Keynote Speakers, It’s Time to Brand Your Brand

Since starting my company in 2008, I would imagine I have attended roughly 300 conferences that have included a keynote speaker. Some have been super motivating and some have been super boring.

Most of the messages talk about finding your inner something—something that will drive you. Sometimes the comparison is made to their own lives, sports, or audiences. However, many of the speeches lack something that should be equally important to the key message: Branding.

What is your brand? What does your delivery say about your brand?

There is a reason people trust really clean restaurants and really slick car companies. Their presentation is equal to, and quite possibly better than, their product. Yet, many keynote speakers fall one inch short of the goal line when they use word art and stock photography in their super non-creative accompanying Power Point presentations.

Consider this a call to action for all keynote speakers who have something great to speak about but not the supporting documents to strengthen their brand. When you are getting $5,000, $10,000, or even $100,000 to speak in front of an audience, own your brand. Create it. It will help guide your message to a stronger finish line.

Throughout my ownership of No Limit Agency*, I have spoken at roughly 200 conferences. This has given me a lot of opportunity to craft my message, my delivery and my supporting documents. When looking back at my early work, it was bad. I tried too hard. I used 200 slides to deliver the message with each part of my speech having a visual accompaniment. Today, my presentations have gotten better (but not perfect), as has my brand (for God’s sake, I own an agency).

I recently attended the Franchise Consumer Marketing Conference in Atlanta. One of their keynotes, Scott Sratten (www.unmarketing.com), nailed it. Great photography, great delivery, great humor, great messages. He put the audience in his hand, built a story and a brand, and left them wanting more—and even willing to stand and clap to prove it. Look at his website, marketing and delivery. This man understands brand.

So, you are a keynote speaker. You did it. You turned your career into being a professional story teller. Good for you. Now, nail your brand. Make sure you have a complete package delivery so that people talk about you and remember you like I did with Scott Stratten. The truth is, there was another keynote speaker at the conference who was OK, but I would have to look at the conference’s speaker list to remember him. Stratten, I didn’t.