Meet the Pros

Full Meet the Pros Roster | Browse by Pro | Browse by Topic

Wally Adamchik, CMC, CSP - FULL
30 Minutes to Six Figures
The NSA Convention can be overwhelming. In this session, Wally will cut through the fog and outline the simple step-by-step approach that helped him build his business and achieve financial and professional freedom in just five years. There are key things that you must do to be successful, things that may or may not have impact, and things that will simply waste your time and money. Wouldn't you like to know what they are?

Aldonna Ambler
Attracting and Retaining Long-term Repeat Corporate Sponsors
Aldonna will teach you who the real decision makers and how to reach them; the important difference between endorsement, sponsorship, client and advertising deals; how to create proposals that deliver real value for the audience, you and the sponsor(s); and what it takes for corporations to want to sponsor again and again. Aldonna R. Ambler CMC, CSP has earned the right to be called The Growth Strategist™. She has won over two dozen national and statewide "entrepreneur of the year" awards for the growth of her own international businesses across four recessions.

Michael Aun, CSP, CPAE - FULL
Crafting Your Keynote
Learn how to build your keynote address by looking back on your journey through life, examining your beliefs, career, values, faith, charities, fears, goals, dreams, awards, collegiate activities, colleagues, friends, associations, atta-boys/girls, ideas, conflicts, rituals, legacy and your history in general. Once you have identified these items, you will identify your own descriptors and have a colleague describe how they see you. After the backdrop is on canvas, you can begin to craft a keynote portrait based on all of your experiences and goals. Michael will share six of his presentation methods and show you how you can use them. Be prepared to walk out with ideas you can use the same day.

You will:

Learn six key “game-day” tips and four “musts” for every presentation.
Identify five of your own signature stories and uncover five personal stories.
Chronicle your five most important professional achievements, as well as five of your critical personal achievements.
Answer 10 key questions about your path to date.
Uncover four important keys to the message.
Discover the five most important tools in your Keynote Toolbox.

Handout and PowerPoint® CD provided.

David Avrin
It’s Who Knows You
Conference organizers have thousands of speakers to choose from. Why should they choose you? Spend some time with best-selling author and speaker David Avrin, The Visibility Coach, to learn how to differentiate yourself from the vast pool of competitors and become the only choice in your unique category.

Kirk Behrendt
10 Steps to Transform Your Potential as a Speaker in Any Economy
The vitality of your future as a speaker will greatly depend on your ability to communicate with the rapidly changing brain of audience members today. Join us as we examine the use of right bookings. One thing is for sure, it is easier to take an incoming phone call inquiring about your speaking abilities than making an outgoing call to book one. Come and see the steps to make that happen as we explore the 10 Steps to Transform Your Potential as a Speaker.

Lenora Billings-Harris, CSP
How to Write a Book with a Partner & Still Be Friends
Learn the do’s and don’ts and ups and downs of writing a book with a partner. Lenora will candidly share the joys and challenges of every aspect of working with a colleague from idea generation, proposal writing and submission, to publisher negotiation, writing the manuscript and marketing the final product.

Joanne Black
Harness the Power of Referrals
Boost your sales and fire up your speaking business! Leverage the power of your referral network and hit your sales numbers without hitting the phones.

Learning objectives:

Convert more than 50 percent of your prospects to paying clients.
Leverage your referral network to double your sales footprint without adding to your budget.
Make every client a walking advertisement for your company.
Shorten your sales cycle, win big clients and lock out the competition.
Make the “the gatekeeper” vanish and go directly to the person who matters.

Gilda Bonanno
Improv Comedy Rules! Applying the Five Rules of Improv Comedy to Make Your Presentations More Powerful and Engaging
Improv comedy success is all about being present, trusting yourself and stepping out of your comfort zone. Improv comedian and professional speaker Gilda Bonanno will share the five rules of improv comedy and how to apply them to make your presentations more imaginative and compelling.

Robert Bradford, MBA, CSP
Getting to the First Million
Are you ready to reach the million-dollar mark in your speaking business? Robert will walk you through a short example of the client machine, and how writing, Web sites, speaking and other things speakers spend time and money on generate revenue in an expertise-based speaking business.

Gerard Braud
Don't Talk to the Media
Do you dream of being a media star? Are you hoping Oprah interviews you about your new book? Learn the secrets to talking to the media with VOE host and media expert, Gerard Braud (Jared Bro). This former journalist shares his best tips and tricks with you.

Lynne Breil, CSP
Enterprising Etiquette
When it comes to setting up an office and communicating with potential clients, there's the polite way and the wrong way. From your voicemail to your manners at a business lunch to the way you sign your e-mail, how you behave can be a factor in whether you get the gig or stay home. This pro knows business manners, and she will share her suggestions on what you may need to do as a speaker, trainer or consultant to benefit from the power of being polite. This discussion will include the time tested and the nuances of professional etiquette for the speaking entrepreneur.

Kathy Brown, RN, CSP
Creating a Keynote With Imagination
Kathy will provide you with information on the process of building a keynote that is not only inspirational and authentic, but a little "outside the box" with a few surprises, including "humor helpers" that have delighted and entertained audiences for over 20 years.

Dick Bruso
Strike Up the Brand
As a professional speaker, you must create a one-of-a-kind brand to position yourself as an in-demand presenter. This jam-packed session, filled with compelling branding examples of fellow speakers, will show you how to hit just the right notes to strike up your own dynamic and powerful brand. Come and learn a proven process for what it really takes to be heard above the noise in a crowded marketplace.

Andreas Buhr
How a Coach and Trainer can Become a Turnover Machine
Andreas Buhr will explain how coaches and training companies can position themselves skilfully on the market in order to improve their turnover by using his integral competence model of Sales Intelligence® and their technical knowledge, skills and unique market advantages.

Pam Burks
Top Ten Ways to Design a Personal Public Relations Campaign
Have you ever been stumped about how to start a business conversation? Have you ever thought there was a better way to get your name “out there” in our constantly changing world? Have you ever wondered how an audience analysis might help you book more business? When up-close-and-personal with Pam, you will learn the value of a personal public relations campaign; develop techniques for person-to-person connections; discover tools to build professional relationships; and master access to your personal “power base.”

Thomas Burzler
Unleash Your Potential with Optimism, Strategy & Humanity
This session will give you an insight into the mind-set of successful people. You'll learn what it takes to be successful on and off stage. It’s not about how to blueprint other speakers, but how to be yourself and follow your mission. It's possible!

Gayle Carson, CMC, EdD, CPCM, CSP
Re-Inventing Yourself
This session will cover how to take your current expertise and reposition yourself so that you can approach new markets with fresh ideas, skills, positioning and develop new revenue streams.

Christine Cashen, MAEd, CSP
Crazy Busy Without Cold Calling or Working a Database
Join CSP, author and h umorista Christine Cashen for a fast-paced session of hitting the “EASY” button. Who says work has to be work? Cold calling is fine and working a database is great, but how do you stay crazy busy without having to work so hard? Discover strategies you can do right now that don’t cost much, don’t take a lot of time and keep you booked solid!

Regina Clark, CSP
Keeping Your Calendar Filled
Regina will share with you techniques to keep your calendar filled even in a down economy. You’ll learn how to build long-term relationships with your clients and add extra revenue streams to your existing speaking business.

Chris Clarke-Epstein, CSP
Open Your Notebook Continued
If you enjoyed and learned from CSP, Chris Clarke-Epstein's VOE segments, imagine what you can gain by asking her your "how-can-I-improve-my-writing questions" face-to-face.

Janita Cooper
Build Your Business with Video
Janita runs her own audio/video production studio including green screen technology for top-of-the-line demo and website graphics and products. She will share how the biggest names in the speaking business are using video and video technology to multiply their opportunities and profits.

Lois Creamer
Sales Speak
Want to get booked more? Join Lois to learn the “10 Questions Needed to Book More Business.” You’ll be provided with the “10 Questions,” as well as phone scripts covering the initial call, follow-up call, and how to leave a compelling voicemail message that will get returned. You will also learn how to position your program for success by creating your personal positioning statement.

Kathy Dempsey, CSP
Shed or You're Dead®: How to Stay Alive & Thrive by Building a Strong Brand!
In a weak economy, a strong brand is critical for survival. What sets you apart from the thousands of other speakers in your topic area? What do people remember about you? What experience do you want your clients to have? Learn to thrive by utilizing quick branding tips for immediate implementation.

Max Dixon
Mastering the Magic of Stories
Do you want to make your best stories better? In this session, we will share the most astonishing keys to story discovery and learn how to apply the six "musts" that develop vitally interesting stories. Above all, you will learn how to deepen stories so they are “on point” and crafted to change the lives of those who hear them. All participants will be provided with a generous study guide.

Mike Domitrz, CSP
Speaking Successfully in the College Market
Discover the keys to making both a quick and long-lasting impact in the collect speaking market. Throughout this session, you will be given simple, realistic approaches to making a difference in this unique market. You will find out one HUGE advantage the college market provides that no other industries do!

Most importantly, you will hear the truth from an expert who has built a reputation for congruency in his message and his ethical beliefs. Before attending, know Mike’s philosophy is “No, not everyone can make a living in the college market and MANY SHOULDN’T.” Those who do succeed succeed for a reason—we will divulge the reason in this session.

Who is Mike Domitrz? In his first 12 months of speaking in the college market, he spoke to over 50 campuses, published a critically-acclaimed book and built a reputation for providing programming no one else was giving to students. Years later, he continues to speak in over 75 educational institutions a year—while producing successful educational materials for various groups (books, DVD, poster series, educational clothing and more). His impact on the college market has lead to him being sought-after by the US Military around the world and high schools throughout North America. Join this CSP who will answer your questions and always be direct in his response.

Shawn Doyle
From 0 to the Inc 5000 in Six Years
Shawn’s strategies have helped him make the Inc 5000 list in 2009. In this session, he will share how he has built his business through publishing, subcontracting, licensing, networking and social media.

Elaine Dumler
12 Ways to Make Money Selling Books
Elaine’s breakout session at the 2009 NSA Convention was a hit! In this session, she will present the 12 best ideas shared at the Convention and show specifically how they can be applied to niche markets with the ultimate goal of selling large quantities of books through non-traditional avenues. Elaine will distribute samples of marketing pieces and show you how these ideas can be put into action for little or no cost.

Tim Durkin, CSP
Revitalizing your Local NSA Chapter
Learn how one of NSA’s most vibrant chapters:

Gets most members to pay for the entire year's meetings up front;
Gets some of NSA’s biggest stars to visit and present at chapter meetings;
Has successful meetings DURING the week!;
Made "in-between-monthly meeting" meetings the must - attend events of the chapter;
Have fun nights like Pecha Kucha sessions;
Rolled back meeting fees and ended the year with a healthy surplus in the bank!;
Gets aspiring speakers off to a fast start with the chapter's Academy mentor and mentee program;
And much more

If you want more engaging and well-attended meetings and an energized membership, you can’t miss this one!

