List Building
When you host a virtual summit, you are building a targeted email list. Not just a list of freebie seekers you attracted from an ad, but from warm traffic. The attendees that are coming to your summit are mostly coming from the lists of other speakers. You may supplement with ads, but most of your audience is coming from someone they trust.
It's kind of like getting a recommendation on a movie. If a stranger walking down the street tells you, “You should check out this movie—it's really good,” you will probably take it with a grain of salt.
But, if your friend says, “You should check out this movie—it's really good,” you are most likely going to check it out, and probably expect to be delighted.
The same applies to the people attending your summit. They've received a recommendation (implied or otherwise) by someone they trust.
Influencer Connections and Relationships
This is one of the hardest things to move forward on, especially when you're starting out.
How do I even reach out to an influencer?
How do I ask for something without having anything to offer in return?
Here’s the thing: I guarantee that 99% of influencers out there realize the value of being a speaker on a summit. It is a twenty-minute investment that doesn't go away. Their content is out there in that summit forever.
That is something that always has a chance of sending more leads and more business their way.
For that reason, most people you reach out to will be interested in speaking at your summit. It's such an easy way to create quality relationships, and it accelerates friendships online faster than anything I know. It’s all about working together, and you have a chance at casual conversation in the process.
Income
When you add in the fact that putting the summit together can earn your speakers money (via affiliate commissions), you have a really good reason to reach out and connect with people.
You, of course, benefit from the ability to make income from the summit as well. In fact, once you have it built, you get to share the income with anyone who sends attendees.
We each recall thinking that there couldn’t possibly be that much money in those small ticket, 47-67 dollar premium passes. Boy, were we wrong. There is quite a bit of money in it, if you do it right. (ie. 150 passes at $67 us over 10k)
Audience
A summit will help you grow your audience. You're going to reach new people in your target audience. If you wanted to do that alone with simply a book, it would take a long time.
With a summit, everyone that attends is now on your list. They have basically said something you’re doing is interesting to them, and they want in. And they have been referred to you by the other speakers.
Authority
A summit will establish you as the go-to expert in your niche. Even if you are not the expert at the start. How?
The speakers are the experts, but you learned from them, and you are in every interview. You become the common denominator to the viewer.
But the biggest benefit may be... as a Digital Asset.
