A Before and After Data Story

“There are 4,000 people listening to you in this webinar.”

“There are 300 people, who have registered for your speaking engagement today.”

“There are 200 people dialling in from around the world to hear you speak.”

These are some statements I am grateful to have heard over the last one month.

Every time I heard these statements, I would first be filled with joy and then ask myself, “So, why are these people making the decision to show up and listen to me ?”

My answers,

  • They were interested in the topic.
  • The registration fee was either low or none.
  • They trust the organiser of these events to deliver quality.

It is definitely not because of me as I am new to the audience group and in a webinar fatigued time poor world, we don’t tend to make decisions which involves risk. Listening to someone, you have no idea about is a risk.

So, why should I be excited about the number of people showing up? I am not the hero behind this data and as a result, I have no right to post on social media, that XXX number of people attended my event and inflate my ego.

However, I am the hero behind a different kind of data story which was created as a result of these engagements,

  • More than 100 messages from the participants received after these engagements.
  • 10 enquiries on future speaking engagements.
  • 7 Request-for-proposals on storytelling assignments.

The “before” data showcasing the number of people attending these events is no credit to me but the “after” data showcasing the activity created post the events, I am proud of.

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