As an author have you asked yourself: “How can I get paid speaking gigs to sell more books and establish more credibility as an expert?”

Getting paid speaking gigs is like being in College and trying to get credit to buy your first car.

“I did over 100 free speeches before I ever got paid for a single speech.” Zig Ziglar

You need credit to get credit but you don’t have credit and no one wants to be the first one to take a gamble on you. Not like kids who are in College now getting credit cards sent to their dorm room, things have changed.

No one wants to be THE FIRST to hire you as a speaker if they have not first seen you do your thing. So what I will show you in this video and blog post is HOW to showcase yourself as a speaker to get the credibility you need and to begin to get hired as a speaker.

1. Accept Free Speaking Gigs

Be honest. as speakers, we all prefer the paid speaking events. But many a seasoned pro will tell you they did hundreds of free speeches before they got paid for one. This may not be encouraging for a new aspiring speaker to hear but the truth is, in the Internet age, you can log a lot of speeches using my methods below that include Internet interviews.

• Rotary
• Lions Club
• Other Civic groups
• Toastmasters Int’l
• Internet/Radio Interviews

2. Get Photos of You Speaking

Maybe you are thinking: “Yeah right that’s great if I’m speaking on a stage with 5,000 in my audience but I’m speaking to 12-15 people.” Listen, this is no problem. Have someone get some tight shots of you. When it comes to video and photos a good close up with 2-3 people listening intently can be more powerful for your marketing than a wide shot of you lost in the crowd and on a big stage.

I tell our Authors at Beyond Publishing that the purpose of a book signing is not to sell a ton of books, oh it’s nice if and when that happens. But the book signing is all about getting the photo opp so the event can live on in infamy on your Facebook Fanpage and Website for life and help you position yourself more as a thought leader for future books.

Leading an Author Mastermind in Oklahoma

Build out a Photo Album of you Speaking on your Facebook Fanpage and periodically posts new photos of you speaking and having the microphone in your hand. Even if your interview is a Google Hangout, take a screen shot and post it as it is a newsworthy event and a story that needs to be re-told as it is you speaking on your topic of expertise and that makes YOU a subject matter expert in your field.

3. Put together a Sizzle Reel of You Speaking & Include Testimonials

“If a picture is worth a thousand words what is a video worth?” Michael D. Butler

Have someone capture your talk and create a video Sizzle Reel of the talk . This is something our marketing team can but together for you or you can find someone to do this for you.  Even if you do not have live footage of you speaking you can use still photos with voice over audio of you speaking and subtitles with testimonials from what others are saying about your talk.

Another great way to potentially  impress someone who may want to hire you to speak is by having a robust YouTube channel with you hosting interviews, being interviewed and speaking from your heart to your followers. Don’t let the need to be perfect make you wait. As you wait to get the right professional equipment the world and your market is moving on. Get started now. People want to see you. Don’t wait, start speaking and making money with your expert talks! Not to mention, sell more books!

In a future blog post I will talk about Speaker’s Bureau’s Pros & Cons and if you should join one or not.

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Michael D Butler Publisher-Author-Book Launch Expert™

America’s Book Launch Expert™ | Author | Publisher
We help people publish their books and e-books.
We help authors and speakers sell more books so they can charge more for speaking and consulting.

As seen on Fox news Michael has been called a Book Launch Expert™ by Brian Tracy and his clients have been seen on Fox News, CNN, Dr. Phil, Fox Business, Inc 500, Garnered 2 Movie Deals, Dallas Morning News, San Francisco Chronicle, Houston Chronicle and many more.

Ask an expert at http://BookLaunchExperts.com it is America’s Fastest Growing Author Community | Author Talent Scout
BEYOND THE BOOK ~ BUILD YOUR BRAND ~ BECOME A SPEAKER ~ BE THE EXPERT!

What are you waiting for? Doesn’t YOUR book deserve Best Seller Status™ ?

Call 323-248-8996 or email [email protected] today to get on the waiting list and get this program rolling for you.