Pegine Echevarria, MSW
Selling a License Program
Thinking of creating a license program? Learn how one NSA member developed a dedicated group of senior-level champions within Fortune 500, government entities and the military. Pegine’s marketing strategy lead to five executive briefings, one global corporation buying the rights to deliver the program to three countries and one military branch, and the program being piloted to 1,000 officers. She’ll show you how to define your market in a tight economy, find the decision makers and build a reputation.

Dorothy Erlanger
Keep Your Foot Out of Your Mouth: Tools and Strategies for International Speaking Success
How do I adapt a keynote/workshop for effectiveness/impact beyond my borders? What are common issues--from initial contact through to completion? What are keys to success--first time and invited back? What pitfalls and fixes? How can I wow with unexpected localiztion? Bring your questions and interact with a speaker/consultant/trainer with 30 years experience across nearly 40 nationalities.

Kay Frances, MBA
Imagine a Presentation with Humor
Imagine ... putting more humor in your presentations. Learn some of the finer points of combining speaking and humor from one of America's funniest stress management specialists. When it comes to humor, Kay Frances is the "real deal," having spent many years as a professional stand-up comedian.

Susan Friedmann, CSP
Virtual Events
Virtual events are the “new kid on the block,” or a way to “bend the rules of business.” They’re bursting with opportunities and possibilities. Learn and understand how to replace your fear of virtual events with the opportunity to organize and/or participate in the many different options they offer your speaking business. Leave knowing seven powerful, practical and easy-to-implement strategies to create and ensure your virtual event success.

Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE - FULL
Strength of a Superb Structure
If you have wonderful content and great delivery skills, yet you have a problem remembering the order of your speech … If your clients love you, yet don't ask you back ... this session is for you! Join Patricia and walk away knowing how to improve your presentations immediately.

Jean Gatz, CSP
Taking Your Best Stories to the Next Level
As a follow up to her "Moments with the Masters" general session on Monday, Jean will answer your burning questions about turning your good stories into great stories. Come with a specific story in mind and learn how to dig deeper, customize and guarantee that you will connect with every audience.

Pamela Gilchrist
DOA: How To Revive Your Digital Presence
Is your digital presence dead on arrival? If you haven't updated your Web site in more than three years, used social media to build your digital database or embedded video to catch prospects attention, your digital presence is DOA. Learn how to revive it!

Program Objectives:

Learn easy ways to keep your digital presence alive and well.
Understand the bottom-line business results you can expect by integrating your Web site and social media profiles.
Learn how to leverage major social media sites to boost sales and search engine rankings.
Understand the essential elements that take a Web site from an online brochure to a dynamic space to grow relationships with prospects and customers.
Learn why researchers have proven that video gives you an instant search engine boost.

Joyce Gioia, CSP, CMC
Making Yourself Irresistible to Meeting Planners and Speakers Bureaus
In this fast-paced, interactive session, you will learn dozens of low- and no-cost ways to add so much value to booking you that you will be irresistible to meeting planners and speakers bureaus alike. Explore proven principles and practices that will make a difference to your bottom line.

Barbara Glanz, CSP
Formula for Topic Development
Experience a formula of topic development that is so impactful, it has taken Barbara to all 50 states and all seven continents! Learn how to use models, stories and action ideas based on Adult Learning Theory to reach your audience's heads and hearts, leaving a lasting legacy. Handouts will be provided.

David Glickman
How to Customize Humor--No Matter What Your Topic--to get BIG Laughs From Your Audience!
The more specific the humor, the more terrific the humor! Audiences laugh more when the humor is all about them--their profession, their industry, their employer, their meeting, etc. David will teach you easy ways to create this customized humor using simple research, wordsmithing, observation and comedy secrets that can really help you become a true "laughter crafter".

Deana Goldasich
Blogging
You’ve heard the buzz about blogging. Deana moves beyond the hype and helps attendees understand the basics, benefits and best practices of this rapidly evolving online tool. She inspires and motivates attendees with real examples, action items and takeaways to begin building their own influential buzz online.

Learning objectives:

Identify if blogging is appropriate for your organization.
Explore and choose from the different blogging platforms and services available.
Learn first steps and action items for your first blog.

Mitchell Gooze, CSP
Selling to the Corporate Market
Mitchell will share valuable insights for speakers at all levels to do more work in the corporate market with large or mid-sized companies. You will discuss who to target and various approaches.

Conni Gordon, CSP
Use TV Famed CSP Conni Gordon's TILS© 4 Steps to Solve Problems
Struggling to think creatively to resolve an important situation? Come learn how four simple logical steps can guide you to a successful action plan. TILS is an acronym for THINK-it, LINK-it then SYNC-it. Comparisons with Mind Mapping, deBono's hat techniques and Leonardo da Vinci's lists will make you aware of other ways to think creatively.

Ian Griffin
Speechwriting with Social Media
Social media adds exciting new options to the traditional speechwriting toolkit. From researching audience interests to developing speech content, tools such as Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter and blogs can save you time and make your speeches more compelling–if you know how to use them correctly. Speechwriters can now leverage social media to greatly improve the value of their services in the planning, preparation and scripting of a speech. Then, once the speech is written, social media can magnify its impact beyond the confines of the auditorium.

