12 Things a Speaker Can’t Afford to be Without
Expand your reach as public speaker!
The Professional Speaker Checklist
By Jackie Lapin
One of the most effective ways to attract new clients, sell more books or change lives is to embark on a public speaking campaign. This doesn’t yet need to be delivering high level professional keynotes in front of thousands of people. It can be a consistent outreach at local venues that welcome your wisdom and inspiration. You can also take advantage of a travel schedule, by marrying business trips or family visitations to speaking engagements in cities where you are already slated to be.
Consider some of these types of venues: women’s organizations, spiritual living centers, churches, fraternal organizations, monthly business gatherings, chamber of commerce meetings, recovery centers, conferences and conventions, bookstores, lifestyle expos, health and wellness centers, universities and colleges, etc.
But to do this you should be well prepared in advance. You want to present yourself as accomplished, an expert in your field, and a respected presenter. To convince bookers to take a chance on you, you need to make them feel confident that you can be a benefit to their audience—and you won’t embarrass the booker on stage!
If you are embarking on a speaking campaign, you there are 12 things you cannot afford to be without. Make sure you’ve got these nailed down!
The Public Speaker Checklist
Speaker Necessity #1. A Great Benefit-Driven Speaker One-Sheet
The one marketing tool that every speaker needs is a One-Sheet. This single page document (printed on glossy paper if used as a handout), should contain all the information to impress the booker about your skills as a presenter, the value of your content, why they should book you, your expertise and what other people have said about you or your presentation. Most importantly, it should speak to how it will benefit the audience…What’s In It for THEM! Your expertise isn’t enough. Your great presentation skills aren’t enough. You need to give them a reason on how the audience will grow, change, learn and get motivated. What’s the benefit and expected outcome!
Speaker Necessity #2. A Compelling Contemporary Website
The first thing a booker will do is review your website. If you have a 10-year-old website, or one with old links and old blogs, you are doing yourself more harm than good. Make sure you have a contemporary website—one that is horizontal in nature with big photographs, video if possible and minimal words on the home page. The colors must also reflect today’s trends (orange and yellow together, for instance, is straight from the late 1960s) Your logo, if you are using one, should be crisp and simple. The site must speak to today’s values, client needs and user accessibility—with very easy navigation and little clutter.
Speaker Necessity #3. Current Photos
Integrity in presenting yourself is key, so if you are using a 10-year-old photo to make yourself look younger, there is a disconnect in honesty between you and the person who books you or between you and the audience. You’ve already shot yourself in the foot if you show up looking very different. So let go of your fear of rejection at how you look today, put on your best face and go get new photos taken!
Speaker Necessity #4. Video
The most effective way to convince people you are worth booking is to show them how great you are in front of an audience! Arrange for someone to video your next presentation, edit it down to the best 10 minutes and post this on your website or any speaker presentation site on which you may have posted your profile (eSpeakers, Women Speaker’s Association, LuminaryVoices.com, etc.
Speaker Necessity #5. One Compelling Presentation that Moves People Emotionally and Drives Them To Take Action
People who are gripped by emotion are more likely to engage with you. First they are moved with your story, then they are moved by how you make them feel about themselves. If they feel a great need or void — and you state clearly how you can help fill that need, you’ve got them! So plot your presentation carefully to touch on the emotional high points. And offer them a clear path for redemption or salvation.
Speaker Necessity #6. A Total of 3 Presentations Adaptable for Different Audiences, Including a 90-Minute to 3-Hour Introductory Workshop
Not every presentation is right for all audiences…for example a more spiritual presentation may turn off a business-driven audience. So be prepared to have different presentations for different audiences. Give the booker a choice and show your versatility. Also have a 90-minute to 3-hour version that can be presented as a workshop. This provides revenue for you and often times a revenue-split for the venue. But it also gives people a way to engage with you more deeply. Your initial presentation can actually act as an enrollment introduction for your workshop.
Speaker Necessity #7. Testimonials
Want to convince a booker you are worth presenting to his/her audience? Show what other people have said about having you on their stages or how audience members have responded. Gather and present testimonials!
Speaker Necessity #8. A Way for People to Engage with You After the Presentation
If you are presenting on a stage, you are remiss if you don’t present them a way to stay further engaged with you. This could be by giving away something free or conducting an on-site a raffle, buying a book, signing up for your newsletter or a free opt-in gift, offering them an opportunity to enroll in your next workshop, coaching program, mastermind, telesummit, private consultation, etc. You have a captive audience. Make sure to find a way to keep them in your community. Before you get on stage have a plan for engagement!
Speaker Necessity #9. A Convenient Way to Sell in the Back of the Room
When you complete your presentation, it is likely many people will rush up to you with questions, conversations, and demands for your attention. How do you manage to sell your books and products when your attention is distracted? Fortunately new technology has given you a simple answer. Your smartphone or digital device has become the modern day cash register. The Square, Paypal and others have developed an easy way to take credit card purchases with a swipe and a signature. So preload the prices (including any taxes) of your merchandise or your merchandise bundles (more than one product you often sell together), and then show either an assistant/friend or someone predesignated by the venue how to use this simple system while you are otherwise occupied. By preloading the merchandise pricing, it takes the guesswork and mistakes out of the picture. But don’t forget to bring a cash box, with change and smaller bills as some people still do transactions the old-fashioned way!
Speaker Necessity #10. Confidence
Even if you don’t feel fully confident, “act as if” while on stage. Confidence makes people feel they are in good hands. But the way to get confident is to practice! Know your stuff.
You shouldn’t be presenting from rote, but you should know where you are headed. Work from a general outline in your mind. Do it enough times and it becomes easier and easier. By the time I did 50 radio interviews for my last book, I honed my presentation so effectively that my next in-person speaking engagement was a breeze! I was able to focus on connecting to my audience because the content just flowed … as I had done it dozens of times before.
Speaker Necessity #11. Honest Self-Evaluation to Determine if More Training is Needed
Be honest with yourself. Could your delivery or your presentation use some improvement? If so, then there are wonderful speaker trainers available to you. A good place to begin is the resource page at Conscious and Transformational Speakers: http://consciousandtransformationalspeakers.com/resources/ . You’ll find speaker trainers who cover the full spectrum of speaking –from presentation skills to the business side and those that specialize in specific areas (storytelling, humor, enrolling people from the stage without being “salezy” ), etc.
Speaker Necessity #12. The Time Find Your Tribe
To get booked, you have to spend time engaged in the process of finding the right venues, connecting with bookers, providing your materials and then locking down the details. If you don’t have a speaker’s bureau or an assistant to book you, it’s all on you! However, if you have a message of personal, global or prosperity transformation, I might just have a shortcut for you! It’s called SpeakerTunity™ and it’s the twice-a- month speaker leads tip sheet. We’ve got direct contacts for venues, organizations and events that welcome awakened, enlightened transformational leaders! Visit SpeakerTunity.com for the details!
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About the Author
Jackie Lapin, is the founder of SpeakerTunity™, Conscious and Transformational Speakers, LuminaryVoices.com and ConsciousMediaRelations.com — and she is known as the Transformational List Diva, for the array of resources she provides to authors, speakers and transformational messengers.
