NSA St. Louis Chapter

Wow!  What a program.  I haven’t said this all year, but unless you had a really good reason for not being there Saturday (like a paid speaking gig or a kidney transplant), you missed an AMAZING program.

Dan Poynter, author of 126 books including the industry bible The Self-Publishing Manual, gave us four solid hours of ideas, insights, and actionable strategies to get your book out of your head and into print.  It was like a Bruce Springsteen concert.

For those of you who missed it, my notes in this post are shorter than usual because Dan has graciously posted his entire slide deck on his site.  Just follow this link.  So the stuff below are what I considered to be the highlights of Dan’s program.

Writing a book…

• Is like giving yourself an advanced degree in your subject
• Makes you an authority
• Gives you exposure and notoriety
• Becomes a profit center – it’s passive income
• Plus, it’s fun to wake up in the morning and see how much money you made while you were sleeping [great movie tie in idea]
• Allows you to charge higher fees

People buy non-fiction for one of two reasons:

1. To learn something
2. To solve a [specific] problem

Selling books

• Sell your books in the front of the room – let people stare at them the entire time you’re speaking, plus people tend to rush the stage and you want your books to be where you are
• After a speech, let people buy with a self-service form; go by the honor system
• You don’t have to run a store, instead spend time talking to people and answering their questions

General thoughts on book writing

• Do research at a big bookstore; check out your category; find a book you like (design, layout, page color, type size, etc.), buy it, and use it as your model
• eBooks are the future of publishing – do them IN COLOR, because it doesn’t cost you anything to print them
• Packaging matters!  Rainbow book = 25,000 copies; Free Stuff for Kids = 500,000 copies and #6 on NYT Bestseller list
• Do an “Afterword” at the end of your book – an encouragement to readers

Getting started – use the Binder System

• Get a 3-ring binder!
• One that has a clear plastic sleeve on the outside to put your cover art and back cover,
• Make sure it has a pocket on the inside for pieces of information, articles, clippings, printouts of research, and things you collect
• Carry it with you EVERYWHERE you go to take advantage of those little bits of time you find in your everyday life to work on your book
• Plus, you never know where that next really great idea for your book is going to come from.  Be ready to capture it in your binder.

Dan’s final charge to us was this: “Next year, when I see you at the NSA Convention, will your book still be in your head or under your arm?”

Thank you, Dan!

Happy speaking (and writing),

Steve Hughes

President, NSA St. Louis 2010-11

February 20th Meeting — Publishing Expert Dan Poynter

Author (120+ books), Publisher (since 1969), Speaker (CSP)
Time: 8:30am – 12:30 pm Regular Meeting
(1:00 pm – 2:30 pm Members Mastermind)
Reserve and optionally pay online by clicking button below:

Guests and Non-Member $65:

Toastmasters, SLPA or IMC $55:

NSA St. Louis/National NSA Member $40:

NSA St. Louis Seminar Details

The Edge of Webster
359 Marshall Avenue | Webster Groves, Missouri 63119
Phone: (314) 962-6886

Would you like meeting planners to call you, rather than the other way around?

Would you like MORE exposure, MORE credibility and MORE speaking opportunities?

Would you like to know how to turn your book into a profit center?

IN THIS SESSION:
Meeting planners want to hire the expert—the most knowledgeable person on a subject. The expert is the author of the book.

Your book will bring you more exposure, more credibility and more speaking opportunities. And, a book provides you with an additional profit center (some speakers actually make more money on their back-of-the-room sales than on speaking.)

You will discover how to:

• Ensure there is a market for your project
• Find time to write.
• Find material to fill your manuscript — without leaving home
• Break your project down into easy-to-attack chunks
• Get illustrations – practically free
• Find relevant quotations & stories
• Get the project ready for the printer
• Make the choice between looking for an agent or publisher and publishing yourself

Background info on Dan Poynter:
Since 1969, Dan Poynter has written and published more than 120 books including Writing Nonfiction, The Self-Publishing Manual, The Skydiver’s Handbook and The Expert Witness Handbook. Dan is an author and he is a publisher. One of the pioneers of modern self-publishing, he has experienced every phase of the book publishing process. He has sold his manuscripts to other publishers, he has published other authors, he has published his own books and his books have been translated and published in six other countries.

