For Immediate Release:
Dateline: Chicago,
IL
Monday, December 15, 2014
Let's take a trip back in time:"Purple!" Mr. Big Name Speaker exclaimed, examining my brand new media kit, my first attempt at a professionalspeaker's marketing tool. I idolized his status and thought at first he was expressing delight. But then he said, "Professional speakers don't use purple. Corporate America is not purple." He smiled indulgently. I thought he was going to pat me on the head. "If you're going to make it in this business, you're going to have to conform. First thing you need to do is re-do your media kit in gray, burgundy, or navy blue. Just not purple." He said it the way he might have said, "diarrhea."That was more than 25 years ago and my media kit is still purple.
Rule #1 Be You-niqueDon't let anyone tell you you shouldn't do something, just because no one else does it. Find your style, or as Larry Winget says, "exploit your uniqueness!" Look, listen, learn; adapt never adopt; find your USP (unique selling proposition) and use it to your advantage. Mr. Big Name Speaker also kindly advised me to "tone down" my wardrobe. "A black or navy blue suit and pearls would be perfect," he said. Hah! Well, you see how that turned out!Yes, I'm outrageous, and that doesn't work for everyone. And maybe I've lost business because of it. But I'm alright with that. I am who I am and it's more important for me to be authentic than to be someone I'm not, just for the sake of the almighty dollar. Find your USP, and then go with that, however different it may be. Be authentic. And the almighty dollars will come.
|