After attending this workshop, you will know:

How to identify trending topics that will grab an audience’s interest.
Where to find facts, opinions and stories to include in the speech.
How to create buzz before a speaking event using blogs, Facebook and Twitter.
The risks and rewards of engaging an audience in an online conversation.
How to leverage the viral power of podcasts and video to reach a global audience.

Leanne Harvey
Which Publishing Option is Right for Me?
You know you’ve thought about it – the prestige of writing a book, increased recognition within your field, the opportunity to share your expertise, and the added value to your business. Publishing a book establishes immediate credibility, further defines your identity, and builds your reputation – creating more and more opportunities for you to gain exposure and get noticed. However, the search for the perfect publishing opportunity can be exhausting. Look no further. Publishing executive Leanne Harvey will share the pros and cons of each of the various publishing options, what you can expect from each experience and candidly answer your questions about publishing a book in today’s environment.

Jean Palmer Heck
Are You Newsworthy?
Former television news anchor, radio reporter, talk show host and corporate spokesperson on controversial issues, Jean Palmer Heck will review seven things that reporters are looking for from sources. Then, with Jean's help, you will have the opportunity to come up with a “news angle” tying your expertise into the current news. To help percolate and tweak your ideas, Jean will have copies of news articles and the local newspaper or USA Today available.

George Hedley, CSP
Max Your Market!
Be more than another speaker fighting for another date. You can become the in-demand recognized industry expert by implementing George’s speaking “Business Success Blueprint.” Learn to dominate and promote your market with presentations and marketing via multiple programs, value-added services, retreats, boot camps, products, articles, content, Web sites, e-newsletters and blogs.

Jim Hennig, PhD, CSP CPAE
Build Income as Licensee or Licensor
For the beginner or expert, this session will open your mind to a completely new way to increase cash flow in both good and bad economic times. Jim will share his experiences and the do's and don'ts of becoming a licensee or a licensor.

Jane Herlong, CSP
Smarter Ways to Market
Marketing has changed with the addition of social media and other venues. Jane takes a practical approach that combines new ideas with standard marketing practices. Learn how you can make the most of your marketing with simple, manageable ideas.

Mellanie True Hills
Leveraging a Cause to Create a Niche
Creating a non-profit cause can help your for-profit speaking business. By carving out your unique cause-related niche, you can create more speaking opportunities as the go-to expert who companies will want to sponsor. Mellanie will share what she has learned through creating StopAfib.org, a non-profit patient advocacy organization for those living with atrial fibrillation, the most common irregular heartbeat and a major cause of strokes. Leverage what you learn in this session to create your own cause-related niche to help you grow your speaking business.

Michael Hoffman, CSP
How to Ignite Repeat Business!
In today's economy it is imperative that you take advantage of every opportunity to make the business happen–on purpose. In this fun and informative session, Michael Hoffman will show how he has weathered the current challenges by building and cultivating his most important clientele--the ones who have already used him.

Sam Horn - FULL
Build an Umbrella Brand
In today's challenging economy, no one can afford to be "just" a speaker, "just" an author or "just" a consultant. Sam shows how to scale your platform, visibility, global impact and revenue by developing an umbrella brand and institute that positions you at a higher level and delivers your proprietary intellectual capital through a variety of money-making products, services and media outreach.

Rick Jakle, CSP
How to Break the Broadcast Booking Barrier: Selling Yourself Big Time on a Shoestring Budget
This broadcast pro reveals unique secrets of getting booked on top broadcast talk shows. Learn how to move your career up to the next level, exactly what producers/talk show hosts really want and how to get their attention. How to sell your products and get booked. Content rich with BIG mega page handout!

Neen James, MBA, CSP
Productive Mentoring
Do you often get asked to mentor people in your audiences? Do people desperately want to learn from you, hang out with you and ask your advice? If so, you might want to consider establishing a productive mentor program for your business. Join Neen (in her fabulous stilettos and Aussie accent) for this highly interactive session where she will provide tools, lessons learned and answer all of your questions about establishing a mentor program.

Willie Jolley, CSP, CPAE
Massive Marketing Tips!
Willie will share how he went from an unknown speaker to a nationally known speaker in just over a year! He will discuss how he applied marketing ideas from the music business to the speaking business, and then expanded the ideas to reach more groups. You will walk away with simple strategies and techniques that get results.

Michael Scott Karpovich, CSP
Crisis Marketing
The hardest and scariest time for owning your own business is when you’re first starting out. The time when your bills are overdue or you can’t even afford to pay yourself. This is a time that calls for Crisis Marketing. The focus of this session is creating a plan that you can tailor to meet your own style, your own market, and your own comfort level. We will discuss specific "how to's" of crisis marketing, including direct mail campaigns, creating promotional flyers, finding names to market to, and creating "symbols" for you as the business person, your business itself and the market. You will learn how “poverty consciousness” gets in the way of success and how to create a marketing and positioning strategy to follow, which includes specific, inexpensive, easy-to-follow marketing methods.

Patricia Katz, MCE, CHRP
Life Balance for Speakers - Are You Crazy? Strategies for Calm in the Midst of Chaos.
Is your life as a speaker sane and satisfying or chaotic and crazymaking? Are you on track to becfome a Fast Fizzler or a Long Laster? 20 strategies for balance and renewal that will sustain you and your business for the long haul.

Carol Kivler, CSP, MS
To Mastermind or Not Mastermind
At NSA we hear a lot of buzz around mastermind groups. In this fast-paced, interactive session Carol will share the common essentials of mastermind groups: the purpose, meeting format, schedule, group norms, pitfalls and best practices.

