Getting more gigs is the most common thing that I hear speakers ask about. In this brief post I want to clarify one thought that most speaker don’t think about. When it comes to speaking gigs one of the first things that I learned in my speaking business was that not all speaking gigs are created equal.
Do you really want to Get more speaking gigs? Or do you want the ones that are going to have your ideal audience? If you are going to run a successful speaking business speaking more is really not the goal. It becomes a questions of understanding that you want quality rather than quantity.
When I first started I would speak to any group for any reason.
Not only did this not produce the results (financially and otherwise) that I was looking for but it also hurt my brand.
There was in fact one event that after I had finished speaking I actually felt the audience disliked me. It was a charity event that I tried to sell to the audience. (Remember that Kelly, Christian and Jordan.) It was painful. And actually quite inappropriate. Had I the ability to do it again I would be more sensitive. More on this learning experience at later date.
Your brand as a speaker is your most important asset. You will find far greater success by focusing on those who already resonate with your message than trying to spend your efforts convincing people to support you.
For example, I have had the opposite experience from the negative one listed above happen as well. This was a perfect group who perfectly connected with my message. The presentation went extremely well. Everyone was engaged and the energy of the group was highly positive.
But the conclusion was the most surprising.
The results of that event was £280,000 in sales of my services. And here’s the funniest thing that actually makes it my highest conversion of a single room. There were only 6 attendees. (Jason Parker still smiles when he remembers being in the room.)
Take some time to really think about who your best audience is before you go on the hunt for speaking events and you will find your success comes much faster.
Some of the questions you may want to consider is what problems you really solve and for who. Are they an audience that can afford your offering and are they qualified to say yes.
Too often speakers are excited for any and all opportunities to speak but by carefully selecting your audience you can ensure a greater chance of success.
PART 1 –Done. Tune in for more.
Douglas Vermeeren is the creator of the 10X Your Speaking Business System. His students refer to him as the Speaking Business Multiplier for his success in helping speakers 10X their speaking businesses. He is also the creator of 3 of the top 10 personal development movies today - Namely The Opus, The Gratitude Experiment and The Treasure Map.