Blogger: Mary Keeley
One of the first realities you are confronted with as you tiptoe into the business of writing books is the need for a growing platform. Much attention and cutting-edge advice has been given on building up your social media network. Today, I’m going to suggest practical ways to initiate and increase your speaking opportunities.
Your platform involves all your undertakings to market your name and your brand. Agents and editors pay close attention to vigorous social media numbers, your speaking history in the last year, and the number of scheduled engagements in the year ahead.
Novelists have an advantage in that superb writing and a compelling story may overcome a tepid speaking calendar. But that isn’t so for nonfiction writers. A robust history of speaking to large audiences is a make-it-or-break-it issue for them. It is what confirms to agents and editors you are an in-demand authority on your topic with proven potential for selling lots of your books. (Although a vigorous blog can make any editor forget about concerns over speaking engagements.)
Speaking offers the opportunity for in-person connection with those potential book buyers that social media does not. For those of you who hold back because speaking is out of your comfort zone or who don’t know where to begin to obtain speaking engagements, here are a few suggestions:
- Include a speaker page on your author website. Create several presentations that have something to do with your brand. List them on your speaker page with a brief description and the interesting stories and information attendees will learn from each of them.
- Offer to speak for free and ask permission to mention your book. But don’t turn your talk into a sales pitch for your book. Make your talk engaging, informative, and entertaining with the right amount of humor for your topic. Tell stories, give examples, and get attendees involved in your talk. The enjoyable interaction will sprout a positive relationship. Attendees will feel rewarded for their time and will want to purchase your book because they know you.
- Practice your presentations. Do this even before you have engagements scheduled. Refine the content, polish your delivery, and practice each presentation regularly until you can give them in your sleep. When the time comes, you will be confident you are well prepared and can present yourself naturally and professionally.
- Contact area businesses and offer to speak in one of their regularly scheduled meetings. This is a largely untapped opportunity. Writers are typically advised to target speaking engagements at community groups, churches, schools, and libraries, all of which are good prospects. But don’t stop there. Businesses are always looking for speakers in their meetings. Approach those whose products and services have some connection with your brand. In this kind of speaking opportunity, relate their products and services to your book in some way. For example, an author of historical fiction might make a connection as simple as, “Back when this story takes place, towns didn’t have the services you provide. Imagine where we would be today without the work you do.” It links your book with what they do, and you affirm them in the process. Send a thank-you note after the first such speaking engagement and follow up with other businesses about the successful response you had. Offer your speaking services to them as well. Some of these companies have branch offices in other cities, potentially multiplying your opportunities. All these steps get your name and your brand in front of people.
- Offer to teach at local adult learning centers and community education programs. These groups have catalogs and televise special events on local TV channels. Engage them, inform them, and entertain them, and your name will be spread.
- At the end of your speaking engagements mention your other speaking topics. You never know when someone in attendance knows of another group that would be interested in one of your themes. Leave one-page handouts or bookmarks for attendees that list your speaking presentations, your contact information, and your website. Who knows where that networking will lead, but the busyness of everyday life causes people to quickly forget things they meant to do. Follow up with interested attendees in several weeks if they haven’t contacted you.
- When you have several speaking engagements scheduled, add a calendar to your speaker page. Those speaking dates communicate that you are in demand and will garner interest from other groups.
Now it’s your turn. What has worked for you in getting speaking engagements? What is holding you back from pursuing speaking venues? I’m traveling today and won’t be able to respond quickly, but share tips with each other.
Thank you for the good advice, especially adding a speaking calendar to an author page. I could see how that would really help. So it goes on my ever-expanding to-do list. 🙂
As Christian author/speakers, we may not be evangelists like Billy Graham, but we at least have a small piece of the gospel fabric to share. That’s what motivates me to cram speaking opportunities into a busy life.
I’m not going to lie, public speaking is my greatest fear 🙂 My husband is a pastor and I can barely stand to be present, it makes me so nervous for him!
There are a few tricks I have used:
1. I remember that its worth the discomfort if I’m bringing encouragement to others. I also remember its a gift for God to use me in this way and I should honor him by not being fearful.
2. I love incorporating service into family activities so story times are great for this. It’s an easy way to ease myself into becoming more comfortable.
Wonderful ideas! Thanks, Mary!
