Rulon Gardner Named #2 Greatest Individual Sports Upset Ever by Fox Sports

In these tough economic times, wouldn’t it be great to get someone who has done the impossible to motivate your employees? To get them to push past the bleak financial news, the layoffs, the increased workloads and really do something great for your company?

Motivational speaker and Olympic Gold Medalist Rulon Gardner was just named #2 on a Fox Sports list of Top 10 Greatest Individual Sports Upsets Ever–he might be the guy you’re looking for. He was listed behind Buster Douglas and aheah of Yang–who just upset Tiger Woods. Yes, THAT, Tiger Woods.

What makes Gardner’s story so great? Well, for starters, he won a Gold Medal. A pretty amazing achievement in its own right, but when you consider that he won that Gold Medal against 3-time Gold Medalist Alexander Karelin–who had not been defeated in international competition in 13 years, who was nicknamed “the Siberian Tiger,” “the Russian Bear,” “King Kong,” and, my personal favorite, “the Experiment” for his powerfully muscled physique and punishing wrestling style (his signature move was to throw opponents on their head–risking neck and spinal fractures). Still not convinced that this was a David v. Goliath worthy matchup? Gardner grew up on a dairy farm, didn’t win a high school wrestling match in his tiny WY town until his senior year and was shaped like a teddy bear.

Ready to make that booking? Send me an email at DanielleMarquis@marquisathletes.com. Mention you saw this blog post, and I’ll give you a 20% discount.

-Danielle, Owner & Sports Agent, Marquis Athletes, LLC

Do Your Clients Ever Do Free Events?

“Hi, my name is John Doe and I’m calling from XYZ. We’re a non-profit/small corporation/school group and we were wondering, do your clients ever do events for free?”

 I get some variation of this phone call several times per day, and the short answer is, “No.” All of our clients are professional motivational speakers, and they have retired from the professional sport they participated in. Speaking is their job, so they charge for it. We have speakers in a variety of fee ranges and certain speakers offer reduced-fee speeches for schools, community groups, etc. but we do not offer free events. Our speakers are excellent and you won’t be disappointed! They are worth every penny they charge.

How To Hire The Right Corporate Speaker

Hiring corporate speakers can be a gamble—it’s expensive, and you don’t always know whether it will work. But, the right speaker combined with the right corporate program is a powerful combination. Choose wisely and your employees will leave the speech inspired, not scratching their heads, wondering what you were thinking wasting their valuable time. Here are some tips to make sure you choose the right corporate speaker:

 

1.      Open the lines of communication between your audience (i.e., staff, management, consumers, etc.) and your event planner, as well as between your event planner and your corporate speaker. Often an audience will feel a speaker missed the mark when the speaker was simply a poor fit for the audience. This is an internal branding issue that can be avoided by listening to what your audience wants and what your speaker delivers.

a.       Does your audience need a motivational speaker to give a pep talk or a technical speaker to explain your latest product’s niche in the marketplace?

2.      Don’t work backwards from the date of the company’s annual meeting to find the first speaker within your budget who is available. Instead, plan ahead. Figure out what your company is doing right, what it’s doing wrong and what you want to improve on going into your function. Then, find an expert on your topic that meets those goals.

3.      Once you’ve identified your goals and found a speaker who can work within them, do your due diligence. Talk with the speaker (or their representative), ask whatever questions you have, request marketing materials and a sample speech DVD, ask for references and talk with them. Ask the speaker what their strong point is (they will know and they will tell you! If you look at any past customer testimonials, they will probably repeat the same things over and over as well.) As with any major purchase, this due diligence should separate the true professionals from the folks you will waste money on.

4.      Don’t dismiss a speaker simply because they don’t have a ton of experience! Everyone has to start somewhere, and speakers who are relatively new to the circuit often have discounted prices. As long as the speaker checks out when you do your due diligence, you should have nothing to worry about.

5.      Once you’ve selected a speaker, figure out approximately what their total cost will be. This may not be possible with all speakers, especially if your event is far in advance, but most should be able to give you a rough estimate. Do they require first class travel or coach? For one person or two? Where do they live? What happens if they’re going from your event to another? Do you split travel expenses with the other group?

6.      During your event, carefully monitor the reactions and impressions of the audience. Is the speaker engaging and including the audience? How is the audience reacting to the speaker? Are members of the audience nodding, giving responses to questions, laughing? Does the speaker span the audience and make eye contact with the group? Is the audience fully alert and attentive to the speaker? What do you personally think of the speaker? Is the speaker meeting the criteria you established? Is the discussion easy to follow and effective?

