WARROAD, Minn., Feb. 2, 2011 — Getting speaking engagements in the Christian market, churches and at faith-based organizations is getting increasingly competitive, according to new findings by WomenSpeakers.com, the largest online directory of Christian women speakers in the world.
"There are lots of speakers available to planners, but there is a trend toward booking from inside the organization instead of hiring out," said Marnie Swedberg, speaker trainer and web hostess of WomenSpeakers.com. "Motivational speakers, inspirational speakers and women Christian speakers who want to stay busy and booked need a strategic plan."
The great news is that there are still tens of thousands of speaking engagements being awarded to outside speakers each year. Those who are strategic about their positioning will secure the most bookings.
"Getting prime visibility online is key," said Swedberg. "Also, speakers need to increase their media value, improve their presentation skills and try to get a book written and published in their own field of expertise. These are the ways to increase your chances at being chosen to speak at events, meetings and conferences."
Swedberg offers five tips that motivational speakers, inspirational speakers and business speakers need to address to get more speaking engagements.
1. Be everywhere. When your name comes up as a potential speaker, how easy is it for a meeting planner, event organizer or speaker bureau to find you? Do they already have your one sheet? Have they received an email from you in the past six months? If they do a Google search, will they see your home page or a glowing media article about you at the top of the results page? Or will they see your competitors' sites? One proven way to get found on search engines is to register with reputable online directories like http://www.WomenSpeakers.com.
2. Be Internet and media friendly. Once a meeting planner, event organizer or speaker bureau finds your website, how easy is it for them to find your media page? Make it super easy to find and download your topics, media/speaking experience, demo clips, full color professional photo and contact information. Planners, media producers and speaker agents are super busy. They don't have time to hunt for the information they need.
3. Be hot on the spot. During your first interaction with people — by phone, on the stage, or in an elevator — speak in sound bites that make every minute matter. For example, when you hit the stage, you have 90 seconds to make an impression. You must communicate: "I am your partner. I respect your time. I am prepared. I empathize with you." You have mere minutes to focus wandering minds, gain the audience's commitment to stay involved and generate group laughter. There is a free training on how to speak in sound bites available at
4. Be well-referenced. We live in a society that requires social evidence before people will believe anything. Use your LinkedIn profile to easily capture letters of recommendation. There's an easy way to do this. Write a recommendation for your connections whenever you have something genuinely complimentary to communicate. The LinkedIn system automatically asks the recipient to respond in kind. Many people do. Since these quotes are intended for public view, there is no need for additional permissions. Plus, you have instant access to their professional title and photo. Marnie's free resource, SANE: Social Networking Success in 15 Minutes a Day, explains how even the busiest speakers can find time to drum up business in this manner.
5. Be published. It is common knowledge that published authors get booked for more paid speaking engagements than those who have yet to publish a book. The simplicity with which one can be published is a much better kept secret. Marnie's book, eBooks: Idea to Amazon in 14 Days, outlines the steps she took to move an idea from her client to the Kindle store in 14 days and into paperback version on Amazon in just 14 additional days.
About Marnie Swedberg
Author, speaker and experienced media guest Marnie Swedberg is web hostess of the largest online directory of Christian Women Speakers in the world, featuring over 1,400 speakers. She developed this site to serve the thousands of women's ministry leaders in her mentorship program at Marnie.com. She is the author of the book series "The Marnie Method for Super Busy Women," and the host of "Marnie's Friends," an online radio talk show providing practical, doable, fast and effective solutions to the challenges busy women face every day.
For information, go to http://www.WomenSpeakers.com
Contact:
Michele Reynolds
877-774-6986
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