Let me rephrase, “Are old style conferences dying a quick death?”

They are and in their place are conferences or summits that provide shorter keynotes and allocated networking time. Art of Marketing is taking place in Vancouver next week and hosting five Marketing “Artists”.

All five speakers are household names in Social Media and Digital Marketing. Not one is a motivational speaker but each will be sharing industry specific insight and best practice. No droning on for three hours – each speaker gets about an hour. Then the attendees are told, hey, it’s okay to network. Go out and shake a few hands.

People do want to get out of their offices (bricks and mortar or virtual) and meet real, live, thinking bodies. We are all starved for human contact because we have created walls for ourselves behind computer screens. It is down right cool to meet the face behind the Tweet and an easy lead in to break the ice.

Why are old school conferences a dying breed? Partly due to 2011 being the age of instant entertainment. We constantly want the feel good hit and to get it quickly. Also it’s due to a sophisticated consumer who has many options to satisfy their career development and knows what top quality, cutting edge information is. Today’s conference goer is not attending to listen to regurgitated material and is looking for innovative thinking and platforms.

Another type of conference that’s taking hold is “unconference”. Community members (from one industry or many) meet and they decide how the day will unfold. On arrival attendees volunteer to speak on a topic that they are proficient in. These topics are given a yay or nay and those chosen are given a time slot. There are usually three or four topics running concurrently. My colleague David Wees came up with an inventive way to give those not chosen a moment in the limelight – at lunch break they are allocated a table and anyone can join in to discuss the topic in a more informal setting.

Unconferences are very casual. It is not rude to leave if the topic is not what you thought it would be and move to the next room. Often the casualness is a given during the presentations too – it’s all right to ask questions, which sometime causes the presentation to move in unexpected directions. David has a great infographic and deeper definition on his site.

Sidebar: Funny story from David who observed people at his EdCamp event leaving very early in the day. He asked why they were leaving and the reply was, “We thought we wouldn’t have to work or think?” Enough said…

Old style conferences are dying and being attended by the uninitiated or those who don’t want to have to think. New conference styles that respect attendees intellect and their desire to meet new colleagues are the new kid on the block and a force to be reckoned with.

Stayed tuned for a report on the Art of Marketing, a speaker’s critique, and whether value was realized.

To your voice,

Janice

I was taken by surprise the first time I was asked and it has given me considerable food for thought.

My initial reaction was, “Either you have it or you don’t”. Hmmm. But in giving it more consideration I believe it is a component of confidence, which can be grown and nurtured throughout a lifetime.

But Carol Kinsey Goman, who is showcased in Lou Hampton’s blog “Speak to Lead” believes it can be faked.

Charisma has been described as personal magnetism or charm. To me, charisma is all about an individual’s infectious positive attitude and personal energy, as projected through his or her body language.

People are the most charismatic when they are genuinely enthused, confident and upbeat about themselves and their topic. And as a leadership coach, I help clients develop their own unique brand of charisma.

I also help them fake it. Carol Kinsey Gorman, PhD

She believes that using method acting techniques and standing powerfully in your body will have your audience perceiving you as charismatic. Also she states an interesting result – you will actually feel more charismatic too.

I believe that using power stance techniques and method acting are stop gap measures and that true charisma and confidence comes from within – from our core of believing in yourself. It is strengthened through nurturing by our family and peers. And through our successes.

Which in turn means taking leaps of faith, enduring failures and celebrating successes, and practicing until we get it right – fear of public speaking be damned!

How about you? Do you think charisma can be faked? Have you tried method acting or using the power stance to fake confidence during a presentation? Did it work and have staying power?

Image Attribution: Jörg Daniel Fluck

Unique Selling Proposition or Differentiation

We all know that our lives are continually blasted with noise. Not just the street honking or siren blasting kind. But the buy me because I am the best and shiniest item available and you want me kind.

A previous strategy session with a colleague uncovered that yes, as consultants we all have a USP simply by default. Simply bringing ourselves to the table brings our unique qualities and experiences with us.

Call it What You Will But How Is Your Bar Higher Than Your Competitors?

However any consultant can say they are results driven, have passion for their chosen profession, and/or have super human insight.

What does differentiation really look like? Can it be bottled or is there a formula.

I hit the Google research trail and discovered that I was attracted to sites that were not the same old patter. I was driven to sites that were discussing and proving that new ideas and systems worked.

Not Wowed by My First Result

My first hit: Was a stock zine type article. It didn’t wow me and I questioned the credibility because the points made were not substantiated. This article has no oomph factor, nothing that grabs me to want to pick up the telephone and hire him/her.

Yes, I am attracted to the initial eye candy, but I want it to be substantiated.

Wowed by My Second Result

Here’s what I’m talking about: Information Highwayman

D Bnonn Tennant claims – A unique selling proposition doesn’t have to be unique to you. It just has to be unique to your ideal prospect.

Bnonn substantiates his assertion with an example of success from a credible source: In his book Scientific Advertising, Claude Hopkins…

Bnonn describes himself as: The dashing & debonair word-wrangler, serif-slinger & all-around scoundrel D Bnonn Tennant—Ace Copywriter & Attention-Thief for hire. How cool is that – Attention Thief for hire. Those words grabbed me!

After scouring his website I have decided I would indeed hire him. Why? He stands out from the crowd and has credibility. He claims to be a brilliant copywriter. I didn’t find any errors.

He says that he is a word wrangler and I found his copy eloquent. And yes, I detected the scoundrel.

How do you stand out from the crowd?

Last week I attended a presentation that was hampered by weak facilitation. The result was an audience who quickly lost interest.

