The 7 MYTHS You've Been Led to Believe that are Costing You Speaking Opportunities (Part 3 of 4)

Have you ever wanted to be a speaker? Or are you already a speaker who desires more opportunities to speak on different stages?

Well, there are a bunch of myths that you may have been led to believe, and these myths could be preventing you from securing the speaking engagements and achieving the business results you desire.

It may be making you feel a little frustrated, like you're a spinning top or spinning your wheels.
This is part three of a speaker series. The first blog is about three ways to speak without being a professional speaker. It's also beneficial for those of you who are professional speakers. It discusses different ways to speak, get your message out there, attract more clients, generate leads, gather testimonials, and find opportunities to speak in other places, among other benefits.

The second blog is about the top 10 benefits of speaking on other people's platforms, which you may not have considered before. It shares those 10 ways, along with some bonus methods. Additionally, I offer opportunities for you to speak on my stages, so make sure to check those blogs.

Myth #1: You need to host your own podcast or summit.

I often hear this from clients, "Oh, I should do that. I should host one." Well, here's the fact: it's actually a lot of work. You don't have to do it. Instead, you can participate in other people's summits or podcasts.

But why do I do it? Well, I believe that I've been blessed with a platform, a community, and a network. I already have a podcast. It makes sense for me to do a summit to be able to bring all of these women in my community together, including my female clients, and also to build more connections. There are benefits to it. 

However, I also have a team of two virtual assistants from the Philippines. They handle everything—social media messaging, speaker onboarding, promo material creation, scheduling, and providing back-end support on the day of the summit. I have the necessary tech support thanks to these two team members.

If you don't have a team or all of that support, here's your solution: find summits, podcasts, and other opportunities that other people are organizing. The key thing is to ensure alignment. For example, in my last summit, the “Dynamic Women Online Summit 2023,” I sought female speakers who wanted to address mainly female business owners. When you're looking for podcasts or summits to be on, please ensure that your message aligns with what the host is looking for. You don't need to host them yourself. Instead, you can join other people's stages, virtual summits, and podcasts to reach more people.

Myth #2: Just email that podcast host or summit host and they'll put you on their podcast. 

Here's the fact: They are bombarded with guest requests. How do I know? Because I receive two or three guest requests every single day. Now, the problem is that people reach out to me in a way that sounds like this: "Hey, I'm so amazing. You should put me on your podcast. I am an incredible speaker with a great topic that your audience will love."

However, they don't mention anything about my podcast, or I can see that they've simply copied and pasted "Dynamic Women Podcast" in their email. There's no acknowledgement of my podcast or a genuine reason why they want to be on it, apart from thinking they're amazing.

Here's the solution. I learned this from one of my coaches, James Malinchak. He says, "You need to lead with a napkin first." Many times, people approach others with a bib on, demanding to be served.

When you email someone and say, "Hey, I'm amazing. Put me on your podcast or summit," you are leading with yourself. But in reality, you need to lead with a napkin and ask, "How can I serve you?"

The best emails I receive start by saying, "Hey, I love what you're doing with the Dynamic Women Podcast for these reasons… I've listened to these episodes… and I really enjoy these aspects…" They may even go the extra mile and say, "I wrote you a review. Here's a screenshot of it."

I absolutely love receiving those kinds of emails, where they also mention what they can do for me, how they will promote it, and other ways they can contribute. So, don't just say, "Hey, it's me. I'm amazing. You should put me on." Don't simply email them. Approach it strategically and with a giving mindset where you prioritize serving them first. This approach increases your chances of receiving a 'yes'.

(If you want to be on the Dynamic Women Podcast, the Dynamic Women Trailblazers Secrets book, or be a summit speaker, just click those links.)

Myth #3: You must be a speaker to speak.

That's just a myth. The fact is, anyone can speak. However, the key here is to have a specific topic. You can't simply go on stage and blabber for 25 minutes or however long your speaking slot is.

You need to have a well-defined topic, a message, or a story. You need to provide something of value. What I love, and most likely what other hosts would appreciate as well, is if you came to us with an amazing topic, a captivating title, and a compelling description that clearly outlines the benefits for our audience. It should be something different, fresh, and exciting. Don't make us work to figure out what you'll bring to the table.

You don't have to tell me that you've spoken on 100 stages, but please don't approach me with a generic statement like, "I want to talk about marketing." Be specific. What aspect of marketing will you discuss? What's your description? What's the title of your talk?

Put in the effort so that when you provide the material, the host can say, "Great, you're on." Don't make them work to extract the necessary details from you.

Myth #4: You need an email list to be invited. 

Now, there are often instances where people say to me, "Oh, you can only be on our podcast or summit if you have a list of 10,000 people." I don't believe that is very inclusive to those who are still growing their business.

The fact is, you don't always have to possess a large email list. However, when you do have one, it's essential to consider the mutually beneficial aspect: you are helping them, and they are helping you. That's a great arrangement.

But the solution we're seeking is a win-win situation. We don't want to solely focus on building their lists while neglecting our own. I always strive for a win-win approach. If you don't have a substantial email list, think about what else you can offer. Do you have a significant following on social media? Do you have numerous connections where you can personally invite them?

Podcasts and summits often have guest guidelines. For example, one of my summit guest guidelines is to have a minimum of 20 people register for a free ticket. I believe that's a fair requirement, don't you?

