Scott Duffy

SPEAKING.COM: What do you want people to learn/take away from your presentations?

DUFFY: I started speaking to companies representing best-selling author and speaker Tony Robbins over 25 years ago. Ever since that time, I’ve wanted my audience to walk away highly motivated and equipped with very clear action items that they can put into place immediately to get results. I hope my audiences are so inspired that they don’t wait until the end of my presentation to get started. I actually want them to be on their phones making things happen while I’m still speaking!

SPEAKING.COM: What kind of special prep work do you do prior to an event? How do you prepare for your speaking engagements?

DUFFY: I have always been a very hands-on speaker, since that’s how I was trained. Before any engagement I carefully study the industry, event, and/or company. I like to conduct interviews with the event organizers or people inside the company. I always like to get to a venue one day before an event so that I can walk the venue, meet people prior to the event, and gather more information for my talk. The day of the event, I try to be the first person there and meet as many people as I can in order to build rapport with the audience.

An interesting bit of trivia about me – I always bring a bag of original Lay’s potato chips to a speech. One of the challenges of being a speaker is that the constant traveling tends to dry your throat out. A mentor of mine, the legendary Harvey MacKay, recommended eating a small bag of chips before giving a talk since the oil coats your throat and the salt activates salivary glands, a combination that creates great voice quality!

Finally, I always say a prayer, asking for God to work through me and help me have a positive impact on everyone in the room.

SPEAKING.COM: Have you had any particularly memorable speaking engagements / unusual situations arise while on the road?

DUFFY: I don’t even know where to start! When I worked for Tony Robbins, we would speak up to 5 times a day and travel up to 50 weeks in a year speaking and promoting his programs. Sometimes, we ended up in the craziest places! I’ve spoken on boats, in barns, and on top of tables.

This crazy experience taught me how to adapt and be comfortable in any environment. As I got older, combining that adaptability with my real world business experience has enabled me to adjust to an audience, think on my feet, and make everyone feel comfortable.

SPEAKING.COM: What types of audiences would most benefit from your message?

DUFFY: SMBs & Entrepreneurs: I have walked in their shoes. The stories I share regarding the business and personal sides of being an entrepreneur are authentic, relatable, and highly engaging. That’s why I am able to have an impact.

Internet Companies & Technology Companies: I have experience from early stage through exit in technology companies that became big brands like CBSSports.com, NBC Internet, FOXSports.com, and my last company, which was acquired by Virgin.

Both Sides of The Digital Divide: When I was in grammar school, the class behind me was required to take typing. When I was in high school, the cohort behind me was required to take “computer class.” When I was a freshman in college, I bought a rockin’ electronic typewriter. The following year’s freshman class entered school with Macs, giving them a HUGE advantage. Due to my life experience, I’ve always felt I lived right on the “digital divide”. As a result, I am just as comfortable talking to Millennials as I am Boomapreneurs, and can relate to both.

SPEAKING.COM: Which of your keynote speaking topics are your favorites and why?

DUFFY: Personal Side of Entrepreneurship: I love this subject because nobody talks about it. I share the good and the bad and the highs and the lows. My talk is 100% authentic and based on personal experiences we all have as business leaders. These topics range from inspiration to environment, from managing our personal finances to managing our personal relationships, and from putting the right people around us to what to do when things go sideways.

Innovation/Taking Products To Market: I love talking about how to take ideas to market and then scaling what works. It doesn’t matter if the business is starting up or if it is well established and looking for growth. I enjoy sharing a step-by-step approach that is customized for the audience and ranges from topics including business planning, team building, raising capital, product/market fit, go to market strategies, leveraging partnerships to scale, marketing and sales tools, how to compete in an entrepreneur driven economy, and building raving fans.

SPEAKING.COM: How do you keep your audience engaged and actively listening during your keynotes? Do you use case studies, personal stories and/or in your speeches?

DUFFY: What makes me unique as a speaker is that I have lived in the trenches both as a struggling entrepreneur starting my own business and as an intraprenuer starting companies inside some of the world’s largest brands.

My talks are not academic. Instead, they are filled with stories based on my own experience and tied to big brands like Tony Robbins, Richard Branson, Howard Shultz, and others. I leverage the stories and brands as metaphors to connect with the audience, keep them engaged, and then tie in a message they can apply immediately. I try to create a sense of “If that person has experienced what I have, then I can get through it also”.

SPEAKING.COM: What are some of the successes you’ve helped clients achieve?

DUFFY: I have worked with several small companies at an early stage that became big brands like Quote.com (Lycos/acquired), Sportsline USA (CBSSports.com/acquired), Xoom.com (NBC Internet/acquired), FOXSports.com (NewsCorp), and Smart Charter (Virgin/acquired). For these companies, I have done a variety of things ranging from business planning, team building, raising capital, identifying target customers, product/market, go to market strategies, leveraging technology to scale, leveraging partnerships for distribution and scale, market and sales development, marketing and PR, plus exit.

Over the years I have helped clients in the same areas. Most of my clients are referred to me by investors or investor groups, who hire me to try and protect their money. They ask me to go into a business that is stuck or is having trouble scaling. I help those companies re-establish their vision, put together a step by step plan, and hold them accountable for execution.