On the 16th and 17th of July The College of Will Writing trialled two new courses, delivered by award-winning entrepreneur Paula Finch. These courses form part of a new series dedicated to business development and will be run again from Autumn 2019 onwards. I sat in on both days, not just to test the quality, although having prior experience of Paula’s tutoring I was more than comfortable she would deliver, but also to see what could be learned and how we can implement new thinking and strategies within the Society itself. For a taster of what these two courses offer, please read on.
The first day was Powerful Presentations (now renamed to Powerful Sales Presentations) aimed not only at those wanting to learn how to present, but also to those who want to know how to present better. The day consisted of two distinct parts with the morning session being more tutor led, and with the afternoon handed over to the delegates to plan, practice and deliver a presentation of their own to the group using the techniques learned in the morning.
We started by covering qualities in a speaker and discussing speakers which we admired and the qualities they possess, which then led to our own presenting styles and understandings. However, the overall theme of the morning, or at least from my point of view, was that of how to understand your audience and tailor your message to suit using a variety of techniques with an underlying knowledge of people’s learning styles and how the message or the pitch you’re trying to deliver might not be suitable for everyone in the room.
The afternoon saw each delegate deliver an engaging presentation on a topic of their choosing. We were given just over an hour to choose our topic, plan and practice the presentation before returning to the classroom to deliver them to the group. What I found most interesting, besides the topics covered that is, was how everyone approached their presentations in different ways. We were then all encouraged to give feedback on each presentation giving both a positive and an improvement for each delegate to take away with them.
The second day was Building lead generation processes that work which again involved a mix of tutor led work and group activities to get everyone engaged and thinking. From the outset it was clear that we would be developing an understanding of what a lead generation strategy is and then actually creating a plan that we could take away and implement immediately.
Each of us was tasked with really drilling into our business including what we do, the market we’re in, our customers, who they are, who we want to target as well as who our competitors are and what sets us apart. We covered a range of lead generation techniques and marketing strategies, including methods which some us of (including myself) had never even thought of. Each new method of course being backed up by anecdotes from Paula’s own personal experiences throughout her own career. Group work included coming up with marketing plans with fellow delegates, including key messages to target specific audiences and how we would implement these.
A big part of marketing is the content needed, much of which the Society produces on our member’s behalf. Paula encouraged all delegates to communicate with the Society more, as well as to make use of the content we provide and to reach out to us when needed for support and advice.
I am of course more than happy with how both courses ran, Paula has a wealth of knowledge and we’re thrilled to have her on board to share this through the College. We’re also looking at more courses we can bring to the table, as well as some other training formats so stay tuned!
If you’d like to browse our new range of business development courses, please see the following link: https://www.collegewillwriting.co.uk/business-development-courses/
Remember that courses are not limited to members of the Society, but places do go quickly so book now to avoid disappointment!
