The Power of Short-Form Video in the Digital Age In recent years, ‘Short-form video’ has become a prominent marketing buzz phrase. In some circles, it’s the ultimate digital marketing ‘must-have’. Let’s look beyond the hype and examine whether short-form video can generate the ROI for your business that the experts claim. What is Short-Form Video? Short-form video typically lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. This format is designed to match the fast-paced consumption habits of today’s digital audiences. When prepared and presented effectively, short-form videos deliver messag ..read more

Public speaking skills – a quaint hobby? Maybe in the past, we could be justified in thinking of ‘effective public speaking’ as a nice-to-have – a luxury. Perhaps we thought of it as a quaint hobby, the preserve of confident extroverts, but never a skill on which might rest the success or failure of our businesses. How times have changed! Whether we’re pitching our latest product to a potential investor via Zoom, hosting a webinar to nurture our audience, or even conducting job interviews, our camera presence will play a pivotal role. A shaky voice or an awkward pause can be the thin line bet ..read more

The Primitive Power of Storytelling Cast your mind back to the dawn of civilisation. Picture the scene. Your ancestors – those ancient people who ‘made’ you – are huddled together around flickering fires. Listen very carefully. Can you hear their low gravelly voices, barely audible amidst the flames’ spark and crackle? What of their conversation? What are they discussing? Of course, we can’t tell. We know their lives were much simpler than the frenetic maelstrom we subject ourselves to today. Their priorities revolved not around social media, soap operas, share prices and cancel culture. No ..read more

presenting on video Become stunningly unforgettable Let’s say you’re an expert in your niche. Or maybe you represent your entire organisation. No matter. You’ve been invited to deliver a keynote speech at a conference. You are in possession of ‘the golden ticket’. By being asked to present a keynote speech, the power is in your hands to create an impression. Not just any impression, but a great impression – an impression that will resonate with your audience and stay in their memories for weeks, months, or even years to come. You’ll do this by informing and inspiring your audience. Deliveri ..read more

Robert Harris, founder of Your Financial Friend, worked as a financial adviser for 30 years and now runs his own business as a financial educator running live online training courses to both individuals and groups. He also speaks about green investment and other environmental issues. Although a confident speaker for in-person events Robert wanted to start making engaging online presentations and use videos more for his website and social media. The tech side of online presentations was something that Robert found to be an obstacle and also wanted to know how to be more engaging to a virtua ..read more

As Managing Director of Colour Me Beautiful, Cliff contacted us to deliver training at his upcoming conference to a room full of colour and image consultants. Cliff asked for a training session in presentation skills to help his consultants be more confident in their presentations for both online and in-person events as well as help in being more effective in sales and closing during their presentations. During the interactive session the consultants learned a practical process they could follow to become more confident in their speaking. They also learned the top 10 presentations skills th ..read more

presenting on video Why you need to be prepared for video presentations. The world of work has changed so much in the last few years. There was already a steady move towards more remote based working but suddenly that was accelerated into standard practice by the pandemic. Video meetings and presentations have become part of our working lives and that means we all had to get used to using it as a presentation tool. One thing I hear a lot are variations of the question ‘why am I so nervous when I present on camera’. I get that and I understand how that can be frustrating, we have all been th ..read more

As well as being a pharmacist, Kelly Chizlett is also in the process of setting up her own business and is also a meditation teacher for a local charity, the Kadampa Meditation Centre Southampton. Kelly’s business is still in it the planning stage but she knew speaking on camera would be a valuable tool for when she launches. She also wanted to use the power of video to promote her meditation classes. During the programme Kelly developed her speaking style on camera and recorded a video for her weekly meditation class. She also recorded a video for her Facebook ad that she posted to promot ..read more

Esther Johnson, founder of Anew Hypnotherapy, realised that she needed to start being more visible online, especially as a new business so that her prospects could develop the know-like-and-trust factor – so important for any coach or therapist. Quite early on in the Breakthrough Virtual Speaker Group Coaching Programme Esther recorded her video for her website, introducing herself, her approach and  how she helps people.   (You can see how, especially for therapists, where developing trust is so important, a video really helps to showcase who you are and what you’d be like to wo ..read more