Glen Knight, PMP, CSP
Create Your Own Public Seminars
Developing your topic into a public seminar can be a great way to increase your income and market your services. Learn the tricks of the trade and how to avoid common pitfalls.

Janet Lapp, PhD, CSP, CPAE - FULL
For WOMEN only. Men eat your hearts out. You're good people, just not for this session.
Janet will share the top five ways women keep themselves off the main platform and out of high-paying long-lasting speaking careers. This program was presented several years ago with life-changing results. Don't miss it.

Sarah Layton, CMC, PhD
Can a Speaker Have a Blue Ocean Strategy?
The biggest challenge facing professional speakers today is finding new customers for their products and services amid their client layoffs, conference cancellations and belt tightening. If you could learn how to identify new markets that will increase your revenue dollars and profit , yet not require that you go head to head with your competitors, do expensive marketing or have huge R&D budgets, would that interest you? If so, join Dr. Layton to learn how to increase revenue dollars and profit by identifying new markets that are not dependent on fierce competition and expensive marketing.

You will receive:

A summary review of the best-selling book, Blue Ocean Strategy: How to create uncontested market space and make the competition irrelevant, written by researchers Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne.
A booklet that explains key tools of Blue Ocean Strategy so you can create your own strategy.
Results of informal research that will help define the competitive factors your clients might be judging you on.

Dave Lieber
4 Best-Kept Secrets to Make Your Speech Come Alive
Learn the best-kept secrets of storytelling from a long-time newspaper columnist and professional speaker. Master the so-called "New Journalism" techniques to make your stories real and memorable. Explore how to use scene-by-scene construction, dialogue in full, third-person point of view, and the use of status details to highlight character traits. Dave will share simple writing and speaking tips that work every time to keep your audience involved, attentive and entertained.

Anne Loehr
Get Wise with Gen Ys
To communicate clearly with everyone in today's workplace, you need to understand what shaped each generation's core beliefs and values. Once you understand the history, traits and culture of each generation, you can more effectively communicate to build rapport and trust. The result? Improved audience engagement and higher speaking fees. This highly interactive presentation will help speakers bridge the gap between Gen X, Gen Y and Baby Boomers. Anne will discuss the workforce of the future, the personality traits and key differences of each generation, and how to speak so that each generation will listen.

Pam Lontos, MA, CSP
Publicity Secrets
Pam Lontos was vice president at Disney's Shamrock Broadcasting and has been a professional speaker for 25 years. For the last 15 years, she has helped speakers to leverage the power of the media and dramatically increase their wealth and success. In this session, she will discuss the mistakes speakers typically make and reveal her secrets for success.

Kathy Loveless, CSP
Stop Those Procrastination Blues: Strategies to Get the Right Things Done Every Day
A tough economy is an opportunity, not a problem. Kathy will show you how to refocus your thinking and change your behavior to create the results you really want, identify speaking opportunities you didn’t know existed and use the Focus and Accountability System Techniques, FAST® to shed distractions and to motivate yourself.

Heather Lutze
Formula for Social Media Marketing
Join Heather for strategies, tools and tips to optimize your social marketing efforts in conjunction with your Web site. You’ll acquire actionable tactics you can implement immediately to get ranked higher in search engine results and dominate the first page. Learn how to use keywords effectively with Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook and your company Web site to attract more qualified buying traffic.

Marian Madonia, CSP
Have I Got a Story for You!
You've got your topic, your title--and all your bullet points are complete. Where do you find the stories to make your presentation come to life? Marian will give you tips and exercises to help you find the stories--YOUR stories--to make your speech a one-of-a-kind masterpiece.

Jim Mathis, CSP
026N2
Every speaker can go from making zero to a six-figure income in under two years, even in this economy! Jim will share the steps that took him to a successful speaking career with attendees in a fast-paced, information-packed session. Everyone will walk away with new tools and ideas to skyrocket their sales and marketing.

Al McCree
Using Music
Learn how to use music in your presentations legally, ethically and effectively.

Al will discuss:

The benefits and hazards of using music in a professional presentation.
The concept of intellectual property as it applies to music.
The range of music licensing requirements and options for professional speakers.

Barbara McNichol
Crafting Incredible One-Sheets
How can your one-sheet influence the buying decision already churning in your prospects’ minds? By conveying compelling solutions to their problems that your programs deliver. This session addresses how to put passion into crafting your speaker one-sheet, making it so persuasive that it stands out to those in your target audience. It covers salable program descriptions, what credentials and relevant results to include, and more. Bring your current one-sheet for feedback.

Lenn Millbower, BM, MA
Life by PowerPoint®: How To Develop Eye-Popping Presentations Attendees Love™
Death by PowerPoint®? Life by PowerPoint®? You choose. PowerPoint®, that most-maligned tool, can be a speaker’s best friend. When used with MTV-like, hip-hop pacing, it is surprisingly immersive, engaging, and effective. Discover simple tricks for inserting music, movement, and stunning visuals effects into presentations. Jolt your presentations to life and resuscitate your delivery as you proclaim, long live PowerPoint®!

W Mitchell, CSP, CPAE
How to do it Better

Christine Morlet
Negotiation
Christine will help you plan negotiations with speaker bureaus and clients, add value rather than reduce your speaking fees, and get past the word “no.”

