by Kevin Nunley
Index
of Articles
Public speaking
is one of the oldest and most effective ways
to market your small business. You can connect
with hundreds of prospects in a very personal
way. It's extremely cheap to do. And YOU will
be good at it when you follow these easy tips!
"Me? Speak
to a crowd?" I hear you say. Consider this...
There are
a great many groups in your area who have
meetings and need speakers. If you have something
of value to tell their members, they'll appreciate
your offer to speak to them.
Check your
local library for lists of organizations in
your city. I was amazed to find over 100 such
groups in my mid-sized town. Everything from
an association of insurance adjusters to a
monthly meeting of hamster growers.
All you need
is some kind of helpful information you can
share with others. Think of the special skills
and information that you use to help customers
in your business. Is there a way to share
that knowledge with a group? All kinds of
specialties make for a good speaking engagement:
money-saving tips, auto repair, political
lobbying, arts, personal advice, how-to lessons,
sports, gardening.
My specialty
is media and marketing. Groups love it when
I give them a few pointers on how to publicize
their businesses and organizations with the
media.
Limit your
talk to 20 minutes. Keep your message simple.
Public speaking is not a good way to explain
lots of detailed information (remember some
of those boring classes in high school that
almost put you to sleep?). Decide on two or
three key points you want the audience to
remember. Bring your points to life with stories
about yourself and others.
Starting
your talk with a bit of humor can break the
ice. A short, harmless quip at the beginning
can give the audience a good feeling about
you. Go for a smile rather than a "guffaw."
It's much safer.
To schedule
a public speaking engagement, contact the
organization by phone. Explain what you want
to talk about. Follow up with a letter and
a flier or brochure about yourself. Call back
in a few days to schedule your talk.
Don't get
discouraged by the fear of stage fright. The
key is not to focus on individuals in the
audience. Think of the audience as an abstract
whole. I've learned this technique from professional
performers who have had to overcome bad cases
of the jitters.
Speaking
to an audience is really no different than
speaking to several customers in your business.
Leave your
sales pitch until the end of the talk. People
will be much more open to you and your ideas
if they feel you are there to help and not
to sell them something. After the talk is
over, provide everyone with a one-sheet explaining
who you are, what you do, how to contact you,
and a summary of what you've just told them.
Finally,
don't give up if your first public speaking
engagement doesn't go exactly as you planned.
There's an old saying among comedians that
you always bomb on your first try. I doubt
you'll bomb on your first speaking engagement,
but speaking will get easier and better each
time you present your knowledge to an audience.
