Lorianne Speaks on How to Get Booked At a Conference to Speak | PoP 438

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Lorianne Speaks on How to Get Booked At a Conference to Speak | PoP 438

How can you get booked at a conference to speak? How do you stand out to conference and event planners?  If you want to approach an event planner to speak, what is the necessary info you need to provide them with?

In this podcast episode, Joe Sanok speaks with Lorianne Speaks about tips for new speakers, how you can get booked to speak at conferences and what marketing materials you need to have.

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Meet Lorianne Speaks

Lorianne Speaks

Lorianne Speaks is an expert in the area of Speaker/Author support. She amplifies the visibility of Authors/Speakers/Messengers while they do what they love – SPEAK! Lorianne has helped spearhead multiple best-selling book campaigns – editing, proofing, through to launch and social media marketing to help authors create buzz and momentum throughout the social media platforms and increasing their message World-Wide.

Lorianne and her team have made it their mission to empower speakers to deliver their message by handling the rest of the details!

Visit Lorianne’s website and connect with her on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

In This Podcast

Summary

  • Tips for new speakers
  • Speaking at conferences and events
  • Making sure you stand out to the conference planner
  • Basic materials a speaker needs to have

Tips for new speakers

A true, good speaker will take the time to do interviews with the people that are running the programs, to find out what their pain points are so they can direct their message to the audience in the best possible way.

  • You need to have very good marketing materials so that when you are asking for the opportunity to speak, you’ve got all the necessary information on hand and ready to send.
  • Dive deep into your ideal client, the more you can niche down, the better your message can be.
  • Limit how many different topics you want to talk about.
  • Know exactly what you want to say, what your message is and what your goals are.

Speaking at conferences and event

  • Identify someone you really look up to, follow them on social media and see where they are speaking.
  • Attend conferences even if you are not asked to speak because it gives you the opportunity to network and learn.
  • Get to know the program directors for the conferences, they will keep you in mind for events.

Making sure you stand out to the conference planner

It’s not a sales pitch up there, you need to add value.

  • Share news of their event on social media
  • Compliment the event and the planners
  • Add value by offering help

Basic materials a speaker needs to have

  • Media one sheet which includes a 200-word bio, 3 different topics that you speak on (include a 2 sentence description on each) and 3-4 learning objectives that the audience will walk away with
  • Testimonials
  • Highlight reel to show yourself interacting with an audience and how you come across
  • YouTube channel with other speeches you have delivered

Click here for the free download on Top Ten Ways to Create Massive Growth in Your Speaking Business.

Books by Lorianne Speaks

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Meet Joe Sanok

private practice consultant

Joe Sanok helps counselors to create thriving practices that are the envy of other counselors. He has helped counselors to grow their businesses by 50-500% and is proud of all the private practice owners that are growing their income, influence, and impact on the world. Click here to explore consulting with Joe.

Thanks For Listening!

