Where the Heck is My Harvest?

The speaking industry is somewhat similar to farming.

We plant seeds, we fertilize (some more than others , we weed out the wrong clients, and then we see the harvest. Imagine the farmer walking out into the field the day after planting seeds and saying “hey, where the heck are my crops?” Ridiculous right? But many speakers, plant one or two seeds – or sometimes no seeds at all – and expect the phone to miraculously start ringing. The speakers who have their phones ringing have been planting seeds for years by giving speeches (and getting spin off) and by doing marketing, or some combination of the two. Are you expecting a full harvest without planting the seeds? Or would you like to increase your harvest? If so, here are a few steps:

1. Check that your soil is rich and ready. This means, making sure that you are prepared to go to market. That your speech is awesome and your marketing materials are ready, effective, and clearly spell out the value that you offer.

2. Plan your crops. Map out your 1 year marketing calendar. Use a 12 month board and plan to ‘touch’ your clients in some fashion (e-mail, direct mail, articles, etc.) at least 4 times per year. You may also plan to target a specific group.

3. Plant the seeds. Once you have mapped out your calendar, start touching clients on a regular basis and following up with phone calls. It’s all about timing. When the client is ready with a need, you will have communicated with them several times and if your services match their need, they’ll call on you.

4. Weed the crops. Don’t be hesitant about taking people off of your list. If they never book speakers, or will never use your services, then save the marketing dollars for someone who is a better fit. The more honed your list, the better. 5. Consistency = Harvest You should see some results of planting within a few months, but once you have a couple of years of seed planting under your belt, you should start to see things popping up more consistently. There might be a point when you can stop marketing, or you might have to keep it going for years. (Seriously take a look at your speech if you aren’t getting good amounts of business by year 3.)

One of my clients just hit pay dirt (7 bookings) with a mailing he did 2 years ago, so it can take time! Being out there speaking is a great way to build momentum – and plant seeds. If you aren’t getting 2-3 spin off from each engagement, then get some help with your speech. Check out our newest CD of the teleclass done recently with the brilliant Patricia Fripp for some excellent speech tips. http://www.speakerlauncher.com/individual.html

Happy Harvest!

Are you a Member of the “Sales is Icky” Club?

I don’t know how to sell myself’,

‘I’m no good at sales’,

‘I’d much rather have someone else talk about me
than talk about myself’…..

All common things that I hear from speakers. Are
you a member of that club? If so, you can relax.

Selling yourself as a speaker doesn’t have to be a
burden. There is a way of going about it that
will allow you to approach the situation with more
confidence and less stress.

In ‘The Wealthy Speaker’, I call it ‘matching’.

When you pick up the phone to call on a
prospective client, you want to have two things in
mind.

1. Be clear on the value that you are offering
(have a bullet point list in front of you).

2. Be clear on what type of audience and client
is perfect for you.

Then, when you start dialing, you set the
intention that you are making a call to inquire
whether or not this client’s needs meet the value
and solutions that you offer.

When the client’s needs match your offering,
you’re in business. If they do not, you move on
to the next client.

Not taking rejection personally is tough for
speakers. But guess what, it ain’t about you!
Whatever you are offering may not be right for
this year, but may be perfect for another year, so
bow out gracefully and schedule a follow up.

In the book ‘Attracting Perfect Customers’, the
authors have you create the vision that you are a
lighthouse. The idea is that you stand tall in
the value and expertise that you offer.

When you’re on land shining your beam out to the
world, the clients that need your services (or
boats who need help getting safely to shore) will
follow the light. Well imagine if the lighthouse
sprouts arms and legs and starts running up and
down the beach yelling,’follow me everybody,
follow me!’ It smacks of desperation and the
value that you offer is diminished.

The bottom line is that when you approach a client
to see if your services match their needs, you are
not trying to ‘sell’ them something, but you are
allowing them to see if the value that you bring
to the table matches their needs.

Stand tall as the lighthouse! With some consistent
marketing, the clients who need you, will find
you. You’ll then be able to give up your
membership in the ‘sales is icky’ club.

Happy shining,

PS: To get your copy of ‘Attracting Perfect
Customers: The Power of Strategic Synchronicity’,
see our special offer here
http://www.speakerlauncher.com/tools.html