Throughout the course of a typical week, I talk to entrepreneurs who need help with their speaking in some way. The help we give at The Vocalpreneur ranges from help with vocal projection, vocal stamina, pacing, expression and general vocal hygiene. However, there tends to be 5 main areas where we help specifically online speakers the most:
- Understanding What They Want to Be Known For. This is a big one. Before we even utter a word online, we want to decide what it is we specifically want to be known for. Why is it a really good idea to think this through? Because it isn’t all that uncommon for brands to think they are wanting to be known for one thing, but they end up posting and talking more about something else online. A really good example of this is when someone wants to be known as an expert on home buying in order to build up their client base, but they end up posting political rants and cute videos of their cat. Is there something wrong with either of these topics? Absolutely not! However, when they produce such random, irrelevant-to-their-brand posts, it does absolutely nothing to aid them in building their reputation and expertise in home buying. With that in mind, it’s really a good idea to take an audit of your social media account and decide what you will be addressing and sharing at least 80% of the time. Once you have firmly established your reputation by consistently showing up and talking about the ins and outs of home buying, what to look for in a kitchen, how to choose the right neighborhood for your family and all other related topics related to home buying, you can throw in a cute video of your cat. But not beforehand.
- Knowing What To Talk About. Do you see how smoothly we segued into the topic of what you should be talking about? Here’s the fun part: Get out a piece of paper and brainstorm at least 100 topics you could speak about that are either directly or indirectly related to your BBSP (brand|business|service|product) you offer. Now flip that piece of paper over and decide what you will talk about over the next 4 weeks, 8 weeks and then 12 weeks. Give your topic a day of the week and a time you will never ever miss. This will become the framework for your content calendar for the next 3 months. No matter what you do, don’t stray from that calendar and change your mind. Just stick with it. You will switch gears once the 3 months is over if you need to. But your consistency in talking about these topics that are related to your BBSP will begin to formulate in people’s minds the title of “expert”.
- Feeling Insecure About Going Live. If you feel insecure doing LIVE VIDEO on social media, you aren’t alone. In fact, when asked what they are most terrified of – dying or public speaking – most people choose public speaking! I’m serious! The fear and the struggle is real. But here’s the thing that always makes me show up: Do I have something I could offer that will help someone? If the answer is “yes”, than I am doing a disservice by not showing up and talking. If the answer is “no”, then we need to go back to #1. If you struggle with going live or doing face-to-camera work, congratulations! You are a normal human. But, I do want to let you know that the #1 way to grow your business and reach more people with what you have is LIVE VIDEO, so don’t ignore it or avoid it just because it causes your knees to knock. Simply, learn how to do it and learn how to do it well.
- Emoting on Video or Audio Recordings. When I refer to the word “emote” I am most definitely talking about the deep meaning of the Latin origin emovere which simply, means “to stir up, move out or agitate”. And, at the risk of saying the obvious, this is where the word “emotion” comes from. This is difficult for some who are more reserved or intimidated by openly sharing their emotions on camera with an audience, but it is absolutely necessary for those who want to connect with and impact their audience. It has been said that we lose roughly 50% of facial expression from stage to audience and around 55% of our in-person communication is non-verbal! This means that, if we are ON CAMERA we need to amplify or exaggerate our expression so it’s not lost between our computer and whereever our viewers are sitting and we need to be even more theatrical and dramatic with our speech if we are using an audio-only method of communicating with our audience — like podcasting, for instance.
- Vocal Fatigue. It’s true. Now more than ever, we are using our voices on camera and behind a microphone either broadcasting our expertise, training, doing live video, podcasting or speaking to our clients over Zoom. If you’re like some of my clients, you’re also narrating books you’ve written, guest training inside of people’s groups and even preparing TedTalks. If you don’t know how to employ good vocal hygiene and have never taken speech training or done speech therapy, you might be surprised to find that your voice isn’t too happy with you after all this strenuous, athletic activity. And usually, when clients reach out to me about these issues, it can be borderline too late. This is why it is crucial for entrepreneurs to learn how to speak efficiently, effectively and healthy right from the gate. If you have neglected your voice, your most valuable asset, you’re not alone. But don’t delay in getting the help you need. Take proper care of that amazing voice now!
Certainly, this is not an exhaustive list of all the areas where we help speakers diagnose and correct challenges in their speaking, but I do believe most people I talk to struggle in one or more of these areas the most. Because of this, we have specific training modules and group coaching inside of our academy specifically designed to help you become a pro at any of these areas and give you the tools you need to crush your speaking assignments going forward. If you haven’t worked with me or know who I am, just simply click here and we can book a complimentary call to help you get this figured out. Your time is now to become the best speaker you can be! Your BBSP is waiting for you to show up!