Elaine Morris
EQ for Speakers
Emotional Quotient (EQ) is a scientifically-researched and proven set of competencies that affect how a person operates internally and externally. It impacts your ability to understand and manage your own emotions, which in turn determines your capacity to understand, connect and influence others. In this session you will learn what EQ is, the top three EQ competencies for successful speaking and a method for increasing each of those competencies for increased confidence and audience impact.

Michel Neray
Differentiating Yourself ... Beyond the Marketing Spin
You can stand out from the crowd by putting a cat on your head or sticking a banana in your ear, but does that really reflect the genuine and unique value you offer your clients? Probably not.

In this super-quick laser session, Michael will help you dig through the five layers of differentiation to help you discover the gems inside you that you've been overlooking.

Those gems are the keys to your differentiation—they're what truly sets you apart from other speakers, coaches, consultants and trainers who make the same claims and promises you do.

If you're ready to dig a little deeper into who you are, what you do and the true value you offer your clients—beyond the marketing spin—then you're ready for this session.

David Newman
Getting Booked and Going Big-Time
Learn how to build, boost and design the next breakthrough in your speaking business—whether you've been at it for two weeks or 20 years. David will share proven strategies, tactics and tools to establish your thought leadership platform and build out your Marketing Language Bank™ so you get noticed, get booked and get referred at your full fee, regardless of the state of the economy.

Olalah Njenga
Branding
With so much confusion regarding what to do and what not to do when it comes to branding, it is little wonder that professional speakers are overwhelmed and exhausted. The simple truth is this: When you are a professional speaker, your brand matters. Everything you say and do shapes your brand, whether you are aware of it or not. Olalah Njenga, a marketing strategist and author, will share her wisdom behind building a memorable brand and discuss the relevance of branding for professional speakers.

You’ll learn:

Why personal branding matters, especially for speakers.
The three critical elements of personal branding and why you should care.
How being a subject matter expert impacts your brand.
Common ways professional speakers sabotage their brand.
How to create a personal branding plan that you can actually start today.

Kevin O’Connor, CSP
Don't Fence Yourself In
Successful speaking businesses mix their services for maximum impact and profit. Kevin has been a professional speaker since 1976. Come and hear how you can take an idea, then a speech, then a workshop … and build more into your offerings systematically, naturally and easily.

Lethia Owens
The Science of Selling on Social Networks
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube are just a few social networking tools that are boasting massive growth. According to new stats from compete.com, Facebook now drives more traffic to key sites than Google. If you are playing by the old rules of the game and have not developed a social media marketing strategy, you are leaving money on the table. Now that you realize you need to leverage this powerful cutting edge strategy for promoting your speaking business, learn the right way to promote your brand online—one "tweet" and "status update" at a time.

Jim Pancero, CSP, CPAE
The Business of Speaking
Jim will lead an advanced discussion for established professional speakers about how to take their business to the next level of uniqueness and profitability.

Gary Patterson, MBA, CPA, SAC
Taking Risk out of Your Business
Sticking out your balance sheet and coughing gets you what you need to know in time for any needed procedures, which can mean the difference between life and death in your business or life. Too many professionals are taking far greater risks than they may be aware of. Posing the million-dollar question, “What is the cost of what you don’t know?”, this session alerts speakers to hidden risks that may be lurking inside their business and even their life. This enterprise risk management (ERM) presentation includes stories on how a fiscal checkup can save your business in an interactive session where you will walk away with: Strategic actions to reduce existing risk and foreseeable loss, tips for increasing the likelihood of achieving new revenues and an actionable process on the highest value area.

Terry Paulson, PhD, CSP, CPAE
How to Use Strategies to Make a Lasting Difference to Expand Business
As speakers, we are facing increased pressure to make a lasting difference with our presentations. Learn specific strategies you can use to impact audiences, promote lasting change and make it more likely that you will be reused, referred and rehired. Learn how to use keeper cards, blogs and autoresponders to market your services and make a lasting difference.

Marquesa Pettway, DTM
Your Client Attraction System
Speakers often wonder how to find engagements. One way is to let your audience and meeting planners find you. During this session, participants will learn the six critical components of a business-generating client attraction system. Marquesa will share easy ways speakers can keep prospects and existing customers engaged. Participants will walk away with strategies that can be easily implemented online and offline.

Joe Pici
Increase Bookings
Participate in Joe’s session to increase your earning power by:

Creating value propositions that will get your foot in any door.
Power prospecting and lead generation.
A formula to find your prospects’ hot buttons.
Learning how to read your prospects and gain insight into their needs.
Using a fool-proof system to close the most skeptical buyer.
Creating client loyalty and ongoing referrals.

Dan Poynter, CSP
Planning Your Book
What should you write about? Is there a market for this subject? Is the market large enough? Are meeting planners buying this topic? Are the readers easy to reach? Whether you plan to sell out to a publisher or do it yourself, you have to gather market information. Has your book been done before? Has it been done lately? Has the topic been attacked from this angle? What is the median selling price for books on this shelf? Dan will show you how to research the subject, title and other books so that you will be sure you are writing a book that will have eager buyers and appeal to ecstatic meeting planners. Book writing is far easier when you can visualize your reader, have a plan for your material and know there is a waiting audience.

Howard Putnam, CSP, CPAE
What Is Your Personal Brand?
Define your uniqueness and establish your personal brand in 50 words or less to move to a new level in speaking, training, coaching and writing.

