Tips for Saving your Voice as a Speaker

About a year ago I was attending a big Internet marketing conference
in San Antonio with Joel Christopher. (Marketing Online Gold with an
Offline Shovel). It was a 3 day conference about selling big ticket
items. I had a great time. But poor Joel was totally losing his
voice by the end of the conference.

As an expert who speaks, it's important to protect your voice.
Here are some great tips submitted by Mary Sandro. So next time
you have a big speech, conference, or workshop, you'll be feeling
and sounding marvelous!

Voice fitness suggestions -- Mary Sandro (msandro@proedgeskills.com)

To prepare for a month of 20 full-day training sessions, I learned as much as I could about vocal health before the month began. I've detailed below the practices and resources that got me through in one vocal piece. I even received more compliments on my voice than I usually do on evaluations.

* Vocal warm-ups, cool-downs, and lessons. I never would have believed how valuable vocal warm-ups and cool-downs could be. Absolutely invaluable. I found a school in Boston, MA (http://www.jeanniedeva.com/) and they sell the warm-ups on a CD for $14.95. Very explanatory and helpful. I travel with the CD now.

* Throat Coat Tea. Find this at GNC stores. I drank four cups per day, one during each quarter of training. Absolutely a life saver.

* Slippery Elm Lozenges (http://drymouthprevention.com). I used the basic lozenges, no flavoring. Very soothing. I would have one of these during each break of my program as well as after a program or right before it. Amazing.

* Entertainer's Secret (http://entertainerssecret.com). This is a spray. I used this at night before going to sleep and found it to be very helpful. I didn't find it to be as useful during programs because it is inhaled, which I found a bit awkward and messy. Yet as part of the regimen, it definitely played a part.

* Respiratory, Trigger Point Massage. The voice coach recommended massage. I couldn't agree more. I spent a lot of time in New York City and found the best massage therapist, Howard Mermelstein (646/285-4952). He is excellent and very specialized in helping expand breathing capability, etc. If you're ever in New York, definitely look him up. He is currently relocating his message therapy practice.

* Steam Treatments. The voice coach also recommended steam treatments right before bed. Again, extremely helpful. You can buy a personal steam machine at Sharper Image that travels for about $75.

* Humidifier. The voice coach also recommended a humidifier. Again, Sharper Image has a personal one that I was able to get in my suitcase and travel with. I think every bit helped. About $80.

Kristie T's Top 10 Favorite Quotes about Branding

I wanted to share with you some of my favorite quotes about branding. I like that fact that branding is really about telling a simple truth that puts you in a category by yourself and creates an engaging experience that lives up to the promise you make.

Here are my personally favotie top 10 quotes about branding.

1) "It is not slickness, polish, uniqueness, or cleverness that makes a brand a brand. It is truth." -- Harry Beckwith

2) "Your personal brand is a promise to your clients... a promise of quality, consistency, competency, and reliability."
Jason Hartman

3) "If you can, be first. If you can't be first, create a new category
in which you can be first."
Al Ries & Jack Trout, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing

4) “A great brand taps into emotions. Emotions drive most, if not all, of our decisions. A brand reaches out with a powerful connecting experience. It’s an emotional connecting point that transcends the product.”
Scott Bedbury/Nike, Starbucks

5) "Your brand is a gateway to your true work. You know you are here to do something - to create something or help others in some way. The question is, how can you set up your life and work so that you can do it? The answer lies in your brand. When you create a compelling brand you attract people who want the promise of your brand - which you deliver."
Dave Buck

6) “Successful brands get into the mind slowly. A blurb in a magazine. A mention in a newspaper. A comment from a friend. A display in a retail store. After a slow buildup, people become convinced that they have known about the brand forever.” - Al Ries & Laura Ries

7) "To get into the consumer's mind, you have to sacrifice. You have to reduce the essence of your brand to a single thought or attribute. An attribute that nobody else already owns in your category." - Al Ries & Laura Ries

8) "Any damn fool can put on a deal, but it takes genius, faith and perseverance to create a brand." - David Ogilvy

9) “Products are made in the factory, but brands are created in the mind.” – Walter Landor

10) "Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You."
Tom Peters in Fast Company, 1997

Auction Yourself for Charity on eBay?

I came across this interesting promotion that Mark Victor Hansen and other did to raise money for charity. They auctioned themselves off at ebay!

Talk about a neat and innovative way to build awareness, get free publicity, and do some good at the same time!

Heres' the notice they sent out (note - this is an old promotion, it's no longer active)

=================================================

Mark Victor Hansen has joined Donald Trump, Arnold Palmer and Miss Universe in supporting fund raising for the Prostate Cancer Foundation's eBay auction.

