Public speaking as a freelancer is a great way to show off your expertise and fill your sales funnel. In fact, it’s one of my favorite ways to meet people in person and I’ve found it to be very effective in helping me find clients. It’s also been an effective tool for many of my freelancing clients who’ve used public speaking in their local areas to showcase their expertise and find leads in the process.
While public speaking isn’t for everyone, if you feel like it’s something you’d like to do then it’s certainly worth looking into. Here are just a few of the ways public speaking can boost your freelancing career.
Gives you authority.
As I’ve mentioned several times before, you’re going to want to make sure that you become a subject matter expert so that people hire you. Regardless of whether you are running your own business or working for someone else, people like to hire specialists not generalists.
Public speaking is a great way to show your specialization. For example, I have a coaching client who is working on a brand dedicated to grandparents going into business for themselves. She’s gone to local events in her community to talk about the challenges grandparents face when starting a business. She’s ended up winning a startup pitch competition and is starting to make a name for herself in her community.
I also started speaking when I quit my job almost three years ago. I went straight for the conferences in my niche and pitched an idea every time they had a call for speakers. Having that kind of a platform at an industry conference gives you immediate recognition and authority, and the end result is I’ve gotten several writing and coaching clients just from those conferences.
It’s actually fun for some people.
I love to teach, so public speaking makes me giddy. Seriously, just give me a mic and let me do my thing. Because I actually enjoy public speaking, I often times forget that I’m working and just have fun with it.
For example, I recently taught a personal finance workshop for a local business in my community. I was having so much fun that I almost lost track of time! I seriously saw it as the highlight of me weekend even though I was technically working.
The bottom line is this: If we can find ways to grow our businesses that are actually fun, why not do it? If we’re having fun we’re actually in an energetic space to attract more opportunity. People want to work with people who are enjoying themselves.
It gives you an opportunity to show people what you do.
One of the greatest things about public speaking is that you get the opportunity to show people what you do. I don’t mean just lecture them, I mean actually walk them through what it’s like to work with you.
For example, I’ve definitely done live blog coaching when I speak at blogging conferences. I’ve also helped people with their financial issues on the spot. This means people walk away feeling as if I’ve helped them, which often times translates to paying clients down the road.
Final Thoughts
There are two books I recommend to help you figure out how public speaking can fit into your sales funnel. The first is Book Yourself Solid by Michael Port and the second is World Class Speaking by Craig Valentine. Both of these books not only teach you how to sell, but how to use public speaking as a platform to grow your business.
