Five Things You Need to Do to Become a Professional Speaker

Whether you’re a novice or you’ve dabbed a bit in the speaking arena, you, too, can become an in-demand professional speaker. There are several things you should do to create the interest and the engagements that will lead to a successful speaking career. Let’s review the five most important ones.

1.         Write a book. Yes, write a book. Authoring a book makes you an authority (that’s where the word ‘author’ comes from!). A book immediately makes you an expert in your industry or field. Are you a relationship coach or a fitness guru? Having a book with your name and picture on the cover will immediately create interest in you and your message and will add credibility to the fact that you are the go-to source in your field. It gives you an advantage over someone who hasn’t authored a book.

2.         Create a speaker’s sheet. A speaker’s sheet is a one or two-page introduction to you. It reveals who you are, as well as your expertise and relevant experience and background. Make it professional, but keep it as brief and to the point as possible, while injecting some of your unique personality into it to give the reader a flavor of your style. Include a high-resolution photograph and a brief synopsis of the topics you are available to speak about.

3.         Join Toastmasters. The best speakers are those who are comfortable speaking in front of groups. Join Toastmasters or other local organizations that help you refine your speaking skills and gain that level of comfort and ease in front of an audience. You’ll also learn how to really connect with your audience, a trait great speakers have perfected. Practice makes perfect, and this is a fantastic way to get that experience and to network with others in the speaking industry.

4.         Start speaking! Start small. Volunteer to speak at local libraries and rotary clubs. Don’t overlook the possibility of being a guest speaker for a parents’ group, an advisory group, or even a writer’s association. There are many clubs and organizations in every community that are looking for valuable content for their audience. Send them a letter, along with your speaker’s sheet, and let them know that you’re available for their next monthly meeting. This builds up your speaking experience, as well as your resume. It also increases your exposure within your community. Before long, organizations will begin contacting you as the go-to expert in your field.

5.         Take it on the road. Now that you have a book in hand and you’ve established yourself as a valuable speaker in the community and your local media, take your show on the road. Attend relevant seminars and workshops in your industry and network with the attendees and the hosts. These are the people who will ultimately be looking for a speaker in your industry in the future. Promote yourself through professional speaking sites and organizations. Make sure you include positive feedback and testimonials you’ve received in the past. With your expertise, experience, promotional material (speaker’s sheet), and your book, you’ve got everything to offer the next time someone is looking for the perfect speaker for their next event.

Controversy: Sneaky New Tax Form, Burden for Businesses

Tax breaks/write-offs are a major incentive for owning a business. Well, a pesky new tax form (mandated by health care reform) will change the way we plan for tax season – another burden for small business owners. Read on for more info…
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In the 1,000+ page health care reform bill, a new tax form burden
completely unrelated to health care was snuck in unnoticed by
the IRS. The full ramifications of this previously unnoticed
paragraph is just coming to light in the past few days.

Here’s the deal.

The provision has to do with the 1099 forms that all businesses
are required to file regarding payments over $600 to freelancers
and contractors for personal services rendered.

This rule applies to sole proprietor businesses and excluded
corporations.

The paragraph basically changes the definition from “personal
services rendered” to “all services and goods” rendered from
“all organizations” (including corporations)

Basically, this means anytime your company spends more than $600
with ANY other business, you will be required to file a 1099
form. The thinking is that by doing this your suppliers will be
forced to report all of their income.

Unfortunately, the cost of this enforcement will be funded by
you and me. Here’s why.

It’s kind of a hassle to get a W-9 form from a freelancer to
request their Tax ID number. But most businesses, only have a
small handful of these, so it’s annoying but not the end of the
world.

Now we have to do the same for every company where we spend more
than $600.

For example, I spend several thousand dollars a year with hotel
chains like Marriott and Hilton. Now I need my bookkeeper to
contact their CFO’s office to request their Tax ID.

But wait, it gets better…

If I recall correctly, each Marriott location is independently
owned and operated. This means that for EACH Marriott location
I’ve stayed in for say more than 4 nights (where my bill would
often be over $600), I need to have my bookkeeper contact their
financial office and have each location send back a form with
their Tax ID on it.

The same goes for the telephone company, Office Depot, Amazon,
my web host, all of my favorite restaurants where I host
business lunches or dinners, the airport shuttle service, the
printer, Apple, Dell, AT&T, the merchant account, Hertz, the
attorney, the payroll service, the domain registrar, and more.

It’s hard enough calling their customer service line to give
them money, now I have to have someone call them to get a IRS
tax form filled out?