And to boot, the audience was just as uncomfortable as the speakers were. First the audience was embarrassed, then they were simply impatient because no one stepped in to rescue a situation that was falling apart.

The facilitator is the key to and responsible for a strong start, middle, and finish.

The Role of a Facilitator – Not a Juggling Act – A Strategic, Well Rehearsed Role

Three Tips to Stop Presentations From Losing the Audience

First Order of Business
Ask the audience to turn off their cell phones. I appreciate the reminder; sometimes my memory lapses and it would be the height of embarrassment for me to have my phone ring during a presentation.

Don’t be afraid to ask, this is a point of common courtesy.

Second Strategic Intervention
Have the presenter write their own bio with two simple directives. First it needs to be pertinent and directed to the speech at hand. Second it needs to be short. We’ve all endured the entire curriculum vitae that takes as long as the presentation.

The audience wants to know why the speaker has the authority to speak. If you receive a bio that is still too long, gently remind the speaker that everyone is there to hear the presentation – the wow factor – not the bio, which will be long forgotten.

Third Bold Move
I expect some backlash from number three.

At the presentation in contention, beyond the seating area, approximately 25 people were standing. And talking. And talking. People who were seated could not hear because of the background din. The facilitator or an organizer needed to ask them to move to another room. Come on folks it’s not high school any more.

You’re choice – do you want to be perceived as a brilliant leader who has the chutzpah to help create a professional event or are you willing to let it slide away because of politeness enabling. Hint: Everyone in the seated area wished that someone had spoken up and taken control.

Next Post

The facilitators role in fielding audience questions post presentation, how to present a gift of appreciation, and a simple method for a strong finish.

Image Credit: Emiliano Spada

Three Workshop Tips for Trainers

My brain is filled with new insights brought back from San Francisco. I attended two workshops last week and both sent me away with food for thought.

From a presenter and workshop provider’s viewpoint, my critical eye often focused on workshop format and execution, in tandem with content. I was looking for:

• Strategies that created engagement and easy discussion
• Tools that inspired & built confidence in new found skills
• Understanding how memorable take-aways are built.

Engagement and Easy Discussion

How do you create an environment where your audience is comfortable enough to interact through discussion, questions, and deep learning? By making them welcome and providing a true learning environment.

Welcome is not just the initial handshake and hello. Know where your attendees are arriving from and acknowledge it – if you cannot personally meet them have someone who will. Let your audience know that you appreciate them taking the time out to come and how energized you are to share your information with them.  Welcome envelopes your entire offering.

When your guests (yes, you are the host) are comfortable they can more easily learn. They will be willing to take chances and ask questions. They will be prepared to make mistakes. But only if you provide an environment that is not judgmental but open to new learning.

New learning is accomplished when you show that you are in control, know your topic, and have every detail and problem taken care of. Your audience will be responsive to you when they know they can trust your competence – done through being a diligent and confident host.

Inspiration 101

True learning is not done by sitting in a seat and being a one way receiver. Concepts are deeply learned by execution. Get your attendees up and moving, interacting with their seat mates, and practicing concepts in small groups. Yes, this is situational and of course breaking into pods won’t work for large audiences.

Three attendees were chosen before event day for one of the workshops. They came with one minute speeches. Each was filmed after a new technique was learned and we watched a playback and compared. At the end of the day we viewed a before and after which showed remarkable improvement.

The impact of the new skill achieved remains top of mind. After each skill was demonstrated all of the attendees broke into groups and practiced together. Everyone felt comfortable (because of the trust in the facilitator) making mistakes and taking suggestions.

One of the techniques learned was to drop the tone of the last syllable – aka no Valley Girl speak. I’ve been practicing on the Cinch recording software and I am improving, but as always, there is room to tighten it up.

Create Memorable Moments

The most memorable learning in the four days I was in California was that the show must go. Of course there was glitches. The sound system speakers shorted out during an afternoon session. The presenter was completely nonplussed. Because he was so well practiced – he hardly took a breath and simply carried on.

The presenter did not deliberately foresee this learning opportunity but showed his prowess while being calm during a small storm.

a world of ideas

Vangelis Thomaidis

I’m experimenting with Cinch’s Beta version. Hear a glimpse of what I learned in San Francisco about what it takes to run a successful workshop.

TED curator Chris Anderson was recently interviewed by James Daly. Anderson shared presentation insights that aspiring presenters can use in their own presentations.

Women speakers take note, Anderson is on the look out for interesting women speakers for upcoming TED talks.

We’re always looking out for interesting women. It’s an easy critique of any technology conference that there are aren’t enough women speakers and it’s true. But it certainly isn’t for want of looking and trying. We’d like to have (PepsiCo CEO) Indra K. Nooyi.

I found a clip of a speech given by Senator Diane Savino speaking on gay marriage legislation that is/will be voted on by members of the New York State Senate. The clip extends seven minutes. I watched the entire clip. This is unusual for me because usually I get bored and turn off clips within a minute.

What makes Senator Savino different? She speaks with passion and believes in her cause. And her passion outstripped her fidgeting and gesturing. The clip received over 327,000 views and over 1300 positive comments.

This comment was one of the few that was negative:

Comment on YouTube from:Monkeysniffer08
wow…. she has some horrible speaking habits…..- pen clicking- fidgeting- rubbing her ear- holding her pen and flinging around with it.

Monkeysniffer noticed and so did I. But I didn’t care.

Her message outshone les faux pas.

Which proves you do not have to be a perfect speaker — just a speaker who speaks with passion and believes in your own words.

Next post I will write about Senator Savino’s speech and her use of rhetorical persuasion.