Dan does not just work in the book publishing business, he studies the book publishing business. He doesn’t just talk about book promotion, he teaches book promotion. Dan joined NSA more than 15 years ago and began immediately to help speakers with their books. He served as chair of the Writing/Publishing PEG and founded the PEG newsletter. He is a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP).

In order to expand his product line and reach more people, Dan began recording his speeches and selling the audios.

To learn more about Dan Poynter click here.

8:30 am – 12:30 pm Featured Speaker
12:30 pm – 1:00 pm Networking after presentation
1:00 noon – 2:30 pm Members Mastermind

Join your fellow members to discuss best practices and create your action plan to implement what you learned.

Did we mention that LUNCH is included for the Members mastermind?

Date: Saturday, February 20, 2010
Time: 8:30am – 12:30 pm Regular Meeting
(1:00 pm – 2:30 pm Members Mastermind)
Location: The Edge of Webster
359 Marshall Avenue
Webster Groves, Missouri 63119
Phone: (314) 962-6886
Website: www.TheEdgeOfWebster.com

NSA St. Louis members, $40 (Prepaid)
Toastmasters and IMC Members, $55 (Prepaid)
Guests, $65

See you there!

Steve Hughes
Club President & Salsa Dance Instructor

Lois wows the crowd with insight after insight. You go, girl!

Lois strikes a pose as she unleashes her powerful positioning statement.

A rather subdued family photo. We call it "14 Incredibly Good Looking Speakers."

Instead of saying "cheese" the photographer asked us to say "Book More Business!" And then we went all crazy.

It was an awesome meeting!  See you on February 20th for Dan Poynter’s “Self-Publishing Safari.”

Steve Hughes

Lois Creamer wowed us with her “fast forward” selling techniques and gave us gobs of great content. We all walked away with a bunch of ideas we can apply right away. Here are some of the highlights.

Positioning

• I work with organizations (just like yours) that want to ____________________ so that they can _________________.
• All you have to do is fill in the blanks.
• It must be clear, use conversational language, not be lost in business/corporate speak
• Above all, it needs to be benefit oriented

Testimonials

• Testimonial phone script/wording from Lois: “Thanks again for bringing me in, I really enjoyed be there, want to be sure the feedback continues to be strong, if you would please put that feedback in writing on your letterhead so that I can use it with other companies like yours.”
• Put testimonials ALL throughout my website – put product testimonials on my product page, etc.

Creating Products

• Make an audio recording of EVERYTHING program you do – you can use any variety of digital audio recorders on the market
• Take one or more of your favorite programs to a local recording studio, get it cleaned up, then go to Sam Silverstein for duplication, then…start making $$$
• Consider hiring a local audio/visual expert to record you if you want mic the audience and take it up a notch
• Audio CD – it should start with a voiceover (V/O) like “This is a [name of your company] audio product, this is “Title,” in it you’ll learn A,B,C, here’s Lois…”

Preview (or Demo) Video – what you should post on your site and send to meeting planners
Great preview video:

• 5-7 minutes in length
• At the end of the 5-7 minutes, you can feature your full-length signature story or a complete program; but this should be a stand-alone piece
• Visit www.FastForwardSelling.com for an example of a good preview video
• Open up with your logo, then your own V/O of you saying “I’m Lois Creamer and I work with organizations…[say your positioning statement], here are some examples of my speaking style…
• Finish with: “I hope you enjoyed watching this video, if you’d like to learn more or hire me, please contact me at…”
• Post it on YouTube – create your own YouTube channel if you have enough other videos
• Put it in DVD format to send to meeting planners

Fee Integrity (when and how to negotiate)
Negotiables – things you can “give” in lieu of fee (when an organization can’t afford you)