I seriously doubt Marriott, AT&T or Hertz is under reporting the
income they make from me — but now I’ll need to take on the
burden of a few thousand dollars in expense to go chase
paperwork.

These are dollars that could have been spent with suppliers
(helping them create jobs), or paying new or existing members of
my staff (boosting their household incomes… and spending in
their local economy), or to invest in marketing to get more new
business (which in turn allows me to spend more with my
suppliers and staff).

I have gone on record repeatedly to encourage clients and
readers that the economy remains highly uncertain. The long term
debt problem in the US in particular has not been resolved by
the “recovery”.

There are many unforeseen consequences that remain.

This is one of them.

And if by some small miracle enough people complain about the
useless paperwork requirements before it takes effect in 2012,
then I’m certain there will be another unforeseen consequence to
take its place.

While I know many of you feel that the business environment has
become hostile to businesses both economically and politically,
I actually do think it’s a mistake to let these external changes
get you riled up emotionally.

Are these kinds of headaches a problem? Yes, absolutely.

Is it worth more than a passing moment of your time and focus?
Definitely not.

Is it excuse for delivering sub-par financial performance this
year? Heck no. That’s a total cop out.

Good leaders deliver the numbers no matter what.

And keep in mind that your competitors face these paperwork
burdens as much as you do. So while these kinds of these are a
total pain, at least they are equally painful to everyone.

So take small mental note of these recent events, and continue
to stay focused on your customers, your company, and your
competitors — and generally in that order — and you’ll do fine.

To Your Profits,
-Victor Cheng

Amercia’s Business Coach(r)

Victor Cheng is revenue growth adviser to owners of professional services and online business within $1 million – $25 million in sales.

As a former McKinsey consultant and the author of four books, he has
been featured as an expert commentator by Fox, Time magazine,
Inc magazine, Fortune Small Business, and The Wall Street Journal.

He publishes an email newsletter on revenue growth for
owners of high growth business.

To subscribe to Victor Cheng’s E-Letter please visit:
http://www.askvictor.com

The Benefits of Teleseminars

Teleseminars are taking the business world by storm, and for good reason. For a minimal investment of our greatest resources—time and money—teleseminars provide massive exposure and an unprecedented return on your investment. Let’s take a look at the many ways a teleseminar can help you boost your bottom line and benefit your business.

1. Teleseminars automatically establish you as the expert. When you teach what you know, you’re automatically qualified as an expert in your field. Whether you’re a real estate agent, a salesperson, a small business owner, an author, or a coach, when people are willing to learn from your experience, you establish credibility.

2. Teleseminars are amazingly affordable. The Internet and technology have given rise to the popularity of teleseminars by making it both easy and inexpensive to produce, deliver, promote and market these events. Dollar for dollar, teleseminars far exceed traditional marketing applications, providing an avenue to boost your bottom line and make unlimited profit.

3. Teleseminars serve multiple purposes. They generate income, establish credibility, produce unlimited exposure, and they can be reproduced and regenerated as CDs, eBooks, audio files, and other products which will continue to generate publicity and income.

4. They offer convenience to your intended audience. Unlike traditional seminars, teleseminars can be attended from home or work, eliminating the necessity for travel or food accommodations. The convenience and easy access is one of the most appealing aspects of teleseminars to your audience.

5. Teleseminars offer ease of use to your audience. Even the most technologically challenged can participate with little or no effort. Usually, all they need is a telephone.

6. Teleseminars increase your client base. Every person who registers is one more person to add your list of prospects, making this one of the fastest list-building tools you can use.

7. Paid teleseminars allow you to reach more clients in any given timeframe. Gone are the limits of available seats, geographical location, time and travel. You determine how many attendees you can accommodate, without being limited by a physical facility’s capacity.

8. Teleseminars allow you to create a viral buzz about your event. At little or no cost, you can generate anticipation and Internet interest very quickly. Becoming an overnight phenomenon has never been easier.

9. Teleseminars enable you to reach new customers. If you find a partner, affiliate, or a sponsor, you automatically tap into their audience, providing you with a fresh new list of prospective customers or clients.

10. You’ll enjoy increased testimonials and endorsements. Customer satisfaction is one of the best forces to drive future business. Testimonials enable you to generate direct feedback from your audience, providing you with free advertisement and the endorsements of happy customers.

These are just ten of the tremendous benefits that hosting a teleseminar will bring to you and your business. By capitalizing on one of the fastest-growing phenomenons in business, you can take your business to levels never before imagined. The opportunity is available—seize it and watch your business grow.

