You’ve been told – at work, school, or church – that you are a good speaker. Perhaps you are a Toastmaster who constantly wins the best speaker award at your local club. You’ve got a story to tell, an insight to share, or perhaps you just sat in an audience and said to yourself “I can do that!” Regardless of your motivation, you’ve decided to take it to the next level. You want to take your speaking from FREE to FEE.
Tip #1: Get Clear on your vision and your goals. Before your begin your quest to fame and fortune, answer the following five questions:
- Question #1: Why are you in this business? To make money, serve other people, improve their condition?
- Question #2: What do you have to say? What is your message? What impact are you trying to make?
- Question #3: Who is the audience for this message? Who will listen to this message? Who is this targeted for? Is it accountants? Is it auto mechanics? Who is the audience?
- Question #4: Will they pay money for this message? You can have a great message, but if people will not pay money for that message, it’s time to find another message.
- Question #5: What makes you unique? A common mistake that new speakers make in this business is that they present other people’s material. And sometimes they present it as their own. Eventually, they will be exposed and, it will be very embarrassing. Besides, meeting planners & speakers bureaus, the buyers who hire professional speakers, have heard those stories before. What they are looking for is fresh ideas and talent. Tell your own stories. Discover your own uniqueness. So those are the five questions you need to answer before you commit to becoming a professional public speaker.
Tip #2: Moonlight & Speak for Free. Continue to practice. Speak for the Rotary. Speak for Toastmasters. Anyplace and everyplace that people will allow you to speak. Speak evenings, weekends, and on vacation days. Experiment in front of “non-paying” audiences. Do not experiment in front of a paying audience. Keep speaking until you are good. And how do you know if you are good? People will start asking you, “How much do you charge?”
Tip #3: Don’t Quit Your Day Job. I was told, when I first got into this business, if you what to be taken seriously – speak full-time. This is great advice, if you are a household name. But for the rest of us, it is prudent to maintain cash flow. You don’t have to be the proverbial ‘starving artist’ to pursue your passion. There are peaks and valleys in this business; in the beginning, more valleys. Only consider leaving your day job, if your speaking income far exceeds your present income.
Tip #4: Stash Lots of Cash. If you choose to ignore tip #3, be prepared to go one year without a booking or a paycheck. Better still; be prepared to go two years without a check or any type of income. Be prepared to purchase memberships (such as the National Speakers Association), additional training, attend conferences, purchase office equipment and brochures. Don’t forget your video demo ($300 – $5,000). These are only a few things to consider. Once again, stash lots of cash.
Tip #5: Don’t spend a lot of money on marketing materials. At least not initially. As professional speaker Larry Wingit says, “Implement now and Perfect Later.” Don’t spend a lot of time and energy trying to develop the perfect business card, letterhead, or logo. It will change. Have your e-mail address and website on everything. Make it easy for people to contact you. Many printing companies have business card & stationary starter kits ($500+). You can hire a graphics artist for about $500. After you are established, then make the appropriate investments.
Tip #5.5: Invest in your future and get coaching. I could have made faster progress in my career if I knew the difference between an investment and an expense. I though that I could figure this business out on my own, I did not need any help. To pay for help, well that was an expense. Author & professional speaker Mary LoVerde (www.maryloverde.com) started in the speaking business at about the same time, ten years ago. She knew the difference between an investment and an expense. At the beginning of her career, she invested heavily. She contacted the best in the business and purchased a day of their time. She invested thousands and thousands of dollars. Today, the results speak (double entendre intended) for themselves. She is the author of three best selling books: Stop Screaming at the Microwave, Touching Tomorrow, and I Used to Have a Handle on Life but It Broke. She has been on the Oprah Winfrey show four times and ABC Evening News with Peter Jennings. Mary has reached millions of readers through her articles in prominent magazines and newspapers, from the Wall Street Journal to Family Circle. Understand the difference between an investment and expense now?
For those of you who are serious about jump-starting your speaking career, sign up for the Get Paid to Speak by Next Week Champ Camp. Don’t make the same mistake I did, invest in your future now.
Who should plan to attend the GET PAID TO SPEAK Champ Camp?
- • If you are in the speaking business now full time or part time — it’s a must – why struggle forever?
- • If you are not in the business now, but like to be someday, it’s a must! It teaches you how to start your business running instead of crawling for the first ten years.
- • The goal of Get Paid to Speak by Next Week is for you to learn to earn a minimum of $100,000 a year.
These are just a few tips on taking your speaking business from free to fee from the CD program: From Free to Fee: How to become a Paid Professional Speaker. For more information on this resource, please visit www.EdTate.com
Using the principles he teaches today, Ed Tate became the 2000 World Champion of Public Speaking. Out of 175,000 members of Toastmasters International, Ed won the coveted 2000 World Championship of Public Speaking—Toastmasters’ highest award.
This internationally known keynote speaker has earned a reputation as the “speaker who energizes, educates, and entertains.” He has spoken professionally in 46 states and 12 countries, and on 5 continents.
As an author, Ed co-wrote the book Motivational Selling – Advice on Selling Effectively, Staying Motivated and Being a Peak Sales Producer. He’s also contributed to Stories Trainers Tell and The Seven Strategies of Master Presenters. Additionally, Ed co-produced the 6-CD audio album Speaking Secrets of the Champions.
As a former executive, Ed’s success in business spans over two decades. For fourteen years, as a National Account Executive, Ed sold over $500 million in products and services. I co-created two business units that produced over $1.25billion in revenues. For nine years, I have owned my company, Ed Tate & Associates, LLC – a professional development firm that provides keynote, endnote presentations & workshops on leadership, executive communication skills, coping with change, teambuilding, and sales presentation skills.
Visit Ed’s website at www.EdTate.com
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