Part 3 Insider Tips for Building a Strong Rotary Club Speaker Program; The Mechanics

Engaging, Informing, Challenging, Entertaining, Inspiring

Written by Robyn T. Braley

In Part 1 and Part 2 of this series I explained why a strong speaker program is important to a Rotary Club. 

To repeat, quality meetings add value to the Rotary experience by keeping existing members engaged. Quality meetings provide a reason to invite prospective members and other guests.

A strong program will also provide opportunities to create public relations events that attract mainstream media and can be promoted on social media. More about that in a later post.

Before reading this, you may want to check out the first two posts

Part 1 Why a Strong Rotary Club Speaker's Program is Important

Part 2  A Winning Strategy for Building Strong Rotary Club Speaker Programs 

Managing the Bookings

The most effective program committees include some of the busiest members of the club. That also means they won’t be patient wasting time “to and froing” about dates, speaker appropriateness, etc.

38 Quotes to Challenge, Inspire, Motivate, Encourage, Entertain and Uplift!

Original quotes written by Robyn T. Braley

Written by Robyn T. Braley

I have to fess up. I tweet. Not only do I tweet, but I tweet often. 

Soon after I started tweeting I realized that I could add value by writing original inspirational, uplifting, leadership, branding and positive lifestyle content. 

In social media you’ll find 1,000’s of quotes from business, military, political, historical, biblical, sports, academic and any other kind of thought leader you can name. 

There are also quotes from those who think they are leaders but the poor quality of their content suggests otherwise. The primary way to build credibility and attract a large social media audience is to provide quality content. The second tip is to stick to the general rules;

• Know your audience
• Don’t over promote yourself, your business or cause
• Don’t be rude
• Don’t be hateful
• Don’t send tweets that few people understand 

Encourage and Inspire

Leaders of service clubs, breakfast clubs and business, education, association, religious or community groups often start or finish their meetings with a quote that provides further insight into the topic at hand. They...

• Encourage
• Challenge 
• Inspire
• Amuse

Part 2; Building a Winning Rotary Club Speakers Program

Winning programs create energy and enthusiasm. 

Written by Robyn T. Braley

Quality programs play a key role in sustaining Rotarian's interest while motivating, inspiring, challenging and sometimes entertaining them. Great programs go a long way to keeping club members engaged.

Meetings play a key role in marketing the club at different levels. The first impressions made on visitors, potential members and others impacts … well … a lot of things.

In Part 1 I laid the foundation by asking the question ‘Can Your Club’s Speaker’s Program be Improved?’ In this post I provide tips for taking the next step in building a program strategy. 

Part 1; Can Your Club’s Speaker’s Program be Improved

Jack Toth spoke about working with First Nations youth

Written by Robyn T Braley

A strong Speaker’s Program plays an important role in keeping Rotary clubs healthy and vibrant. Strong programs help keep members engaged. 

Put another way, programs with insight, information, entertainment or other relevant content give members another reason to look forward to each meeting.

But, exceptional programs don’t just happen. They require careful thought and planning.

I am very fortunate. My club, the Calgary West Rotary Club, has a decades long reputation for great programs. I have served on our program committee as a member or as the Chair for more than 12 years.

While I am mostly leaning on that experience to write this series, I also include insight gained as the Executive Director of a community based organization that staged 4-6 Gospel concerts per year. They were produced in a 1,200 seat church or in one of our city's two major concert halls that sat 2,200 and 2,700.

Does Speaking to a LARGE or Small Audience Scare You Silly? Intimidated? This post is for you!

People expect to be entertained while they learn.

At some point, every leader must speak to various sized groups. If you regularly: 

1. Chair meetings
2. Must  move people to action through an uplifting speech
3. Share good or bad news with employees shareholders, congregants or club members
4. Give reports or describe compelling personal or group experiences to an audience

Leaders must acquire basic public speaking skills as a function of being a leader. If any of the following profiles describe you, public speaking ability is a required skill. 

Ø  Lead service clubs like Rotary

Ø  Own a business

Ø  Lead industry or community associations

Ø  MC business or community events

Ø  Chair meetings of any type

Ø  Participate in politics at any level

Make Them Cry!

Public speaking success comes through engaging your audience. However, to get to that point, you must remove distractions of all kinds.

If you are a Rotarian, you have heard professional speakers, politicians and various business leaders talk to your club who were powerful presenters and masters at technique. 

"If your club is like mine, you have also heard a single mom tell how her life was forever changed because of the support your club gave to a community program that fed her family or provided other help.

As she spoke, you heard sniffles and saw tears being wiped away throughout the room because what she said came from her heart. Be authentic. Be yourself. What this post offers are practical tips that will help the real you shine through.

