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Meet MPK - Frequently Asked Questions
"How
do you pronounce that name?" Now
you know why MPK became my handle early on! Pain Ka-no-per is the last
name (no comments about the pain, please) and Michele is self explanatory.
As long as you don't call me Michael, we'll get along just fine!
"Do
you really kick box with your audiences?" Absolutely — it
energizes people to fight for their cause and provides great humor during
my keynotes! No, I've never kicked an audience member or even hit one
(very hard). You'll be amazed to see the participation as volunteers hook,
cross, and jab. A group of 300 40-60 year-old men at a corporate sales
meeting in South Carolina were probably the most entertaining group of
kick boxers I've had.
"Are
your presentations truly customized or do you just adapt them?"
Well, first I conduct research on the organization. Then I have the meeting
planner complete a thorough needs assessment and interview a few audience
members before developing the program. I then tailor it to the audience
needs and review expected outcomes with the meeting planner. Finally,
I arrive at the meeting early to mingle with the audience and get to know
their perspective. Seems pretty customized to me!
"What's
this community relations thing about?" Through working with 250+
companies and selling corporate sponsorships for the National FFA Foundation,
I learned how valuable it is for companies and associations to develop
a grassroots connection with their customers. You may be familiar with
cause-related marketing, nonprofit fundraising, grassroots marketing,
or association membership drives. Community
Relations is a package all of those fit neatly into.
"Where
will you travel to?" All over the world, preferably in tropical
locations during winter in the Midwest. Actually, I spend the majority
of my time traveling across the U.S., though I do greatly enjoy other
countries. I've worked all over Europe, conducted training programs in
Eastern Europe, found South Africa fascinating and love Australia!
"You
look kind of young...can you really relate to our audience?"
Well, I don't look as young as I used to! Seriously; I've been speaking
to large groups for over 15 years and have a variety of experiences in
my professional career (see About
MPK), which led me to found Cause Matters. Through identifying audience
needs, sharing a message relevant to the people in room, and involving
as many of them as possible in my program, I've received positive responses
from audiences of all ages. Passion is the key factor!
"How
are your sales training programs unique?" The first thing I do
is spend a lot of time asking questions about the audience needs, which
is also the initial reminder I give salespeople. I strongly believe that
the secret to selling is in asking questions, identifying the customer
needs, and then connecting your product/service as the solution. My own
sales career has shown me that!
"Do
you really have your workshop participants build bridges with food products?
Right again — creativity is so important in today's world. Different
people learn with different tools and my job is to find ways to impact
your audience as much as possible . The more involved each person is with
my program, the more they'll retain and implement the message when they
go home.
"Are
you really involved in agriculture?" Yes,
I grew up loving our dairy farm in southern Michigan and share that same
commitment with my husband on our 130+ year-old "farmette" in central
Indiana. If you still don't believe me, come help me pitch manure or judge
a cow show! Seriously, too many people are disgruntled with the agrifood
business and I feel very strongly that we need to help more people understand
the connection between farm gate and dinner plate. That's why I started
in this business!
"What
are your speaking fees?" Given the hours preparation and research
required for each program, pretty reasonable! Fees vary depending program
involved, expected outcomes, and time of year. Non-profits do receive
special rates and winter is the time of highest demand for my programs
(meaning less flexibility in fee structure). I will work hard to help
you get results from your investment in my programs. .
"I
have more questions!" Call me at 765.427.4426 and we'll
chat or fill out the contact
form.
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