Welcome to Episode 4. In this episode, we're going to discuss why finding speaking opportunities is easy when you speak for free or low fee!

One of the biggest things I hear from speakers when they're talking about opportunities that they've missed, it that they didn't have the budget for me or they offered $1500 & we just couldn't make it work, etc. Most professional speakers have rates that they charge and in the market I'm in, there's just not as many opportunities to get those rates especially after COVID. It limits your opportunities and only certain audiences can afford to see you.

When you speak for a low fee or free, it opens a floodgate of opportunities for you to get on stage. IT also allows you to reach more people. Sure, you won't get the KEYNOTE spot. You won't be the headliner speaker but let's face the facts... you probably aren't suitable for that spot any way. I know I wasn't. I loved the middle sessions before lunch or the breakout rooms. That's when people come to learn & I'm there to educate them. Why do you speak? What's more important to you? Being the big name or having a nice roof to live under? Both is nice but it's not for everyone and you can work your way towards it while you grow your six figure business!

Let's have a look at the different types of free or low fee opportunities that you could be jumping on:

1. Small conferences - associations, local business, hobby groups
2. Interstate or international conferences
3. Boardroom sessions
4. Your own events
5. Webinars
6. Virtual conferences to industry
And many more

1. Associations and local business conferences are bread and butter to new, free or low fee speakers. They're looking to educate and motivate their members to grow their business. 

Write a topic that teaches e.g. Stop telling, start selling | 3 things your competitors aren't doing that will put you at #1 on google | why problem solvers make more sales

If you have 5 points that you normally charge people for training in, choose 1 main one and teach that to the room. Offer a course for them to learn the rest or to help them implement the rest in their business. Small conferences love this sort of content and it's easy to make yourself look like the expert in the room.

2. Interstate or international conferences take more work but can be a lot of fun.

There tends to be a long lead up e.g. next year or 6 months away. Search google for "call for speakers". Join a speaker association like PSA. Ask people about upcoming conferences they've heard about. Contact conferences and see if you can submit a proposal for next year's conference. 

3. Boardroom sessions are a great offer you can make to professionals who have their own clients e.g. accountants. Offer to run 45 min session in their office for their clients. They put on tea, wine and munchies and do the invite. You do the talking / workshop for the people who come. Its a win win for them. They get a chance to offer their clients something special and it makes them look proactive in the eyes of the people who pay them. These are a lot of fun and generally close to home.

4. Your own events can be fun and profitable but, they take a lot of work. My experience with running these is that they grow over time. I found the "bring a friend free" strategy worked really well to grow them. Women in business are particularly good at bringing people. You grow your list, they spend time learning with friends :-) Make sure you charge! There are plenty of  studies the reinforce that even if someone has paid $10, they're more likely to turn up than if you made it free.

5. Webinars are obviously more popular than ever but keep it short if you're not working with a group of your own members. Most people tend to get itchy feet after about 35 minutes so you need to approach your speaking differently. Where I would use 20 slides on stage, I could use up to 120 in a webinar. You have to keep things moving and changing. Use activities & exercises and breakout rooms to keep it enjoyable!

6. Virtual & hybrid conferences are becoming more popular. A bit like webinars, keep it lively. I'd also suggest that if you want more energy, GET ON YOUR FEET! Stand up and move around a bit. You'll feel very different. You might need a helper to handle the camera and switching but you can get something like Insta360 Link webcam that you can control with gestures to zoom in and follow you on a whiteboard etc. It's worth checking out :-)

So there are many opportunities to speak for free or low fee. You've got to get out there and chase them, leverage your contacts and make it happen. When you don't charge, you can't make it any easier for someone to choose you. Some people have said that when you don't charge enough, you undervalue your speaking and some people won't book you. That might be true but it isn't for me. 

In the end, you have to ask yourself... what is the quickest way for me to make six figures? Fighting directly against the high paid, industry embedded known names OR taking the quick wins, selling off the back and growing your name over time? My experience is that when you speak on the same stage as the big names, you get to know them, it opens doors for you and you get seen as having been on the same stage. 

Never underestimate the power of speaking often and speaking everywhere. When you've got a backend product or service, ever opportunity is a profitable one when you track it over time!