Is Your Rotary Club's Website Engaging? Is it Relevant? Does it Offer Marketing Value?

Written by Robyn T. Braley

Does your Rotary Club's website effectively tell your club's story? Does the site accurately reflect your brand? 

In this post I answer the question, “What makes an effective website?”

Before we go further, I need to ask a fundamental question. Is the purpose of your club's website to position the club as an active member of your community? Is it focused outward on target groups? Is it a useful marketing tool? Does it attract and engage visitors?

Or, is it simply an inward looking online newsletter that features information that is of interest to club members only? Does anyone outside of your club care. Does your club care?

8 'Ps' Your Service Club Needs to Know for Social Media Success!

Social Media can take your Rotary Club to the world.

"Forget Social Media. It’s just a passing fad!"

The next time someone at your club says that, ask them to take an Aspirin, Tylenol or Advil (fairness to all). Then suggest that they lay down and rest until the feeling passes!

Social Media has brought about the greatest revolution in the gathering and sharing of human knowledge, opinions and observations since the invention of Gutenberg Press.

In my last post, I answered the basic question Is it Time to Launch a Social Media Program. The answer was a resounding YES! 

However, and you knew there would be one, Rotary Clubs must approach social media in the same way a business or public institution does. Develop a plan! While there is a huge upside, there are also risks. Think about this. 

If you don’t want to see it, read it or hear it in mainstream or social media, don’t say it, show it, refer to it, or upload a picture of it to Facebook or a video to YouTube." RT Braley, Media Coach

Whenever I give a keynote or a half day seminar about communicating through the media, an athlete, politician, or business leader will have said or done something that provides a fresh example of why the rule above is so important. That is why media performance coaching is key.   

Need Public Speaking Tips? This seminar is for you! Raising Your Game - Public Speaking Tips for Success

Learn public speaking skills and meeting production tips. Engage your audience! 

If you feel uncomfortable and even overwhelmed by public speaking, this seminar is for you if you live in Calgary or Southern Alberta.

Raising Your Game - Public Speaking Tips for Success

Those who attend this seminar will take away public speaking and meeting production tips that will help engage your audience. If you are an MC, service club president, board chair, not-for-profit leader, businessperson or anyone else who depends on strong communication skills, this seminar is for you. 

The Calgary West Rotary Club is presenting keynote speaker Robyn Braley who will help you raise your public speaking game by taking you through the 5  “Cs” for meeting success. You will leave feeling more confident and prepared to speak to large or small audiences.

Five Public Speaking Tips

1.    Confidence – How to prepare

2.    Credibility -  command attention, own the stage.

3.    Communication

a.    Body Language

b.    Voice – pitch, pace, rhythm, inflection

c.    Performance techniques

4.    Content – understanding your audience, putting it all together

5.    Control – production tips, microphones, music, powerpoint, video

Is it Time for Your Rotary Club to Launch a Social Media Program?

Social media unlocks new opportunities for Rotary

Written by Robyn T. Braley

Are you ready? It's not "if" but "when.." This post answers "why!" 

I am often asked the question, “What should our club do about social media? How can we get started? Is it worth the effort?” 

The answer is a resounding YES! 

Social Media has brought about the greatest revolution in gathering and distributing human knowledge since the Gutenberg Press. In the coming months I will post how-to articles explaining the basics you need to know before launching your program. This post answers the question, “Why?”

Let's ask a basic question. If you launch a successful program is your club ready for success? Are your members ready to host random visitors who may drop by to experience Rotary first hand?

Tips For Creating A Rotary Elevator Speech That Works

An elevator speech  provides a conversation starter.  

Written by Robyn T. Braley

How do you explain Rotary? There are so many chapters to the Rotary story that telling it in 4 to 5 sentences is next to impossible. 

But, there is the rub. People today, especially millennials, are accustomed to receiving information in short, concise bytes.  

A short, concise elevator speech provides a place from which to launch into meaningful conversations about Rotary. Crafting an elevator speech will help engage others into your club’s brand experience.       

You can also use it for social media profiles, booking speakers, pitching stories to the media, in brochures, approaching funding partners and many other day-to-day Rotary activities.

What is it?

So, “What is an elevator speech?” It’s not what you think. 

How Do I Explain My Rotary Clubs' Brand?

A brand is more than just a logo.
It reflects your soul!

Written by Robyn T Braley

Rotary is all about doing. And, it’s the doing that gives us meaning.

Branding is living out an inner meaning in a way that breathes life into an organization. It provides outward evidence of an internal belief system. 

So, how do you define your clubs' brand in a way that's easy to understand? In short, a brand is what others think it is. This is how I explain it in my seminars.

“A brand reflects the soul of an organization. It communicates vision, values and principles. Brands work from the inside out to connect with customers at an emotional level.”