker” content.
What do you think about adding a Speaking tab, like Bart has? (See my comment to Catherine, below.)
I note that you speak about yourself in third person. Personally that creeps me out – I like a more conversational style – but I know some people prefer third person. Up to you.
Your name has a branding problem. :-) Are you Karen, or Karen Nicole? Seems weird to be inconsistent.
Why does it say “hopes to share”? Didn’t you say you have been speaking already? Or was that outside of medicine?
Your last sentence is incomplete – no verb. I think it’s supposed to be added to the end of the previous sentences, about highlights.
Re your Globe & Mail essay: that’s good to point out – it clearly says someone ELSE felt your voice was important. Can you link to it? Every time people can easily confirm that what they’re reading is real, it helps.
Finally, break your intro paragraph into at least two parts. As reality these days is that outside of academia, people rarely read beyond the second sentence in a paragraph. Check a print newspaper these days and you’ll hardly ever even FIND a paragraph longer than 2.
(Plus, web pages have to deal with the reality that displays are hugely variable. A long paragraph risks become a sea of gray.)
That’s all you get for now :-) … g’night!
Dave! I love this blog series – here’s my ‘about’ page.
http://drcatherinerose.com/about/
Would love your comments and insights!
Catherine
Catherine,
My impression is that yours, like Karen’s and like most blog About pages, are just fine as an introduction to who you are, but they’re not a to-the-point introduction for “speaker shoppers.” Can you see that?
I see that you have a Schedule page, showing that you’re already booked for upcoming events. Good. Could you add a Speaking tab, where you introduce yourself as a speaker?
I’ve just taken a look at Bart Windrum’s Speaking page, and it’s pretty hot by these standards! His message style is different from mine, but see how he gets right to the point? He tells each type of shopper what he has to offer.
What do you think?
Hi Dave! I think I’m honored that you thought to examine my site.
I will share with this group two things: my About pages (that’s plural) are divvy’d up and could use some combining—which might morph backwards to the site’s overall menu structure and hence logical structure (maybe my, and others’ sites, should have a single About page with links on it, like Dave starts his About page with, but not show those links in the site’s About menu…simplify.
And, in complete honesty: I’m a small fry who appears bigger due to professional graphics abilities and enough persistence to have come—over ~6 post-book-publishing years—to the point of having a few speaker reels (though only one, the first, HCA, from a paid gig).
However, I have received zero inquiries, let alone bookings, from my site. That speaks to a marketing failure on my part more than anything. So don’t go bonkers on a website alone. My takeaway is that site resources are important but more important are right, smart actions to find prospects.
Folks, if you want to go deeper than my surface advice, read Bart’s comment above. As he says, he’s got professional experience with some of these communication issues.
The fact that you’ve received zero inquiries from the site is a great point: by itself, a website is passive marketing, a resource waiting to be discovered. In the very beginning @KentBottles told me that most speaker inquiries come by word of mouth; when someone HEARS about you, THEN they can look at your site.
But I won’t want to get ahead of ourselves here, because if we get into a great discussion about this, it won’t be easily searchable later, so I’ll stop here.
(As to “examine your site” – I did that long ago when we first met…)
(Sports fans, on a post the other day Catherine just posted a link to her new Schedule page, and I commented on it.)
Gone through and made a few of the changes you suggested. Thanks for going through it so thoroughly.
Another point to consider is that I am working on a website for my current http://www.karennicolesmith.com and my blog will eventually be embedded in my the bigger website. (I’m a little overwhelmed working with the designers but I’m taking it as another challenge!! They have pushed me to consider some great ideas but great ideas involved more work!! I don’t mind doing it but finding time is hard.
A have a long train ride tomorrow where I can edit more. I also need to think about the name thing and make a final decision once and for all. As an actor (in the past) and now in all my writing I use Karen Nicole. I guess I should just be consistent with Karen Nicole from now on.
> I guess I should just be consistent with Karen Nicole from now on.