Agricultural and Dairy Yahoo! Group

This is a group for event planners working with motivational speaker/athlete clients of Marquis Athletes to organize agricultural or dairy events. Here you will be able to share fundraising and organization ideas with other agricultural and community groups and ask specific questions to a Marquis Athletes representative about your event. Click here to join today!

Client Info: Shane Hamman

Shane Hamman has competed in weightlifting at the Sydney and Athens Olympic Games. Considered the “Strongest Man in America,” he holds three American records in his weight class, and in 1999 became the first U.S. man to win weightlifting gold at the Pan Am Games. Shane shares with his audience what it takes to be a champion with his inspiring story of how the world’s best powerlifter gave it all up to become an Olympian. He succeeded, and is the first powerlifter in history to ever successfully make the transition to Olympian.

Speech Topic: “What it Takes to be a Champion”

Categories: Agricultural Events; Athlete Endorsements; Athlete Personal Appearances; Business Meetings; Business Speakers; Casino Appearances; Celebrity Autograph Signing; Celebrity Infomercials; Celebrity Speakers; Celebrity Spokesperson; Celebrity Voiceover; Coaches Clinics; College Speakers; Conventions and Trade Shows; Corporate Conventions; Corporate Hospitality Functions; Corporate Speakers; Elementary School Assemblies; Emcees; Event Hosts; Famous Speakers; Fundraising Events; Golf Tournaments; Graduation Speakers; Grand Openings; High School Assemblies; Incentive Programs; Inspirational Speakers; International Speakers; Keynote Speakers; Master of Ceremonies; Middle School Assemblies; Motivational Speakers; Office Parties; Olympic Athletes; Peak Performance Speakers; Presentations; Press Conferences; Private Parties; Product Launches; Professional Athletes; Professional Speakers; Public Awareness Campaigns; Public Speakers; Sales Speakers; Sales Seminars; Sports Fantasy Camps; Sports Marketing; Sports Personalities; Sports Public Relations; Sports Speakers; State Fairs; University Speakers; VIP Meet and Greets; Weightlifting Events

Fees: $5,000-$10,000 plus travel expenses; Multi-event discounts available; Last minute specials available; Low-fee events available for schools and community groups, contact us for details

Traveling From: Oklahoma City, OK

Client Info: Rulon Gardner

In the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Rulon Gardner shocked the world when he defeated the previously undefeated Russian, Alexander Karelin. After a devastating accident where he was lost in the Wyoming wilderness overnight in winter, sopping wet, he moved past the amputation of a toe to win Olympic Bronze in Athens, where he ceremoniously retired from Greco-Roman Wrestling. Rulon shares with his audience the sense of determination, the self-confidence, and the spirit that gave him the strength to stand up against seemingly unbeatable odds and win.

Speech Topic: “Never Give Up, Never Stop Trying: 7 Steps to Success”

Categories: Agricultural Events; Athlete Endorsements; Athlete Personal Appearances; Business Meetings; Business Speakers; Celebrity Autograph Signing; Celebrity Infomercials; Celebrity Speakers; Celebrity Spokesperson; Celebrity Voiceovers; Coaches Clinics; College Speakers; Conference Speakers; Conventions and Trade Shows; Corporate Conventions; Corporate Hospitality Functions; Corporate Speakers; Dairy Events; Elementary School Assemblies; Emcees; Famous Speakers; Fundraising Events; Gold Medal Speakers; Graduation Speakers; Grand Openings; High School Assemblies; Incentive Programs; Inspirational Speakers; International Speakers; Keynote Speakers; Master of Ceremonies; Middle School Assemblies; Military Speakers; Motivational Speakers; Office Parties; Olympic Athletes; Peak Performance Speakers; Press Conferences; Private Parties; Product Launches; Professional Athletes; Professional Speakers; Public Awareness Campaigns; Public Speakers; Sales Promotions; Sales Seminars; Sports Fantasy Camps; Sports Marketing; Sports Personalities; Sports Public Relations; Sports Speakers; State Fairs; Television Broadcasting; University Speakers; USO Tours; VIP Meet and Greets; Wrestling Camps; Wrestling Fundraisers

Fees: $15,000-$25,000 plus travel expenses; multi-event discounts available; last minute specials available; low-fee events for schools and community groups available, contact us for details

Traveling From: Salt Lake City, UT