All have auctioned their time on eBay in the last 30 days. Right now Mark's auction is on.

He is offering 2 hours of his time at his private office complete with lunch and his amazing ability to focus on your business or book and strategize a marketing plan expressly for you.

We all know 2 hours of Mark's time costs companies over $50,000.00 so this is the deal of the year.

You can go online at:
(address removed)

BUT YOU MAY ONLY BID UNTIL (Date removed)

===================================

So if you are looking for a fabulous way to get publicity and build recognition - put yourself on the auction at ebay!

Kristie T

The 3 Things That Determine if A Speaker Gets Hire

In a recent newsletter by superstar speaker Patricia Fripp, she interviewed copywriter David Garfinkel. According to David , three things determine whether, and how often, a speaker will get hired:

1) The speaker's reputation

2) Samples of the speaker's performance: demo videos and what
prospective clients see at a live presentation, and

3) What the prospective client reads about the speaker.

"A meeting planner or economic buyer is looking to have a specific problem or problems

solved by the speaker and to make sure members of the audience and other people in the

organization are satisfied, or better yet, thrilled with what happened during and after the

presentation."

Here's my thoughts on that....

Reputation of course comes from word of mouth of your clients, being "seen" in the pages and headline of the media, and from testimonials of audience members and clients. Proof of "solving problems" can come from ROI Nuggets that show things like "increased productivity by 30% in 3 months time".

I can tell you that in the past 2 weeks, having a speaking video on my website has gotten me the job. A client was hemming and hawing and said, "Can we SEE you speak somewhere locally first?" You see, their reputation is on the line when they hire you. Are you good? What do you look like? Do you share real information or just offer a sales pitch?

And finally, being where your clients are can really help you to be top of mind. That can include joining their organizations, attending their events, and having articles in their association or company newsletters.

Does Branding Really Matter for Entrepreneurs

One of the problems with branding is that so few people understand what it is, why it matters, and how it works.

I was reading an article on branding the other day in Entrepreneur magazine called,"Battle of the Brand" that I thought brought up some good points.

"Ask a group of entrepreneurs how much branding really matters, and you'll get different answers. Some think it's really important, while others don't. Each entrepreneur could have a slightly different definition of branding, and a few might not even know, or really care, what branding is...."

"Branding, say experts, is your raison d'être, the well-planned coordination of every single touch point with the customer to create consistency of service within your company. In the end, branding isn't about getting prospects to choose you over someone else, Frankel says; it's about getting them to see you as the only solution to their problem amid today's media clutter and price wars. Without it, you're dead in the water from Day One. The way to get new business today is by turning your current customers into evangelists. If you don't give them something to evangelize—like your brand message—they'll have no way to communicate it to the next guy..."

In my mind, branding is about chunking the essense of what you do and the value you bring into such a small nugget that people get it and can communicate it. It's about creating a brand experience that is so incredible, people can't wait to enjoy it all over again. It's about being the kind of person that people like and want to do business with.

The funny thing is that people think a brand is something you need to manufacture. But the more I come to understand about branding is that it's really all about finding the truth. What is it about your gifts and unique essence that benefits others? It can tie to purpose and mission. When you are clear about who you are, why you are here, and you live that out through your work it shows. People are attracted to do business with people who love what they do.

Quote Yourself and Make Your Quotes Known

Share Use your Own Quotes and Make Your Words Famous!

Do like Brian Tracy does and brand your own quotes with Mem-Cards

Often speakers get caught up in sharing the famous words of other speakers. Why not leave the audience with your words as the final thought? Before you know it people will be quoting YOU in articles and speeches.

You can create your own quotes to share during presentations, as instant quotes for the media, and to add to your handouts. Brian Tracy has a set of cards (from Mem-Cards.com) that feature his quotes in the form of advanced selling tips.

And here's another way to get your quotes in the public realm. Hayley Foster is an editor who works for a CyberNation, a free daily quote subscription service . You can submit your unique quotes to her free daily quote subscription service by sending them to admin@hayleyfoster.com.

I actually did this by having my virtual assistant go thru my book, "I Love My Life: A Mom's Guide to Working from Home" and pulling out the notable quotables.

Here's one from my book that reveals my belief about sharing your brand with the world.

"We all have unique gifts and talents. … There are treasures stored inside each one of us. It's our duty to uncover and use the gifts we were bestowed with. We are all created for a purpose. Pursue your personal purpose and live from that plan."

-- Kristie Tamsevicius

What words do you have to share with the world? Write them down and share them!

Create a Book Brand that will Expand into a Series

I was reading Marcia Yudkin's newsletter this morning and she
had a great tip that I thought I'd share. She talks about the importance
of not just writing a book, but writing a book that is the first of a series.
Kind of like the Chicken Soup for the Soup series of the "Dummies" series.

