Market Yourself as a Speaker

Speaking at Remote Events: How To Be Present When Your Body Isn’t There

Posted on October 11th, 2008.

post by Vickie Sullivan, contributing editor RainToday

Between avoiding high travel expenses and having fun working in your jammies, teleseminars and webinars work for audiences and presenters alike.  But, as comfortable as remote events may be, many presenters make the dangerous mistake of treating them like in-person speaking events. They don’t take into account that webinars and teleseminars have a different dynamic, a different relationship between the speaker and the listener.

Below are two of the biggest distinctions between a remote event and an in-person speech, and two strategies to make your next remote gig the best one yet.

Distinction #1: Lack of Feedback

Like many performers, speakers respond to the energy of the attendees. Professional presenters constantly read their audience’s body-language and instantly adapt to that reaction. When a speaker knows the attendees are responding well, they relax and “play” with the participants. It’s those interactions that create classic spontaneous “moments” no one forgets. They also can spot the “problem children” and know how to draw them back in.

Webinars and teleseminars lack that unprompted give and take. When speakers don’t have that visual feedback, they can’t adapt to the audience in real time. They are presenting in a vacuum, having no idea how their ideas are coming off or if they need to change course.

Result: Their energy naturally goes down. Going through the material—rather than being with the audience—becomes the goal.

Distinction #2: Lack of Focus

Audiences listen in a different environment for in-person events and for e-events. In a speech, the participants are more captive. They are gathered in a room, away from their normal environment, not surrounded by the distractions of their office. Most of the time, they are there voluntarily (except for the poor trainers who have to teach the “hostages,” those participants forced to attend by their supervisors). And yes, while it’s possible to check email via our blackberry, the physical presence of other people is more compelling. The audience pays more attention because they don’t want to “miss anything.”

Webinars provide the opposite setting. Attendees are often alone, safely tucked into their most comfortable environment, a place rife with tempting distractions and no way to get caught.

Now be honest: How many of us have checked our email while listening to a webinar? Surfed other sites? Read the Google RSS feeds? It’s much easier to multi-task when it’s right in front of us.

Result: All of the distractions of a private setting make peoples’ attention spans shorter than they already are.

Strategy #1: Start Smart

So how can we counteract these differences? By adapting the way we present from the very beginning. In live speeches, many presenters start by introducing themselves and explaining their background. This introduction is important because it creates the context for their remarks. Researchers explain the methodology; business people focus on their experience and track record.

Audiences in remote events need the context, but not necessarily at the beginning. Many have already read your bio, so there’s no need to start with an in-depth recap of your experience. If you start with that information, many attendees tune out. Their thinking: “I’ve already read this. Wonder what’s in my email in box?” And getting them back is a lot of effort for the presenter.

What’s needed is what insiders call a “bomb:” Something that will immediately provoke attention. It doesn’t have to be obnoxious or overly controversial—just an insight that can immediately change their perspective. It lets the audience know they are in for a wild ride and to pay attention or they’ll miss something good. Then, you can relate your experience back to that remark. Keep the bio short and move on quickly.

You can also relate to your experience throughout the session, as long as the key point stays in the spotlight: “I’d say that the majority of my clients want [enter key benefit here] and find that [enter key point here],” or, “I get hundreds of emails a month about [enter biggest challenge here], and the most common question I get is ….”

Strategy #2: Don’t Data Dump

Without visual feedback in remote events, presenters have a hard time interacting with the audience. Many speakers therefore depend too much on their material and overload the audience.

The thinking:  If the content is compelling, the audience will stay engaged and won’t shop for shoes on the Internet. (I plead no contest.) The result: The audience gets overwhelmed and tunes out. They “half-listen” and the multi-tasking begins. Bottom line: Drinking from a fire hose is not intriguing.

There are two great ways to connect with the audience during e-events: stories and question and answer sessions.

Many professional speakers use stories to make their points come to life. For remote events, add short vignettes or examples for every key point. Having lots of them works well. It’s better to have less content that the audience remembers than more content that they forget. Stories engage, and shorter attention spans need that engagement.

Question and answer sessions serve the bigger need: the attendee’s agenda. Everyone listening to the call or watching online is there for a reason. They need more information to make a decision, or more ideas to implement.

You don’t just want one Q&A session. You want to break frequently for questions. This gives you the chance to clarify your points. It is critical to clear up any mysteries as soon as possible because confused participants stop listening until their question is answered. So don’t save the Q&A for the end. Break the program up into segments that include questions before moving on.

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Remote events are everywhere and for good reason. They are effective branding and education tools that get our point of view into the marketplace. Different formats need different presentation strategies. By addressing the lack of visual feedback and shorter attention spans of audiences with strong openings, more stories, and Q&A interactions, presenters can use these programs to boldly go to markets we have not gone to before.

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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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