Special Address Into Bond Villain Lair

The annual plutocratic jamboree with the self-appointing Elites has lost much of its lustre. Deservedly so.

Cachet diminishing in real-time as those that once clamoured to attend Davos now merely dial-in.

Across six hours time difference, beaming in four thousand miles apart, the freshly (re)elected American President appeared. A "special address". Of just under half-hour. With fifteen minutes more of questions from the panel in situ.

There's plenty we can take from this in our virtual selling pursuit.

Let's start with the undercurrent. Those running this event must've been desperate to get this appearance. In their minds, it'd be unthinkable to either ignore what some might term the elephant-in-the-room agent of chaos, others more the saviour of capitalism.

During those fading yet still dark days recalled of enforced remote work, I noted with fascination one astute observation.

Pretty much anyone on the planet would accept $500 for 45 mins being on a zoom call with you. [The inimitable adland crazy, Rory Sutherland]

That kind of still stands.

Over the past five years, I have arranged just such with clients.

The most common releases what beforehand was tricky, if possible at all. Getting your biggest boss to speak with counterparts at your prospect.

A similarly delicious flavour also allows your background superbrains to shine. Those satirised as typically dungeon dwellers who'd never normally have seen the light of day. Even twenty minutes talking techie with particular prospect roles can unleash the most welcome of dynamite.

Trickier to arrange yet with similar power is the existing customer intro. Pre-2020, testimonial chats would seldom if ever be considered with the vendor present. Even if on a site visit, discretion dictated that client and prospect shared quality time alone. Yet all of a sudden, for just a ten-minute slot, getting someone already on board could both be simply done and prove a key differentiater. To solely illuminate a single, unique point is where this really works wonders.

Remember too that the sheer suggestion of these is an incredibly useful qualification tool. (& who wants to get their chief exec in on a deal, which then doesn't come home...?!)

Moving on to a purely visual level as shown up-top. How curated is that backdrop?

One I'd not seen before. And it's a killer. At one both under-stated and projecting serious intent.

The crest I'm assuming means something to all concerned. Not so sure about those three stars screen-left, mind. Although they are subtle and do break up the otherwise blank vertical third there. Even the slightly muted, tonal colour scheme works.

I must also draw attention to how that main imagery behind is purposely to the side of the speaker. I can't tell you how many times I speak with people obscuring something directly behind them.

Compare that crafted, perhaps even bespoke, choice, with this.

The hosting Bond villain in his lair.

The type of branding we're long used to seeing. As deployed by talking heads at news conferences for a fair few years, decades even.

There's nothing widely wrong about this type of treatment. Indeed, I have made slides for clients in the exact same vein for virtual backgrounds.

But I try to avoid them these days. Preferring to project something more meaningful than what can feel like lazy, obvious me-me branding.

Take from these tips into your own selling and your prospects will also see your virtual calls alone as a 'special address'.