Earning speaking opportunities takes patience and persistence. It can feel like a job within a job. Whether your speaking engagements are steady or few and far between, you might want to focus more energy on your efforts to solidify your brand. People can’t hire you if they don’t know you. Take a fresh look at your speaking brand.
Set a goal. How often would you like to speak? How many speaking engagements are needed to cover expenses and have it make sense? Is speaking a crucial part of your income?
Where would you like to speak geographically? Are you tired of traveling or are you OK with hitting the road 300 times a year? Would you prefer to speak locally or within particular regions of the country? Are you comfortable speaking internationally?
How are you currently securing speaking opportunities? For some people, many of their engagements are from referrals and repeat business with some cold contacts.
Opportunities include dinners, conferences, sales and leadership meetings and organizations such as chambers of commerce. And too often, speakers don’t follow up with current leads and contacts. Who is following up on the leads? Are you Googling workshops, conferences, seminars and industry associations? Are you navigating Linkedin for opportunities and speaking platforms and directories?
What topics do you prefer to speak about? You might be a thought leader in a variety of topics. However, you might want to concentrate on specific issues. Clients want to meet particular objectives such as improving attitudes or increasing company sales. What can you tailor to those objectives?
What audiences are most important to you? Would you actually speak for any organization? Should clients reflect your personal values and align with your brand? Does the client relay positive messages?
What differentiates you from other speakers? Can you interact with all types of audiences, generations and people from different backgrounds? Can you connect and relate with anyone? What messages and perspectives do you offer? Do you have a particular schtick?
Are you addressing the details? Has a fresh set of eyes reviewed your speaker profile and overall approach? Are you regularly innovating your presentation to take it to the next level?
Will you negotiate your fees yourself and address travel expenses? Will the presentation run smoothly? Take no detail for granted. Even high-end facilities subcontract their audio-visual staff. We’ve seen major corporations invest in high-tech equipment and few people on staff know how to use it and which buttons to push. Will you rehearse with them beforehand? Check the lighting, microphones and the equipment displaying your content. Maybe you simply would like a bottle of water and a place to sit when you present. Create a long list of questions about the speaking tech and environment. What if you would like music to play during your entrance? Do you need assistance creating presentations or have take-aways to hand out ? Are you providing audience members an easy way to follow up with you to hire you for other opportunities? Some of the work can be tedious.
What are your fees? What fees make speaking worth it for you? Create a range of what is acceptable. Your fees might vary if the client is a college, nonprofit or part of Corporate America. Would you ever speak for free? Some speaking opportunities might be worth more for the experience, building key relationships or meeting specific people. You might speak mainly to expand awareness of your brand.
No matter what, make it fun and a good fit.