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Podcast Transcription

[JOE]: This is the Practice of the Practice podcast with Joe Sanok. Session number 438.
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Well, welcome to the Practice of the Practice podcast. Hey, do you want to work less and optimize things to make more money? You know, I used to think that was just slimy talk for people that, I don’t know, that try to sell you something and get rich quick kind of thing and it totally sounds like that at times. And sometimes a crack just comes in, but honestly, I work three days a week. I usually start at 9.00 or 9.30 after working out and dropping off my kids at school. You know, sometimes I’ll even hit the hot tub before I start working and I’m almost always done by 3.30 or 4.00 so I get lots of time to play with my kids after school and do all sorts of other things. I do that Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I would love, absolutely love to show you how I do this, help you get to the next level with your big idea in your practice and meet you in person in Northern Michigan.
If you haven’t scheduled your interview to talk with me about Slow Down School, time is running out. Head an over to slowdownschool.com and click the link to find a time for us to talk. You’ve got to do that soon because we’ve got some money that’s due and you know we can only have so many rooms for Slow Down School and I want you there. If you’re ready to get to that next level, now is the time to act. Don’t put it off. We’re planning on not doing this event in 2021 because I’m going to be on the road with my family. We’re going to be living out of national parks for a year. So again, slowdownschool.com, head on over there.
Now today’s guest Lorianne Speaks, she is insane. She’s so awesome. I actually bumped a bunch of podcasts down to put her in this series because it fits so well with this speaking series that we’re doing and she’s going to talk all about what people that book conferences look for, things that you can do when to outsource. I mean, it’s just a killer interview. So without any further ado, here is Lorianne Speaks.
Well, today on the Practice of the Practice podcast, we have Lorianne Speaks. Lorianne is an expert in the area of speaker-author support. She amplifies the visibility of authors, speakers, and messengers while they do what they love – speak. Lorianne has helped to spearhead multiple bestselling book campaigns, editing, proofing, and through the launch of social media marketing process. Lorianne welcome to the Practice of the Practice podcast.
[LORIANNE]: Thank you so much Joe. It’s a pleasure to be here.
[JOE]: Yeah, I’m really glad to have you. I think it’s always great to talk with people that are supporting speakers and you really help people that are looking at going big and so if you’re listening right now thinking, “Oh, I might do a little bit of speaking locally,” this might be helpful, but this is really for people that are saying, “Yeah, I want to become more of a speaker nationally. I want to maybe write a book or kind of increase my social media presence.” Get to that next level beyond just kind of your regular speaking. Would you say that’s pretty accurate as to your ideal client Lorianne
[LORIANNE]: Yes, definitely. Someone that really wants to be known in the real circle of expertise.
[JOE]: Awesome. What, well, let’s start with what do most kinds of new speakers, so maybe somebody launched an e-course and they want to get out there on the stage a little bit more to sell it or they have a new book. What is a handful of things that they usually screw up?
[LORIANNE]: Well now let’s be nice. I think it’s really just a matter of knowing all the pitfalls that can happen. You need to have a very good marketing piece so that if you’re asking for the opportunity to speak, you’ve got all your materials there so that that podcaster or that conference person can see exactly your background, what your expertise is in and what you plan to talk about. So it’s really having all the pieces together so that you come across as the professional that you want to be.
[JOE]: Yeah. I think a lot of times what I see in my consulting clients is they’re so highly educated and have so many different interests that they have many messages they want to share. What are some maybe pitfalls people run into when they’re crafting their message or who they want to focus on serving?
[LORIANNE]: You really want to dive into that ideal client; who exactly is that person? Because the more you can niche down, the better your message can be and the more attractive you will be to that ideal client. You want to really limit how many different topics you want to talk about. Now when I put together a piece, however, for a speaker, we will do maybe three major topics that we will talk on, but we also have a disclaimer at the bottom that says, ‘All our speeches can be tailored to your audience.’ So they don’t feel that it’s just a canned speech. A true good speaker will take the time to do interviews with the people that are running the programs to find out what their pain points are so they can direct their message to the audience in the best possible way.
[JOE]: What other pitfalls do they run into?
[LORIANNE]: Well, I think it’s just a matter of really knowing what they want to say and what their message is and what their goals are. When I take on a new client, I really sit them down and say, “What is it you plan to accomplish this year?” And then I’m that detail person that goes and reverse engineers it and we take the steps necessary to get there. But you do need to be clear on your message and what your goal is or you know, just a lot of people don’t like the term ‘goals’. It’s what those milestones are that you want to hit, who you want to talk to, and it’s just being clear in your message. And a lot of people don’t dive into the actual message that they need to put across.
[JOE]: That’s really helpful. Now, I’d love to kind of hear what people that are booking speakers, kind of, what are they looking for, what are, how does that happen? Because I think sometimes similar to finding a booking agent or it just seems like, yeah, people do it, but how do you even find someone that is booking a conference other than to just Google, you know, conferences [crosstalk]
[LORIANNE]: And a lot of that is that, especially if you’re new.
[JOE]: Yeah. And so, I guess for people that are newer what should they know about what most conference planners are looking for? What are some of the best practices around that? How do you not kind of have an unnecessary full pot? Take us through some of those things.
[LORIANNE]: Okay, sure. When you are looking as to where you might want to speak, especially, if you’re, you know, in that health counseling kind of environment, you know the conferences that you love to go to and you probably know more than I who is that icon in the industry that you just think really has their act together, they are the top dog in the, you know, genre. Follow them on social media, see where they’re talking, go to the conferences even if you’re not asked to speak because it gives you the opportunity to network and get out there and learn. One of the things that I actually say is if you’re just starting and you know the conference you want to speak at but you missed out on the speaker submission window, which is something you really need to keep on top of because usually your speaker window, to do a submission, what we call an RFP is a good six to nine months before the conference if not even a whole year.
So sometimes you may miss the opportunities to speak that year. Go to the conference anyway, learn, get to know. I’m a big believer in getting to know the directors, the program directors for the conferences because if you show them the value that you bring, they’ll keep you in mind for the following year. So, it really is just like everything else. You have to network, you have to get to know where the movers and shakers are, start following them on social media, make great comments, retweet for them. It will get noticed and that will get your name up there too.
[JOE]: Oh, that’s awesome. You know, I’ve had that same thing happen when I look at the keynotes that I’ve received and even some connections that happen where someone says, “You would be a great fit.’ This actually just happened for a Podfest recently. I was talking to Matt and Joe from the Flowchart and, how does it go again? Their flowchart and, I’m blanking on the rest of the name of their podcast, but they had recommended me as a speaker at Podfest and talked to Chris the planner and I mean, we’re a month out from this event and they just recommended me. And so he found a spot for me to facilitate a panel on monetizing a podcast. And, you know, even just going there and saying, “I just want to be around these people because as we continue to grow our Done For You services or Podcast Launch School, being around other podcasters and just seeing how they do things and having those connections I’m sure will lead somewhere. And so going and saying, “Yeah, I would love to help facilitate a panel there and I would love to help promote Podfest and to be more in that network,” really helps me get connected there and you know, honestly Matt and Joe, I just want to hang out with them as well. So even if I don’t remember their podcast name off the top of my head.
[LORIANNE]: But you know what, that’s exactly the way you need to be. You are actually helping them out obviously a month before someone either canceled or you know, they realized, “Oh my God, I don’t have a facilitator for this session.” And you’re helping him at the last moment. I assure you, assuming everything goes well with the panel, you’ll be invited back next year from the get-go because you came in and helped them in a situation. And that’s exactly what you want to do. The likelihood of being, unless something you’ve done has gone totally viral, you are not going to be the keynote speaker on your first year out. It’s just not going to happen. You need to do those panels, do the concurrent sessions, and be there to help the program manager, make sure that all their spots are filled. And that way you’re seen as someone who they would really want to continue to work with. So it really is a matter of being helpful as well so that it’s not all about you. What can you do to help their program be even better?
[JOE]: That’s awesome. I’m wondering what are some maybe little tips or hacks that help you stand out when you’re actually in those moments because I heard, I think it was on Grant Baldwin’s podcast, one of his, individuals he was interviewing said to bring something local from your area to give to the conference planner as a thank you. And so I’ll often bring dried cherries because Northern Michigan is a big cherry capital or I’ll bring some cherry wine if it’s appropriate. And, I’ve done that for a number of years whenever I speak and the conference planners always appreciate it because you know, they might get a thank you card or something, but what are little things like that [crosstalk]? Yeah, exactly. So what are little things like that that maybe can help you stand out but not in a way that seems like you’re just trying too hard?
[LORIANNE]: Well, there are some real no-cost ways to do that and that would be to follow them on social media or the conference or whatever and retweet for them so you’re getting their message out. They notice that. They notice that you’re helping them advertise the conference, which is huge. I mean they ask that of all speakers to make sure that they put it out there in their social media. You’re doing it without even getting anything out of it. It’s seen. It truly is seen. You want to, in that compliment them, say, you know, if it’s something you’ve actually been to in the past, go, “My gosh, last years was so great. I can’t imagine missing it this year.” That kind of tweet, it gets noticed. I’m not necessarily a big believer in gifts for them. Because you know what? They’re so busy, they’ve got, they’re running around a conference hall, they’ll probably lose it in the interim unless they just open it in the back-staff rooms so that everybody can have it. What I believe in is being helpful and being positive and, and helping them out if they need some help. “Hey, you know what, my speech isn’t for another three hours. Can I help you do something? What’s up?” Because we all know that when we put together an event, it can get crazed at times. No matter how many people you have on staff, if they see that you’re helpful, it’s going to come across very well.
[JOE]: 100%. I mean, I think about when we did Killin’ It Camp this past year, out in Colorado, the people that volunteered the most and helped out, they totally stand out in my brain. My wife was our volunteer coordinator and in the end she was just like, “Oh my gosh, these three people, even though they were supposed to donate five hours, because of their volunteer ticket, volunteered 20 hours.” And you know, that’s amazing to hear these people investing in the community to make it even better, to just give back.
[LORIANNE]: Exactly. And you know darn good and well you’re going to invite those three back.
[JOE]: Oh absolutely. For sure.
[LORIANNE]: Yeah, exactly. And if they do have something that they want to talk about, yeah, it may be the far backstage, but you’re giving them an opportunity and that’s all you really need. It’s because if you’re sure about what your message is and that you are adding value, you know, it’s not a sales pitch up there. You need to add value and if that’s what you’re doing, it will come across. So, yeah, I really think it’s just a matter of being where you need to be, being helpful, and again, following that icon because that’ll show you where that person is speaking at too. We said those are the ones that you want to make sure down the road you put them in an Excel program. I do that for my clients because as we do research, we’ll see that we missed, you know, the window of submission. But when I do a full research project for a client, they get that Excel forever and so they can go, “Oh okay we missed it this time.” But the window is usually between March one and you know, April 15th, whatever it might be. But that way you’ve got it for future reference and this is a document that can go with you.
[JOE]: Yeah, I’m a big believer in using kind of repeating calendars where even if it’s annually to just have an annual reminder, like check out this conference to see if they’re open submissions. And then I don’t have to think about it because it just pops up in my calendar.
[LORIANNE]: Exactly.
[LORIANNE]: Now let’s go through maybe some of the essentials that someone needs to have if they’re ready to start speaking more nationally. And so I’m thinking, what are those basic materials that a speaker needs to have that you would say, that I know that you help them make, but you know, whether they’re making it through you or on their own, what are those essential kind of components that maybe people need to have?
[LORIANNE]: Oh, sure, sure. And you’ll find that sometimes the submission is via an email, which makes it really easy to send your really nice Media One Sheet or your speaker packet depending on, you know, how big and how much money you can spend. But it can be done on a budget for sure. You need to have a Media One Sheet and that includes, say about a 200 word bio, which helps them with regards to introducing you just as Joe did for me, three different topics that you speak on and please include at least a two-sentence description. I usually write more if it’s actually a speech that you’re going to do from a stage but a good description and three to four learning objectives that that audience will actually walk away with.
You want to have, you know, where you’ve been? At least a couple of testimonials, about your speaking and how you gave a great message to some organization or whatever. The other piece is a Highlight Reel. For those that are speaking on stage, it’s of paramount importance. You want to have, and it doesn’t need to be more than two to three minutes max, but you want to be able to show yourself interacting with an audience and how you come across. Gone are the days of somebody standing up at a podium and giving an hour lecture. It’s just not going to fly anymore. You want to have an interactive session and you want to have something that pops, that says, “Hey, this guy’s really got it together. And so, a Highlight Reel is very important for a speaker that wants to hit the stage. You should have a YouTube page with other speeches that you’ve given or videos that you’ve done or podcasts that you’ve done and have a YouTube page that you can direct people to go see you delivering that message.
[JOE]: Oh, that’s so awesome. Well, walk us through after maybe somebody does a big talk. What are some things to kind of keep that momentum going?
[LORIANNE]: Oh, sure. And if you have a book, one of the easiest ways to get the names and business cards of the people in the audience so that you can follow up with an offering is to raffle off your book, have two or three of them and say, “If you want my book, go ahead and put your business card in the fishbowl or whatever you’ve brought,” and then pick two or three people for the books, and they’ve won the book. So that they go away with your book. But you now have 250 cards in that fishbowl for you to follow up with. And that’s when you get that virtual assistant to do all the data entry into your CRM. And while you’re devising your message, they put in all the data entry and you can get that out. You need to get that next message out within the week before they forget who the heck you are, especially if it’s a big conference. I work a lot with leadership speakers and so, you know, like the ATD kind of environment, you have tens of thousands of people at those conferences and so, you know, they’re going to forget who the heck you are unless you follow up that week. And so, it’s really about being very proactive and making sure that your follow-up is clean.
[JOE]: Oh, so many good tips. Well, Lorianne the last question I always ask is if every private practitioner in the world were listening right now, what would you want them to know?
[LORIANNE]: I’d want them to know that we all have a message that we want to get out there. And, don’t think of all the things that you can’t do. Think about the things that you can do and think about how your message could help someone and just go for it. I am a behind-the-scenes person. I laughed when people asked me to be on their podcast. “No, no, no, no, no. I’m the one that gets my people on the podcast. I don’t do podcasts.” I am having such a blast being in front of the microphone instead of being the person behind. But that’s still not my, this is not my superpower. My superpower is behind the scenes. So, but, embrace your superpowers and give them to the world. We need to know these messages. So don’t say, “Oh, nobody wants to listen to me.” You’d be surprised. Someone may need to hear your message.
[JOE]: Oh, that’s so awesome. Well, you have a free white paper called Top 10 ways to Create Massive Growth in your Speaking Business. Tell us a little bit about that and how people can get a copy of it.
[LORIANNE]: Sure. You can just go straight to my website. And Joe, don’t roll your eyes at me. They do not have to submit their email to go into my CRM. It is totally an absolutely just go in and download it. I won’t even know that you did it to be very honest with you. What that means for me is because I love to get information from all sources but I don’t like the 10,000 emails that follow with something upsold. So this is my little, you know, piece of information for you. It will give you some of those things that I did talk about already, but, it will give you some great ideas on how to grow your speaking business.
[JOE]: Oh, awesome. And what’s that website again?
[LORIANNE]: It’s www.lvsconsultingservices.com. That’s Lorianne Von Speaks, my initials.
[JOE]: Awesome. And we’ll have a link to that in the show notes as well. Lorianne, thank you so much for being on the Practice of the Practice podcast.
[LORIANNE]: My pleasure. Thanks so much, Joe.
[JOE]: Okay, if you’re not inspired to do more public speaking after those four episodes on it, maybe speaking is not for you. Maybe you should be a blogger or something. But honestly, it’s that thing that’s going to get you to the next level. I want you to just step out a little bit out of your comfort zone. You’ll make your stomach flip a little bit. That is so good for you to do that. Push yourself to try something new this year. Push yourself to try something new in your community or reach out to your state association and see if maybe you can speak there about something. You have a message that the world needs to hear and we want to hear it as well. We need to hear it.
Alright, so I also want to thank Therapy Notes so much for being our mega sponsor. Therapy Notes is the best electronic health records out there. If you use promo code [JOE] at checkout, you are going to get three months for free. They don’t offer that anywhere else. In fact, they even offered our Next Level Practice people six months for free if they’re new. So it’s pretty awesome. So head on over to Therapy Notes, connect with them, get started to keep organized with your notes. Thanks so much for letting me into your ears and into your brain. In the next episode, Alison Pidgeon is going to take over the podcast and tell you all about how to start and grow a group practice. Thanks for letting me into your ears and into your brain. Have a great day.
Special thanks to the band Silence is Sexy for your intro music. We really like it. And this podcast is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regards to the subject matter covered. It is given with the understanding that neither the host, the publisher, or the guests are rendering legal, accounting, clinical, or other professional information. If you want a professional, you should find one.