12 Ways to Use Public Speaking to Get Booked Solid
The Book Yourself Solid Speaking Strategy can be used by virtually any service professional to get in front of potential ideal clients.
The wonderful thing about sharing your knowledge is that it’s rewarding for both you and your audience. They will leave your presentation or event a little smarter, thinking bigger, and with an action plan that will help them implement what you’ve taught them. You will benefit because you’ll know you’ve helped others, which is the reason you do what you do. And at the same time, you’ll increase awareness for your services and products and get booked solid.
One of the easiest and fastest way to get in front of your target market is to invite them to something that is going to help them solve their problems and move them toward their compelling desires. Events that you produce—not necessarily big workshops or conferences but simple, community-building, meaningful, enlightening events at which you can shine, show off your products and services, and build your reputation and credibility in your marketplace are what I call—the always-have-something-to-invite-people-to offer. Here are some examples.
Conference Calls
Start a monthly or weekly call for clients to learn the benefits of working with you. Prepare a new, timely, and relevant topic every time. Pick up a magazine in your industry and use one of the articles to inspire your topic, invite guests to discuss their area of expertise, and ask your clients to tell you what they’d most like to hear about. The rest of the call will naturally flow into a Q&A session. Here are a few ideas to get you started and to spark your inspiration and creativity for your own unique ideas:
- Any service professional can offer a monthly or weekly Q&A on his or her area of expertise. No planning necessary—just show up and shine.
- Accountants can offer quarterly conference calls on updates on tax law along with planning strategies for decreasing tax liability, for example.
- Financial planners can offer weekly conference calls on the best strategies for building wealth using the products they sell.
- Internet marketing consultants can offer web conferences giving updates on search engine optimization and other web traffic generation strategies.
- Personal coaches can offer conference calls on their area of expertise: reducing anxiety, increasing focus, setting boundaries.
If you’re doing a conference call, or teleseminar, as it’s often called, it won’t cost you a dime. There are 100’s of companies that provide these types of services for free, like FreeConference.com and NoCostconference.com, and others that charge nominal fees, but provide additional features, like MaestroConference.com. Record each call and link to it from your website—all these services have conference recording built in. Those who can’t make the actual call will still have the opportunity to listen to it and benefit from it. Archiving the calls on your web site or blog is also a wonderful way of immediately establishing trust and credibility with new web visitors.
Demonstrations and Educational Events
These opportunities are similar to conference calls except they’re conducted in person. Demonstrations and educational events are an excellent way to reach potential ideal clients if your services are physical or location-based or if the people you serve are all located in the same town or city. This approach is also a great alternative if you feel that a conference call doesn’t speak to your strengths. This format is another opportunity to get creative and express yourself.
For example, you could create some excitement with an open house or outdoor demo at the park or at any other venue. Don’t just invite your potential clients but also your current clients, friends, or colleagues who know the value of your services and are willing to talk about their experiences.
- Fitness professionals can offer a weekly physical challenge for clients and potential clients. Ask clients to bring a new friend every week. Each week a new type of workout would be planned with a social event afterwards.
- Real estate agents can offer weekly real estate investor tours where they fill a van or tour bus with active real estate investors and scour the neighborhood hotspots.
- Professional organizers can offer a monthly makeover where they go to a potential or new client’s office or home, along with a small group of 10 or 15 people (it’s not bad to have a waiting list for these types of offerings), and the professional organizer reorganizes the space and teaches the guests the basics of how to be more productive and effective through an organized office.
- A hair stylist can do something similar with the monthly makeover concept. She could even offer a contest or raffle each month, and the winner would get the makeover.
- Any service professional can host a no-cost or low-cost morning retreat. Be playful and adventurous. It doesn’t have to be expensive, just creative. Allow clients to get to know you and meet other people with similar interests and goals. Make it as simple as serving tea, whole fresh fruit, and scones—and share your wealth of knowledge.
- Start a niche club. Consider cool stuff clients would enjoy. Think about activities that you love. Start a creative brainstorming club, weekly play group, or fun family outing.
- Start a product review club. People love sampling products and trying out new solutions. Give clients a taste of your work and introduce them to fun product overviews that will get them connected to your services. Invite other like-minded professionals to join you if you want to add dimension to the event.
Introduce these offerings at the end of your Book Yourself Solid Dialogue. Add, “I’d like to invite you to ______________”or “Why don’t you join me and my clients for a fun, playful _____________.” Try out different venues and topics until you discover the one that works for you. Remember, the difference between the typical client-snagging mentality and the Book Yourself Solid way is that the typical client-snagging mentality plays it safe so as not to look foolish. The Book Yourself Solid way asks, “How can I be unconventional and risky so as to create interest and excitement for my services?”
You will never be at a loss for different things to try or experiences to create for your clients and potential clients. You want to invite as many people as possible to these events for three important reasons:
- You want to leverage your time so you’re connecting with as many potential clients as possible in the shortest amount of time.
- You want to leverage the power of communities. When you bring people together, they create far more energy and excitement than you can on your own. Your guests will also see other people interested in what you have to offer, and that’s the best way to build credibility.
- You’ll be viewed as a generous connector. If you’re known in your marketplace as someone who brings people together, it will help you build your reputation and increase your likeability.
Written Exercise: Create three ways that you can instantly add value to your potential and current clients by way of an invitation.
