How to Become a Motivational Speaker

6. Develop the mindset of a great entrepreneur

This is a business. Period. If you don’t understand the business, you won’t be successful. If you don’t know what it takes to be a good entrepreneur, you won’t be successful. So, how do you learn the business?

The resource I recommend at the end of this article will help AND if you really want to learn the intricacies of this industry, follow the first three steps.

7. Develop your branding and marketing strategies

It’s all about branding and marketing in this game and there are a thousand and one different approaches you could take.

You could create a fabulous brochure or promotional package and mail it to 10,000 event planners. That's called interruption marketing.

That's what I call "old-school". There are plenty of successful speakers who have and still use these types of techniques, but it is far more difficult to do this nowadays. If you did a mailing of 10,000 and got a 3% conversion rate that would be considered to be pretty good.

Duncan Nugget #232:

Be there with what they want when they want to buy.

In my experience, it's all about being there when event planners want to buy.

Sometimes this boils down to superb networking skills. But it also includes learning proven social media and internet marketing strategies, doing breakout sessions, continuing education, and showcases that enable you to be there when they want to buy. Then you need to be able to hand someone a book, a published article, a great promotional booklet, or direct her to your website.

Demos (short video of you speaking), testimonials, referrals, promotional material that shows off your brand and an awesome website help you get gigs. All of these items are a part of your branding and marketing strategies.

8. Develop your selling skills.

Until your reputation is such that event planners have to have you because no one else will due, being able to sell yourself and your program will be the difference between you getting the gig or some other speaker who agreed to do it cheaper.

Or maybe it could be a speaker who came across as more energetic, experienced, and authoritative. Either way, it boils down to selling.

I learned this the costly way before I started figuring our what was going on. I’ve had excellent conversations with event planners. I remember expecting to hear from them and to this day, I’m still waiting.

When you get on the phone with the event planner or decision maker she has to know your value and the benefits of having you address her audience. She has to know why no one else will do and most importantly, she has to know that you will make her look good.

By the way, you can skip step 7 and 8 if you hire an OUSTANDING publicist or agent. On second thought, you still need 7 and 8...just in case. It would really suck if you wake up tomorrow and your publicist or agent and your business along with him or her, has been abducted by aliens.