One of your goals for 2021 may be to do more speaking about your business, your story or your message. You may have decided that you would like to take your business to another level and would like to use your speaking and communication skills to do so. A great goal, however, as we know goals are just dreams unless we do some action and planning to achieve them.
This is where many people become overwhelmed and is one of the most frequently asked questions I get from my mentoring clients.
Where do I speak? How do I find speaking gigs?
Firstly, you need to know who your audience is, who your target market or niche is and what is your message, what do you want to share. Then you need to be clear on where you want to speak.
When you have this worked out – here are five places you can look for speaking gigs:
Look for relevant associations
f you have a specific industry, trade, speciality that your market and audience is in, look for the industry associations or groups for that industry. For example Institute of Public Accountants, Financial Planning Association, Australian Computer Society, Building Industry Consulting Services.
There is a great A-Z list of associations in Australia here http://bit.ly/2k38vwD.
Search for relevant networking groups
There are many networking groups around. Use google to search. Not all networking groups invite speakers to present, however many do. You will need to contact the different groups to see what their requirements are. Some groups require you to be a member, others are happy to have an external speaker.
You can also find meetings by searching www.meetup.com. This is global and you can refine your search by your local area or by interest. Again you will need to contact the meeting organisers and do a bit of research to see which ones have speakers present.
Search for relevant conferences
Here is a useful link to help with your search for conferences – http://www.conferencealerts.com/. You can also do a google search putting in your city, region, state, country or industry name in front of conference and see what comes up, eg Brisbane conferences, or list of conferences, directory of events. If you are thinking of finding conference to speak at be aware that they are often organised well in advance of the conference date. Search facebook using hashtags – specifically #conference or #event.
Chambers of Commerce
Look for city and region chambers. They are a great way to share your message with local businesses. Many countries will have websites with lists of their chambers of commerce.
Clubs/ not for profit
There are many clubs, charities and not for profit organisations that are looking for speakers. Again searching on google will give you a great start. One thing to note many clubs and not for profits don’t pay speakers, however speaking for free is a good way to start your speaking journey. It gives you confidence, a place to practice and gain experience, you will be gathering testimonials and if you are smart you will also be getting video and photos. Some suggestions to get you started – Rotary, Lions, Business and Professional Women, sporting clubs.
These are just a few suggestions – there are many other opportunities out there.
Be open to opportunities. Always be on the lookout for the words events, conferences. You will be surprised how many social media posts have these words in them and will give you ideas on places to approach. Not all will be in your market and not all will ask you to speak, however they are good starting places to start putting yourself out there and find speaking gigs and opportunities.
Don’t forget one valuable resource, your own networks, people that know you, clients and word of mouth.
So don’t let the lack of speaking gigs stop you, take some of these tips and start your searching.
My bonus tip for you when you have compiled your lists of places and people to approach don’t leave that list sitting there – ask, just ask you never know what the answer will be. It could very well be: Yes we would like you to speak at our next event. Ask!
Let me know how you go on your journey what worked for you and please do share other suggestions. Look forward to your comments.
Don’t forget to download your copy of 3 Keys to Successful Public Speaking
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