I too have a copy of Jay Conrad Levinson's "Guerilla Marketing in 30 Days"
book. Great stuff! I'll be reviewing that in my March newsletter. Makes
a perfect desktop reference for any marketer. If you think I'd like to ---- (insert your marketing idea here) you just open the book to the section for complete step-by-step
instructions. It's like having a marketing coach right at your side.

Here's Marcia's tip about writing a "series" of books....

"A copy of "Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days" arrived in my
mailbox the other day and got me thinking about repackaging
ideas. The latest in a series of books by Jay Conrad
Levinson and various coauthors (this time Al Lautenslager),
this volume presents techniques touched upon in other
"Guerrilla Marketing" books in a useful one-day-per-concept
format.

Practically any body of knowledge can be sliced and diced
in a host of ways, yielding multiple products. Just a few
possibilities:

* The Encyclopedia of X (topics in alphabetical order)
* The X Resource Guide
* X Then and Now
* 50 Y-ers talk about X
* The Secret Files of X
* X for Beginners
* The Kid's Guide to X
* Meditations on X
* The X Calendar
* The X Casebook
* The Self-Study Guide to X
* X: Beyond the Basics
* The Two-Minute X-er"

Promote your Blog at BlogStreet

Fellow bloggers... Here's a directory where you can promote your blog.

Now that's the Power of Branding! (Branding vs Marketing)

This is a funny piece that I found on that sheds
some light on the difference between various forms of marketing.
Notice that in the end, branding is the most powerful one.

Can't say that I know the name of the author. But I found this on Building Brands.

You go to a party and you see an attractive girl across the room. You go up to her and say,
"Hi, I'm great in bed, how about it?"
That's Direct Marketing.

You go to a party and you see an attractive girl across the room. You give your friend a buck. She goes up and says "Hi, my friend over there is great in bed, how about it?"
That's Advertising.

You go to a party and see an attractive girl across the room. You somehow get her mobile number. You call and chat her up a while and then say
"Hi, I am great in bed, how about it?"
That's Tele-Marketing.

You go to a party and see an attractive girl across the room. You recognize her. You walk up to her, refresh her memory and get her to laugh and giggle and then suggest,
"Hi, I am great in bed, how about it?"
That's Customer Relationship Management.

You go to a party and you see an attractive girl across the room. You stand straight, you talk soft and smooth, you open the door for the ladies, you smile like a dream, you set an aura around you playing the Mr. Gentleman and then you move up to the girl and say,
"Hi, I am great in bed, how about it?"
That's Hard Selling.

You go to a party, you see an attractive girl across the room. SHE COMES OVER and says,
"Hi, I hear you're great in bed, how about it?"
Now THAT is the power of Branding.

Brand Yourself with your Own Holiday!

Here's a unique idea for you. Why not brand yourself with your very own holiday!

2 years ago when we were holding our first big entrepreneurial event, The WebMomz in the Windy City Home Business Success Summit, we were looking for a fun way to go BIG with our publicity. So we invented a holiday called, "Doing Business in Your Bathrobe Day". It's an annual holiday for entrepreneurs to celebrate by wearing their bathrobe as they work.

Well let me tell you that the media ate it up! We got radio, magazine, national newspaper coverage, and even some of our Webmomz members being filmed by their local television stations working in their bathrobes!

It was a HUGE marketing success for us. The only cost? I a little creativity!

So here's how to start and register your own holiday!

All you have to do is request a form from Chase's Annual Events. Their phone number is 847-679-5500, fax 847-679-6388. Or you can visit their website at http://www.chases.com. Just get the form, fill it out, and submit it to them to register your holiday. You can also list your holiday with book marketing geniuns, John Kremer (johnkremer@bookmarket.com). He publishes a book called Celebrate Today that lists all the registered holidays. Just email John and let him know about your new holiday and he'll list it in his next book update.

Kristie T's Big Branding Blog

Welcome everyone! I finally bit the bullet and setup my own brand blog!

My question for you today is, are some of your favorite brands and why? Are you a "Coke it it" kind of person? Or are you like me.... I totally hated when McDonalds changed their campaign to be the "I'm Loving It." Thing.

What brand campaigns are you keeping your eye on?

Or - if you are an expert, who do you think has an "Oprah" worthy brand?

My "cool site of the day" award goes today to Jane Pauley. Jane is looking "pretty in pink" and looking sooooo celeb in this kickin' site.

Check it out:
http://www.janepauley.com

Be sure to drop a line and share your thoughts.

Until next time I remain.... Kristie T - Brander Extraordinaire