Give Them Something To Talk About!

When I do workshops on marketing and mention that speaking is one of the most effective strategies for building a list of contacts who can’t wait to buy from them, most people in the audience look at me with that “no way in hell am I gonna do that” look.

What is it about speaking that makes it such a powerful marketing tool? Listed below are 3 benefits of public speaking.

Benefit #1: You build your Leads’ List quickly. People get an experience of YOU. They get to feel your essence – who you really are as an individual. That is how you earn their trust. When building your list of prospects (the MOST important part of creating your business!) people typically move through four stages:

1) From Suspect – they don’t know you and think you just want to take advantage of them.
2) To Prospect – they say “yes” to a free offer you’ve made and are interested in learning more about you.
3) To Client – they’ve spent money with you, even one dollar is a good beginning.
4) To Raving Fan - they buy just about everything you offer AND tell others that they must get to know you too.

When you go out and speak to a group, you will want to collect their email addresses and postal addresses. Offer to give them your free ezine or a special tip sheet or a CD of an interview that you’ve done, in exchange for their email address. My experience is that 95% -100% of folks will do this – after hearing you speak, they will want to get more from you. You’ve created a relationship and these folks aren’t Suspects, they are already Prospects! If they have purchased one of your information products, they are Clients and many will already be Raving Fans!

Benefit #2: Sales in the “back of the room.” I don’t know about you, but I always love browsing the information products (books, workbooks, CDs, home study courses) that are provided at seminars. I always buy at least one thing (usually more) because I am interested in the topic the speaker is talking about and hungry for more information.

A speaker is truly performing a disservice to her audience if she doesn’t give them more of what they want. AND, you can make a boatload of money selling these information products! You spend time to create them once, and then continue to make money with them for years to come.

Benefit #3: You are Living Your Life Purpose and Serving Others. You have good information to share (yes you really do!) and it would be a shame not to share that information with others. When you speak on a topic you are passionate about, you can literally change lives. One piece of information can encourage someone to take a baby step that leads to another and another – resulting in a positive life change.

Tom Antion is the man I go to for public speaking advice and tips. Check out his resource center, click here: http://tinyurl.com/lhusza

About the Author: Ann Ronan, Ph.D. is an author, speaker, certified career coach and self employment expert, and vision generator.

Ann delivers smart, simple ways for people to acknowledge what they love to do and do more of it. Her articles, products, and books have motivated and inspired readers in numerous print and online publications. She regularly leads coaching programs, tele-seminars and live retreats, bringing the message to audiences internationally that living a passion-based life will bring prosperity and success.

She was recently selected from a nationwide search to be featured in Discover Your Inner Strength. The book features best-selling authors Stephen R. Covey (Seven Habits of Highly Effective People), Brian Tracy (Million Dollar Habits), and Ken Blanchard (One Minute Manager).