Lisa, I have been terrified of public speaking since the first grade. A little over a year ago I joined Toastmasters International. I cannot say enough good things about the organization. In under a year, I was comfortable speaking, and I had started lining up speaking gigs.
I also went to Vonda Skelton’s Christian Communicators conference and that was so helpful. Between it and Toastmasters my life has been drastically altered.
Public speaking is a skill that can be learned and once you learn it, the fear largely disappears.
So much here to work on, and I’m excited about the opportunities out there. In my one speaking engagement (so far), I was able to work past my fearfulness because I was talking about something I was passionate about — books. Thanks, Mary, for the many suggestions.
Our youth pastor hates giving me the microphone. He once said “there is nothing more scary to me than handing Jennifer Major a live microphone and leaving her alone with it.”
Thankyoooooooooou.
If I know my subject well, I’m nervous, but I’m fine. You *may* have picked up on the subtle cues that I am not adverse to attention. Ahem.
IF someone EVER actually asked me to speak, I’d be fine. I can sing in front of a crowd, and lemme tell ya, speaking is a whole lot easier!!
I’ve been wondering whether or not to put speaking info on my website…I guess I probably should! I am not sure why I have hesitated. I guess I don’t really think of myself as some great public speaker, even though I have definitely gotten quite a bit of experience in the last couple of years.
Be on the look out for conferences that offer a variety of workshops – speaking doesn’t have to be jsut a Keynote Address with every attendee listening just to you.
Workshops are typically 45-60 minutes, and may request time for opening & closing prayer plus Q&A, so the actual presentation time may only be 30-35 minutes.
As a further advantage, the people in YOUR workshop will be people who CHOSE to come listen to YOU. The numbers may be large, or small, but they for the most part start out on your side because they could be elsewhere.
I started with workshops in 2007 before ever considering a book, but am thankful for the foundation it allowed me to get started with the platform.
This year I’ve had my first two weekend retreats on “Vegetables of the Spirit” and the tough part will be cutting back from 3-4 hours to the workshop overview.
Many Christian education, home schooling, or similar conferences pay for a keynote speaker or two, but are very open to less-recognized speakers as it allows them to provide something for a larger number of people, rather than the generally narrow focus of the keynote presentation.
Rich
Rich, for some reason, the realization that most workshops are around 45 minutes was a huge relief to me. Filling 45 minutes doesn’t seem as scary as filling an hour. And now that I’ve done a few 45 minute sessions, I’m a little less afraid of stretching my presentation to an hour, as long as that includes interactive time.
Funny how we have to play mind games with ourselves to get comfortable with speaking.
Thank you for sharing your suggestions, Mary. As I was reading I thought about the speaking engagements I’ve done and wondered what was missing.
I discovered I’m not afraid to be in front of people as long as I’ve sufficiently rehearsed what I need to say. My biggest fear is not knowing enough about my topic. So far, I’ve been asked to speak on topics that are near my passion, but just off the mark. That’s ok! I appreciate those opportunities.
But as I was reading, I had an epiphany for a topic. I’ve been wanting to write an article about it, and I realized I could turn it into a workshop as well.
The key to my epiphany was the thought that I’d like to attend a talk on this subject. I want to know what other authors have to say about it. So if I’m keenly interested, I’m going to be passionate and, hopefully, well-informed.
Thanks for the inspiration!
Thank you, Mary, for the wonderful suggestions. I am a teacher by profession, so I am used to talking in front of crowds and giving presentations. It just never occurred to me that I, as a yet-to-be published novelist had anything to offer as a speaker. But, as I read your post, I realized that, since I have done a great deal of research on Celtic mythology and folklore for my book, I could give presentations on the topic and a few subtopics of it. At present, I can’t think of anyway to tie the subject into local businesses, but I am excited about the idea of doing presentations at libraries, churches, women’s club, etc.
Thank you for giving a new spark to my weekend.
Blessings!
As a substitute teacher I have no fears about public speaking. I enjoy it and wish I could do it more often, but it’s difficult to schedule things because I’m a substitute teacher. As you can see, that’s both good and bad. 😉
The secret to speaking comfortably in front of people is to focus on how to help them rather than what they think of you. It works like the Stanislavski (sp?) method of acting. What you’re thinking is what comes across to the audience.
Wow that was strange. I just wrote an incredibly long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didnt appear. Grrrr well Im not writing all that over again. Anyway, just wanted to say superb blog!