• Time – I’ll stay and do an extra breakout session
• Product/Trade – Let’s assume your fee is $5,000. “I can’t accept $3,000, that isn’t my fee, is there something you can do to add value to the program? Could you videotape me and give me the master? Could you buy my products?” (Sometimes organizations have separate budgets for materials.) “What if I threw in a book? Could you then come up with the $5,000?”
• Expenses – “What if I paid my own expenses on this?” Then use frequent flyer miles and hotel points to fund your trip.
• Other verbiage: “I’m sorry I cannot speak for $3,000, that is not my fee. You see I have bureaus and agents all over the country who book me at $5,000. It would be unethical for me to undercut my fee for you at their expense.”
• Added value: send a testimonial letter to three business associates you know who could book me at full fee; if you would contact them on my behalf
• If someone ever asks you to give on something, they need to be willing to give something, too.

You must always state your fee:

• Confidently
• Expectantly
• Joyfully
• “My fee is $5,000 plus travel expenses. Does that sound like a fit?” (and then shut up)

The Association Market

Send them a packet that contains:

• Folder – a nice, clean folder you can buy at OfficeMax – just put a nice sticker on it
• One-sheet – put key ideas, thoughts, philosophy on the back of your one-sheet
• Proprogram questionnaire
• Article (if it makes sense)
• Your preview video on DVD
• A promotional postcard or the like if you have it

Put your one-sheets on product tables, too

Random Thoughts

• If you ever quote someone, be sure to your quote yourself afterwards OR be sure to bring the expertise back to you. Sure, that quote by Mark Twain was nice, but what do I say/think about it?
• “I’m a high-content speaker who is motivational in style/tone.” ~ Lois Creamer
• Offer a free teleseminar 30 days after the program so that you can answer additional questions and be sure that the training has taken hold.
• The person who is asking the questions in a conversation is in control of the conversation.
• Expertsdelivered.com – special service that will announce your presence to the press in markets where you’ll be speaking; Shep Hyken gets lots of newspaper and radio interviews through expertsdelivered.com
• The best way to get listed/accepted by a speakers bureau is to get a friend who is already working with that bureau to recommend you
• Do you think my program would make sense? Lois loves the “make sense” wording and uses it often
• Do you have any meetings coming up that would make sense for me?

Thanks for everything, Lois!

Happy speaking,

Steve Hughes, el Presidente

Is an excellent read and a reminder that we can all use some fine-tuning tips. Berkun is a technology speaker who has worked for Microsoft and done a fair amount of corporate training. He goes into some of the mechanics of public speaking, and in particular reminds us that the view from our audience is worth keeping in mind when we climb up on the podium (which Berkun also takes pains to differentiate from the lectern).

You can grab a digital version here and buy one from Amazon here.

January 16, 2010 NSA Meeting Featuring Lois Creamer

Public Speaker Marketing Expert
Time: 8:30 am to 1:30 pm
Reserve and optionally pay online by clicking button below:

Guests and Non-Member $65:

Toastmasters or IMC $55:

NSA St. Louis/National NSA Member $40:

NSA St. Louis Seminar Details

Crowne Plaza Hotel, 7750 Carondelet Ave., Clayton, MO 63105
Phone: 314-726-5400

IN THIS SESSION:
Ever wonder why some speakers “make it” and others don’t? It’s not a big secret. Successful speakers know the secrets of increasing productivity and profits by creating systems. Success systems that work. Systems that are repeatable.

Come to the chapter meeting and learn how to create and use positioning to your advantage! You will learn that and much, much more!

During this program you will learn the answers to these key questions:

1. How can I maximize marketing?How should I position my business?

2. What are some of the BEST sales tips and trends?

3. How can I work more with bureaus or get involved with bureaus?

4. What part should Social Media play in my business?

5. How to leverage mastermind groups?

You won’t want to miss this valuable information and key strategies taught by Lois to help you get bookings even in tough economic times. There are speakers whose businesses are thriving. In 2010, will yours be one of them?

During this program Lois will share the following strategies:

• Lois’ definition of marketing – we’re not merely talking about getting speeches! Today’s business is much more than that.