Heck YES you should be consistent. Your name will (or won’t) be floating around in a SEA of others, and at first you’ll be only a faint memory as people try to remember it. BE CONSISTENT.
And memorable, i.e. distinctive. Regina Holliday? Distinctive. Trevor Torres? Yep. Bart Windrum? Yep. All of those get extra points for being an less-common first name.
Karen Nicole? Yep. Karen Smith?? Yikes. :)
:)
(Mind you, I’m not saying anyone should feel they have to change their name! I’m just pointing to one consideration to bear in mind.)
Thanks for the opportunity Dave.
Anthony White is surviving late stage IV metastatic head and neck cancer. This experience however, did not claim his life, but instead defined his life’s purpose. Anthony navigated an intensive course with over 370 hours of in-patient chemotherapy, 44 radiation treatments and 3 surgical procedures on his journey towards wellness.
Anthony currently serves as the Chairman and founding Patient/Family Advisor at Torrance Memorial Medical Center and Community Liaison for the Cancer Support Community of Redondo Beach. He also proudly partners with noted organizations as an inspirational and informational guest speaker championing patient and family centered care. He is an active member of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the VHA Inc. and PFCC Partners. With his aim fixed on best practices and root obstacles, Anthony works towards giving patients and families a designated, engaged, full time set of eyes, strong shoulders, a heart, and a voice.
Prior to his 2009 diagnosis, he spent 16+ years as a successful business professional in the risk management/litigation claims industry, whose chief responsibility was to develop and motivate a sustainable, high performing staff. Problems are opportunities to Anthony who is known as “A Fixer” who consistently aims to exceed expectations.
At his core, he’s a family man, keeps his toes in the sand, and loves to cook. He’s an ex hockey player and a frustrated golfer. He was born and educated in New York, lives and plays in Southern California and is overly consumed with fantasy football.
Wow, I see. Dave thanks for time, insights and ‘homework’ on revamping my page. Mine is definitely an ‘about me’ and not ‘why should you care what i have to say’ ….. Great points!! Don’t you say in this series something about “it’s all about perspective – for you as a speaker, it’s important to recognize who you are talking to and what motivates them” — clearly this is an example providing perspective to me!
Yes, Catherine in the cognitive dissonance post (#4), I said “It’s your job to make sense in your audience’s world.” (There were similar things in other posts.)
Increasingly I get powerful insights from understanding the difference between pure science and practical engineering. Science is the source of every advancement, but pure science alone doesn’t create change; engineers focus on whether the thing works.
A drug company must turn biological advances into something that works; clinicians must apply their knowledge in a way that produces results; and we, as change agents, must communicate in a way that people can hear.
In all those cases, one of the most impotent things a person can say is “I shouldn’t have to explain.” Well, folks, if you’re talkin’ to humans, that’s a useless way to view it.
Said differently: Have empathy for your readers, exactly as you want clinicians to have empathy for you. Think what’s in their mind when you come to your site, and speak accordingly. As the title of this post says: introduce yourself.
Working on a specific “Speaking” page to add in addition to my About page. I get your point about that information being findable on the menu bar. Finding your suggestion of looking at Bart Windrum’s page extremely useful. Thanks!!!
As I mentioned, I am working with a website team to come up with a comprehensive single url that encompasses all of the basics you mentioned in Speakers Academy (post #9) ; about page, speaking videos, speaking schedule/speaking page and testimonials.
My heart pauses a beat to put this out there, but here is my about me page – SavingCase.com/Speaking. Red pen it away, Dave. :-)
Melissa, I’m so sorry the fall season let this run away with me so I never responded – I meant to. What a great speaker page you have!
When ya gonna have a video clip or three??
Oh wait, you DO have some – but they’re at the BOTTOM of the list, where someone has to HUNT for them! Fix that! :) Also, your hyperlinks don’t look at all clickable – they need to be a different color. Fix that. Holler if you need help. (At VERY least, manually underline the clickable things.)