10. getting a gig, preparing, and speaking
means personal/career risk and quite a bit
of grunt work. So why do it?
11. 1. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
you’ll be seen as an expert & a superstar with:
• fellow speakers
• audience members
• exhibition vendors
• colleagues
• industry press
12. Oh that guy again
2. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
speaking drives sales, branding and PR, and
partnerships
13. 3. BENEFIT FROM PREPARATION
by preparing to speak, you will gain an incredibly
clear understanding of the subject
14. 4. STRETCH YOURSELF
stage fright? busy schedule? out of your
comfort zone? GOOD! EAT IT! stop whining!
15. ONE FINAL NOTE!
clear your speaking engagement and
materials with your boss, corporate comms,
legal, and marketing
17. 1. DO A SWOT-TOWS ANALYSIS
this helps you clarify your strategy
Click to view this
instructional deck!
18. 2. BE VERY FINDABLE
use google to list all relevant conferences. grab the
names of key organizers & admins from the “about
us” section. send them linked-in connect requests.
since linked-in is slutty, you’ll get 70% acceptance.
19. 2. BE VERY FINDABLE
next, since good conference organizer friend other
organizers, friend their conference organizing
contacts too. you’ll quickly get a lot of 2nd degree
connections, and your accept rate will go up
20. 2. BE VERY FINDABLE
now, add relevant keywords to your linked-in profile.
add the “public speaking” skill, and get endorsed.
add, “dynamic industry speaker and XYZ domain
expert” to your summary.
21. 2. BE VERY FINDABLE
this is important because conference organizers use
linked-in to source speakers. the more 1st degree
connections you have & the better your profile
keywords are, the more you’ll appear in their search
22. 2. BE VERY FINDABLE
also, generate content. post your presentation decks
on Slideshare and link them to your linked-in profile
page. get a copy of a video of you speaking, and add
that too
23. 2. BE VERY FINDABLE
finally, make sure your social media identity is all
over your slide deck
24. 3. BRIBERY WORKS TOO!
if you sponsor an event, you usually get speaking
slots and a booth. this is expensive so it should be
used only once or twice to kick start
25. 4. BEFRIEND SPEAKERS
I get 2 speaking requests per month but I speak at
only 1 event per month. that means I turn down lots
of events. my ‘go-to’ friends get my over-flow.
26. 4. BEFRIEND SPEAKERS
of course, you must do a phenomenal job, or you’ll
burn your rep fast! so I’d get your chops down before
developing this resource
27. 5. WORK YOUR WAY UP
start small and work your way up. there are many
opportunities to speak in front of crowds of 8! scoring
a small gig at a user group or meet-up is much
easier as these groups are often undersupplied
28. 5. BE PERSISTENT
you will get rejected. no problem. think barney
stinson’s approach to the bar scene
29. 6. DON’T GO OUT OF POCKET
you probably won’t get paid to speak, unless you’re a
pro. however, you should never be out of pocket:
transport to & from the airport, plane tickets, travel
insurance accommodation charges including room-
service meals and wi-fi
31. 1. OWN IT
Conference organizers usually give you a topic. But
don’t feel restricted to those topics. Most organizers
are happy for you to change topics or just create
your own - so long as it blends with the overall
conference theme
32. 2. BE PASSIONATE & INSPIRE PASSION
just choose a topic that makes you passionate,
because, it is passion that creates memorable
conference audience experiences. that said, choose
a topic that has the potential to also make the
audience passionate too.
33. 3. INSPIRE, DON’T EXPLAIN
with this in mind, choose something
inspirational, contrarian, or
unexpected. don’t try to explain.
Explanation is better done in other
mediums like books or slideshares. in
30 minutes, you don’t have time.
presentations should inspire, not
explain. leave the audience wanting to
follow-up, not satiated (bored).
that doesn’t mean that your talk
should be fluff. You need credibility
and to add value as an expert. but it
does mean that the focus should be
on “why” questions, not “what”
answers.
34. 4. LIMIT YOUR SCOPE
similarly, scope down your messages. as a rule of
thumb, I try to hit no more than 3 major themes in 30
minutes and no more than 1 minor theme every 3-5
minutes of speaking time.
35. 5. GET THE PACKAGING RIGHT
finally, make sure your presentation will be sexy to
conference attendees. take time to craft your strong,
relevant bio and a good, professional, hi-res selfie.
pre-event marketing makes a difference. you’ll help
self-select the audience as they will attend the talks
that pique their curiosity,
36. 5. GET THE PACKAGING RIGHT
and have a sexy presentation title please!
Approaches to dealing with software end-of-life
issues
10 Ways to Kill Zombie Software!
BAD!
BETTER!
45. If you are building a brand as a speaker, follow-up is
just as critical as the presentation.
Good follow-up means: Link-in with other speakers,
audience members, conference organizers, and post
your material all over social media
47. 1. WHY SPEAK
• Professional Dev
• Business Dev
• Benefit from prep
• Stretch yourself
• Get approval
2. HOW TO GET GIGS
• Be very findable
• Bribery works too
• Befriend speakers
• Work your way up
• Be persistent
• Don’t go out of pocket
3. DEVELOP TOPICS
• Own it
• Be passionate and
inspire passion
• Don’t explain, inspire
• Limit your scope
• Get the Packaging right
4. HOW TO PREPARE
• One Message/slide
• Beautiful slides
• Ideas, not data
• Great Title page
• Know what’s in it
for audience
• Manage A/V
5. HOW TO PRESENT
• Practice,
• Be rested
• Arrive early & scope
• Watch body language,
volume, tone, & speed
• Speaker monitor
6. HOW TO HANDLE Q&A
• Stay on Message
• Predict the questions
• Paraphrase
• Engage everyone
• Be nice
• Don’t bullshit
• Be brief
7. FOLLOW-UP
• Link to speakers,
organizers &
audience
• Post like mad!
48. SHARE THIS DECK
& FOLLOW ME(please-oh-please-oh-please-oh-please)
Selena Sol asks…..
http://www.slideshare.net/selenasol/presentations
stay up to date with my future
slideshare posts
selena@selenasol.com
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/eric-tachibana/0/33/b53
50. CREATIVE COMMONS ATTRIBUTIONS & REFERENCES
Title Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/evanforester/
Whisper Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/conveniencestoregourmet/
R U Interested in Speaking slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/schani/
Hard Work Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/artripoli/
Coins Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kiki99/
Benefit from Prep Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/vox_efx/
Stretch Yourself Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/sick_rdm/
One Final Note (Stormtroopers) Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bobsfever/
Bribery Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/26008993@N04/
Befriend Speakers Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/universidaddemontemorelos/
Work Your Way Up Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/10216416@N00/
Don’t Go out of Pocket Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jdhancock/
Own It Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/skynoir/
Passion Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/badboy69/
Inspire Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/stephenpoff/
Limit Your Scope Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/21560098@N06/
Packaging Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jdhancock/
Bald Eagle Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeff_sch/
This Slide: https://www.flickr.com/photos/21572939@N03/