• Some fun marketing ideas that don’t cost a fortune

• The importance of a “positioning statement” and how to create one

• How to incorporate your positioning statement in everything you do – this includes “branding”

• Lois’ qualifying system for prospects – how to ensure you are spending the greatest amount of time with prospects who are mostly likely to buy from you – speeches, consulting, training, products.

• “Dialing for Dollars!” – Lois’ 10 Questions to help you Book More Business. Who to ask for, what to ask, what to send, what to say.

• Trends in our business – time permitting

Background info on Lois Creamer:

Lois works with speakers who want to be well positioned in the marketplace, maximize exposure, and ultimately get more clients. Her client list consists of speakers early in their careers, as well as many CSPs. You may recognize some of her clients: CSP’s Bill Cates, Marjorie Brody, Patti Hathaway, and St. Louis’s own Karyn Buxman, Craig Hawksley, Kim DeMotte, and Fred Martels name a few!

Her expertise in the industry has led her to be called upon to participate in many programs for NSA including conventions, workshops, labs, and currently as a member of the board of directors for her St. Louis Chapter.

To learn more about Lois Creamer click here.

8:30 am – 11:30 am Featured Speaker
11:30 am – 12:00 Noon Networking after presentation
12:00 noon – 1:30 pm Members Mastermind

Join your fellow members to discuss best practices and create your action plan to implement what you learned.

Did we mention that LUNCH is included.

Date: Saturday, January 16, 2010
Time: 8:30am – 11:30am Regular Meeting
(12:00 pm – 1:30pm Members Mastermind)
Location: Crowne Plaza Hotel
ST. LOUIS – CLAYTON
7750 CARONDELET AVE
CLAYTON, MO 63105 UNITED STATES
Hotel Front Desk: 314-726-5400

NSA St. Louis members, $40 (Prepaid)
Toastmasters and IMC Members, $55 (Prepaid)
Guests, $65

See you there!

Steve Hughes
Club President

Here are some of the pics from our session with Eli Davidson in November.

NSA St. Louis chapter members with the “Amazing Life Coach, Public Speaker and PR Maven” Eli Davidson.

I don’t know about y’all, but 2009 has been one of those years that you’re just happy to see go. Kind of like an old casserole you forgot about in the back of your fridge. That having been said, 2010 is going to rock.

Check out our revised line-up of star-studded speakers. (Note the changing venues.)

– Saturday, January 16th – Lois Creamer on how to book more business (Crowne Plaza Clayton)
– Saturday, February 20th – Dan Poynter on publishing insights for your book to build awareness (Edge of Webster)
– Saturday, March 13th – Jim Canterucci – on growing big while staying small (Edge of Webster)
– Saturday, April 10th – Corey Perlman on how to boost your web presence with online strategies (Crowne Plaza Clatyon)
– Saturday, May 8th -Terry Brock & Gina Schreck on leveraging technology to your advantage (Crowne Plaza Clayton)
– Saturday, June 12th – Stevie Ray on infusing your programs with real, quality humor (Crowne Plaza Clayton)

It’s gonna be great! See you at our next meeting.

Steve Hughes
President, NSA St. Louis 2009-10

November 14, 2009 Monthly Event Featuring Eli Davidson

Amazing Life Coach, Public Speaker and PR Maven
Time: 8:30 am to 1:30 pm

Reserve and optionally pay online by clicking button below:

Guests and Non-Member $65:

Toastmasters or IMC $55:

NSA St. Louis/National NSA Member $40:

NSA St. Louis Seminar Details

*Note – We will meet at our OLD location this month
Crowne Plaza Hotel, 7750 Carondelet Ave., Clayton, MO 63105
Phone: 314-726-5400

IN THIS SESSION:

Imagine how much business you could attract if you could increase media exposure for your brand? What if you could gain this type of exposure without having to pay thousands of dollars to a business coach or PR agent?

What if 6.5 million people had access to your business? What would you give to have your business, brand, book or product top visibility on Americas TV shows?

How do you gain the “expert status” in your field? Media recognition!

How do you do this without spending thousands of dollar? COME TO OUR SESSION!

Learn how to get the media’s attention without spending tens of thousands on hiring a PR firm.

