Grow Your Network through Summit Speaking with Steph Wharton

Jenn: 00:00:03

Welcome to Virtual Summit Success.

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I'm Jenn, founder of Virtual Summit Search, and you're in the right place

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if you want to make the most of your virtual summit experience, whether

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you're a host or virtual summit speaker.

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Let's get going with your next step to virtual summit success.

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Making connections is one of my favorite things about speaking in summits!

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You get the opportunity to connect not only with the host, but also the

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other speakers and the attendees.

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It can sometimes be hard to figure out how to make the right connections,

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though, so I invited Steph onto Sell With a Summit: Speaker Edition to share

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her strategies for making connections at summits and you're getting a

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sneak peek of her session today.

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Those connections can go a long way in your business, so let's get started!

Steph Wharton: 00:00:45

Hey there.

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My name is Steph Wharton and I'm really excited to be talking to y'all today

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about how to gain massive exposure into untapped audiences - that's people

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that you currently have no connections with - all by making connections,

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yes, inside of summits and honestly, inside of your business in general.

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But I know a lot of us haven't met each other before.

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Maybe we have, maybe you've seen me on Instagram.

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Maybe you've seen me speak inside of a different summit, but for

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those of you that obviously were like, who on earth are you?

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Don't worry.

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I'm about to do a little bit of an introduction so we can get to know

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each other a little bit better.

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But before I do so, I want to share something with you that in all honesty,

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I feel like you're probably really familiar with all of that, and that is

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the entire concept around vanity metrics.

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You've probably seen it in context with Instagram, right?

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Having so many followers, having 10K followers, having the swipe up feature

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because of all those followers, right?

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But as much as you are familiar with that, you've probably also heard

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the common and popular concepts that numbers don't actually matter,

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that follower count doesn't matter.

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So I'm here to show you exactly why I believe that followers, vanity metrics,

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and all that stuff doesn't actually matter and how you can still gain massive

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exposure into those untapped audiences and - queue - make more sales regardless

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of the size of your current community!

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So regardless of your followers, regardless of your email list, those

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vanity metrics, honestly don't matter.

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So this is all thanks to visibility because through visibility, you can

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actually go ahead and make really meaningful connections and utilize a

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signature visibility framework that I am absolutely obsessed with that can help

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you do things such as making $22,000 from a single podcast interview or attracting

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over 1500 people into, let's say your challenges, your workshops, things that

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you're putting on for free - or maybe even paid - and even get to invited to

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speak inside of masterminds and get paid for it because yes, you can actually get

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paid to guest speak by multi-six figure entrepreneurs with massive audiences.

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I'm talking about like 20,000, 40,000 plus.

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What would that feel like having that much exposure into people who could be dream

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clients who have no idea who you are yet?

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But it's all possible through my signature visibility framework.

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Whether it's a summit, whether it's a podcast or some other visibility

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strategy, you can actually go ahead and monetize that exposure.

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And it all starts - you guessed it - with the connections

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that you make starting today.

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So let's go ahead and get that introduction out of the way.

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I am Steph, the freaking queen of leadership and visibility.

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And like you can probably guess, I'm here to share with you the exact methods

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that allowed me to build a successful coaching business, where the connections

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that I make actually lead to being invited to speak on summits, to get

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interviewed in podcasts, and collaborate with other leaders in the online space

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in ways that are going to bring in new clients into your business on autopilot.

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So other than the business side, when I'm not coaching clients on all things

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business, you can find me with a big glass of red wine watching Spanish

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shows on Netflix and making paella.

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It comes out delicious.

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I know I'm a little bit biased, but that's my schtick.

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And let's be honest, I'm daydreaming of one day living on a Spanish Villa.

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So go ahead and follow me because one day I'm making that dream a reality.

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Okay, let's dive in.

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That is enough of an introduction.

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Making connections inside summits as -yes - a speaker, because I know a lot of you

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inside of this summit are either looking to speak on multiple summits and gain

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more exposure and just be able to attract and connect with a lot more people.

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And some of you may have already been an expert on top of like, a panel or a

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summit, whether virtual, maybe even a live conference, but you're looking for

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different ways in which you can enhance that experience to leverage that and

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see more results, essentially, inside of your own business - whether that's more

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followers, more money, again, just more exposure, build up that authority, that

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leadership as the go-to expert in the online space - whatever you're looking for

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as part of a transformation - connections, visibility, speaking, being that authority

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- is something that can help get you there.

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So let's talk about that a little bit, right?

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Like that authority, because when you're a speaker, you automatically

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are positioning yourself as a leader.

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Don't you think so?

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You're showing up, you're speaking on a virtual stage on your area of expertise.

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You're essentially sharing a lot of value or perhaps some interesting like insight

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or perspective that you might have.

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That's different than what people may have already been exposed to, so

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you're showing up and you're sharing all of this with the masses, which

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thousands and thousands of people who are there to specifically listen to you

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speak, to specifically learn on that topic that you are so well-versed in.

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And sometimes those people that are attending those summits are even

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paying, if let's say they've upgraded for the VIP summit experience, so

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they're paying to be in your energy to be inspired by you, to be mentored by

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you, to learn something and take that away into their own business or life,

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depending on the industry that you're in.

