In this video blog, I share:
- The three things that will help a meeting organizer say YES to you as a speaker for their event
- Why decreasing uncertainty (and increasing confidence) for the meeting organizer is your main job when offering to speak
- A link to speaker page process checklist and video (get yours here)
- The right questions to ask the meeting organizer (here's a guide for you) so they will be confident in how prepared you will be
Adapted transcript of video:
Hi there. Michelle Barry Franco here.
You've decided that this is an awesome speaking opportunity. You've used last week's video to guide you in making that decision, and now you need to know how to offer to speak in a way that works, that makes it a resounding YES for the event organizer. I'm going to cover three things that will help the meeting organizer say YES to you as a speaker for their event.
The first is, remember, it's all about them. It's always all about them. It's all about this audience and how you can serve them, so you want to lead with that. Your topic, your experience, and even your credibility all point back to this particular audience and how you help solve their problem. For example, let's say it's an entrepreneurs’ conference and you speak about confidence. You want to say something like, “I know that, you know, one of the main things that entrepreneurs struggle with when they're trying to go out and get money, for example, get funding, or get supporters for their work, is confidence. Just the confidence to stand strong in their conviction around their idea. I have a process that will help them stand strong and express that conviction.”
That's leading with what they care about. Oftentimes, I see speakers struggle with this and they'll start with sort of what they know, or what their message is. Who cares, right? No offense, but what we care about when we're putting on an event is, how are you going to make the lives of the people in my audience better?
Number two, you want to reduce uncertainty for the event or meeting organizer. Remember, they're going to have a whole roomful of people that they've made a big promise to. “Come, and gather, give us your money. Give your time. We are going to make your life better with this event. It's going to be worth it.” The organizer needs to make sure that the people they put on their stages actually provide that kind of value, that kind of delightful experience. How do you decrease uncertainty around this?
First of all, if they already know you, they've probably seen you speak, which has been able to decrease that uncertainty. What if they don't know you at all? They don't have any other way to assess whether you will provide an awesome experience for their audience so you need to provide them with evidence. That's where a speaker page can be super valuable. I'll provide a link to my speaker page process checklist, and a little video that guides you in how to create this speaker page below, so you can put one in place now. Don't let not having a speaker page stop you from getting out there. I've worked with many people who spoke all over the world without a speaker page. Just know that having one helps decrease uncertainty for those that don't know you. That can be really powerful.
And the third thing is, make it easy for them to bring you in. When you're speaking to them about their event and offering to speak, let them know your process. Have a process ahead of time in place. “I will send you my speaker agreement,” or maybe they have one to send to you. “I'll get that back to you in a couple of days. I will send you a checklist of things that I need,” or have your questions to ask the meeting organizer, which I provide for you below. Have it nearby so that you will ask all the right questions. This will immediately instill additional confidence in them around how prepared you will be.
It also allows them to get everything ready ahead of time, making it so much easier to bring you on. Have your speaker fee ready and be ready to share it with them. Know what your fees are ahead of time. Have your rate sheet that you can send to them, or whatever process you have in place, be ready to respond immediately, so that they get a sense of how easy it is going to be to work with you. Part of the reason that's so powerful is yes, for this event, but because meeting organizers and event organizers talk to each other. They are a great source of referral for you, if everything goes well.
Those are three ways you can offer to speak in a way that works to make meeting organizers excited to say yes to you. If you have any questions, I'm always here. See you next week.