If you adhere to their guidelines, you don't need a million people on your list. Maybe you only need a hundred people to get 20 registrations. It depends on the responsiveness of your list or connections. If your email list is small, you can make commitments like:

• "I'll send more emails."
• "I'll increase promotion on social media."
• "I'll discuss it at the three networking events I'm attending."

All we're looking for is for you to meet the guest requirements, so having a massive email list isn't always necessary.

Myth #5: You should never pay to be a guest. 

As a paid professional speaker, I used to believe in this myth as well.

The fact is, many podcasts, summits, events, and conferences offer opportunities with paid spots or refundable deposits. These can be great opportunities too.

The solution for you is you need to see what's being offered and to see what you get with it to see if it's a match. We often do a refundable deposit because for so long, I was just trusting of people. When individuals have some "skin in the game," they are more likely to fulfill their commitments.

A lot of the refundable deposits like we have for our summit, it's just like:

• just show up on time. 
• don't sell because it's not a pitch fest. 
• give us what we need and get 20 people

It's kind of a no-brainer. It's the things you should be doing anyway. See what is being offered. It's perfectly acceptable to pay for these opportunities if you believe the return on investment will be worth it. I have personally invested in being a guest at various events, whether virtual or in-person, but I always evaluate if it makes sense for me.

Consider it this way: Have you ever attended a conference where sponsors were given the chance to speak on stage as part of their sponsorship benefits? This has been happening for decades. It's just being presented in a slightly different format now.

Myth #6: You can't make money if you don't sell

Well, that's a common misconception. In reality, selling is usually not allowed when you speak on someone's podcast, events, or summits. Some will allow you to offer, but they will take an affiliate commission. 

Instead, it's more effective to offer a gift or lead magnet, in exchange for someone's email address, allowing you to build a connection with the audience over time. This gift provides value and helps the audience get to know, like, and trust you. By nurturing them through your emails and providing valuable content, you can build a strong relationship with your audience.

Eventually, if they remain on your email list, and you make an offer, you can generate revenue from these speaking engagements. It's important not to restrict your mindset and think that you can't make money. However, when you have a speaking slot of less than 45 minutes, it can be challenging to deliver a proper sales pitch within that time frame.

I'm not suggesting that you can't sell at all, but rather emphasizing that it's not always necessary, and you can still generate revenue even without direct selling during your speaking engagements.

Myth #7: Creating a lead magnet gift is a lot of work.

Lead magnets can be a list, a quiz, a recipe, or a four-step process. There are very simple options that you can create in about an hour. I know with my virtual assistants, I can give them a Word doc with the text on it. They'll whip it up in Canva. Then they'll make it a fillable PDF. Now, I've got my checklists, my audit, and my formula that people can fill in. 

Other solutions for this are:

• Do a free Survey Monkey quiz. You can do 10 questions in there for free.
• Do a Google Form and then give them the answers to the quiz. 
• There can be a PDF download of something or a template for something

There are so many easy ways to do a lead magnet or a free gift. I encourage you not to do a free gift that costs money, like one of your books that you then also have to mail. 

Give lead magnets that are a little bit of a taste of what you do. It can be a mini course or a set of videos. You want them to have a quick win and be able to consume it in around 15 minutes and to be like, “Wow, that was good. I did it and I feel good about that.” Then be hungry for more. 

Bonus myth: All hosts will promote you.

This is a key one I have learned as a speaker on podcasts, summits, and other events. This is something you really have to look out for. 

The fact is everyone has a different process. I was invited to be on someone's podcast. I wanted to send them my questions. They replied, “No, we have our own process.” I trusted it, “Okay, fine.” 

Then I did the show, and I provided my free gift and I provided all the links to my social. everything they requested. In the end, my free gift which I talked about was cut from the episode. None of my links were in the show notes. Even worse, not even my website or my social media links were included. 

That meant that no one was able to easily go and reach out to me. That's hard, right? Now the audience would miss my gift and have to google me to connect or have to type in my name and find me out on social media. That is not ideal. 

When you are going to one of these opportunities, please see that you will actually be promoted. It was kind of disappointing and I was very surprised. 

The solution is to listen to their show. Listen to previous summits or events. Check their show notes or the copy that gets put out. See what's happened with other guests or speakers. 

I was absolutely shocked because in my process for my podcast and summits, I allow the speaker or the guest to provide the title because I know they know their material really well. Their title is going to probably be more magnetic when they write it themselves. I also allow them to write their own description (if they want) and their questions. 

Now, why would I have them do the questions? I don't know all the content they want to share and that my audience would appreciate the most. When I allow them or give them the chance to write all the questions, then I know we're getting the best possible content for my audience. That's what I want. 

I don't want to frustrate my listeners either. I put in the show notes all of their links, all of the things that were mentioned, their website, and their social. It's all in there because it's important the listener can easily go and get what they're wanting. I don't want you to have to work for it. 

Also, before my summits, I promote my speakers and then for the podcast, I promote them after. I promote so that my guests get traction to their episode and can build relationships with my audience because that's how business works. That's how the world works. If there are great people out there who can serve my audience, and my audience is looking for them, why wouldn’t I put them together? ​

Wrapping Up

If this has inspired you now to get over one of these myths, let me know which one. If you're thinking, “Oh, I need to be on a podcast or I need to be in a book”, great! 

I have three opportunities for you: the Dynamic Women Podcast, the Dynamic Women Trailblazers Secrets book, or be a summit speaker.

Read my other blogs here: 

1. First Impressions: How to Have People Like You
2. Stop Telling Others They are Too Much
3. How You Can Prepare to Make Better Decisions