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So with all that leadership, why let it end with the summit, right?

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Why not leverage it; leverage that leadership and

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visibility to open more doors?

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What I'm talking about is creating genuine relationships - keyword:

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genuine - with folks during a summit and within your business

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overall, to create new opportunities for you, such as collaborations,

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new leads and - yes - sales.

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Now, when it comes to making these connections, or honestly, when it comes

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to speaking on a summit overall, some of the common mistakes that I keep seeing

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speakers make time and time again - and this is from past experiences, as I've

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been a speaker inside of multiple summits by now - is that a lot of people tend

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to submit the material as a speaker, they promote for the summit - let's say

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for that week, two weeks, depending on what the standard requirement is or how

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much they want to do - and then they move on without creating any connections

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with other speakers or the attendees.

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So it's kind of like in, out, done.

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Now, another mistake I tend to see is positioning yourself as that authority,

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that expert, that leader, whatever you want to call it; I know a lot of

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people have different preferences on how you communicate that leadership.

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Regardless, you position yourself as such and what you miss the mark in, I'll

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say specificall,y is not necessarily that if people see the real you.

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So it's all teach, teach, teach, teach, here's your value, goodbye.

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There's a lot of missed opportunities there.

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And finally is viewing other speakers or leaders in your industry as competition.

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We're going to go ahead and touch a little bit on that and how you can

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leverage those communities and people so that everybody can succeed, right?

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We all get results and it's not about, "oh, they're succeeding.

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They're doing this either better or earlier or faster than me," right?

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We're abolishing that altogether.

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So I want to show you a little bit of the summit timeline.

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In my experience, what I've seen is very common.

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You go through the motions.

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Like I said, one of the common mistakes is creating and submitting the material

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you see at the very top, right?

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You submit that, you promote the summit to your community

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on Instagram, your emails, etc.

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And then, if you're aware of this, and this is something that you do inside

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of your business, you plug a lead magnet, which to be perfectly honest

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is a great way to utilize visibility through a summit in order to capture

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those leads and then continue to build relationships, continue to connect

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with people on a more personal way, and maybe even go ahead and promote and sell

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within an email sequence after the fact.

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Now, the problem - why this is one of those things that some people do, the

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lead magnets, some people don't, but it's still kind of like missing the mark - is

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on any given summit you might have anywhere between like 10, 30,

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maybe even 40 speakers who are sharing on their own area of expertise, right?

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So as an attendee, you are now signing up to all these lead magnets.

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You're learning from all these amazing experts, but then once, either that

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presentation is over or the summit itself is over, you are now flooded

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with hundreds of emails, being like, "Hey, thank you so much for attending!

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Hey, it was so nice to meet you.

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Hey, this is my other freebie.

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Hey, do this.

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Hey, buy from me," right?

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So although those are very well-intended and they are very successful - those

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funnels do convert very well - the problem is it's a lot of noise.

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So for the attendees to be able to properly remember you, properly care

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about you as a speaker and then go through your funnels, it's a little bit hard.

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You're one in about a hundred emails, flooding their inbox,

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and that's just the summit alone.

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Imagine all the other things they've subscribed to.

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So when we look at the bottom side of this timeline there, these are

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all the things that you can do in terms of building really meaningful

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connections with people in order to be remembered more, in order to get people

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to actually click on your emails or to just connect with you in general,

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even if you don't have a lead magnet, and even if you don't have a funnel.

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So in that case, we are looking at connecting with summit hosts - the

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person that actually put this amazing summit together - then connecting

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with summit speakers - all the other leaders that yes, could be competition,

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or we could get over our ego and say, these could be amazing, let's say

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business besties or collaborators, or just people to inspire us, right?

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And finally connect with the attendees.

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Now, regardless of whether it's the host, the speakers, or the attendees,

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you can continue to build and nurture those relationships both during the

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summit and outside, in order to build relationships that are more substantial

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as opposed to surface level relationships.

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So the importance of connections is that they can actually help you

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generate sales directly and indirectly.

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And I find that the indirect version of making money through

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connections, through summits, etc.

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is almost the most powerful one and the one that gets missed the most because

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people don't always connect the dots.

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And that's where my visibility framework comes in.

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It is a freaking gold mine because it shows you the potential when you

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start to let go of expectations.

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So let's start from the beginning when we're looking at building genuine

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connections with attendees, because we talked about being that like very

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strong and impactful leader, right?

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You're there to share a lot of value.

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People are there to listen to you for whether it's 10 minutes, half an

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hour, or even a full hour, depending on the type of summit, right?

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But that leadership goes beyond just being well-versed in any specific topic.

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Being a leader is actually so much more about sharing common values, about being

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vulnerable with people and connecting on a much deeper and more personal level.

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That's what's going to make the difference because it's about letting

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folks see the real and unfiltered you so it's a personal brand versus

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just a company or a number or just somebody else that is teaching on XYZ.

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So now that difference when people see that real you and they feel

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a little bit more connected, they're going to be resonating with

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what you have to share, period.

