SpeakerNet News 8/14/2026

8/14/2026

Editors: Rebecca Morgan & Ken Braly

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Miscellaneous Tips

A different way to get attention in crowded markets — Vickie Sullivan

Pet adoption isn’t something I usually write about. But recently I read a story about a man who travels around New York City with shelter dogs on his back to help them get adopted, and it sparked an idea. Cool experiences like this can work for B2B companies, too, and they’re a great example of how experiential marketing ideas can attract attention in unexpected ways.

Here’s why:

Stories are an excellent way to introduce a topic. To get attention on social media, the man (filmmaker Bryan Reisberg) started with a one-sentence story that tugged at the heartstrings of his followers. Highlighting the backstory, such as “found on the side of the road” increase people’s attention. People saw dogs as more than someone’s pet.
These experiences allow you to target a rich environment. This animal lover didn’t try to attract folks to him. He went into the crowds with something different. Showing up with a dog in an “adopt me” backpack invited folks to approach and pet the dog without having to go anywhere or do anything special. For those not even considering adoption, it was a low-risk way to experience the possibility.

You can apply these types of experiential marketing ideas in low-risk, high-reward situations. Ask yourself: Where can I show up and be different? How can I set up situations for folks to interact with me? Put this idea on your marketing radar.

Technology Tips

You’ve heard of Perplexity, but are you actually using it? — Julie Holmes

Perplexity isn’t new. You probably tried it once and then went back to whatever you were doing. I get it. But it’s been quietly shipping some genuinely useful features.

What makes it different: it searches the live web and shows you exactly where every answer came from. I love that every source gets cited right in the response. No more hoping the answer isn’t from a 2022 blog post somebody’s dog wrote.

Two newer features worth knowing about are scheduled search, which runs research for you on a weekly schedule without you lifting a finger, and memory, which means it now remembers context across sessions so your research compounds instead of starting from scratch every time.

Go search your own business. Then search a competitor. It’s the fastest way to understand your GEO situation without needing to know what GEO stands for. The free plan works fine to start, Pro is $20/month. But honestly, just try the search first.

Travel Tips

Travel tricks for iPhone — Rebecca Morgan

This video, "15 Hidden iPhone Travel Tricks You Had No Idea Existed!" has some great ideas any road warrior can use.

Topic of the Month (TOTM) — Your Input Wanted

Our TOTM is: If you attended NSA’s Influence conference, what were some key takeaways? List who you learned it from if you can remember.

Send your brief, pithy responses *that are different from those previously mentioned* to editor@SpeakerNetNews.com. Please put “Topic of the Month” or “TOTM” in the subject line.

— Rebecca Morgan

Nearly all of the sessions were standouts this year. One key takeaway from John Sileo’s program on cyber safety was to change your phone password to a combo of numbers and letters.

Another was a breakout session, "Design with Purpose: Create Branded Visuals with Canva that Support Your Speaking Business," with Carolyn Cummins. I’ve used Canva for years, but she had some great time-saving ideas I’d never heard of.

About SpeakerNet News and the Editors/Publishers

Publishers — Rebecca L. Morgan, CSP, CMC, CVP, VMP, and Ken Braly
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