Edie Raether, MS, CSP
Marketing Makeover
The speaking industry has changed, but have you? Not only are more speakers competing for fewer opportunities in the traditional speaking model, but audiences want more than a speaker and associations demand value beyond a great performance. Learn how you must reinvent yourself and your services to remain viable and take your business to the next level. Recover. Reset. Refocus. Learn what works in the "new normal" of an ever changing marketplace from a 40-year speaking vet!

Carly Reed
Speaker Secrets Revealed: Five Things You Must Know About Your Speaker … so you can both be happier and make more money (Recommended for Staff/Partner/Spouse)
Speakers might be able to hit a home run from the platform, but many of them strike out when it comes to managing an assistant. There’s more to running a speaker’s office than answering the phones and sending out proposals (but those were the only skills listed on the job description!) Successful assistants soon become amazing managers when they uncover some basic secrets about their speaker and how they tick.

In this Meet the Pros session, Carly Reed shares ideas and strategies she gained over the last six years as the manager of a not-so-ordinary speaker, Steve Spangler. While you might not need to have the fire department on your speed dial or have to rustle up a cement truck and 2,500 boxes of cornstarch for speaker’s next stunt, Carly’s real-world experiences have uncovered some common sense strategies that increased her happiness and her income. Shhh! It’s a secret.

Jeff Rendel, CSP
From Zero to CSP in Five Years
In 2002, I was presented the "opportunity" to take my fledgling speaking business full-time. My employer extended this offer to me. A well-paid lobbyist to Congress, I chose to develop my speaking business. At day one, I had four paid engagements lined up. Five years later, in 2007, I accepted my CSP in San Diego. Truth be told, all of the CSP requirements were in place in four years.

This session will discuss in detail:

Focusing on a market niche that will pay you now.
Gaining access to decision makers in your market.
Publishing regularly in your industry's most-read journals.
Extending your business reach to vendors that support your niche.
The matter-of-fact marketing efforts that new speakers should prepare to employ.

Marcia Reynolds, CSP, MCC
Liven Your Keynote with Questions
Do you truly want to make a impact on your audience? Try weaving powerful questions into your keynote. Stories entertain and teach, but questions stimulate the brain in a profound way that will shift the participants minds and hearts forever. With a good question, you will help them see the world, their work and their relationships in an entirely new way. Come to this session for personal coaching to discover the questions you can integrate into your program to make it more engaging and memorable.

Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
Successfully Pitching Your Project for Corporate Sponsorship
Do you have a project that requires corporate sponsors? Learn through this case study how Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD created a national demonstration home, the Universal Design Living Laboratory (www.udll.com). This project has attracted over 130 international, national and local contributors. Learn how to get started and what to say as you approach corporations for their participation in your project. Imagine how you can take components of this model and integrate them into your business.

Richard Russakoff & Mary Goodman
Control Your Money, Control Your Future
As professional speakers and consultants, you regularly advise clients in many areas, including smart business growth, effective customer service strategies, profit maximization, tactics to streamline operations, and even financial management. But are you actually connected to your money? If you want to eliminate waste and unnecessary debt, get connected to your money and focus on minimizing expenses and maximizing opportunities, you must participate in this roundtable discussion. Rich Russakoff and Mary Goodman, partners in Bottom Line Up Enterprises, will discuss strategies that put you in control of your money. Because when you’re in control of your money, you control your future.

Glenna Salsbury, CSP, CPAE
How to Find Your Authentic Voice
Some messages and messengers create meaningful change and transformation in the hearts and lives of listeners. Others come and go, leaving very little that is noteworthy. Peter Drucker believed that much of the key in leaving a meaningful legacy lies in identifying your calling, your unique purpose in life. Your platform effectiveness is powerfully enhanced by your clarity of calling. In this session, you will discover some amazing methods for clarifying your unique message and utilizing practical tools leaving your legacy in the lives of your listeners.

Arnold Sanow, MBA, CSP - FULL
50 Things to Do Before, During & After Your Speech to Generate Speaking and Training Opportunities
Although using social networks is one strategy in the marketing mix, there are plenty of other ways to keep your business on the fast track, even in tough times. In this session, Arnold will share proven strategies that work.

You will walk away with tips and tools such as:

How to get "agents" to market you.
Two forms you must give out at every presentation to generate business.
A checklist on what to do before, during and after each presentation to generate business.
The No. 1 rule that will double or triple the readership of your e-mail newsletter.
A easy-to-follow formula for developing strategic alliances and partnerships.

Kali Schnieders
Speaking & Writing for the Faith-Based Market
Have you grown frustrated trying to break into the Christian market and wish you had someone to set your feet on a productive path? Christian speaker and author Kali Schnieders has focused exclusively in this unique market since 1999. In this session, you will hear spirited stories of success and failure and get tips and insights that could help you avoid costly mistakes. Come prepared with your two most urgent questions. This session could be an answer to your prayer!

Stu Schlackman
It’s Not What People Buy, But Why
Stu will help you understand the behavior styles of the "four people you should know." How do they prefer to communicate? W hat do they value ? How do they make decisions? Knowing the answers to these questions will increase your close rate for new business and shorten your sales cycle.

Scott Stein
Positioning Your Thought Leadership
Why should you be a thought leader? More important, what can it do for your profile, income and business? This session will share strategies that you can use to position yourself as a thought leader, offer packages that increase income and identify the nine competencies of thought leadership. Scott will share practical strategies that helped him increase his income by 40 percent in 12 months to create a combined income of over $1 million per year.

Alan Stevens, FPSA
Ping! Your Business with Social & Traditional Media
UK-based Alan Stevens, president-elect of the Global Speakers Federation, is a 30-year media veteran who advises companies worldwide on how to make the most of all forms of media. He will share five social media strategies that will bring in more business at little effort and almost no cost, and show you how to increase the profile and profits of your business using social and traditional media.

