As a new life coach, you might be wondering how to increase your credibility, position yourself as an expert in your field and grow your life coaching practice. After all, you don’t have Tony Robbins’ experience (yet!)
If you are looking to accomplish any of these things, one of the fastest ways to do it is through speaking engagements. We know that public speaking is one of the greatest fears for many people, so if you’re in a cold sweat right now, don’t panic.
There is a formula for getting booked for speaking engagements as a life coach that will help you overcome the fear and get you in the fast lane for growth.
5 Steps for Booking Speaking Engagements as a Life Coach
Step 1: Know Your Goal
Why are you speaking? Is it to get paying clients or to become a better speaker? Is your goal to grow your coaching practice or to become a motivational or professional speaker?
Understanding the goal behind the talk will help you create the right strategy.
Assuming you want to grow your coaching practice and get some of your first paying clients, speaking engagements can be your best marketing tool. Sure, you may not be paid (or paid much) at first, but the sole purpose of speaking is to get your name in front of the right potential clients. This kind of exposure allows you to introduce yourself and show your audience that you have information that will help them solve their problems.
Once you have successfully delivered some speeches, you can actually get paid a pretty penny for sharing your expertise. Life coaches can often make several hundred to several thousand dollars for a speaking engagement.
Step 2: Develop Your Offer
The most successful marketing campaigns have an end goal in mind. But more than that, they have an offer in mind. What does this mean? When you are in the beginning stages of developing your talk, think about what action you want your audience to take at the end.
Do you want them to download an e-Book or other online product that you have created? Do you want them to sign up for your newsletter? Are you wanting people to sign up for discounted coaching services or special packages?
The options are endless, but it is critical to think about what action you want your audience to take. The reason is simple: your talk will be much more effective if it is aligned with the desired action.
So, if my goal is to encourage people to sign up for my “Improve Your Relationship in 5 Steps” introductory coaching session, I better be talking about relationships in my speech. The audience will see that I have the knowledge they need and be intrigued to work with me to learn more.
Step 3: Create a Killer Talk
Now that you have decided on your offer (and it’s a good one!), it’s time to begin building an amazing talk. If you are at a loss for a topic, think about some of the most common things people struggle with: careers, relationships, motivation, health, money.
Which of these really light you up? Which of these topics do you have the most expertise in? Which of these topics would be most compelling, impactful or helpful to your target market?
Step 4: Research Where Your People Hang Out
This next step is critical and can actually be really fun, so don’t skip it! After you know what you want to say, it helps to get an idea of where you can deliver your talk and see it done by others who are speaking to your target demographic.
Get online and research upcoming events that cater to your ideal client. You can also talk to friends and family members to find out if they know of any groups that have monthly events that your potential clients might attend.
The key here is to observe the events and speakers, while also networking with the event organizers, attendees and speakers. Why? Getting a feel for the event, who attends and how the speakers format their talks can give you tips and tricks as well as peace of mind. Attending an event is one of the best ways to determine if your talk would be appropriate for that group.
Step 5: Pitch Your Talk
If you’ve completed step 4, you probably already know some events and event organizers what would be a perfect match for your talk. In your pitch, do your research on the organization and the people they are working to serve. Be able to clearly explain your talk, who it can help and why it’s different than anything they’ve heard before.
Event organizers are looking for speakers who will engage and delight their audience, while providing useful and actionable information. Make sure you communicate this succinctly while keeping the focus on them, and not you.
Crafting the perfect pitch is an art and a science. Luckily, there are tons of resources online to help you develop the most effective pitch for your next speaking engagement.
And of course, practice makes perfect. Your first speaking engagement might not be perfect, but don’t be hard on yourself. Each opportunity helps you improve your public speaking skills and hone your speech to make even more of an impact next time.
As a new life coach, do you think you will use speaking engagements to grow your coaching practice? Share with us in the comments below!
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