Kraig Kann is one of those lucky few. He knew from a young age exactly what he wanted to do with his life. As a seven-year-old boy growing up in Chicago, he practiced broadcasting big games and other sporting events in his bedroom. His first job was with his high school radio station doing play-by-play announcing for his high school basketball team.
While majoring in Broadcast Journalism at the University of Missouri, he worked at KOMU-TV, the NBC affiliate in Columbia, Missouri and then began an odyssey of news and sports reporting and anchoring in local television markets like Columbus, Georgia, Ft. Myers, Florida and Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Late In 1994, an opportunity presented itself to interview for an anchor position with an upstart golf channel on cable that was looking for experienced new talent. Kraig told us:
“More than 1,000 candidates submitted tapes and resumes to the Golf Channel. Somehow, my tape landed on the right side of the decision maker’s desk. I flew down, was interviewed and given 24 hours to decide if I wanted to become one of the six original anchors for Golf Central.”
Over the next 16 years, Kann became a familiar face to Golf Channel viewers. As a result of his success in broadcasting with the Golf Channel and a strong connection within the industry, LPGA Commissioner, Michael Whan tagged Kraig to fill an executive leadership position as the organization’s Chief Communications Officer. He was tasked with improving both media and public relations, while also helping to grow awareness of the women’s golf tour and building the media brands of its top players. Under Whan’s rebuilt team, the organization took off and reached new heights.
In 2016, after five rewarding years, Kann pivoted. He took a professional leap, became a full-time entrepreneur and founded Kann Advisory Group. As its lead consultant, he’s blazed his own new trail. Covid-19 challenges aside, Kann has been traveling the country delivering keynotes as well as custom workshops and webinars focused on leadership, communication, and presentation. He’s been labeled “The Elevator” because he teaches individuals to elevate their brand message delivery.
“When I founded Kann Advisory Group, my goal was to share my years of experience presenting and promoting and help companies, organizations and their people become better, more confident storytellers of their brand.”
He speaks to groups, from Fortune 500 companies such as: Accenture, KPMG, Transamerica, Gallagher and Titleist, plus several other mid-size organizations and especially enjoys the challenge of raising awareness for lesser known brands and taking individual clients to a new personal and professional frontier.
Find Your Story
Kraig came to realize early in his career that the correct and compelling story, dynamically delivered by everyone associated with the brand in a clear and understandable method, is critically important for brands.
“I help people find their unique story and deliver it to provide their audience with a clear picture of who they are. People buy people first. Then they buy the brands. I get to address groups of 600 to 1,000 people, plus I get to work with smaller groups of 20 or less in my workshops. I can really connect with them. I truly enjoy boarding an airplane, taking the stage and meeting new people.”
Marketing and sales have always been, and always will be, challenging career choices. In his talks, one of Kraig’s key points is to drive home the point that sales and marketing businesspeople must understand the importance of standing out in a crowd. If you experience his keynote or workshop, you’ll experience powerful visuals and immediately take on a new mindset.
“I have a slide, in my presentation, that has six pairs of white shoes and one pair of green shoes. The green shoes really stand out. The point I make to people, is that more than ever before, you have to find a way to stand out. A person in business today can’t just be like everyone else, they must become a disruptor, in a way.”
Kraig carries the ‘Green Shoe’ theme through some of his workshops and presentations. At the end of each, he actually awards a Kann Advisory logoed ‘Green Shoe’ to the attendee that truly stood out amidst all the people that were in the room that day. It’s become a Kann trademark.
Have a Clear Message
With the massive amount of social media and the ability to post any type of message out there, it is important that your message has a clear and defined purpose.
“Everybody has something to say. The truth of the matter is, however, that not everyone has something worthy of paying attention to.”
Kraig believes that knowing your brand story is the key because it has to be the basis for your message. In effective communication, Kraig says thinking about the outcome first is the key to winning over the audience. The message is not one many things. It is the only thing that really matters.
“It’s our job, in business and in life, to make people remember what they’re supposed to remember. That’s not that easy, but that is exactly what I teach to executives and administrators. They have to know their story and they have to be skilled at making people remember it.”
How Do You Find YOUR Story?
Kraig has found that helping teams find their true company story is the most impactful hour out of his eight-hour workshop. Everyone takes part. They all think they know their company’s story, but when they break it down, they really don’t.
-What does our company do?
-What makes us different?
-What are our big three? If you only know three things about our organization, what would they be?
“You might have a different passion or view of your organization than somebody else, but as long as you can deliver the main message, and everybody understands what’s behind the logo or the company, then everyone and the company are better off. For real company success, everyone in the organization must be singing from the same sheet of music. Then we can coach them how to stand up and stand out.”
The pandemic has changed how business is conducted today. Video and virtual marketing has become a huge segment of sales and marketing. Kraig advises his clients to use every technological advantage to their benefit. Not just using Zoom calls as a part of their business, but also add videos about their products and their message to reach potential and current clients.
Kraig practices what he preaches and uses a variety of media resources to reach his audience. During his “Free Fridays,” anyone can sign up for a one-hour free consult. He listens and helps identify their strategy to find the right questions to ask.
His magnetic and fast-growing podcast, “Tracks to Success” is now in the middle of season two. It brings inspiring people and their success stories together.
Later this year his new book is set to be published and released to bookstores.
Kraig Kann has a wealth of communication knowledge and experience. He can help you and your business find your true story and get communicating on the same page.
His goal is to,
“Elevate people to become better, brands to become bigger and events to become grander. That’s my goal. I think we all need a purpose. I think I’ve found my most meaningful calling and I want to try to elevate everything to reach the next level.”
We truly enjoyed our conversation with Kraig. You can watch it on YouTube or listen to it on iTunes. There’s additional information included that we didn’t have room for in this article.
We asked Kraig for three traits of people who soar to success and he said they have:
Commitment: Anyone, especially business owners, or executives, must first be committed to themselves.
“I believe that your number one client is yourself. You must take care of yourself. If you don’t focus on your own brand and your own way, and the way you present yourself, you’re not going to make it. It is also important to be committed to your staff, your family and your clients. We all juggle priorities but you’ll never see my preparation or commitment waver.”
Connection: If we don’t truly connect with people, we won’t gain their trust and confidence.
“I’ve got to be able to connect quickly with every customer. People don’t have a lot of time. They’re distracted and we’ve got to find the best way to make them focus. I have to make it personal. I have to make them feel like I truly care about them and not just my bottom line. I must make them feel like I’m emotionally connected to them with their best interests at mind.”
Community: This will determine the longevity and the ultimate success of your business, or organization.
“We are only as good as the community that we can build. In my presentations I talk about having a ‘Paul Revere Mindset’. You need your followers, clients, employees and friends riding around on a horse, being an advocate for you. We live in a world where word of mouth marketing is more important than ever, because of social media. I would much rather have a bunch of references and testimonials than I would a big marketing budget.”
If you want to learn how to present the ‘Best You’ and more about Kann Advisory Group visit: https://kannadvisory.com/
