Now that we are six months into the virtual-meetings era, the last thing attendees want to experience is a presenter who has no idea how to find their way around a digital-event platform. This means planners need to evaluate speakers on a new level: Are they technically proficient and are they effective on-screen?
To help planners sift through their options, eSpeakers has rolled out a virtual-presenter certification. To earn the designation, speakers are vetted and tested to verify that they have a good grasp of common virtual-meetings software and equipment. The following are four speakers who have gained the new designation.
A social media expert, Washington has worked with Google, Microsoft, GE and others around the world to help audiences take on complex web and social communications topics. She also can break down these subjects to make networks like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube easy to understand and leverage for small-business owners. Washington is the author of One Tech Action: A Quick-And-Easy Guide to Getting Started Using Productivity Apps and Websites for Busy Professionals. Virtual-meetings fee: $10,000-$20,000.
Once an Olympic hopeful in the 400-meter hurdles, Register, who had his left leg amputated after an injury severed an artery, knows a thing or two about having to adjust to a new normal. After the surgery, he rehabilitated by swimming, and made the Paralympic swim team 22 months later. Once he was fitted with a sports prosthetic, Register went on to earn the silver medal in the long jump at the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney, and sprinted to 5th place in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes. Register brings his can-do attitude to online events, and can help attendees see current times in a new light. Virtual-meetings fee: $12,500-$25,000.
A "recovering" government worker, Potts now focuses on helping to build high-performance leaders and teams; designing industry-specific soft-skills training; and facilitating sessions on strategic and action-planning processes. President of the Inspired Strategy Group, she is a certified business coach and a certified practitioner of the LUMA System for building skills in thinking and working like a designer. Her "Strengths Discovery" program aims to help participants explore their own unique talents and strengths through insightful activities; put their strengths to use in a fun, collaborative team challenge; and reflect on how to use their talents in their work and life roles. Virtual-meetings fee: $3,000.
Building on his background in the tech world — having worked in the areas of user experience, marketing and product management — Carroll turns to the humanity in customer relationships to help clients build business. For instance, his program called "Superhuman Customer Experience: Using Technology at a Human Scale," aims to help participants leverage technology to build those relationships and improve responsiveness — and in turn create experiences that are better for the internal team, their customers and the organization's bottom line. Virtual-meetings fee: $3,500-$5,500.