Master Storytelling, Speaking, and Selling Before Chasing Tools
Things worth agonizing over to learn: - Storytelling - Public speaking - Selling If you spend more time learning a tool than foundational skills, then wonder why things arenât coming easier, thatâs the answer. We get so twisted in knots around AI etc etc, when anyone who has mastered the skills that matter just keeps chugging along.
Turn Speaking Gigs Into SixâFigure Revenue Engine
This year, Iâve given 50 talks. How about a LinkedIn AMA? Iâve been a speaker since 2015, some years purely paid, some years a blend like 2025. How can I help your speaker journey? What can I answer to help...
Ownable Premises Beat Empty Buzzwords in Messaging
Common attempts to clarify your message that only cause you to fall behind: âX-made-simpleâ âOne-stop-shopâ âPremium Yâ âZ at scaleâ Oh, and any threat that something you offer is needed because otherwise, others will âfall behindâ đ I get it....
Great Leaders Win by Mastering Tiny Story Details
The more experienced and accomplished my guests are, the more they tend to care deeply about the little things. They're the ones who could "wing it" and actually get away with it, and yet, they don't. In their speeches, stories,...
Treat LinkedIn Like a Comedy Club for Speaking Gigs
Here's the best way to use LinkedIn to get more speaking engagements: Treat it like a comedy club. As a professional speaker and general nerd about all things creativity and storytelling, I have spent years listening to comedians discuss their...
Marketing Success Starts With Making Friends, Not Broadcasts
Every year I set a new intention for my business or theme to guide me. This next year's comes from the one and only Andy Crestodina . Andy and I always joke that if you put us both together, you'd...
Alertmouse Outshines Google Alerts for Real Mentions
I am so blown away by how bad Google Alerts became. Literally only ever sent me notifications of my own projects and posts. Makes no sense. I switched to @alertmouse this year and really love it. Good examples from Nov: 1. a...
Master Your Speaking Pitch â Limited Spots Available
If you're planning to pitch yourself to speak at industry events next year (or appear on more podcasts): I'm running a Pitch Challenge the 1st week of Dec to work with a small group on their pitches. You'll learn to develop,...
Marketing Wins by Retaining, Not Just Attracting
Great marketing is not about who arrives. It's about who stays. So many people are focused on the wrong thing thanks to the influence of mass-market brands first, now social media algorithms. The entire job of the marketer is to: 1. Earn trust 2....
Close the Context Gap for Winning Speaking Pitches
If you pitch events to speak, beware the Context Gap. It kills your chances. Here's how to avoid this problem + my favorite structure for a more effective pitch, whether you're trying to speak at events, on webinars, or even show...
Close the Context Gap: Pitch Premise, Not Idea
If you pitch events to speak, beware the Context Gap. It kills your chances. The Context Gap is what happens when you pitch something YOU know is worthy, obvious, unique (your ideas, your talk, yourself) but THEY don't see it...
Personalized Pitches Win More Speaking Gigs
If you want to book more speaking engagements and guest appearances: Make it custom every time. Increasing your responses means decreasing your outreach. Thatâs okay. Each one you send will have a higher likelihood of succeeding. Your ideas and expertise...
Public Speaking: Your Fastest Path to Career Growth
If you want to win clients, grow in your career, or strengthen your brand more easily, master public speaking. You donât need to be a strong public speaker to ensure others see your value, but it is the QUICKEST way to...
Tailor Your Speaking Pitch to Event Themes and Audience
If youâre planning to pitch events to speak, please please please customize your pitch. Look at their theme, their content, their language. Check last yearâs agenda to see who they accepted. Think about their specific audience and what they need....
Master Five Webinar Formats to Stand Out
Webinars should be better. If you feel like you keep giving or attending the same kind of webinar over and over again, this session is for you. I'm partnering with my friends at Wistia to deliver four original sessions on...
Storytelling and Speaking Outshine AI Hype for Clients
If you are building a business, know that with every passing day... With every AI update & mini-hype cycle and every business charlatan posting their hacks and organization being forced to share the most watered-down ideas that blend in with the...
Treat Webinars Like Public Speaking to Boost Business
I really wish more people understood this about using public speaking to grow your business! (Oh, btw: webinars ARE public speaking, and we need to approach them accordingly to drive better results.) Can't wait to lead this session.
Articulate Your Ideas to Achieve True Clarity
The best thinkers, communicators, and indeed experts understand that you can't find clarity on an idea in your head. You have to articulate it. Often. One of the foremost experts on the business of expertise in the world is David...
A Dedicated BusinessâOnly Social Platform Is Missing
I think at least twice a week, "Someone needs to make a Twitter/Threads/Bluesky purely about work and business." LinkedIn won't. Their product team is 12 overworked people surrounded by execs screaming "MORE AI!" at them. Threads won't. Meta doesn't know how to...
5 Talk Types to Diversify Webinars and Boost Impact
Big news! I've partnered with my friends at Wistia to bring you a very special 4-part series on how to host better webinars + give better talks. The first is about the 5 types of talks you should consider developing...
Become the Unseen Thought Leader Everyone References
For those of us in the business of expertise, I'm always thinking about 1 metaphor for what marketing success looks like. This is true of individual posts and pillar projects, but it's really driven by owning a differentiated premise, turning...
AI Becomes Default Feature in Every Product
Companies adding AI to productsâŚ
Relax Your Brows: Unlock Natural OnâCamera Presence
Want to appear more natural and engaging on camera? It's all in the eyebrows. If you ever sense that you or someone else is uncomfortable on camera, watch the eyebrows and the upper half of the face in general. It's...
Stop Microâoptimizing LinkedIn; Focus on Real Value Creation
"What's the best time to post to LinkedIn? And should you edit a post after you publish it?" Been thinking a lot about how so many entrepreneurs and creators focus on the wrong things: things that only matter if you...
An Anthem for Storytellers | Jay Acunzo
Speaker Jay Acunzo argues that storytelling is a learnable craft, not a mysterious gift or a product of hacks and viral formulas. Using the image of an ordinary dinerânostalgic, small details, everyday tensionâhe shows how meaning and emotional stakes turn...
Coaching Call: Developing the Premise and Positioning for Sarah Stockdale, CEO of Growclass
In a coaching session on B2B Storytelling Stars, Jay Acunzo worked with Sarah Stockdale, CEO of Growclass, to define a clear premise for her personal and company brand. They framed a premise as a four-part empathy-agitate-assert-invite statement that should guide...
How to Become a More Effective Storyteller | Jay Acunzo CEX Keynote
Jay Acunzo argues that creators must focus on resonanceânot just reachâby shifting from producing content to creating connection that sparks action. He distinguishes good storytellers, who provide clear, tension-driven narratives, from effective storytellers, who additionally bridge to audience meaning and...
Behind-the-Scenes with 3 Marketers Developing Better Stories | B2B Storytelling Stars Episode 1
Host Jay Acunzo, in partnership with Intuit MailChimp, launches a B2B Storytelling Stars miniseries that follows his coaching of three marketers as they develop distinct, ownable premises to differentiate their messages. The episode introduces the participantsâSarah Stockdale (Growclass), whoâs balancing...
Jay Acunzo Keynote: How to Ensure Buyers Pick You and Stick With You (Against the Odds)
Jay Acunzo urged marketers and creators to stop chasing objective âbestâ and commodity content and instead become the irreplaceable favorite for their audience by delivering higher-impact, original work. He contrasted low-value informational content with more powerful instructional and especially insightful...