There are many ways to get virtual speaking gigs. Here are three different ways to use to get booked on virtual speaking engagements. Think about where you go for money. The ATM machines. Since speaking is a great way to grow your profits, I call these three ways your ATM for getting booked to speak.
ASK
The A stands for Ask. First, identify who you want to speak to. What groups, organizations, and companies could put you in front of your target market? If your target market is women, you would research women’s groups on the Internet. If your target market is corporations, then what corporations are a good fit for your topic? Then you pick up the phone. When you call, simply ask, “Do you invite outside speakers to speak at your organization?” The answer is either yes or no. If they answer no. Say, “Thank you very much.” Then move on to the next one on your list. If they say yes, then start a conversation. Let them know what you speak about and that you would like to speak to their group.
Also, ask people you know, who they know. If they are involved with or work for any organizations, find out if those organizations invite outside speakers. People do not automatically think about referring you to speak. But when you ask them directly, “Hey, I know you are in A, B, C group, do they invite outside speakers to speak?” You might just get a response like, “Yes, as a matter of fact, they do.” Then you can ask them to forward your name and information or better yet, ask them to give you the organizers name and number. Most of the time they are willing to do that.
TELL
T stands for Tell. Tell everybody that you are a speaker looking for speaking engagements. When you are at a networking meeting you need to include that you are a speaker during your 30-second introduction.
When you are introducing yourself during your 30-second introduction, state your name and say, “I’m a speaker looking for speaking engagements. If you know of an organization looking for speakers, please let me know.” Now you have announced it and clearly declared it. You have set your intention and you will see that will work like gold for you. That will get people thinking. Maybe not right on the spot, but that will be in their head. And the next speaking opportunity that comes to them, they will think of you. So, tell everyone.
M is for Mail. People are home nowadays a lot more. So now is the time to use old-fashioned snail mail. Send out your one sheet with a brief cover letter that says, “I’m a speaker looking for speaking engagements. I understand you have an organization. And I just want to let you know these are my most popular talks.” Include your picture and your speaker one sheet.
Mail it out to one-hundred people in your target market. Mail to relevant organizations, women’s groups, women’s groups, business groups, and social groups. Do the research on those places that would benefit from your topic. For example, I target business groups because I help people get more business with public speaking. Therefore, the business community is natural place for me to target.
Getting Paid Versus Free Speaking Gigs
People are not paying that much for speakers nowadays because they so many groups are hosting their meetings virtually over Zoom for some other online platform. You do not have to leave your home, there is no travel, and there is no overhead either, so the industry has shifted away from paying a lot of money for speakers. Even big-name speakers are not getting paid as much. This has been a relief for some speakers because they do not have to leave home, they can get on more virtual stages and reach more people, so it can even out when they sell their back end products and services.
The good news is things are different now. If you host events, you can get speakers that you could not get before. In general, you are not going to get paid to go and speak as much as you might have before we went to the virtual stage. That being said, some corporations are still paying for speakers. It is best to inquire ahead of time, if it’s a paid for free speaking opportunity.
Maximize Your Efforts
Yes, start putting into practice the ATM method for getting speaking gigs. Make sure you have all your ducks in a row to do a great job on stage. Remember to develop great stories, practice your speech and ready to do the follow up afterwards. Do this and your time and effort to speak on virtual stages will be worthwhile and you will get referrals for more virtual speaking gigs.
Watch this short video for an overview of how to get all the speaking gigs you can handle: