SPEAKERS COMMUNITY Teleclasses

Teleclasses FREE for Speakers’ Community Members , 60 days complimentary www.speakerscommunity.com

Oct 14   Make Money in Your Jammies, Rebecca Morgan 

Oct 29   Market Your Book Beyond the Platform, Shel Horowitz

Nov 12  Put Your Best Book Forward, Ellen Reid

Nov 30  Profit as a Speaker by Becoming a Radio Talk Show Host, Martin Wales

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Los Angeles WORKSHOPS

Oct 24  

Social Media Marketing: The New Frontier Workshop, Susan Levin

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Oct 26 or Nov 23

Market Yourself as a Speaker Workshop, Susan Levin

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Nov 1, Costa Mesa

Connect with Reporters who want to Hear Your Message:  Tips for Pitch Letters, Jean-Noel Bassior & Susan Levin

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Nov 8 

Three camera video demo showcase

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Nov 11-15

Speakers’ Bootcamp, Jack Barnard & Susan Levin

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Nov 20-22

Oscar Level Presentations & Video Workshop, Barbara Niven, Jack Barnard & Susan Levin, call for details

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 See all workshops www.speakerservices.com

Susan Levin, 310-822-4922  PST

susan@speakerservices.com

Yesterday was a total nightmare with my e mail account.  Sincerest apologies if you received three e-mails from me.  It was only supposed to be one.  There were a few items I forgot to mention and I also want to give you a few speaking leads as a consultation.

Okay here we go…

Complimentary teleclass Monday, Oct 5, 4-5pm PST

Q & A Speakers’ Bootcamp

How many times has someone in your life said to you, “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it”?  Most of us have heard that. We have all worked with very accomplished, well-educated people who are absolutely brilliant in their field, but when they spoke, they almost put us to sleep.

- How many of us have listened to an individual who was charismatic, compelling, and attractive and then when it was all done, you ask yourself, “What did they just say?” or you don’t remember a thing they said. It was all show with no substance. To get on the road to more effective speaking, you must master what you say AND how you say it.

Get your questions answered regarding the semi annual Speakers’ Bootcamp by master branding, media and presentation coach Jack Barnard and Marketing coach and owner of Speaker Services, Susan Levin.

Even if you can’t make the teleclass register as we will send you the mp3 following the teleclass for your review.  Register http://www.speakerservices.com/teleclasses/detail/152

The Bootcamp is November 11-15 in Los Angeles
See web page with more info http://tinyurl.com/49zc8z 

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Los Angeles, Meet-Up Speak-Up Network Event
Host Speaker Services

Wednesday, 10/7, 4pm-7:30pm   $29  Must register by Monday, Oct 5

http://www.speakerservices.com/teleclasses/detail/148

Relax and enjoy tasty appetizers in a beautiful setting overlooking Marina Bay as you schmooze with potential clients and learn from the experts
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In SpeakerNetNews a question was posed:

Business is down for many SNN readers. However, some are saying that this economic downturn has provided opportunities they might not have otherwise explored. Send us one or two of the *best* things you’ve gotten as a result of the recession.

If you would like to respond please send your brief, pithy responses to editor@ SpeakerNetNews.com. Please put “Topic of the Month” or “TOTM” in the subject line.

Here’s one of the responses:

Derrick Hayes

In the Fall of 2008 I felt the effects of the recession with lost speaking engagements. With no budget to hire a publicist to help market my services, I researched and found cost-effective ways to market my business. I signed up for PR services like HARO, Pitch Rate and Blogger Link Up and learned how to market myself to the media to get article placement, radio interviews, quoted for blogs, and promoted in gift bags. I have taken what I have learned in the last 12 months and turned it into a workshop on social media.

Note: On Nov 1 Speaker Services is offering a workshop in Costa Mesa so that you can learn how to- Connect with Reporters who want to Hear Your Message:  Tips for Pitch Letters  http://www.speakerservices.com/teleclasses and we also have a Media List & Pitch Letter/Press Release Service click here to learn more. 

This is the most complete, up-to-date list of media in TV, Radio, Newspaper, Magazine and online media outlets. You get complete information, including name, email, phone, fax, street address, preferred contact method, website, circulation, topics covered and personal notes to help you target the media and built rapport to get results.
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Request for Stories for Empowerment Book for Teens
TEENS–we want to hear from you. Make a difference and submit your true experience/story or original poem for Lila Reyna’s upcoming Empowerment book at www.lilareyna.com. Examples of topics are cyber bullying, date rape, emotions, positive attitudes, and sexual assault. Your story can pass on prevention and may possess the power to heal another teen that has survived a trying time. Submissions are automatically entered in a $100 drawing. www.lilareyna.com

Lila is a Safety Awareness trainer teaches you to be your own bodyguard and increase external − and internal − awareness. She speaks about Body-Mind, Domestic Violence, Safety/Self-Protection, Self Empowerment

See her speaker listing http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/349
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SPEAKING LEADS

ACRL/LLAMA Spring Virtual Institute
“Doing Well by Doing Good”:
Entrepreneurial Leadership for Librarians
April 21-22, 2010
http://www.ala.org/ala//mgrps/divs/acrl/events/ALA_print_layout_1_430652_430652.cfm

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National Speakers Assoc Convention, Orlando, Fl. 7/17/10

http://www.nsaspeaker.org/Home/ProposaltoPresent.aspx
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Social Media Marketing: The New Frontier Workshop,
Susan Levin

Saturday, October 24, 1-5pm, Marina del Rey

Marketing on social networking sites like Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter can help increase the size of your email list and grow your business. The key to success is making sure that members of your target market are in your network.

- Build your business with social networking and increase your online visibility
- Develop a social media strategy presence across the key social media platforms
- Leverage and create content, connection, and community
- Explore why it’s never about the sale, it’s always about the relationship
- Produce and distribute content that can be shared and extends the voice of your brand, product and company
- Explore how articles writing, blogs, utube can create brand awareness and buzz

Learn more http://www.speakerservices.com/teleclasses/detail/151

Blog compilation posts on Social Networking/Marketing
http://tinyurl.com/ybxatfu

Speaker Services- October ’09 -  E-Zine

This is the first time I am publishing my e-zine on the blog.  More then likely I will post some of the past issues soon especially if ya all send me your comments.

There is so much valuable information to be shared.

If you care to subscribe to our e mail out reaches here a great place to subscribe http://www.speakerservices.com/nl/

Susan, susan@speakerservices.com

In this Issue
- Note from Susan Levin
- New & Renewing Speakers & Authors
- Tips & Advice & Resources
- Article: Social Networking: 7 Strategies to Finding Your Target Market on Twitter

Greetings from Susan Levin

“Marketing is not an event, but a process . . . It has a beginning, a middle, but never an end, for it is a process. You improve it, perfect it, change it, even pause it. But you never stop it completely.” Jay Conrad Levinson

Isn’t that true?  And it is changing so fast that it is challenging to stay up with all the trends.  Social media has profoundly altered the way we market and communicate.  Not sure what I am talking about? Social Media Marketing is the use of technology combined with social interaction to create or co-create value.  Here’s a great way to understand it and to see the make up of social media marketing.  Content + Context + Connections + Community = Social Media Marketing.

Last week PR Wire offered a Webinar on how to include video in your PR releases/Pitch Letters which you then can use to leverage your social networks, post to your blog, tweet your video nd more.   According to the speakers they have had great success including a short video on their new releases. A picture is worth a 1,000 words a Video is worth millions.  We are offering one camera shoots in November ask me about it if you would like to create a few short professional videos.  Our 3 camera video demo showcase is November 8 in LA.  We have 2 slots open at this time.  It is exciting times as there are many more ways to distribute your videos whether it is a one or three camera video.  You see video is viral.

Social networking sites  offer businesses and individuals both networking and marketing opportunities, all at no cost. However, if you don’t know how to make your social networking site work for you, you might end up losing business instead of gaining it!

Here are a few articles that you might want to read

Top Ten Reasons Why You Must Add Video to Your Marketing Mix This Fall

The Evolution of Social Media

Failing at the Future: 10 Reasons Why Some Companies will Miss out on the Economic Upturn!

Donna Gunter talks to us today about Strategies to Finding Your Target Market on Twitter. I have also included other tips on how to tweet and use hashtags.

Regarding community will we see you at the LA Meet Up, Speak Up Networking and Get Mentored event in Marina del Rey, Wednesday, October 7?  Click here for details to register. We want to connect with you.  You must sign up by Monday, October 5.

On Sunday October 11 I will be at  An Empowered Woman  Expo Networking Event you are welcome to attend and please stop by and say hello.

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NEW AND RENEWING SPEAKERS AND AUTHORS  October 2009

Dr. Bunny Vreeland, video — Ventura County, CA
Board Certified clinical hypnotherapist and award-winning image consultant combines expertise in both fields to help you lose weight, ease stress, stop smoking, conquer phobias, and give yourself a makeover — inside and out.
Anti-Aging, Body-Mind, Stress Management

Jeffrey I Condon , author  — S. California
Attorney/author reveals how to divide your money and property after you are gone — without dividing your family.
Estate Planning, Inheritance Planning, Senior Issues, Wills/Living Trusts

See all speakers/authors
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Are you connecting with us via the Speakers’ Community?
Look at who I am interviewing in October.
- Oct 14  Make Money in Your Jammies: Creating Income from Teleseminars, Blogs and Subsequent Products, Rebecca Morgan
- Oct 29  Market Your Book Beyond the Platform, Shel Horowitz

Speakers Community is a Membership club and if you care to join us you can join the community for 60 days for free and have access to the 2 teleclass interviews each month plus the last two years of mp3’s.

This is an online library of stellar experts on various aspects of the speaking industry.  Can anyone tell me where they can access information as such from the experts for $10 an hour?  That’s right it is a mere $19.95 a month. Talk about a stimulus package!
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Susans’ Recommended Resource-  AudioAcrobat

I love audioacrobat and have been using it for 3 years.

AudioAcrobat – Powerful and Easy Online Radio and Audio Content Development Tool

AudioAcrobat is an audio recording, streaming and hosting service. All of your audio and video messages are automatically converted into a single of html code that can be uploaded to any Website.

AudioAcrobat is the easiest way to add great audio to your Web site and emails. Produce your own online radio show and broadcast to the world!

Record testimonials of your clients and customers! It is the simple way to create audio with your telephone, PC microphone or by uploading files. It is absolutely painless audio recording!

Use AudioAcrobat for:
* Advertising * Advice * Announcements * Classes * Coaching * Conference Calls * Demos * Events * Fun * Fund Raising * Greetings * How-to * Humor * Interviews * Introductions * Lectures * Music Clips * Opinions * Presentations * Product Descriptions * Radio Shows * Seminars * Statements * Support * Testimonials * Workshops

Learn more and try it out 30 days free

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Want a Kindle edition of your book? Use Word
John Kremer www.bookmarket.com

In a web article, Aaron Shepard shares how to use Microsoft Word to format your book for Kindle. He offers succinct and clear instructions on how to do this at http://www.newselfpublishing.com/WordKindle.html.

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Enormous Wisdom on Ethical Business Success…Big Discount for You

One of the most remarkable books I’ve come across is Shel Horowitz’s award-winning Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First. In 160 pages, Shel lays out a number of forward-thinking ideas about ethics, environmental sustainability, and mutually beneficial partnerships–and shows, hands-on, how to put these ideas into practice in your own business, slashing marketing costs and boosting profit as you go.

This groundbreaking book was endorsed by over 80 entrepreneurs and marketers from Chicken Soup co-creator Jack Canfield to former US Secretary of Labor Robert Reich…resold to publishers in India and Mexico…purchased in bulk by the president of Southwest Airlines–and business publisher John Wiley & Sons bought the rights and is using the book as a basis for Shel’s eighth book, Guerrilla Marketing Goes Green, which Shel is co-authoring with Jay Conrad Levinson.

But once the new book comes out, Shel is prohibited by contract from selling the old one. So he’s asked me to offer them to you at a deep discount, and with two e-books he’s written as bonuses. Please visit http://bit.ly/18KeY1 to take advantage of this incredible value
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Sell more books with Twitter hashtags, John Kremer

The following tip was provided by Michael Volkin, author of Social Networking for Authors:

Twitter is not only good for keeping in touch with customers, but you can also find new customers with hashtags. I have had great success selling books using Twitter hashtags.

Hashtags are a way Twitter uses organize their tweets about a specific topic. For example, if you want to tweet about real estate, you could start off a tweet with a pound sign then the word real estate, like this #RealEstate. There are numerous hashtags that have already been established, and new ones cropping up daily.

So why use hashtags? Because Twitter users often search hashtags for content. So if you’re tweeting about your book and using proper hashtags, a potential customer can come across your book who wouldn’t have otherwise. Go to hashtags.org and search for hashtags that Twitter users are using right now. Who knows, maybe you’ll find a customer or two….or ten.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter (username: @NetworkAuthor), I’ll follow you back. For more tips on how to market your book via social networks, go to Michael Volkin’s SellaTonofBooks.com and purchase his new book Social Networking for Authors-Untapped Possibilities for Wealth.
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What to tweet about?
a few key tweets from JohnKremer@bookmarket.com

I share some interesting resources and tips in my regular tweeting via Twitter. If you want to get those tips as I share them, follow me at http://www.twitter.com/johnkremer

Twitter Mania Manual now 94 pages. Download free at

http://www.bookmarket.com/50WaystoTweet.htm

Want to sell rights to a cookbook? Check out http://bookmarket.com/cookbook.htm

SpeakerServices Tweets

Get Paid to Speak at Conferences, Seminars, Schools or Colleges.  Learn everything u need 2 win the Game of Speaking http://ping.fm/ifbo3

Meet Dr Bunny Speaker hypnotherapist helps you lose weight, ease stress, stop smoking, conquer phobias http://bit.ly/xTCgm

Do u have a media room on your website?  It’s a place 2 share press, speaking gigs, pitch letters, articles blog post http://bit.ly/2M7n6M

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ARTICLE

Social Networking: 7 Strategies to Finding Your Target Market on Twitter, Donna Gunter  Onlinebizu.com

Social networking using Twitter seems to be the most popular way to connect today, from celebrity Ashton Kutcher’s challenge to Oprah to reach one million friends first (Ashton won) to a U.S. State Department official contacting the co-founder of Twitter to delay upgrading the Twitter system so as not to interrupt election dialogue in Iran. More and more news agencies are using Twitter to keep their audience up-to-date, and local businesses are also jumping on the Twitter bandwagon as an immediate way to connect with their customers, as well.

How can you make the best use of Twitter in your business? It all starts with having followers in your target market. No doubt you’ve been inundated with email offers of things like “10,000 Twitter followers in 60 seconds for only $19.95!” Trust me — 1000 followers that are members of your target market are much more useful to the growth of your business via social networking than 10,000 followers that come from anywhere.

How do you find members of your target market on Twitter? Here are my top 7 strategies:

1. Add people you know in your industry. Twitter permits people to use fictitious names or business names as their Twitter identity, rather than their given name. So, it may be difficult at times to find the person you’re seeking, especially if she goes by “ShoeDiva” on Twitter and you know her as Miranda Smith. Try Twitter Search  or Advanced Search , to help you in your quest.

2. Find others with the same interests or serving the same target market. The online yellow pages of Twitter users, Twellow.com, permits users to list themselves by industry and interests. If your business isn’t currently listed on Twellow, take a few minutes to do that right away.

3. Follow those in the same geographic region. If marketing to your local area is an important part of your business, find local members of your target market by using Twellowhood.com or TwitterLocal.com and find the top movers and shakers in your region, as well as some members of your target market. If you want to meet fellow Tweeps face-to-face, search local Tweetups at TwtVite,com, or create your own gathering.

4. Get relevant recommendations. The free service, MrTweet.com, will provide you with info on recommended people to follow based on your current Twitter profile. You do have to follow MrTweet in order to participate. Once you’re logged in, you can see your recommendations, along with how these recommendations are connected to your list of followers. You can evaluate your recommendations, and MrTweet will make changes in your recommended list accordingly.

5. Follow those who follow you. It’s considered good Twitter etiquette to follow those people who’ve chosen to follow you. And, to prevent being labeled a Twitter snob, ideally you should be following more people than are following you. I have automated my ability to follow my followers by using a free version of TweetLater.com.

6. Look for keywords. Another way to find relevant followers is to keep track of people mentioning certain keywords in their Tweets. I do that through the free version of TweetLater.com. I use this same service to keep track of any mentions of me or my company on Twitter in the very same way I use Google Alerts.

7. Find groups. Twibes.com permits you to find groups by industry and interest and join them and/or see the members of each group. And, if you so inclined, you can create your own Twitter group, as well.

Remember, finding your target market is just the beginning. Once you’ve found them, you need to begin to build relationships with them. This means paying attention to what they say so that you can respond when appropriate either with a direct message (DM) or an @ reply that is public or retweeting (RT) their message to your followers when you feel someone has great info that would be useful to those who follow you. Take 10-15 minutes per day to keep yourself informed about what’s happening with your Tweeps and watch your business grow!

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Speaker Services Workshops

Saturday, October 24
Social Media Marketing: The New Frontier, Susan Levin
Learn more/register http://tinyurl.com/ps7vwk

Social media has profoundly altered the way we market and communicate.

Social Media Marketing is the use of technology combined with social interaction to create or co-create value.

Content + Context + Connections + Community = Social Media Marketing

Marketing on social networking sites like Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter can help increase the size of your email list and grow your business. The key to success is making sure that members of your target market are in your network.

What consumers are primarily interested in today are not features, but relationships.”
– Harry Beckwith, “Selling the Invisible”

In the workshop you will learn tools, tactics and implementation techniques to

- Build your business with social networking and increase your online visibility
- Develop a social media strategy presence across the key social media platforms
- Leverage and create content, connection, and community
- Explore why it’s never about the sale, it’s always about the relationship
- Produce and distribute content that can be shared and extends the voice of your brand, product and company
- Explore how articles writing, blogs, utube can create brand awareness and buzz
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Sunday, November 1 in Costa Mesa, CA
Learn how to write pitch letters, grab attention of reporters

- Contact reporters, bloggers, talk show producers and other media people directly, using the language they understand.

- Link your product, service or story to news of the day or issues on the national stage.

- Practice writing a powerful pitch letter that hooks the media and makes them want to know more about you and what you do.

- The difference between a pitch letter and a press release and how to know which one to send when you want publicity.

Learn more/register

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Latest posts in the Blog

√ Does Your Website Have a Media Room?

√ The 10 biggest traps to avoid when you speak

by Laura Stack, MBA, CSP, The Productivity PRO®

You’ve got the talent! You’ve got the ambition! You’re sick of that corporate job!  You’re ready to break out on your own as a professional speaker…or are you? Here are some things to consider before you leave that 9 to 5 job and segue into a professional speaking career:

1. Get real-world experience before you quit the employment ranks.
People always want to know “how I got started” as a professional speaker. You don’t really just “start.” I highly recommend you get some real-world training experience first. My first job in the training profession was as an employee with TRW Defense Systems. Understanding of the role of training vendors in a corporate setting is invaluable when you start approaching prospective clients, and you get paid while you learn. I then taught adjunct courses at the University of Colorado, which gave me skills in Instructional Design. You could teach a class at a Learning Annex, university extension center, or Free University in your area. Next, I presented seminars around the country for CareerTrack, Inc., which gave me a broad understanding of the meetings industry and gave me extensive platform time in front of real learners.

2. Get business training.
I went to college and got my undergraduate and masters degrees in business. The biggest reason people fail when they break into the speaking business is they fail to understand it IS a business. It takes marketing, accounting, technology, customer relations, systems, public relations, and financial savvy to make it work. You have to know how to sell your services, relate to meeting planners and bureaus, back up your presentations with products and many other skills related to managing your company. You will not fail because you’re an excellent speaker; you will fail because you stink in business acumen. If nothing else, take some college business courses for no

3. Get a mentor and some guidance.
The National Speakers Association has local chapters around the country. Each chapter operates a bit differently, but most of them offer some type of “Apprenticeship” or “Fast Track” program for people who are seriously interested in moving into a professional speaking career. For example, in Denver, you can join the NSA/Colorado chapter as an Affiliate (not a professional member) and participate in the “Fast Track” program. Fast Trackers meet once a month, to help people ramp up quickly in the mandatory competencies of platform mechanics, professional awareness and relationships, topic development, and sales and marketing. Many chapters also offer a “Coaching” program, which will pair you with an already-experienced professional speaker to work one-on-one with you for a year. For information on a local NSA chapter in your area, visit http://www.nsaspeaker.org/search/chapter_directory.xpl.

4. Get a mastermind group.
It is incredible helpful to network with a group of people (even across the country) who are on the same journey you are. As you’re getting ramped up, you’ll want to exchange ideas with others who have the same aspirations. Having a mastermind group is like having a personal board of directors for your new company, to give you guidance and shorten your learning curve. An excellent resource is the Academy for Professional Speaking (www.academyforprofessionalspeaking.org), which is a community of experts who want to turn their passion and talent for public speaking into a successful career. The Academy accesses NSA’s vast universe of learning opportunities, friendship, participation and growth. Best of all, it offers you the support of other aspiring speakers and additional seminars and educational opportunities, its own newsletter, and a networking directory of other national members.

5. Get some platform time.
Let me dispel one myth of the professional speaking business. Some people may tell you to never speak for free, which I believe is absolutely ridiculous. When I first started speaking, I would talk to anyone, anytime, who would listen to me speak. I had a really nice collection of coffee mugs going from all the rotary groups I visited. There are many service clubs in your area that are in desperate need for a speaker each meeting. They can’t pay you, but the objectives in getting started in the business are to meet people and SPEAK. Alan Weiss says it beautifully in his book Money Talks (the bible of the industry), “You’re better off speaking for free in front of potential customers than you are not speaking at all in front of no one.” Pick up a copy of your local Business Journal and turn to the “Calendar” section. You will see a list of groups and contact names just waiting for you to speak. Most of these local meetings only require 30-60 minutes of your time, and you can arrange your work schedule accordingly. These programs will allow you to practice and hone your speech before you try to sell it.

6. Get some clients BEFORE you stop moonlighting.
I saw Guy Kawasaki (one of the masterminds behind Apple Computer) speak in LA a few years ago. He said one of the successes of Apple was that they allowed their potential customers to test drive their computers. In the speaking business, you are the product, and you should allow people to “test drive” you too. When they like you, they will eventually buy. When I first started out, I offered free “brown bag” luncheons to large corporate clients as a way to get my foot in the door. You don’t even have to quit your day job! Identify a company you’d like to work with, call the main number, ask for the person who handles employee training and development, call that person, introduce yourself, and ask, “Do you sometimes bring in outside training contractors to conduct onsite training seminars?” Be honest. Tell them you are “just starting out” in the business and are offering a complimentary one-hour brown bag seminar as a way to introduce yourself and your product. It’s a good idea to work up a little “one-sheet” on yourself first, so that you have a piece of promotional literature to send. Registering a business name and getting business cards printed up is a good idea while you “moon-light” in this fashion. After giving the presentation, I would ask for a testimonial letter in return to help you start your client list. Having these letters will be very helpful when you start asking for money. After they love you, they will want you back. Get enough of these…and bang…you have enough clientele to support you when you get started.

A little training, a little preparation, a little support…combined with your immense talent…and you, too, can be a professional speaker!

Susan’s Note:  Check out our online directory www.speakerservices.com for connecting with audiences and for training Speakers’ Bootcamp http://www.speakerservices.com/services/thegame.html

Imagine that you have spent the better part of two weeks working on an important speech you plan to give to your firm. You think you have done everything right. Read on as Laurie Brown offers simple tips to keep the audience from falling asleep (post from Rain Today )

You have created a PowerPoint presentation with tons of information and Flash animation. You have created handouts of the slides for your audience, so they can follow along. Although you haven’t had time to rehearse the presentation, you are not worried, because you have the entire speech typed out. You plan to read it while you blow their socks off with the dynamic PowerPoint slides.

Everything should be perfect, right? Wrong!

If you were to look at your audience (which you cannot, because you are reading your script) you would see them either riveted to the screen, or to the handout in front of them… but not at you. The audience members who are eye-weary from all the information you have packed into the slides are closing their eyes just to rest them.

What went wrong?

Experienced speakers know that to engage their audience, they must build rapport. Reading from a script makes this difficult, if not impossible, because connecting with an audience requires direct eye contact. No matter how well-written your speech is, if you read your presentation to an audience, you will lose them.

Reading to your audience can also make you seem less authoritative. The audience wonders, “If you know so much about the topic, why can’t you just talk about it? Why are you reading?”

Here are 5 tips for getting and keeping your audience’s attention:

Make Eye Contact

Free yourself from the written page and demonstrate your expertise by using one of these ideas:

Memorization

If you want to memorize your speech, it is helpful to rehearse it out loud just before you go to sleep and right when you get up.

Outline

If you use the outline method to create your script, you can simply go back and clean it up and use that for the presentation. If you don’t have an outline prepared, you can create one using the major points of your presentation.

Key Word Method

This technique calls for you to select key words from your script that represent a paragraph or two of information. These key words should jog your memory so that you can speak extemporaneously. You can use a single page of key words, or place them on 3×5 cards (always number the cards). If you are a visually oriented person, you can find an image that represents the key word and create a pictogram.

Teleprompter

Nothing helps you maintain good eye contact without memorization like the teleprompter When speaking to an audience, you want to make everyone in the audience feel that the message is being directed to them personally. If you find that actually looking into the eyes of your audience is difficult and distracting, look at the tops of their heads, which will create the illusion that you are speaking directly to them.

In order to include the whole audience, use a “Z” pattern. Start by looking at the front left section of the audience. After finishing your thought, turn your gaze to the front right section. Again, finish your thought and direct your gaze to the center section. Then look at the rear left section and, after completing your thought, look to the rear right section.

Know Your Audience

The more you know about your audience’s wants, needs, and level of understanding, the better able you are to craft a speech they will feel compelled to listen to. Too often, speakers give the same presentation to different groups. “Generic” speeches tend to lose most of the audience. A speech needs to be relevant and specific.

You need to make sure that you are using words and ideas that are easily grasped by your audience. This doesn’t mean you have to “dumb down” your speech, but it does mean checking to make sure that you are not using jargon or acronyms that are only known by a few.

Your audience is always thinking, “What’s in this for me?” Keep this question in mind when you craft your speech.

Throw Away Your PowerPoint

I think that there is no other element of a presentation that can bore an audience more quickly than PowerPoint slides. Okay, I know you are starting to curse at me now. Get rid of PowerPoint? Well, maybe I need to restate that. You can keep PowerPoint–if you use it properly and effectively… and not as an eye sight test.

Follow these simple rules:

Choose an easy font to read, such as Arial or Times Roman.

Font size should be at least 28 pt (bulleted items should be at least 22 pt).

Use colors carefully (reds and oranges are hard to focus on).

Don’t crowd too many words on the screen (3 lines of type is more than enough).

Keep the slides simple, clean, and easy to read.

View the PowerPoint presentation on the screen after you have created the slides and prior to your presentation. Check for ease of readability. The slides really do look different on the screen.

Don’t read the slides verbatim. Quite frankly, most of your audience will be able to read the slide, so why repeat it?
I think the most powerful PowerPoints are those that use only pictures, a key word or phrase, or graphics. There is no reason to simply use a slide to repeat what you have said. Instead, use a visual aid to reinforce your point. It is true that a picture is worth a thousand words.

You should direct your audience’s attention to the screen and back to you. Simply turn your gaze to the screen for a moment or two and then look back at your audience. These subtle cues allow your audience’s attention to move from the screen then back to you.

Give Hand-Outs After Your Presentation.

If you are making a presentation that has a lot of important and/or technical information, you can provide a hand-out, but only after the presentation. If people have your slides while you are speaking, they tend to read ahead or stay glued to the hand-out and not to you. If you give them the hand-out after your presentation, it will reinforce all of your material without stealing attention from you.

Rehearse

I know people hate to rehearse. It is hard not to feel silly when practicing your speech. However, there is nothing that helps a speaker more than the familiarity and ease you get from saying the words out loud. (Yes, it does make a difference to say the words out loud.) I practice when I am in my car driving alone or while on the treadmill at home. The shower can also be a great place to practice.

Try these ideas with your next presentation. Even if you only use one or two of these tips, you will have taken a huge step toward being a speaker who compels audiences to stay awake and listen. No one will be snoring in the back row.

Laurie Brown is an international speaker, trainer and consultant who works to help people improve their sales, service and presentation skills. She is the author of The Teleprompter Manual for Executives, Politicians, Broadcasters and Speakers. Contact Laurie through The Difference.net, or (877) 999-3433, or at lauriebrown@thedifference.net

Susan note:

On August 28 I will be interviewing Kathy Bote in a teleclass on Getting the Audience Involved. You may attend and or order the mp3. http://www.speakerservices.com/teleclasses/detail/105

Short overview- Want to give a presentation they’ll never forget?
Need to energize your audience AND get lasting results?
Simply want to be an amazingly dynamic speaker with life-changing impact?
To make a difference today, you have to get the audience involved! Learn how to creatively involve your audience and UP fun and retention by 80 percent or more!

At the Speakers’ Bootcamp we teach the communion approach to speaking. Speaking from the heart. At the Bootcamp you will be branded, media coached and learn how to use a dynamic template for organizing your talks. The Bootcamp is very interactive and hands on and transformational. You will never hear anyone snoring in the back row!

The following photo is from the July/August Bootcamp. Next Bootcamp November 5-9.

Good speakers become great speakers with the proper training. Investing in professional speaker training can greatly improve your bottom line.

There is no downside to improving your speaking skills.

The key to effective speaking boils down to one thing: The ability to be able to tell a compelling story. I was taught years ago that effective advertising was reduced down to the acronym A-I-D-A, which stands for 1.) Attract their ATTENTION. 2.) Stimulate their INTEREST 3.) Create DESIRE and 4.) Move them to ACTION.

Creating an effective speaking presentation is not much different than those guidelines. When we speak, we are actually selling. We are trying to communicate or get someone to adopt truths, facts, inspire action, etc. How many times has someone in your life said to you, “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it”? Most of us have heard that. We have all worked with very accomplished, well-educated people who are absolutely brilliant in their field, but when they spoke, they almost put us to sleep. How many of us have listened to an individual who was charismatic, compelling, and attractive and then when it was all done, you ask yourself, “What did they just say?” or you don’t remember a thing they said. It was all show with no substance. To get on the road to more effective speaking, you must master what you say AND how you say it. The best way is in a story-type format. In my sales training over twenty years ago I was taught that “facts tell, stories sell”.

Stories or story-type speaking bring a message to the heart and mind of the audience. One such method is what I call the PSOx3 speaking template. It is a no-brainer method for creating compelling speeches. This stands for presenting a Problem, Solution, and Outcome and doing it three times during the presentation. This humanizes the presentation and it allows the listener to relate to the issue presented. It creates a mental picture which makes the topic more memorable. Here’s an example. Let’s use a motivational topic that goes like this; “John Smith had only twenty dollars in his pocket. He was laid off with no possibility of being rehired. His position was outsourced overseas. He had two kids in private school and a baby at home. His wife worked part-time three days a week.

They could not make it on her income alone. They only had enough financial cushion to pay their bills for about three months. He knew he had to make something happen, and do it quickly. One day after paying his bills he actually had to make a decision whether to fill up his gas tank or buy groceries. This was the turning point in his life. It was either cave in to the desperation and depression or rise to the occasion and go into business for himself. He felt no one was going to hire an over-40 professional like him at the salary he had been accustomed to. One day while reading newspaper, he read a story about how a large percentage of attorneys were not getting the clientele they desired. He spotted a need. Problem leads to profit. He was skilled in writing marketing materials for a large company for the past twenty years. Why couldn’t he do it for another industry?, he asked himself.

This lead him to make his first phone call to a local attorney who confessed that his business was slow and he was at odds in how to get more clientele and increasing his referrals. John made an appointment with that attorney. He became John’s first client. That was 250 clients and three years ago. John’s now has three employees that all work as independent contractors from their homes. He also works out of his home. He and his staff meet in person once a week for brainstorming sessions to give the virtual company a more human feel.”

Now when you read the story of John, in a very short period of time, you are pulled in to his plight, feel his despair, and experience the hope he has with the advent of his new business. When this story is told, as opposed to just telling facts, you feel for John. When it is presented with pauses, increases and decreases in speech volume, and the appropriate body gestures, you are well on your way to creating a memorable speech. As in a good TV screenplay, you can clearly identify the problem, solution, and the outcome. The story of John is one you remember and isn’t that the reason why we do presentations at our work, places of worship, and service organizations?

George Bruno has been speaking in the private and public sectors for 25 years. He has been a guest and host on various talk radio programs in New York and Pennsylvania. In the early 80′s, he traveled on a drama team for three years performing in churches, prisons, and schools. In the late 80′s and early 90′s, he performed as an improv comedian in comedy clubs, café’s and fund raising shows in cities on the East Coast, including the renown Bonkers Comedy Club and the Chestnut Street Cabaret in Philadelphia.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=George_Bruno

Related Resources:

StoryTelling CD or MP3
Spice up your presentations through storytelling by Jack Barnard

Speakers’ Bootcamp – practice stories and organize them into your template

Talk Up Your Business was a great success here are a few short video snippets that I took with my flip video camera.

Jack Barnard talks about Branding

Here I am talking about ways to make money as a speaker and working for a training company is one of the ways.

At the Speakers’ Bootcamp we include branding, media and presentation skills. Our folks walk out with their talk in hand.

Susan Levin and Jack Barnard are brilliant, not only did I learn how to put an effective presentation together and I got a dynamite brand!
- Lorenda Phillips, Business Coach

See Lorenda’s Video

Interested in the 5 day intensive? Speakers’ Bootcamp might be your ticket to play the GAME. Coming up July 30-August 3 in LA.

Denise Wakeman one of the ladies of the Blog Squad attended Talk Up Your Business. Denise and her partner Patsi will be one of the speakers at the October Speakers Summit.

And our friend Tony DeMaio of BigMedia USA. If you want to do a radio show Tony is the man to speak to.

For the past 16 years I have been working with professionals and authors to support them in growing their business and income through speaking. We have literally have trained hundreds of people and I have watched them go through our programs and climb to the top of the ladder. Some of them are making millions of dollars as a result of learning how to communicate their messages clearly, getting branded and learning how to call people to action to buy their services. Here are a few of their brands we created: Opportunity Knocks, The E-Zine Queen, The Essential Entrenprenuer, The Extreme Dreamer….

What do all of these folks have in common? They are passionate about what they speak about and they continue to receive training no matter what level they are at and they all have Speaker Services in common. The following are just a few of the comments I received this week from some of our clients.

Barbara Niven, Actress and Speaker wrote- Susan, I got another booking for my eating disorders speech! Another $10,000 one, thanks to you and Jack! I will be speaking to students at several high schools and told them if they can do that amount I will speak several times at different venues over a few days time. I think we can really help make an impact and a difference.

Richard Petty, MD wrote- Four of our group made it to the video shoot on Sunday, and it was an amazing experience for all of us.I really hope that if you didn’t manage to come this time, you will be able to have the time and money to do it next time. I may be slightly biased, but I really thought that Laurie, Jodi and Doug did the best presentations of the day. Coincidence? I think not. If you are wavering, I would really suggest having a look at their videos once they are posted. I think that you will be astonished to see what we are ALL now capable of doing.

I am going to share a story which isn’t about me, it’s about all of us. About two weeks after the Boot camp I spoke at a meeting in Chicago. I’ve spoken before, and I know that I can persuade people using data, logic and an occasional merry quip. But this time was different.I remember the MC introducing me, and I know that I showed a few slides to illustrate my points. But I don’t remember much else apart from noticing that the entire audience got teary eyed at one point, and the reaction at the end – and in the following weeks – was extraordinary. Karl has talked about the impact that the Bootcamp had on him, and I am sure that it has changed all of us. . Don’t worry if the speech isn’t perfect. I know that mine wasn’t! But it got the points across better than anything that I had done before.

And Eileen Joyce wrote the following verse following the March Bootcamp

What happened to me in the Speakers’ Bootcamp
I went not knowing quite why
I flubbed a lot of exercises
And had the time of my life

Each day opened something new inside
Although I couldn’t tell you what

Then the day after it ended
I see who I am, what I’m doing and saying
who wants to hear it and what we all get from it!

I’m selling
a way to open your heart—to the secrets it holds
so you can fully express all your pain and your passion.
Start living each day like it’s the last one you have.

I call it Speaking From Your Heart
And we all can do it!

THANK YOU Jack Barnard and fellow beings

If you want to make a difference in your speaking and transform the way you deliver I suggest you consider Speakers’ Bootcamp, Authors’ SpeakEasy, the Video Demo Showcase and getting listed on Speaker Services. Feel free to e mail me susan@speakerservices to set up a free session to talk with me as to how we can help you.

The following post is from Six Minutes- A Public Speaking and Presentations Skills Blog- Andrew Dlugan

- Research a topic – Good speakers stick to what they know. Great speakers research what they need to convey their message.

- Focus – Help your audience grasp your message by focusing on your message. Stories, humour, or other “sidebars” should connect to the core idea. Anything that doesn’t needs to be edited out.

- Organize ideas logically – A well-organized presentation can be absorbed with minimal mental strain. Bridging is key.

- Employ quotations, facts, and statistics – Don’t include these for the sake of including them, but do use them appropriately to complement your ideas.

- Master metaphors – Metaphors enhance the understandability of the message in a way that direct language often can not.

- Tell a story – Everyone loves a story. Points wrapped up in a story are more memorable, too!

- Start strong and close stronger – The body of your presentation should be strong too, but your audience will remember your first and last words (if, indeed, they remember anything at all).

- Incorporate humour – Knowing when to use humour is essential. So is developing the comedic timing to deliver it with greatest effect.

- Vary vocal pace, tone, and volume – A monotone voice is like fingernails on the chalkboard.

- Punctuate words with gestures – Gestures should complement your words in harmony. Tell them how big the fish was, and show them with your arms.

- Utilize 3-dimensional space – Chaining yourself to the lectern limits the energy and passion you can exhibit. Lose the notes, and lose the chain.

- Complement words with visual aids – Visual aids should aid the message; they should not be the message. Read the Presentation Zen book and adopt the philosophy.

- Analyze the audience – Deliver the message they want (or need) to hear.

- Connect with the audience – Eye contact is only the first step. Aim to have the audience conclude “This speaker is just like me!” The sooner, the better.

- Interact with the audience – Ask questions (and care about the answers). Solicit volunteers. Make your presentation a dialogue.

- Conduct a Q&A session – Not every speaking opportunity affords a Q&A session, but understand how to lead one productively. Use the Q&A to solidify the impression that you are an expert, not (just) a speaker.

- Lead a discussion – Again, not every speaking opportunity affords time for a discussion, but know how to engage the audience productively.

- Obey time constraints – Maybe you have 2 minutes. Maybe you have 45. Either way, customize your presentation to fit the time allowed, and respect your audience by not going over time.
- Craft an introduction – Set the context and make sure the audience is ready to go, whether the introduction is for you or for someone else.

- Exhibit confidence and poise – These qualities are sometimes difficult for a speaker to attain, but easy for an audience to sense.

- Handle unexpected issues smoothly – Maybe the lights will go out. Maybe the projector is dead. Have a plan to handle every situation.

- Be coherent when speaking off the cuff – Impromptu speaking (before, after, or during a presentation) leaves a lasting impression too. Doing it well tells the audience that you are personable, and that you are an expert who knows their stuff beyond the slides and prepared speech.

- Seek and utilize feedback – Understand that no presentation or presenter (yes, even you!) is perfect. Aim for continuous improvement, and understand that the best way to improve is to solicit candid feedback from as many people as you can.

- Listen critically and analyze other speakers – Study the strengths and weakness of other speakers.

- Act and speak ethically – Since public speaking fears are so common, realize the tremendous power of influence that you hold. Use this power responsibly.

Andrew Dlugan enjoys studying public speaking and delivering presentations. He has taught courses, conducted seminars, coached speakers, and emceed events. He is an award-winning public speaker and speech evaluator.

Andrew has an engineering background which spans cancer research, satellite data analysis, and web technologies. He is a father and husband who resides in British Columbia, Canada. Contact Andrew: dlugan@gmail.com

We just finished the 5 day Bootcamp and I am always blown away by the comments of the attendees. Eileen Joyce wrote a poem about her experience.

See a very short one camera video that was created at the Bootcamp.  Doug McKee  click here.

See more comments and next Bootcamp Dates. I will be adding some of the short videos that the attendees created soon on the Bootcamp page and here as well.

What happened to me in Jack’s Speakers Bootcamp
I went not knowing quite why
I flubbed a lot of exercises
And had the time of my life

Each day opened something new inside
Although I couldn’t tell you what

Then the day after it ended
I see who I am, what I’m doing and saying
who wants to hear it and what we all get from it!

I’m selling
a way to open your heart—to the secrets it holds
so you can fully express all your pain and your passion.
Start living each day like it’s the last one you have.

I call it Speaking From Your Heart
And we all can do it!

THANK YOU Jack Barnard and fellow beings

Here’s the gang

Yesterday, I spoke to a group of authors who are going through a year long program called Quantum Leap. The Harrison brothers owners of RTIR and producers of the Publicity Summit invited Jack Barnard and me to talk to the authors on how to grow their businesses and services through speaking.

I spoke to them about the marketing end of speaking and gave them an overview on how to create a winning strategy. We also know that authors have a tricky time speaking about their books and need a bit of help in the presentation department. Jack shared how to play the game of speaking and how to get the ticket. Several of the folks resonated with that and signed up for our 5 day Speakers’ Bootcamp at the end of March.

Today Wendi McNeil weighs in on Marketing Strategies and Tips that will help you to position yourself…

Becoming a professional full time speaker isn’t easy…everyone knows that, it takes a lot of dedication, determination and most important you have to have the passion, if the passion isn’t there then my suggestion would be, don’t even attempt it! I could spend days teaching you how to package yourself as a professional speaker and how to gain more exposure, but the following article as been bundled to give you just a few quick tips and ideas so you can start implementing them into your business.

1. Niche Yourself

Yes, I know you have heard this many times and it couldn’t be truer! One of the biggest mistakes a speaker can make is having too “general” of a topic. You want to narrow your expert niche as much as possible. Become the Speaker of Choice, research your topic industry so you know “what’s hot” and “what’s not”. Take that research and develop a niche around it, be sure it is something you have experience with and will be able to present it as a professional expert speaker in that field. Don’t waste your time, energy and money on developing a “niche” that just isn’t going to get any recognition because it isn’t something that planners will be looking for! Do your research and I do put emphasis on this tip! Once you have discovered your niche, you must continue to practice your speaking skills and update your material and presentations to keep-up with the trends and changing issues.

2. Build your credibility

There are many ways to build your credibility and become known as an expert, but this tip is about building your credibility by knowing your audience.

Your job as a presenter is to take the context you will present and put it into a form that your audience will understand and can relate to. You want them to really understand what you’re saying. Always remember your presentation is not about you, it’s about the audience, what they want to know, and what they want to know is what’s in it for me? How will you help their business grow?…How will you help them save time…save money…How will you make them feel!

Vision yourself sitting in the audience you will be presenting to and ask yourself, “What do I want to get out of this?”, “What do I want to learn?”, “What’s in it for me?” Once you can perceive yourself as a participant of the audience than you can start putting the pieces together in building a top notch presentation that your audience will remember and one that will have members coming to you and asking you to get your schedule out because they want to book you.

The more you relate to your audience, the more you know your audience, the better your chance of building your credibility…you have an audience that is happy, engaged and drawn to you and one that is saying…Hey, this speaker knows his stuff…he knows us!

3. Develop an eye-catching media kit

Planners get hundreds if not thousands of proposals and media kits every year. You have to “wow” them immediately to grab their attention, before they set it down and go to the next one!

Make sure that your media kit is up to date, precise and professionally put together. Nothing else turns away a meeting planner or organization more than an unattractive, boring, and unorganized media kit. They won’t even bother with it nor have the time of day to look over the remaining contents if they don’t like what they see at first glance and many times the hours, days and money you have spent in putting it together are now wasted as it sits on the planners’ shelf gathering dust. I know this seems a bit harsh, but being on the ‘inside’ I know this to be true, as I have seen it many times, so just spend some time on your kit when putting it together or possibly re-do the one you already have, remember you want to catch the eye of the reader to draw them into reading more.

4. Have an online presence

Develop a website with information on your experience, topics you cover, promotional material available and testimonials from previous clients. You don’t need a big, fancy, or expensive website to attract visitors and the attention of meeting planners, just make sure you are catering to the planners needs and have the information easily accessible and downloadable. If you’re an article writer make sure you add your articles to your own site.

If your budget doesn’t allow for your own web site, join speakers’ organizations and add your name to their online listings – The more exposure you get, the better your chances of being found by people seeking speakers.

5. Work with meeting planners

Very important: be willing to work with them. Don’t be so stubborn that you talked yourself right out of one of the most important speaking engagements of your career. Most planners are eager to work with the speaker, but you also have to be willing to “give a little to get a lot”. Remember you want to be a magnet to planners and the “hiring” company, not an itch under their skin. So be pleasant and be negotiable and give them the best performance possible and in return they will continue to book you and recommend you!

You want to position yourself within the meeting planner realm as being enjoyable to work with, fun, and easy-going! Trust me on this one, there is nothing worse then working with a stubborn, un-pleasant speaker who is unwilling to budge or negotiate, it doesn’t matter if they are well-known or have years of experience, planners don’t have the time for this nor want to deal with it. I also want to mention, don’t be too quick to pass on a free speaking engagement as this can bring you more opportunities (Many great enterprises were built from small opportunities).

6. Introduce yourself as a contingency speaker

This is one way to get your “foot” in the door. One of the biggest fears of a meeting planner is a “no-show” or cancellation of the scheduled speaker. You can send out a letter via email or regular mail to event planners, program managers, etc.

Your initial contact with the event planner should be on eliminating one of their largest fears. If you have a properly written letter and have done your research, you will more than likely make an immediate friend. This is where the business relationship begins and in most cases, the event planner or “hiring” authority will book you in because you have approached them this way.

7. Marketing yourself

Add this to your weekly business tasks, this is of course a must, if you don’t market you all know they won’t find you! You have to go to them…let them know you are unique, you are knowledgeable, you are the best and that you can knock the socks off their audience. Don’t be afraid to approach meeting planners, you want to keep your name fresh in their mind! Be PERSISTENT!

Standing out from the crowd is a major challenge for today’s professional speaker. Marketing yourself and your company, should be one of your major priorities, which requires to be done on a regular basis. Unless you have ample time on your hands and the expertise it takes to market yourself effectively, one of the best suggestions we can make is hire a professional marketing specialist or consultant/public relations company. Find someone that will work side by side with you in developing a marketing campaign that will benefit you and your speaking career.

If your budget does not have room for the expense of a professional PR agent then there are many ways you can gain exposure and become known as an expert in your field by doing some simple marketing techniques that are sure fire ways to get you the attention you need. Remember to be unique!

8. Interact with potential clients

It is very important to mingle and network! Get yourself noticed. Hand out business cards every where you go. Talk to everyone you meet. Go to seminars and meetings that are the same as your expertise. Watch and pay attention. Who are the attendees, what is their reaction to the speaker on the platform? Most importantly, be very personable and agreeable with every meeting planner you meet. You want to leave the impression that you are easy going and willing to make adjustments at the last minute. Meeting planners don’t like to work with difficult and irritating speakers, it doesn’t matter how well known you are in the speaking industry. They look for someone with humor, an abundance of energy, flexibility, and great content!

9. Write a book/ info products

This is a BIG credibility builder. I know it’s not as easy as it sounds, but if you are an expert in your field and you have information you want to share, I would suggest writing a book or some informational products. This is an excellent marketing tool and an addition to your income. We know you have the speaking ability and you know what you want to say, but some speakers just don’t know how or have the time to put it in book/product form. You do have the option of outsourcing that task. There are many companies who specialize in that field and can assist you with your project.

10. Article writing

Almost everyone knows about article marketing and submitting them online, but I just want to mention it again. I would have to say I bring up article marketing at least 5 times a day in many different conversations because that is how important I feel article marketing is. You are a speaker…you are an expert…so you shouldn’t have any trouble writing a simple article. Add article writing and submitting them online to your marketing plan and do it on a regular basis. This is one of the best and FREE ways of promoting yourself and your business, and also gaining more visitors to your website!

Many times I see an excellent article that was written with just the authors name, no contact information…nothing! Well, if you’re like me you don’t have the time to try and do a search on this author to find their site and learn more, you want instant contact information by just clicking your mouse so you can be taken directly to where you want to go. So, don’t forget to add an eye-catching bio at the end of your article so readers can find you and learn more. Be sure and include your contact information including website and email address.

Wendi McNeill is the owner of Charli Jane Speaker Management and while working closely with speakers for many years, she assists them in growing their business and shares her expertise, knowledge and passion that are needed to grow your speaking business. She knows what planners are looking for and how to make a good impression by using simple techniques that can cut off months of research, save you money, time, and energy by mentoring and guiding you in the right direction. You can also learn more about speaking leads, visit www.CharliJane.com to learn more about her services.

I have been exploring the various ways that business folk use video as a marketing tool. Today I am going to share several creative ways that I discovered and also you can see my first attempt at creating a video montage using my mac laptop and photos to share info about my services. I know the video is not great and I will get better at it and I love the possibilities.

Many of our speakers and authors have created one-three camera videos. For speakers it is important to do a three camera shoot in front of a live audience. Meeting planners want to see you in action.

But first let’s hear what Paul Kleinmeulman thinks about video..

If you are marketing just about anything online then I guarantee that you can make it better with video. You have heard that pictures tell a thousand words well video says a million. There isn’t a better way for you to describe, show and teach people then with video.

But Before We Go Any Further Lets Answer This… But Why Videos?

Let’s take a look at the reasons why you should seriously consider videos for your online marketing endeavors.

* People respond more to videos. They are more appreciative of what they can actually hear and see, after all, instead of what they can only read.

* Videos instantly give your brand a lot of credibility. Videos carry with them a sense of professionalism that’s quite difficult to match in the digital world.

* Videos can easily be delivered to a wide market. They’re not like eZines that require the contact details of your leads beforehand. Videos can actually become viral ever so easily. Just launch one compelling and engaging video and you’ll be surprised by the sheer amount of traffic it will generate for your website.

* Videos are more efficient sales tools than any other digital mediums. You can clearly and efficiently convey whatever you want to share. Videos provide visual and auditory mediums that you can manipulate to present your ideas in the most efficient way possible.

* Videos are known to be highly effective for casual online users who are quite hesitant when it comes to offers on the Internet. Since videos pack more credibility when compared to other mediums, they are more capable of winning the segment of a market that is generally considered hard-to-get.

* Videos allow a lot of liberty for creative expression. You are not limited to certain styles, manners, or rules. Your imagination can run free and create the most memorable and exciting package your viewers are sure to appreciate and enjoy.

* Despite the high demand for videos these days, they are still considered unique and special presentation formats that are sure to entice people to “tune in” to whatever you want to share through such a medium. You will have fewer problems attracting their attention as videos, by themselves, have the power to draw an audience.

See the video montage that I created. Mind you it is my first attempt

Speakers Services

Attorney Judd Matsunaga and Judd Mcllvain, Radio & TV News Reporter
http://www.audioacrobat.com/playv/WlKHhfHx

Publicizing Your Blog
http://videos.webpronews.com/2008/01/22/how-to-publicize-your-blog?click=1

Al Lautenslager, Speaker and author sends a follow up video message to a meeting planner.

He says… Hello Becky.

Just a quick note to follow up our conversation regarding speaking on your webinar series. I love your concept and know that the information on Guerrilla Marketing, marketing with low and no cost marketing tactics will work well with your audience. When can we establish a date for this? Thanks, Al.

For more information about having Al speak to your conference, seminar, meeting, convention, etc. click on this video postcard directly from him:
http://www.youonyourwebsite.com/Al/Postcard.html

See Charles Haywood, owner of a salon and reflexologist
http://perfectskinla.com/massage_reflexology.php

Post your videos on youtube see 11 videos I posted
http://www.youtube.com/user/speakerservices

Selling product
http://www.videoese.com

Julie Thong, Speaker and Author
http://www.speakerservices.com/speakers/detail/270

Tony Alessandra, Speaker
http://www.alessandra.com click on video

See authors video segements
http://www.bookwrapcentral.com

That’s it for the moment.

Send me your comments or your videos so we can share it with others.

Need professional video? Call me we can help you. 310-822-4922 PST

Here are a few tips for you from my colleague TJ Walker http://www.tjwalker.com

TJ says:

To be a great speaker, you need to be a student of all types of speakers—the good, the bad, and the boring. Whenever I am listening to a presentation I like to sit as close as possible to the speaker I am going to hear.

Yes, this means walking up to the front and sitting in the middle of the front row. It can be a bit unnerving at times but it affords you the perfect view for examining a presenter.

Most of us, when attending a seminar, conference, or large group meeting are very much inclined to sit toward the back. By picking a safe seat we can blend into the crowd, avoid being called on, play with our blackberrys, or sneak out the back. We all need to do these things occasionally, but I encourage you to try sitting in the front. Keep in mind, the first time is always the hardest.

There are several advantages to sitting front and center:

1. You can observe the speaker without distractions from other people.
2. You are less likely to distract yourself because you are less likely to doodle or get distracted by your PDA.
3. It is simply more interesting to see someone up close because you can always hear and see better.

When you see a speaker doing something you like or that you judge to be effective, it is easier to make notes on it when sitting up front. Other then when I have to leave early, I always try to sit in the middle of the front row.

The only other exception is when I want to gage the audience’s opinion of a speaker in which case I will stay on the side, in the middle of the room (occasionally standing) to see if people are sleeping, or if they are invigorated.

Remember, every speaker you hear, regardless of their skill level, is an opportunity for you to improve your own speaking skills.

Today’s post is all about how speaking can lead to more business by Jeff Wolf written for Rain Today. Before we get to the post I want to share some of our services with you. I think you will agree after reading the following article that it is helpful to have training.

Speaker Services, my business offers lots of training for developing presentations as well as a marketing venue through our online paid listing service to get your message out to the public. E-mail me at speakerservices@ca.rr.com and request the guidelines for getting listed. BTW: We have been in business since 1992.

Yesterday I posted several video testimonials from the Speakers’ Summit

When you have a moment please take a look at what our clients are saying about our training. The Summit is offered once a year in May.

The Speakers’ Bootcamp is another opportunity to work with us. This is offered 3 times a year and is a five day intensive. Next time will be March 26-30 and we only take 20 people. If you are interested in seeing how we coach our folks contact me and I can send you a short instructional mp4 video for viewing. Oh yes, I have a 60 minute audio Q & A on the Speakers’ Bootcamp page that you can download and listen to at your leisure.

The Speakers’ Community Membership Site is coming along and I will be telling you more about it in the very near future and offering you 30 days for free to check us out. You can read more about my intentions if you click on the ink above that says Speakers’ Community.

I want to remind you that being media savvy plays a big part of your speaking practice. That is way we always include media training in all of our trainings. The 3rd MediaSpeak Symposium is scheduled for October 11, 12 & 13. I encourage you to check it out and to attend. This event is for anyone who has a service, product or book who desires more exposure via the media. Reminder: Early registration fee by Sept 1 and save $150.

I welcome your comments please send them my way.

Okay Jeff Wolf take it away. Speaking Your Way To More Business
You are trying to build your book of business. With the competition getting nimbler and more aggressive, it hasn’t been easy. Clients are unfaithful, yet they’re demanding more of your time. You have tried to be a consultative business developer, working on building relationships. You’ve been trying to do as much as you can with limited time.

One way to improve your business development — for yourself, your firm, and your colleagues — is to get out there and give a talk to a roomful of people. Presenting your positions shows you as an expert, or, better, the expert, in your area of specialty. Speaking to a captive audience allows you to make your points and deliver your strongest messages. The crowd will hang on your every word. You are the authority everyone came to see and hear.

If you do it well, you’ll find this form of business development is incredibly successful. It attracts new clients. You become a people magnet. They’ll walk up to you, engage you in conversation, slip you their business cards and say, “Please call me.” Translation: “I like your message and think you are the type of professional with whom I want to do business.” The calls and emails will continue for several weeks as word of mouth spreads through the business community.

Sadly, most speaking opportunities end up wasted. All that worry about the presentation, the pressure of the prep work and, at last, the performance, result in an empty-handed return to the office.  But you can come back with a list of potential clients who are excited about working with you and your firm. As a professional speaker and presentation skills coach, I have seen many service providers speak in front of audiences over and over. Most have no clue how to give their audiences a motivating and memorable experience.

A Golden Opportunity Wasted

I recently gave a keynote address in Los Angeles and, prior to my talk; the association had a lawyer give the membership a legal update. His thirty-minute monologue of facts and figures, presented in a droning, monotone voice while leaning on the podium, was a disaster. I watched in disbelief as a golden opportunity to connect with the audience slipped away, second by second. Every two or three minutes, groups of people got up and walked out.

Flabbergasted, I watched an audience of over 500 people, previously excited to be there, shrink by about 50%. When the speaker finally finished, he garnered a smattering of half-hearted applause – mostly because he had finished. The emcee thanked him and asked, diplomatically, if we could all take a 10-minute break — so they could regroup everyone for the next presentation – mine.

This is one of many sad examples of service providers wasting not only their own valuable time, but also the audience’s valuable time while leaving a bad impression in the minds of 500 potential clients. When I talk with service providers who have just given a presentation, they usually think they have done a tremendous job. Yet, no one comes up afterward or they never receive any calls or emails from the members of the audience. They then tell me, “Speaking is a waste of time and it just doesn’t generate business.” My answer to these providers is very simple and straightforward: “If you give a great speech, business will follow.”

The Key To Success

If you are going to be a presenter, the expert, the font of wisdom, you must remember one central fact. It’s not about you. It’s about them, the audience, the listeners, and people who are investing their precious morning, afternoon, or evening to hear and see you.

They listen intently with one question in mind: what’s in it for me? They want to be engaged by your personality and passion for your subject matter. If you are passionate about your topic, your listeners will become excited about it, too. If you deliver your message with enthusiasm, voice variance, and convincing inflections, staying clear of the podium and employing dramatic body language, you will become a people magnet.

That podium puts a wall between you and the audience. Ditch it and connect with the people you want to win over. Don’t let the podium be a barrier – that just tells those folks you’re nervous and uncertain. Remember, you’re the expert. You know your material frontwards, backwards, and inside-out. Come out in the open and be open. Stand tall and confident. Connect. Smile and use a tone of voice that makes people feel good.

Here’s something to take to heart. A famous UCLA study on communication found that:

• 55% of communication is body language
• 38% is tone of voice
• 7% is the actual words

A Success Story

Last year, I spoke at an event attended by over 700 people from companies large and small. After my speech, I sat in on a couple of workshops. One was a presentation by an attorney to about 75 people. A podium stood at the front of the room, but she didn’t go near it. Instead, she walked from side to side and up and down a few rows. Why? To connect with her audience. She carried herself with poise and dignity, and was passionate about her subject. Everyone could see that she knew her stuff and was well-prepared.

She gave her talk with energy, passion, and style. When it was over, I counted 25 people who went up to her and handed her their cards, saying they were interested in speaking further with her. After the room emptied, and while she was packing up her things, I walked up to her and introduced myself. We talked about how her presentations were generating new business for her firm and the self-evident benefits for herself.

She said she had been doing approximately eight to ten presentations a year. Each year, her speaking had led to increased revenues. We shared a knowing laugh when I told her our consulting firm has seen the same results.

When I asked her what the key to her success was, she said, “Most lawyers think it is a waste of time to speak because they don’t want to make the effort to practice. Most of my colleagues have the attitude that it is always about them but, in the real world outside of law, it is all about the needs of the audience. That’s why I continue to speak and keep growing my practice at an unbelievable rate each year.”

My friend e-mailed the following video that he saw on You Tube - Elvira Speaks
When you have a chance take a look at it-it’s a riot.

You’ll probably agree after viewing it that you do need to be prepared to speak!

Many of my colleagues feel as I do that it is vitally important to have a coach and to continue to take seminars to enhance their skills.

At Speaker Services we offer lots of training. The Speakers’ Bootcamp is a great intensive for honing your speaking skills. Our next Bootcamp is March 26-30, ’08.

The MediaSpeak Symposium is great for anyone who has a service, product or book and wants to get more publicity.

Does any of the following sound like you?

You want to:

- Communicate your key message to the news media, audiences and clients

- Position yourself as a savvy media guest/expert

- Create grabber sound bites that attract attention

- Sell books on the radio and TV

- Develop dynamite pitches that attract producers and editors to spotlight you now

- Choose the best promotion strategies for print, TV, radio or Internet

- Discover how to pitch to multiple media outlets

- Become a sought-after talk show guest who gets booked again and again

- Convince newspapers and magazines to run feature stories on you and your work

- Nail any interview without getting clobbered

- Craft print and online media kits that reporters will love

- Adapt your ideas into a screenplay or TV pilot

Then you need to be at the 3rd annual MediaSpeak Symposium, October 11-13.

Psst: sign up by Sept 1 and save $150.

Would you like to have a video presence on your website? The BizSpeak and Video Workshop is a one camera shoot with a full day workshop attached to it.

There are just a few slots open at this time. Grab one-it’s only $497. A steal.

When I went to You Tube today to see the Elvira Speaks video I created an account and uploaded 2 short videos. One is with Jack and me talking about Why Video is Important and the other is of one of our speakers Suzanne Stanford talking about Internet Safety. Click here to view them. Suzanne’s is a one camera shoot that we shot at the Speakers’ Summit.

If you are a speaker and you want to get booked for speaking gigs it is necessary to have a 3 camera video shoot in front of a live audience. We offer a Video Demo Showcase twice a year for 18 folks. Take a look at some of the streaming samples on my website. I have 2 openings for Nov 4.

I got sidetracked today with the Elvira Speaks video and now I have to get back to work!

More later.

Susan

Thank you Jack, and fellow booties for helping me dump outdated thoughts, feelings and behaviors and claiming the resourced communicator within!
- Doreen Van Leeuwen, LMFT

The Bootcamp is truly a transformational experience. Jack’s generosity with his skills, knowledge and talents helps everyone make gigantic strides in their speaking abilities.
- Raul Martinez, Mortgage Planner

Jack and Barbara

Betty and Barbara

Bootcamp was indeed an experience. It met my expectations and more. I left with an incredible brand and identified a plan and process for developing speeches and seminars.
- Betty LaMarr, Executive Coach

Jack is the Wizard of Oz for speakers. Every person had a profound transformation and walked away with marketable branding and a solid speech foundation. Thank you Jack, for your heart and soul. We’ll take part of you with us out into the world.
- Barbara Niven, Actress, Writer, Director, Speaker

Darryl

I asked God to bring people into my life that can help me reach others struggling with addictions. I truly believe Jack has moved me to the front of line.
- Darryl Hagar, Merchant Marine Officer, Author

The depth and practicality of this 5-day Bootcamp was as inmpactful as Jack’s passion and personal genius for his topic. Thank you for setting me up as a speaker and helping me create our brand.
- Otto Siegel, Genius Coach, Author

Jack takes us to our growing edge and pushes us beyond it.
- Rik Isensee, Author, Therapist

I had an eye opening experience. Jack is the master coach of masters.
- Roy Brown, Speaker

January Jones

The Booties 8/07

What a great group of folks

Angie and Marlin

In 5 days Jack unraveled and untangled 20 years of insecurities. He took me on a journey into authenticity which (to my surprise) revealed an inner strength that I didn’t know was available.
- Angie Milhous, Speaker, Change Your B.S.

Jack has the unique ability to quickly identify, understand, extract and teach his students the true messages they most desire to speak about… The Speakers’ Bootcamp was the perfect forum to obtain the necessary skills to learn the magic of speaking.
- Marlin Keesler, Author, Our Life on the Run

Susan (me) talking about marketing yoursef as a speaker

Jack teaching

Jack and Carlos

The phone rang the other night at 10pm and it was one of our new speakers calling in a panic. The message was, I need to talk to you right away, I got a call to speak out of state and I don’t know how much to ask for a speaking fee-help!

When I responded, I asked her a few questions ie: what’s the budget and who is the group? She answered the later but didn’t know what the budget was nor did she know how to negoiate a fee plus put together a contract.

I sent her a sample contract (I included one for you below) along with a pre-program questionairre and offered suggestions on how to speak to the meeting planner.

Yesterday, I was teaching marketing skills at the Speakers’ Bootcamp and shared the same information with our “booties”. BTW: Tomorrow is the 5th and last day for the Bootcamp and we’ll be offering it again in March ’08.

Here I am talking about negotiating fees

Here are a few tips on how to negotiate fees

- Have a small form made up and ready when potential customers call. List: Who, What, Where, When, Why and How. When they ask you to speak for their group, smile and say “Tell me more.” After you get all the rest of the information ask this question: “What is your budget for this program?”

- When clients say they need to negotiate and reduce your fee, do not give them a bargain price for no viable reason. Find a way to exchange value for value. When you do this, customer will have respect for you and the quality of your services you offer. If you do not value your work, no one else will.

Reasons to Consider a Lower Fee

- Showcase Opportunities to Prospective Buyers: If working for this client has marketing opportunities for other speaking, consulting, or product sale. Audiences of speakers bureau representatives, meeting planners, and association or corporate executives fall into this group.

- Barter part or all of your fee: If the client has a service or product that is of real value to you, barter part or all of your fee in exchange. Speakers have traded speeches and seminars for new automobiles, long-distance dialing credits, boats and many other valuable things!

- Exchange part of your fee for an ad in their company or association publication: If the audience might prove a good market for your books, cassettes, products, and other services. An ad is a concrete value which has a price which you can negotiate.