Join us with Eli Davidson who used the secrets she used to get booked on The Today Show, Dr. Phil’s Decision House and over 30 other TV shows.

Appearing on “The Today Show,” prompted numerous top speaking bureaus to call Motivational Speaker..that day! Soon her work as a speaker and business coach on cover of Kiplinger’s Financial Magzine, and a weekly column on the Huffington Post where her columns reach 21 million readers each month.. Last week Eli shot a TV pilot for Life Changers with the company that produce Ellen, Trya Banks Show and Extra!

There is no reason that you can’t do this too!

Eli will teach you tools she has used as a speaker and coach (without a publicist!) so you can be booked in the national media.

You will learn everything you ever wanted to know about getting booked on
TV talk shows and news programs.

How to deliver a clear, concise and compelling pitch so you get booked.

How to pick the best shows to target.

When to pitch yourself.

How to follow up so that you get booked , to delivering an on camera
performance that will get you invited back, and more!

During this month’s meeting, Eli Davidson will share her proven strategies and techniques for generating your buzz around your brand and landing free publicity in the print and media. Eli knows what she is talking about because she has been featured in numerous magazines, appeared on many major TV networks and touched thousands of listeners on Sirius Satellite Radio. She accomplished all of this without paying a dime to a PR agent and she is excited to help you learn how to do the same.

In her high-energy style, ELI DAVIDSON will share a three-step coaching system to enhance your ability to reduce ineffective behavior, obtain practical tools to transforming thinking, and elicit higher levels of innovation. You know you need more exposure for your brand and more effective marketing strategies but the question is, “How do you make the shift?” By attending this session, you will clarify what is sabotaging your results; obtain practical tools to transform your thinking and behavior to help pave the way to marketing and PR success.

As a successful life coach she has coached Oscar Nominees, Golden Globe winners and many of the Hollywood’s inner circle as well as clients throughout the United States, Canada and Great Britain. Eli has also coached numerous leaders in the technology, real estate, entertainment and healthcare industries.

To learn more about Eli Davidson click here.

8:30 am – 11:30 am Featured Speaker
11:30 am – 12:00 Noon Networking after presentation
12:00 noon – 1:30 pm Members Mastermind

Join your fellow members to discuss best practices and create your action plan to implement what you learned.

Did we mention that LUNCH is included.

Date: Saturday, November 14, 2009
Time: 8:30am – 11:30am Regular Meeting
(12:00 pm – 1:30pm Members Mastermind)
Location: Crowne Plaza Hotel
ST. LOUIS – CLAYTON
7750 CARONDELET AVE
CLAYTON, MO 63105 UNITED STATES
Hotel Front Desk: 314-726-5400

NSA St. Louis members, $40 (Prepaid)
Toastmasters and IMC Members, $55 (Prepaid)
Guests, $65

See you there!

Steve Hughes
Club President

Jim, a true Georgia Peach, gave us TONS of great insights about “making your speaking career happen” vs. waiting for it to happen.  In addition to his fill-in-the-blank handout, here are some juicy notes from the meeting.

First, Jim suggested we invest in the following directories.  (But don’t waste money on the latest version, buy last year’s or one that’s a couple of years old because all you really want from them are the telephone number and website of the association.)

1. National Trade and Professional Associations of the United States
2. State & Regional Associations of United States (a gold mine) – because these groups have more events and need more speakers; think about it, there are 50 state associations and only one national association for each group
3. Corporate Meetings and Event Planners Guide
4. Directory of Canadian Associations
   1. When calling Canadian organizations, don’t refer to their meeting as the annual conference or meeting or convention, call it the “Annual General Meeting” or “AGM”
   2. Use their terms – provinces vs. states; use their city names as well as cultural references like Tim Horton’s (Canada’s Dunkin’ Donuts)
   3. Fun Trivia – Current Canadian Prime Minister…Stephen Harper

• Don’t be thrown by the published “budget number” in the directories – many times the real budget and the printed budget are different because the printed budget number is based on a survey often times filled out by an underling who doesn’t know all the facts

