I recently attended a workshop all about using speaking as a marketing strategy to grow your business. The audience was a room full of women business owners who were thinking about using the stage to spread a message while also making money.
Because I’m being approached for more speaking opportunities, I went to go check it out. Truth be told, I was expecting to hear more about traditional speaking. That’s totally not what I got. Instead, I walked away realizing that speaking as a marketing strategy has totally changed – in a good way.
The Difference Between Traditional Speaking and Now
Traditional speaking is when you get hired by an organization to give a speech. As a beginner speaker, you can earn anywhere between $1,000 and $5,000 for a keynote. When most people think of speaking, this is what they envision.
Here is where the problem lies from a marketing strategy standpoint. It’s exhausting. You’re always on a plane or a cheap hotel room. You also always have to chase the next opportunity. The people who hired you are your clients so you do as they say. And you may be losing out on the money. (I know. I was shocked to hear this too.)
Now things are a little different. Business owners are putting on their own events and walking out making thousands of dollars by selling high-end products in the back of the room. They take payments right then and there. I saw it with my very own eyes that day. The presenter ended the day earning far more than she would have for a keynote.
How to Use The New Way of Speaking As a Marketing Strategy
With this new way of using speaking as a marketing strategy, you can use live events to fill up your pipeline with clients. Here is a really basic one based on a funnel I’ve been working on for the consulting side of my business:
- Put on a live event (free or cheap).
- From that live event, a few participants purchase my group coaching program ($2000 to $2500 per person).
- After the group coaching program, a couple my sign on as private coaching clients (Tens of thousands of dollars per person depending on the contract).
- Those who do not sign up for private coaching join my monthly membership site (A few hundred per person).
As you can see, you can walk out earning a lot more money when you put on your own events. If you have your funnel fully built out with products, the amount of money you can earn is endless.
Other Benefits of Speaking as A Marketing Strategy
Aside from being a great way to get clients into your funnel, speaking has several other advantages as a marketing strategy. Here are a few of them:
- Positions you as an expert.
- It’s an effective way of connecting to people (especially in a world that relies so much on online marketing.)
- Gets you involved in the local community.
After attending this event, I will definitely be looking into using more speaking as a marketing strategy. With this much opportunity, it’s something worth checking out.
