The marketing that too many resume writers avoid are community-facing; e.g. resume workshops.
Maybe it’s because we’re so focused on online marketing. We avoid the prospects and clients that are in “our backyards.”
One of the first rules of marketing we learn is the importance of getting people to know, like, and trust us.
This is accomplished, in part, by conducting community activities such as resume workshops.
Breakdown of a Resume Presentation
Start your presentation with an intro of yourself. Telling a story about yourself can help make you more relatable. Be careful not to take up too much time on this.
Give a brief overview of the topic you’ll cover. Breathe excitement into what you’re about to cover.
For example, I remember saying to one group, “I’m going to show you the one improvement you should make to your resume today that will boost its performance.”
Create an outline of your key talking points and then write out your speech.
You might want to skip the above part, and just “wing it,” but I strongly advise you against that.
All the great public speakers practice and fine-tune their speeches.
You should too.
At the end of your talk, give attendees the chance to ask questions. This is an important time because it gives you that chance to interact with attendees on a personal level and help initiate the start of professional relationships.
Generally, a presentation lasts between 30 and 90 minutes.
The bulk of your time spent public speaking will likely be consumed at the end when you answer questions from attendees. So, leave at least 20-30 minutes (more, if there are a lot of attendees) for that alone.
Where to Conduct Workshops
There’s no shortage of places where you can conduct free workshops.
For example, there are several places to consider:
- Professional Women’s Groups
- Chambers of Commerce
- Job Fairs
- Libraries
- Professional Development Groups
Getting paid speaking gigs are also very doable.
For example, contact the career services departments for these organizations:
- Universities
- Government Agencies
- Outplacement Services
Be careful to avoid organizations that don’t have your ideal customer. This means if you struggle writing military and/or government resumes, you might not want to speak to a military/government employee audience.
For paid speaking engagements, how much should you charge?
Every speaker has a different fee structure.
Preparing for and presenting your speech will take an immense amount of time.
You SHOULD NOT price your speaking fee on just the time you spend at the podium.
You also SHOULD NOT expect to be paid for every hour you put into the project either.
The best approach to determining your fee is by simply asking the organization “what they have budgeted.”
You’ll oftentimes find that most colleagues and business groups don’t have a large budget for speakers, and a modest $250 or $500 is all they can allocate.
That’s okay.
Because the “real payment” for you will come in the form of business exposure and publicity.
Your goal is to get tons of referral business from your efforts.
That’s why it’s important to PROMOTE THE SHIT out of ANY event you conduct.
Something else to consider:
Will the organization be charging a fee from attendees?
If yes, then ask them for a per-head fee. For example, if the organization charges $25 to register for your resume workshop, then ask for $2 to $5 per head as your payment (roughly 10% to 25% of the total revenue generated).
A strategy like this can backfire on you if only a few people attend … or none at all!
Logistical Details
Know what audio/video equipment will be available to you for your speech.
Nowadays, you MUST get the most from your marketing efforts.
So, if video recording isn’t being offered, ask if you can bring in your own equipment or recording crew.
Having a video of your presentation and speech can help later promote your business on sites like YouTube and Vimeo.
Win-win!
Apps to Find Potential Groups to Speak To
When researching ways to find speaking engagements, you can’t go wrong with mobile apps.
Apps put information at your fingertips.
Here are just a few mobile apps to find professional activities in your area:
- Eventbrite
- All Events in City
What Should You Talk About?
To get your creative juices flowing on potential workshop topics, here are a few ideas:
- Fringe Resume Writing Techniques
- IT Keywords Every Project Managers Should Have in Their Resume
- What Works When Writing Your Resume
- How to Dominate Your Job Search With These 3 Advanced Resume Techniques
- Insider Resume Strategies That Work
Promoting Your Workshop
Many areas have what are called Business Journals (aka BizJournals.com). Within the front of each publication, there’s an area called “What’s Happening.” Make a few calls and find out how to get your resume workshop listed before their next monthly publication.
A bit old-school, but don’t overlook advertising in your local newspapers. Yes. This will be an expense to you. However, the fee should be affordable.
Press releases are great too. Google offers a bunch of template press releases that promote events.
Flyers can also be your inexpensive marketing friend.
Spread the word about your workshop much further by sending a letter and flyer to area business groups; e.g. Chambers of Commerce and Notaries. Your event could get mentioned in their monthly newsletter or announced at one of their events.
Any free publicity can go a long way toward making your resume workshop an even bigger success.
Promote your event on sites like MeetUp.com. Again, a very cost-effective way of getting more attendees to your event.
Example PowerPoint Presentation
A few years back, I presented to a women’s group that’s part of Lexis-Nexis.
It was very strange walking into a business and being asked to talk about resume writing.
I somewhat asked the President of the women’s group, “does the company know you’re doing this?”
Turns out the company encourages such activities.
Although Lexis-Nexis has its flaws, they do a magnificent job with professional development.
Their goal is to educate and promote their employees … even if that means they leave and join other companies.
Click here to view my PowerPoint slides from the presentation.
Takeaways to Give Your Attendees
Like any other marketing event, you want to give attendees a nice takeaway packet.
Your packet should include information about you, your products/services, and the value you provide clients.
A nice takeaway packet sends people to your website, displays your contact information (everywhere!), includes a few glowing testimonials, and has your business card.
You could also include 2-3 sample resumes as well.
The most successful packet I give out included a flyer that promoted a free download (aka lead magnet).
That one flyer attracted dozens of leads and thousands in revenue.
Not bad for a piece of paper, right?
If you’re concerned about coming off as a “sleazy salesman,” then only include how-tos, examples, and other helpful tips and strategies.
And, soften where and how often you mention your contact info and details about your services.
Avoid including your business card in this instance as well.
Tools To Help You Become a Better Public Speaker
The “king” of the public speaking world is Toastmasters.org.
If you plan to do public speaking on a professional level, do yourself (and your listeners) a favor and master the skills associated with it.
There are many places online to help you learn public speaking for free as well.
Inc.com offers a list of 9 places to learn public speaking, which includes:
- Udemy.com
- Coursera.com
- Saylor.org
- FutureLearn.com