- Exchange part of your fee for an ad their event program brochure. These ads can bring you cash sales. An ad is a concrete value which has a price which you can negotiate.

Talking to the “booties” about marketing

Sample Invoice for Payment & Agreement to Engage

Description or title of the event:

Date(s) of engagement:

Time Frame for presentation:

Location:

Correspondence, billing etc shall be directed through:

The client, _________ agrees to pay _________ (speaker)
the following fee of $______. In order to secure the engagement date, a
non-refundable 50% deposit in the amount of $2,000, or full fee less 10%
discount in the amount of $3,600 is due within ten (10) working days upon
the receipt of this agreement. The balance of $2,000, if applicable is due
by ______

The engagement is confirmed only when payment and signed
agreement is received by (your name) _________________________.

Payable
to_________________________Address________________________
Phone ______________ Tax ID#________________________________ .

Travel expenses from ______________ to __________, and two nights hotel
accommodations, to be pre-arranged and paid for by the client Other out of
pocket expenses such as meals, ground transportation, etc to be reimbursed
by client. Client consents to having any products (books and tapes) (name) ________ displayed and available for purchase at, or just outside the room
where his presentation is held, All proceeds go to (your name) ______, unless
client wishes to order products wholesale for resale of the event.

Because of the potential loss of income and travel complications for(your name)_______, if the engagement needs to be rescheduled by the client, (your name)_________ must be notified at least 45 days before the event, or a surcharge of 20% will be added to the total fee.

Cancellation within 45 days of the event carries a surcharge of 35%, in
addition to the deposit, plus all expenses incurred by (your name) ______ in
preparation for this event. Al late fee of 10% of the balance applies if
the balance is not paid by the due date.

If (your name) ______ is unable to deliver the work to be performed due t illness, injury, or an act of God, the client can either reschedule the engagement,
or receive a full refund of any fees paid.

Reservations for two nights accommodations will be made at _________________

Transportation from the airport provided by _________________________

Transportation from the hotel to the meeting site provided by_______________

If questions arise, Mr. ______________needs to contact _________________
Phone number: ___________________ E-Mail: _________________________

Approved by the client, signature ________________________

title______________________ date ______________________

Approved by Mr. _____________ signature and date________________________

The summer 5 day Speakers’ Bootcamp started today and I captured some fun photos of the ‘Booties”

We have 18 attendees from all around the country learning how to be better speakers.

Betty and Barbara

Jack and Carlos

Darryl

l

Booties get to work

I was honored to be be choosen to be included in the Get Inspired Section of The Quest for Success E-Zine, produced by Ursula Mentjes, March 2007 .

Ursula is one of the speakers listed in Speaker Services directory. She speaks about business, goal planning and sales. See her speaker listing.

Her book is Selling with Intention: Learn the 10 Principles of Selling with Intention and boost your sales revenue or the sales revenue of your team by 200 percent – or more!

Here’s the Article:

Get Inspired

Susan Levin, owner and founder
Speaker Services, www.speakerservices.com
Marketing and Training Speakers and Authors

15 years ago I had a vision to create a heart-centered and “grace-full” business. I had been an entrepreneur since 1970 and Speaker Services was different than my other businesses because it was visioned. I practiced the spiritual principles of a life-driven vs. fear-driven business, continued to vision and be mindful to the law of attraction. I must say, today I am a poster child of a successfully visioned business and it has allowed me to support thousands of others in realizing their personal and professional dreams.

As business owners and soloists we are accountable and challenged to find ways of marketing ourselves. We must be creative with the shifting marketplaces, economic upheavals and a diversified population. Speaking is an excellent way to market your business and it can lead directly to new business. You can turn your experience into a speech that will bring you credibility, exposure and business. Norman Vincent Peale said, “When you get people to listen to what you believe you get on fire yourself, big fires, little fires––that never go out.”

I chose a business that filled a specific need, made it real in my mind, built a strategy, did the research and within three months I was up and running with Speaker Services Print Directory. In 1994 I was one of the first 1500 people to have a website. The right people always stepped forward and the business became an effortless dance once my vision was clear. Bringing speakers and authors together with audiences became my passion!

In addition to the online directory we offer The Speakers Summit, Speakers‘ Bootcamp, MediaSpeak Symposium, Visionary Business Conference, Video Demo Showcases, customized and individual presentation skills and marketing training for business folks.

We have trained thousands of business folks over the years and are very proud of their accomplishments. It is a joy for me give people wings and watch them soar.

When I find myself stuck, I always remind myself to toss out fear, to make room for new information, insights and creative solutions. When we come from that space then we can choose and allow creative spirit to do its job.

Allow me to assist you in growing your business through speaking. Give me a call at 310-822-4922 PST, e-mail me: susan@speakerservices.com and sign up for our e-zine.

I share the following Marketing Tip with you:
Market Yourself Through Public Speaking
Copyright © 2006, Marketing Maven, Wendy Maynard

I could not say it any better then the Marketing Maven.

Susan’s note: Speaking is the absolute best way I know how to grow your business and income. You do not have to be a professional speaker to speak. What you do need is to be passionate about what you speak about and be wiling to share information and inspire your audience and be wiling to be coached and go to workshops and keep on learning and getting better at what your practice.

Speaking to small or large audiences is a great way to create leads for your e-list, sell your products and to garner clients.

Last week I offered a Teleconference called Speakers’ Summit. I interviewed 9 experts on branding/media, communion, connection and content, info products, to Web 2.0, creating CD’s and I did one on the Business of Speaking take a look at it as it is offered as a home study course and you might just want to have it. There are 10 MP3′s and over 150 pages in handouts.

If you are ready to do an intensive and really want to play the game of speaking-check out the Speakers’ Bootcamp offered Aug 1-5 or again in March ’08. This is only for serious folks, 60 hours of interactive coaching with a saml group of 20.

BTW: Have you signed up for Speaker Services e-zine? Past issues are archived on the website from 1998-chock full of information.

Take it away Wendy…

A noteworthy way for you to get exposure and new customers is public speaking. As a small business owner, it is always a more powerful position to be in the front of the room than in the back. You further position yourself as an expert and reinforce the brand as YOU. People tend to perceive speakers as being more important than non-speakers.

Create a core talk that reinforces your specialty and practice it. Come up with a compelling title for your speech. Remember, your presentation isn’t a sales pitch; it’s a way to showcase your expertise. So, provide great, practical information that is helpful to your listeners.

Make the same speech in lengths of 30 minutes, 45 minutes and 90 minutes. This will be a talk you can use over and over again at many different types of events. Show confidence by using humor and letting your passion shine through!

During your speech, your audience gets an opportunity to meet you without obligation. They get a sense of your personality, style, and expertise. And, you get to showcase your expertise. The people who like your approach will either hire you or spread the word about your company.

Your audience is a goldmine of prospects, so don’t miss out on this opportunity to get their contact information. Be sure to pass around a sign-up sheet to collect the names of attendees. As an incentive for signing the sheet, offer them a free special report or a subscription to your ezine.

In every city, there are associations, service clubs, and support groups that are looking for speakers for their meetings. Check your telephone book and highlight some of these. You can start with smaller groups as practice.

After you feel comfortable with your speech, seek out larger groups who have members in your targeted audience. When you call, ask for the name of the person in charge of lining up speakers. Offer to speak for free and explain the ways in which your speech will benefit the group’s members. Be sure to mention the remarkable title you developed – it will help sell your presentation.

Once you begin to promote yourself as a speaker, groups will hear about you and you’ll find yourself getting requests, as well. After you begin to get more engagements and feel at ease with speaking, add more speaking topics. If a group liked your speech, you can contact them again and tell them you have new material and they may ask you to return to speak again.

Develop a speaker’s sheet that you can send to groups with your speech title and description. Create a page on your website that describes your expertise, background, and speaking style. Include testimonials if you have them. Hand out information to your audiences about you, your company, and your services. If you have information products, you can often offer these for sale for people to purchase at the event.

Public speaking is a powerful way to get new customers and leads, so be sure to incorporate it into your quiver of marketing techniques. You’ll find opportunities abound when you commit to getting yourself out there in the front of the room!

ACTION ITEM: What idea do you want to develop into your core talk? List three potential ideas right now. Then, come up with an attention-getting title. Show them to your existing customers and ask them which one is of the most value to them. Develop the winner into a speech of different lengths.

Wendy Maynard, the Marketing Maven, publishes REMARKABLE MARKETING, a weekly ezine for small business owners, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. If you’re ready to skyrocket your sales, easily attract customers, and become more profitable, get your FREE TIPS now at http://www.gomarketingmaven.com/ezine.html

Welcome to Market Yourself as a Speaker blog. Dedicated to sharing information with business folk and authors who are interested in using speaking as a way to grow their business.

I am Susan Levin a marketing consultant for speakers and authors. I was one of the first 1500 people to have a website in 1994. I have assisted thousands of people with their speaking careers for the past 15 yrs.

www.speakerservices.com is my website which brings speakers and audiences together. Unlike a speaker bureau I do not take commissions however, I do charge a fee to be listed on our site and all the calls go directly to the speakers and they do their own bookings. I feel that given the opportunity to speak to a group of 10-100 is a blessing and a terrific way to attract business.

Speaking is a business and like any business it must be nutured.

In addition to the online directory I offer conferences, symposiums and summits plus video demo showcases.

I have a fantastic team of folks who I work with and I refer to them all the time.

Our E-Zine is archived on my website for the past 5-6 years. It offers great articles and tips and advice as well as leads.

Next time I will share some marketing tips with you.