“Recognize the Often Hidden Signs of a Heart Attack” is the 30-minute briefing that attracts the biggest attendance when a cardiologist speaks at nearby retirement homes. Fear often drives people to attend so the title gets them in the door. As well:
• Briefing, the professional sounding characterization used to promote the session, attracted more attendees than when it was promoted as a “seminar.” (It pays to tinker with your title.)
• In advance craft vividly specific and complimentary ways you and your =
• Allow time for questions from attendees so you can increase your awareness of what most interests them.
• Keeping the session brief (30 minutes), meant more people were tempted to attend, perhaps thinking, “If it is boring at least I won’t be stuck there long.”
• If your talk is sufficiently relevant and packed with actionable insights, attendees are more likely to choose to stay longer and ask more questions to learn more.
• All of the doctor’s briefings included time for Q & A., at the end, led by a respected volunteer who lived at the center. Thus one of the seniors’ peers was in front, making the situation feel more like “we” were in this together, rather than “she” was talking at us.
By conducting these seminars and taking the time to meet with people she became their most familiar and trusted heart doctor. When they, or someone they know, need a heart doctor, they are likely to think of her first. This went a long way to building her practice and boosting her reputation in the community.
But the doctor missed some valuable opportunities to increase credibility and visibility — and to reach more prospective clients.
She could generate more credibility and visibility while spending less time and money. How? By partnering with professionals who offer complementary services for the situation she addresses in her talks. For example, what if the doctor recruited a nutritionist and an exercise trainer to co-lead a series of briefings? That way they could cover both the “fear factor” – warning signs of a heart attach – and the positive choices seniors can make in exercise and eating.
Together they could:
1. Collectively promote a series of briefings, complete with checklists as handouts, thus reducing their costs and time involved while increasing their credibility as they explain and praise each other’s expertise.
2. Craft vividly specific and complimentary ways partner(s) can introduce each other to attendees and positively characterize each other in their related written materials.
3. Co-lead some briefings. As well they could do solo briefings, each person distributing a handout with all partners’ tips, at each seminar, thus reaching more attendees.
3. Engage in repartee during their co-led sessions, to make their presentation more lively and engaging for attendees.
Conclusions:
• Co-present idea-packed talks with complementary professionals who serve the same kind of clients you serve
• Meet your kind of customers at a place they already frequent to offer a briefing, demonstration or other way to involve and educate them.
Both you and your partner(s) end your briefings by offering attendees the opportunity to go to your websites and download a free online guide that elaborates on what you and your partners taught. That guide can also include a way they can:
– Sign up to get further guides and related offers in the future –
– Contact you when they need your services.
Discover more ways to increase your visibility, credibility and profits via my idea-packed video session for CreativeLive: “Find the Right Partners to Grow Your Business.” 
Also check out my Forbes column, cited on Salesforce: “Using Partners to Provide Unexpected Customer Service.”