Dan Stockdale
Media Magic: Proclaiming Your Message
You have a positive message the world needs to hear, but how do you plan on communicating your message to the public? Do you have a media messaging plan? If so, when the media comes calling, how will you handle your two minutes of fame? Do you know what the media is looking for? What is the most important thing a producer needs from you? How do you handle the influx of inquiries? And, how do you handle your personal, emotional realignment when the media moves onto new stories? Learn the inside secrets from someone who knows the media. Dan Stockdale (aka the Tiger Guy) has appeared on numerous international news shows. He has hands-on experience in front of the camera and knows the academic theory behind the magic of media messaging. Attend this informative session for a step-by-step map through the jungle to your next media appearance.

Vickie Sullivan
How Buyers Select Speakers Now
It’s a new market in 2010 and buyers now use different criteria in selecting speakers. (Yes, even the high-fee decision makers.) Learn the top three changes in how buyers decide, and practical steps to take advantage of their new thinking. Handouts will be provided.

Ellen Taliaferro, MD
Write Your Way to Success
Research has demonstrated the efficacy of writing to improve health and well being. In this session, author Ellen Taliaferro, developer of WellWriting®, will show you how to use therapeutic writing to de-stress your speaking life, improve productivity and enhance your bottom line.

LeAnn Thieman, CSP, CPAE
How to Write a Book Proposal
Even before your book is complete, it's important to begin your book proposal. While entire books have been written on this topic, this session will give a ten-step proposal template to use as you finish your work and propose it to agents or publishers.

Leslie Ungar, MA
The Multi-Generational Workplace
This is the first time in history that four generations have been working together in the workplace. The flashpoints occur most often between Generation X and the Baby Boomers. Generation Y and the Traditionalists round out the workplace equation. Tension points include work hours, feedback, dress code, computer competency and community involvement. The common denominator is communication. The uncommon denominator is that each generation uses communication so differently and expects to get results. Understand the differences to protect your value and excel.

Jan Vermeiren
How to Really Use LinkedIn
Many speakers need to find new customers, suppliers, partners, freelancers, employees and other people to grow their business. LinkedIn is an excellent tool to help us in doing that, but not many people know what the possibilities are. Jan Vermeiren, author of the international best-seller How to REALLY Use LinkedIn, and the owner of Networking Coach, the first and only (for the moment) LinkedIn Certified Training company worldwide, will share his top three tips on how to find new customers using LinkedIn. After his talk, he’ll let you pick his brain about LinkedIn and his successful speaking career.

Al Walker, CSP, CPAE
Beyond How the Chicken Crossed the Road: How to Laff at Yoself and Yo Mama. "Crucial Funny" stuff.
We'll chat about where to find humor, how to know when something is funny, how to use humor effectively, how to create your own funny stuff, the value of self-deprecating humor and why two people can tell the same story and one gets laughs while the other one does not. Plus, we'll take a shot at any questions about humor you might have. No guarantees other than we all know there is a high probability there will be someone at the table who knows a lot more about humor than the rest of us.

Brian Walter, CSP
Verbal Ping Pong: How to Give an Elevator Speech So People Actually Want You to Keep Talking
Every week you are repeatedly asked the single most opportunity-laden and awkward open-ended question you ever receive in your professional life: "What do you do?" Your answer determines if you'll be perceived as an interesting expert worthy of follow-up or referral ... or as one step above a rabid Amway salesperson. In Brian Walter's Verbal Ping Pong session you'll discover a powerful three-part formula that will make your elevator speech compelling, memorable and truly conversational. You'll never stress about how to answer the question again.

Stan Walters, MS
Viral Seminars
Learn 13+ proven tactics that Stan used to build a “viral seminar” business that's lasted 25+ years. You’ll get tools that will help you reach new clients, create a “buzz” in your niche about the “must go” seminar, and make your seminar business go "viral." First you invite them, and then you excite them!

Mikki Williams, CSP
Be Outrageous, It's the Only Place That Isn't Crowded! ™
The magic is indeed in the mix. Learn how to be unique on the platform and in your marketing, how to diversify yet feed all aspects of your speaking career with multiple streams of income, how to become a Vistage Chair and/or speaker and more from someone who's done it all. As the late Rosita Perez said, “In a world of apples, Mikki Williams is a kumquat!”

Marc Wolfsfeld
Developing a Database Strategy
We all know how important it is to grow our databases, but what we don't know what to do with our data. In this session, Marc will share new low-cost and no-cost options and teach you how to segment your database and create a workable game plan to simplify and amplify your marketing efforts.

David Yoho, CPAE
How to Get Paid What You're Worth
You'll wrestle with fee challenges throughout your career regardless of your eloquence, expertise or experience. David Yoho, CPAE will show you how to differentiate between legitimate resistance, negative conditions, stall and tactics and, you'll learn how to deal successfully with the facts of life that affect every fee negotiation.

Curtis Zimmerman
Develop Your Business
Imagine doing over 100 gigs a year for the past 15 years. Imagine just finishing your eighth book. Imagine reaching over 1 million people live. Imagine your keynote being appropriate for the United States Air Force, Procter & Gamble, colleges and non-profits. Imagine using Facebook, YouTube, e-newsletters and your Web site to drive your business to the next level. Stop imagining, and let Curtis show you how he does it and how you can, too!