To find out what teleseminars are happening today, next week, even next month, sign up for the daily email newsletter at http://seeyouonthecall.com and follow on Twitter, http://twitter.com/seeyouonthecall. If you are a teleseminar host and want to promote your teleseminar for free, or upgrade for maximum exposure, list your teleseminars today at http://seeyouonthecall.com.

Haiti, Half The Sky, and ‘100 Days of Gratitude’

Before we get started,  I want to collectively send out our thoughts and prayers to the people of Haiti. Despite all the challenging times many of us faced in ‘09, we are still blessed enough to be able to “pay it forward” and give back – just like these two authors, Kristof and WuDunn, who really mean business when it comes to women’s rights worldwide. Also, my dear friend, who is also an author, informed me of her ‘100 Days of Gratitude’ stance, and challenged me to come along for the ride.

Guess what! Wanting to help other people is an even better reason to SUCCEED OUTRAGEOUSLY in 2010. When you succeed today, you are not only helping yourself, but you are helping others, and they, in turn, can help others as well – I call it the ‘circle of hope.’ Think about all the great organizations, such as Kiva.org and Women for Women International, that you can support financially when you are on your ‘A’ game back at home.

Yes, I did say ‘A’ game. That’s right, the pity party of 2009 is over, and it’s time to step it up a notch and massively achieve your personal and business goals in 2010. Why? Because the world is depending on y(our) success.

Always remember, we are empowered with greatness, and it’s truly in y(our) hands to change the world. Forget about your mortgage payments, it’s your civic, rather global, duty to succeed, give back,  and be grateful (not necessarily in that order!)

Here’s to y(our) success and Happy New Year!

Alicia Dunams

How to Set a Retail Price for Your Services – Remember, people pay for experiences!

As a business owner, you have many jobs, and one of the most important ones is to determine the costs of your products or services. The number you stamp on them will greatly impact your sales, income, and your success.

Yes, ultimately you have control! But that control has to rely on several other factors when it comes to determining the worth, the value, and the asking price for your goods. If you overprice, nobody will buy them. In essence, you’ll price yourself out of the market. However, if you underprice them, potential customers might be reluctant to invest in what they psychologically deem to be an inferior product.

In our current economy, I am finding that people are willing to spend money on experiences – possibly, life altering services (such as joining Michael Jordan’s Basketball camp in Vegas, learning how to sail a boat in the South Pacific, and writing a book, perhaps! ) – rather than spending money on products that teach you these things (Why read about sailing in the South Pacific, when you can just go do it!).  

Case in point, sales of info-products have steadily decreased for the past few years (The last thing people want is another DVD binder product to place on the book shelf!), while the percentage of people working one-on-one with coaches (dating coaches, business coaches, marketing coaches, life coaches) has been increasing massively. The latter can obviously be more expensive, but people are willing to pay more for quality experiences if they see them as valuable.

So, how do you determine your value? Well, there are several things you can research to determine a realistic price range for your product or service—a price a customer is likely to be willing to pay for the value they will receive. Let’s take a look at them:

1)  Do your homework and find out the price of similar goods and services in your area. What are your competitors charging their customers? Is their product or service selling at that price? And, last, does your product or service have more or less value than their offerings? If either, adjust accordingly.

2)  Ask previous clients to give you feedback. Did they find value in your product or service? Was it worth what they paid? Did they get more than they expected for the price, or less? If they had to do it again, would they pay the same price for the same product?

3) Test your market. Perform telephone surveys, distribute questionnaires, and try to find out how much your target market is willing to pay for the goods or services you offer. Find out what they like or don’t like about your business, and how they compare it to others within the vicinity. Then, set your price based on their honest feedback.

4) Ask yourself this question, Is your product or service scarce? Let’s face it, there are so many hours in the day. If your coaching practice is keeping you on the phone 40+ hours a week, and you have a wait list of clients wanting to work with you, you are obviously not charging enough for your time. In this case, raising prices will not only make you more money, but will ‘buy’ some of your time back!

Do one or more of these four things and you’re likely to establish an asking price for your product or service that is within the expected range that potential clients will pay. If you overprice, you’ll lose customers to the competition. If you set your price too low, they’ll assume that your product has less value or worth.  As you can see, this is one area that’s far too crucial to your success to leave to guesswork. Do your research, do your homework, and you’ll find your answers.

Protected: Complimentary Strategy Sessions with Business Book Coach!

“Bail out” for Small Business Owners

For the last 4 months, I’ve worked with Silicon Valley Business Coach and former McKinsey consultant, Victor Cheng. Victor is a “big thinker”, and significant source of knowledge when it comes to creating and sustaining a profitable small business, even during a recession.

