Finding Places to Speak

One of the most common questions that comes up for new speakers is where can I speak? Here are six steps I recommend to help you find places to speak and get those speaking engagements.

1. Be clear on who your ideal audience is. Ask yourself, “Who are the people that are interested in my topic and where do they hang out?”
2. Research local places and events that may be looking for speakers. Some popular places that look for speakers are rotary clubs, your local chamber of commerce, and Meetup groups.
3. Visit first. Before you ask to speak, visit these places to get a sense of the group size and profile of the members. You want to be speaking to your ideal audience.
4. Introduce yourself to the event coordinator. There is always a person who is in charge of bringing in speakers. When you visit the group, introduce yourself to this person and let them know you’d like to speak and what your topic is.
5. Speaker sheet. Create your own speaker sheet with your background, testimonials, and topics you speak on. Be ready to send or give to the person in charge of bringing in speakers.
6. Follow-up. This is the most important step to do. Often they may not be ready to hire you as a speaker but may be interested in the future. The person who follows up on a regular basis will be the one who gets the speaking gig!