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Whether it's with you as an individual, with what you have to say with you as a

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business owner, as an expert, and that's what's going to make them to start paying.

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The attention and that attention is what's going to end up manifesting into followers

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on social media, into subscribers, on your email marketing platforms.

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These are all people that consume your personal content, your free value-based

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content, and eventually, yup, they're going to be consuming your marketing and

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your sales content, which is all going to lead into actual conversions money

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in your pocket because that relationship is the foundation to having people even

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hear about your offers in the first place, at least to hear about them in

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a way where they're actually paying attention, as opposed to just like

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scrolling by, which is super awkward.

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So before we move forward, I do want to make a point right here - very

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important note - not to get stuck with focusing on connecting with

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folks as a way to find and convert.

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We've got to let go of that because when we're setting so much pressure

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on ourselves to make money, first of all, it's a little bit inauthentic

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and like, it's not where genuine relationships are built from, but you

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also end up missing out on the best connections and opportunities because

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you're always focused on the sale.

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So it's almost like a return on investment, whether it's monetary

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investment, time investment - aka time spent on a summit - the return

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can only come as money, as sales.

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No, no, no, no, no, no.

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There's a million things that can happen positively to your business

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when you let go of that sale.

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massive exposure and indirect ROI.

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This is where I thrive.

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So we talked about letting go of results, such as conversions, because that can open

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up a lot of more creative opportunities for an ROI, such as my absolute

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favorite thing ever and the weirdest thing is it's highly underrated, right?

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And this is the opportunity to collaborate with people such as other speakers and

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even the summit hosts in order to then get a cool ROI, get more exposure, etc.

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And the reason I mentioned specifically collaborating with other speakers that

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you're speaking alongside and the host is because all these people, they're

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folks that are likely going to have a very similar target audience to you,

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which gives you the option to now mutually gain exposure into untapped

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audiences full of dream clients.

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Because if you're collaborating together, you're both promoting the exact same

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thing to each of your audiences.

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So now you will gain access to their audience and they'll gain access to yours.

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It is magically as beautiful - magically; we'll make up that

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word, right - it is beautiful.

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And it has a lot of potential for really great success, impact, and sales.

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In summary as a speaker, you have a great opportunity to connect with your host,

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your fellow speakers, and the attendees in order to build genuine relationships.

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Again, I will reiterate this: genuine relationships.

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If it feels like you're forcing it, it's probably not meant to be.

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You can still connect, but again, don't force it.

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Don't try and make something happen that's not meant to happen, because at that

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point, you're always going to be trying to work so hard to come up with something

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to say and at that point, it sounds like you're forcing the sale, right?

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You're focusing too much on the end results, the conversion, as opposed to

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just letting things organically happen.

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So these relationships that you're genuinely building, the connections are

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going to, in turn, open up visibility opportunities for yourself through

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collaborations that are going to increase your reach exponentially.

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You go from having like, a couple thousand followers to all of a

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sudden speaking in front of people of 6,000 - like, that's pretty freaking

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impactful - that increase your reach and impact and, in turn, increase sales.

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I'm done.

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That is pretty much all.

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I came here to stay.

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I really hope you've taken something away from it.

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Feel free to let me know.

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I do want to give you a little goodie right at the end so that you

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can start making connections today.

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We did a little bit of an exercise between you and me.

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I hope you tagged me on Instagram, but I do want you to start practicing how

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to connect with other people so that it becomes second nature, it becomes habit.

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And then whether today or in a different summit, or when you speak in a summit,

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you're able to use this in a way that can bring a lot of cool opportunities

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and results into your business.

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So I'm giving you today a guide and checklist to help you start making

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connections as an attendee inside the summit, and maybe even start to

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book your first collaboration so you can start gaining visibility even

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without speaking inside of a summit.

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Plus - because that's why we're here - there's going to be bonus steps for when

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you're a speaker at a summit yourself.

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It's really cool.

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Let me know your thoughts.

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I really hope you start to implement all these different things that

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we've talked about today because they have a lot of potential.

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It's my favorite way of - whether it's just building relationships,

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making friends and all that stuff - it's my favorite way of

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growing my business and making money.

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Honestly, really cool.

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There's not much more I can say about it not today.

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So if you haven't already, here you can see where you can find me.

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I've dropped Instagram, my website, and of course my podcast, the

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Fiercely Visible CEO Podcast.

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So I hope to talk to you soon.

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Feel free to reach out if you're not too shy and I hope you

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enjoy the rest of the summit.

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Steph has so much more wisdom to share, and we didn't have

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time to dive into it all today.

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In her session, though, she talked about how to connect with attendees,

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what to show up for at summits, choosing the right CTA - call to action

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- post-summit connections, and simple connection methods for collaborations.

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Don't miss her full session at sellwithasummit.com/speakeredition.

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Thanks for listening to Virtual Summit Success.

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Don't forget to leave a review and let others know your biggest

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takeaways from this episode.

Jenn: 00:18:32

Every review helps others find us, and the more successful virtual

Jenn: 00:18:35

summits there are, the more tips we'll have to share with you.

Jenn: 00:18:38

For show notes, links, and other resources, go to virtualsummitsuccess.live