More marketing mileage out of presentations

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The effect was visually spectacular, and it occurred to me how easy it would be for anyone doing a road show, keynote, annual address, or any other presentation to duplicate this technique intentionally. And its applications are as unlimited as your imagination; you could use them on your website, in your marketing brochures, as an email photo banner-head, or on postcards.

That got me thinking about additional marketing opportunities lurking on the periphery of presentations. And there are plenty. But there are also some rules.

The golden rule of polite presenting:

Every presenter should heed the cardinal law observed by speakers who align themselves with the PSA (Professional Speaking Association), which is: Don't sell from the platform. It's considered rude and tacky. Your audience members are not sales pitch hostages. And besides, there are better ways.

So here's how you go about it tactfully and skillfully:

1. Get someone else to do your Intro and 'Outtro'

An introduction is a marketing opportunity in itself. It's also an opportunity to use humour, create rapport and get your audience to like you before you even step on stage, but let's just focus on the marketing aspect for now. Scripting a good introduction is an opportunity to have another person effectively endorse you, but you can do more. Script an 'outtro' as well. Make it shorter, but include a call-to-action, such as, "If you enjoyed his presentation, don't forget to:

• Sign up for his course
  
• Buy his books or CDs
  
• Read his articles on Bizcommunity
  
• Visit his website"

2. Record your talk

Get a video recording, if you can arrange it. But don't forget that audio is good too, and easy enough to do with a mini digital recorder. Edit out a strong clip of, say, one minute, and use it on your website or in your marketing materials. You can even turn the entire talk into a saleable product. Professional speakers do this as a matter of course, and can often make large margins on back-of-room sales of CDs and DVDs. But you don't have to be a motivational speaker to use this idea; you could even do it with educational topic matter, such as a talk on financial trends, and have it endorsed and duplicated by your company.

3. Record live testimonials directly afterwards

Would you like some truly enthusiastic endorsements? Get them on video directly after your talk. Your audiences, and the movers and shakers who may populate them, will generally be more willing to give you an incidental, on-the-fly endorsement than they would be to take the time and trouble to write them out. Also, the 'fire' has usually faded a little in the days following a talk, so catch them while the coals are hot!

Bear in mind that you don't have to use these testimonials in video format either (although it is very powerful), but you can transcribe them into text and use them on documents too.

4. Use interesting leave-behind materials

Don't give hand-outs to an audience at the beginning of your presentation. Don't do it during, either; they distract from your performance; but certainly do make them available at the end. And make them memorable too; none of this bullet-point nonsense! When I use hand-outs after my keynote motivational talk, 'Escape the Hamster Wheel,' I use a visual of a little hamster with thought bubbles. Each thought bubble contains one of the 'Rules of Hamster Thinking.'

People will keep an entertaining but useful and informative flier, especially one with great visuals and possibly a smattering of humour. And if they keep your flier, they keep the means to stay in touch with you.

Your single most valuable technique

These tips 'n tricks will help you to create a greater overall 'presence' and increase the likelihood of being remembered after a talk. But they are not the most valuable thing you can do. The single greatest marketing technique is to be an excellent presenter.

Be memorable. Be entertaining. Give useful information. If they like you, if they enjoyed your talk, if you moved them and added value to their lives, if you didn't waste their time or condescend to them, they will remember you.