Jim’s Telephone Script – what he says when he calls them out of the blue

• Opening lines
  • “Hi, I’m Jim Mathis, can you help me please?”  (and don’t refer to yourself as Jim Mathis unless that’s what you normally call yourself)
  • “Could you connect me to the meeting planner for _____________________?  (And then say “the association” or “the bankers” or “the nurses” or some part, but not all of the association name)?”  You sound more like an insider, not a sales person, you could even be a member.  90% of the time they’ll put you straight through
  • If they tell you “no,” say, I have a question about the annual meeting.”
  • I really need to talk to this point because it’s really important
  • On call backs – ask for the person only using their first name, i.e. “Is Judy there?”  Not, is Judy Williams there?
  • Voicemail
    • “Hi this is Jim Mathis, I have a question about the meeting for 2010 (next year), can you please call me, my number is…”  Be intentionally nebulous.  (They’ll think you’re a member.)
    • Building a Relationship Over the Phone
      • When they call back, say, “Hi, my name is Jim Mathis, I’m a professional speaker and I work with organizations like yours that hire speakers for their meetings and I was just calling to see if you fall in that category?”  (It’s the only yes/no question he asks them during the entire conversation.)
        • “like yours” – Jim shrugs his shoulders and almost chuckles as he says this
• If no, “Well, I appreciate your time today, I offer a free kit/newsletter that contains articles and ideas about how to thrive in a down economy…”  Most people say, “Yes, please send it to me.”  Jim has gotten gigs years later because he put people like this on his mailing list and faithfully sent them valuable info.
• If yes, “Great, that’s wonderful!  When you’re bringing in people like me, what are you looking for because I’m not sure if I’m a good fit for your organization or not.”
• If yes/still interested, “When will you be making the decision about speakers for your event?”  Or, “When will you be closer to making a decision?”
• Jim NEVER discusses fee on the initial call.  “You know I’m not the money guy, my assistant handles all that.  You’re welcome to call her to go through my fees, etc.”
  • I have a kit/newsletter that I can send. (Most organizations now ONLY want things electronically.)
  • I’d also love to send you a copy of my ezine, too.  Just to give you a sense of what I’m all about/give you a flavor of my  thinking and programs.
  • When would be a good time to call you back?

Closing – getting hired over the phone

• “When we were talking back in ______, you asked me to call you back around now and I’m just being faithful.”  (Usually gets a laugh.)
• Be ready to play back to them what we talked about in the previous phone conversation.
• “Is this a good time to talk?”  Respectful.  Honors their time.
• (This is the hard part because sometimes it takes 15-30 calls in this stage.)
• Sometimes they’ll say, “We can’t afford you.”  He replies, “You never know.  You might be surprised.”
• Jim’s assistant always quotes a price range – “We’re between X and Y…depending on what you need Jim to do.”

Miscellaneous:

• Jim makes 30 calls/day and his assistant makes 15-20 calls/day.  He has a third person do follow-up on leads and he pays her only a commission on the gigs she actively closes.
• Jim has a 12-page color magalog he sends out – looks like a real magazine; has a $7.95 price on it, a UPC bar code, articles, lists of his programs, products he sells, etc.  It makes him look BIG TIME!
• He’s cnstantly tinkering with his website to make it more benefit-oriented and less about his features
• FU with corporate people – “Can you help me, I was told you that you were the only person who can help me?”
• Focus more on all the things that can go right, not the things that can go wrong
• Great Pre-Program Questionnaire Question: “What are your people doing that you want them to quit doing when I’m done speaking?”
• Nobody ever grew when they cut back.
• If you ever get into a debate on price, you’ve lost,

The biggest takeaway for me.

• Jim asked everyone what their dream speaking destination was, i.e., where in the world would you just LOVE to give a speech and get paid for it?
  • I said “Maui.”  Other answers were Jackson Hole, Bermuda, and Key West.
  • Then Jim asked us, “In the last 30 days, what specific steps have you taken to speak in that destination?”  Wow.
  • He continued, “It’s not just going to happen on its own.”  So true.

See you on November 10 when we’re going to learn how be our own business coach.

Giddy up!

Steve

El Presidente