Sales Leads: The Power of Public Speaking to Attract Qualified Prospects

A great strategy to produce many high-quality sales leads is to give talks, seminars, and webinars (online seminars). What makes public speaking such a powerful tool for developing new business contacts? A couple of them are as follows.

Speaking is a great way to reach a large number of people quickly.
A well-organized talk, seminar, or webinar can boost your authority and client credibility.
The impact of any given speech might extend far beyond its initial listeners. If your message is powerful enough, people in your audience will likely share it with others.
What should you talk about, exactly?

Find out what your ideal customers care about most and write about that. You have unique insights that can be applied to resolving perplexing business issues. Prospects can be wooed by your knowledge of exciting new technology and other concepts that can improve their lives. Real-life examples of how you or your organization made a difference in a client’s business can be discussed. The topic you select must interest and matter to your readership.

What sort of framework should your talk have?

There is a careful line to be walked when crafting a persuasive speech designed to generate new leads. You should provide your readers with something they can use. However, it would be best to encourage them to contact you for further data. Therefore, be careful not to give too much detail, lest your readers be able to figure out the answers on their own.

If your goal in giving the talk is to create leads for a product, then this is not a significant problem because your audience will likely need to buy the product to solve the issues you discuss thoroughly. When attempting to offer a service, it is essential to avoid disclosing too much information. Why should your audience return to you if you give them all the answers to their problems?

To prevent this from happening, think carefully about the following seven points as you craft your following speech:

Use an “attention grabber” to get people interested right away. You can do this with a surprising fact or an emotionally gripping anecdote that ties to one of your main arguments.
Briefly summarize the main themes you intend to make throughout your speech.
Give an overview of the issue(s) addressed in your speech.
Use as many visuals as possible to convey the significance of each issue. Get people invested by having them share stories of how the issue has affected them personally or professionally. You might also describe specific issues’ impact on consumers (current and former) in engaging “problem impact” stories.
The audience’s stress will be eased when they learn that the issues can be resolved. But DON’T give them ALL the information they’ll need to find the answers! Give me a high-level summary of what you want to do. That way, they’ll have to seek you out if they want more information.
Create rosy word pictures to help your readers imagine how much better their lives will be once the issues have been resolved.
Finally, give the audience a “call to action” by summarizing the main themes of your presentation.
WARNING: Selling from the spotlight requires extreme caution. If listeners see a presentation as a thinly veiled sales pitch, they will rapidly lose interest. If you want people to take time out of their busy schedules to listen to you speak, you owe it to them to provide them with knowledge and insights they can use.

What should your final “call to action” be in this speech?

A mild “call to action” at the end of your speech is acceptable. You could want to wrap things up with a statement like:

Please hand me your business card on the way out if you’re interested in discussing how your organization might implement the ideas presented today.

Other persuasive calls to action include the following:

Give each attendee an assessment form with a “please contact me” checkbox.
Please provide them with a record they may use to sign up for your free newsletter and special report.
Encourage them to visit your company’s website, where they can sign up for your newsletter and obtain a free special report. WARNING: Ensure you ask for their name and e-mail address before sending them the free bonus content.
Where do you start while preparing a speech?

Seminar and speech preparation can be time-consuming. The main procedures are as follows:

You should plan your presentation, draft a script, and rehearse it until you can give it confidently and fluently without referring to your notes. Join a local Toastmasters club to improve your public speaking skills. Presentation and platform abilities are taught effectively.
Find a suitable location for your speech and organize the use of any AV tools you’ll need.
If refreshments are to be served, preparations should be made for them.
Create a strategy to increase your viewership and put it into action. This could involve contacting trade, professional, and social organizations via letter, email, or phone.
How can you increase your profit margins?

You should devise a strategy to maximize your time and energy if you do the work required to give a great speech. The following are examples of possible actions:

Distribute evaluation forms to the audience members so they can submit feedback and ask questions.
Include your contact information and a presentation summary in any handouts you distribute.
Encourage people to hand up their business cards and evaluation forms by holding a raffle for a small gift (books, sample products, etc.).
Schedule follow-up phone calls to attendees within a day or two of your presentation. When making the calls, it’s a good idea to solicit comments and questions that weren’t answered live. Inquire further whether they know anyone who would be interested in hearing your presentation’s topic. These suggestions might turn into hot leads right away. You should add them to your guest list for future events, at the very least.
A great strategy to produce many high-quality sales leads is to give well-planned speeches, seminars, and webinars (online seminars). You should be able to boost the quantity and quality of the information in your sales opportunity pipeline by following the advice in this article.

2005-2008 Copyright — Rigg, Alan

Both “How to Beat the 80/20 Rule in Sales Team Performance” and “How to Beat the 80/20 Rule in Selling” were written by Alan Rigg, an authority on improving sales performance. His 80/20 Selling System (TM) relieves the stress of having 20% of your sales staff generate 80% of your revenue. Visit www.8020sales.com to learn more and get more FREE sales and sales management advice.

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