In order to help “bail out” small business owners, Victor is giving away 1 million copies of his book, The Recession-Proof Business (Get your free book HERE).

As a small business owner myself, I understand it’s scary when business gets slow – I’ve been there! But, instead of retreating, it’s best to get EDUCATED and create ACTION to build your business so that you’ll ultimately PERSEVERE. Remember – ACTION ALWAYS CANCELS OUT FEAR.

If you are a small business owner or entrepreneur, I wish you a profitable second half of 2009. – AD

Fed up with President Obama’s ongoing neglect of small business owners, San Francisco entrepreneur Victor Cheng will offer to “bail out” 1 million small business owners starting July 4, 2009.

As America’s Small Business Coach, he will be giving away 1 million copies of his book The Recession-Proof Business: Lessons from the Greatest Recession Success Stories of All Time.

“According to the Small Business Administration, small business owners create 7 out of 10 new jobs in this country. It’s crazy for Obama to be giving the big guys all the money and not doing more to help the little guys-especially when the little guys are creating the jobs that will drive our economy’s recovery,” says Cheng.
Continue reading here

As seen on 20/20, CNN and the New York Times – Website Traffic has 10-FOLD!

My client, SeekingArrangement.com, was featured on the cover of the New York Times magazine. After the article came out, their website traffic increased 10-fold.

AT FIRST GLANCE, the Web site SeekingArrangement.com seems like any other dating site. Most of the men are looking for fit, sexy women, and most of the women want nice guys who can make them smile and laugh.

Continue reading…

Karaoke for 7-Figure Entrepreneurs

I don’t now about you, but for the last few months I have been rubbing shoulders with 7-figure entrepreneurs.

Why?

To get to the next level in my business. I mean, why do it alone when I can just be mentored by someone who has already done it! I have to admit, over the last year I have been thinking a bit (dare I say it) SMALL, even though I have built a six-figure coaching business. Maybe because it feels more like I have owned a job rather than a business. So March of this year, I decided to step it UP, THINK BIG and surround myself with the SUCCESS I want to replicate. So it all started when I hired Victor – an extreme revenue coach. (I didn’t add his last name because I want him all to myself, he’s mine…mine… all mine. <<insert evil laugh here>>!)

Anyway, I digress, why did I do that?

To be challenged.

Okay now for the karaoke.

This past week, I was at Ken McArthur’s IMPACT event at Walt Disney World. On Saturday night, a group of us went to sushi, and after dinner and a few lychee mojitos, I decided to get on the Karaoke stage and cause some damage. I pretty much slaughtered Bare Naked Ladies’ “Brian Wilson,” but made up for it with my rendition of Beyonce’s “Crazy in Love” (bootie shaking and all, which was all caught on video!)

My karaoke experience + hanging at with the 7-figure crowd has taught me the following (and I’m eager to share):

1) My mentor, Victor taught me: “Don’t throw cash at a problem creativity can solve.” To that point, karaoke is a perfect example – FREE entertainment that is often more FUN and SATISFYING than paid-for entertainment. In your business, use your imagination, talent and creativity to increase cash flow. For example, rather that hire a bookkeeper or assistant, trade for this or hire an intern, respectively.
2) Adam Urbanski, mega mentor who spoke at IMPACT, taught me “How do you eat an elephant?? Answer: One small bite at a time. Setting high goals, like building a seven-figure business, can be daunting task when you don’t break your process into small steps. Karaoke can be daunting also, especially if singing in front of a raucous crowd of drunk convention-goers, until you look at it like this: 1) Fill out karaoke form. 2) Walk over to the stage. 2) Hand form in. 4) When your name is called, get on the stage. 5) Sing 6) Get off stage. So, business is the same – one step at a time.
3) Joyce Jackson, another mentor I met at IMPACT, said one of the biggest problems of my business is that I was leaving money on the table. (Gulp (!) – got to change that). Karaoke speak= If I don’t get off my ASSet and sing, I won’t find out about the opportunities I am missing.
4) Eric (I forgot his last name) who was a cute 20-something Internet marketer (who is just killing it!) said something like: success has a formula, just replicate/follow what someone else has already done. Ummm… that’s what karaoke is all about… replicating success by singing international top 20 hits. You don’t have to write your own song or come up with a riff, all you have to do is just sing with own unique spin…
5) And, finally, I heard this concept from a few speakers this weekend: Just rinse and repeat. This means automate and systematize your business, so it is repetitive in nature, allowing you to delegate. Get that formula down. And plain and simple, the perfect karaoke formula is drink and sing, drink and sing and with practice you get better!