Upcoming events with Michael Port to get you Booked Solid
STARTS JUNE 30 – BOOKED SOLID BUSINESS MASTERY
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Audio Recording and Transcript of Seminar on How to Get More Clients with Michael Port, David Frey, and Meredith Liepelt
Here is the Day 2 Fearful2Fabulous transcript from a tele-seminar I did with Amy Palmer on how to get more clients and book yourself solid. Also included in the PDF is the transcript from tele-seminars on how to get more referrals with David Frey and how to raise your celebrity profile with Meredith Liepelt. You can also listen to the audio recording. Enjoy!
Super Simple Selling (the Book Yourself Solid Way)
Successful Selling Needs The Right Amount of Trust At Just The Right Time
It’s no accident that I introduce sales in Book Yourself Solid in Chapter 9—after I’ve taught you how to set your foundation and build trust and credibility. One of the reasons that so many sales conversations are unsuccessful is because they’re had at the wrong time—usually too soon—before you’ve earned the proportionate amount of trust needed for the offer being made. Plus, your clients’ buy when it’s right for them—when something occurs in their life or business that compels them to hire you. If these two factors, trust and timing, come together at just the right moment, you’ll have a successful sales conversation and book the business. But this only works if you’ve built a solid foundation, demonstrating that you:
- Have a red velvet rope policy so you work only with ideal clients.
- Understand why people buy what you’re selling so you know exactly to whom you are selling and what they want to invest in.
- Have developed a personal brand identity so you decide how you’re known in the world.
- Are able to talk about what you do without sounding confusing or bland, or like everybody else, and without ever using an elevator speech.
If you’ve set this foundation, a potential client will give you the opportunity to earn their trust. But you’ll only earn their trust if you:
- Use the standard credibility builders and have a high degree of likeability.
- Have designed a sales cycle that starts with no-barrier-to-entry offers including your always-have-something-to-invite-people-to offer.
- Have simple lead generating information products that enhance your credibility and speed up your sales cycle.
Then, and realy only then, are you ready to have sales conversations—that work.
The Secret to the Book Yourself Solid System
This simple 4-step process is the secret to the Book Yourself Solid system.
- You execute a few of the 7 Core Self-Promotion strategies, which create awareness for what you have to offer.
- When a potential client becomes aware of your services they’ll take a look at your foundation. If it looks secure, if they feel comfortable stepping onto it, they’ll give you the opportunity to earn their trust—but only the opportunity. They’re not necessarily going to hire you right then and there. They need some time before they will actually trust you.
- That’s when your plan to build trust and credibility comes into play. As a potential client moves through your sales cycle, they will come to like you, trust you and find you credible.
- When their circumstances dictate that they need the kind of help you provide, they’ll raise their hand and ask you to have a sales conversation (I’ll teach you this in a minute). You have a sales conversation the Book Yourself Solid way and book the business.
The process is simple. The process is sound. It can turn your business life around. And, most importantly, the process is a complete, repetitive, and self-perpetuating system.
The Super Simple Selling System
Now, let’s talk about how to have the sales conversation. I’ve created, the 4-Part Sales Formula for super simple selling—so simple the formula practically works on its own. Why? Because, once trust is assured and a need is met, using this 4 part formula during your sales conversations will book the business. But, please remember, this is meant to be an open and free-flowing conversation not a sales script.
Book Yourself Solid 4-Part Sales Formula
When a potential client expresses interest in working with you, open with a simple question…
Part 1: What are you working on? Or, what is your goal? Or, what are you trying to achieve?
Once you feel certain you know what they want to accomplish and by when, simply ask…
Part 2: How will you know when you have achieved it? What results will you see? What feedback will you hear? What feelings will you have?
Once you feel like the potential client has clearly articulated these benefits, make sure they are fully in the hiring frame of mind, ask…
Part 3: Would you like someone to help you with that (achieve your goal, etc.)?
If they say, “no,” wish them the best of luck and keep-in-touch with them. If they say, “yes,” then offer…
Part 4: Would you like that person to be me? Because, you know, you are my ideal client. (To which they’ll say, “what do you mean?” Because no one has ever said that to them before.) Well, you are someone with whom I do my best work. (They’ll ask “why?” and you’ll tell them…) Because you are… (Here is where you list the qualities that make them who they are and allow you to do your best work.) As, you’re listing these qualities you’ll see their face brighten as they sit up strait and say, “Wow. That is so me! Thank you for noticing.” You’ll say, so shall we look at our calendars to plan a time to get started? And, the answer will be…drumroll please… “Absolutely, yes!”
Don’t use the phrases above verbatim. Instead just use the Book Yourself Solid 4-Part Sales Formula as a framework for a superduper simple (successful) sales conversation.
Written Exercise: Practice without pressure. Try this process with a good friend or colleague and see what happens. Ask them to call you at random a few times over the course of a week and say, “Hi, I’ve been getting your newsletter for a while and I think you may be able to help me, can we talk about your services?” And, instead of doing that thing that everyone does—talk about themselves and their business for 20 minutes—ask them what they’re working on or what they’re trying to achieve or what problem they’re trying to overcome, and you’ll be into Part 1 of the Book Yourself Solid 4-Part Sales Formula. Super simple.
How the Book Yourself Solid System Works…
It’s simple.
1. You’ll create awareness for the products and services you offer using the 7 Core Self-Promotion Strategies (Module Four in Book Yourself Solid).
2. Once you create awareness for what you offer, potential new clients will check out your foundation for stability and security (Module One in Book Yourself Solid).
3. If they like what they see, they’ll give you the opportunity to earn their trust over time (Module Two in Book Yourself Solid).
4. When the circumstances are right, potential clients will either raise their hand and ask you to have a sales conversation or they’ll accept one of your compelling offers and you’ll book the business (Module Three in Book Yourself Solid).
