KEY TAKEAWAYS COVERED IN THE PODCAST

• When you’re live on stage, the conversion rates are incredible.
• There are many different types of stage, whether it’s a live stage, a webinar or a Facebook live. Whilst the second two stages are important, the best stage to speak on is a live one and every single market leader in the world knows that it is a fundamental step to becoming an expert in their industry.
• Although you may worry that you’re going to mess up your script, try to remember that your audience don’t know what you were supposed to say. For them, they’ll have no idea that you have gone wrong or gone off topic.
• When it comes to charging for your speaking gigs, you need to be confident enough to say the figure you want. There is no clear strategy and often it comes down to making it up. It’s important to remember that you don’t have to charge every single time. Instead, you need to work out what the value of speaking means to you.
• When it comes to speaking at events, you need to find out whether you’re able to do a hard sell, a soft sell or an upsell.
• There are four quadrants to a speaking session. Engagement runs along the bottom and conversions run up the left-hand side. Finding the balance between these two is important, as you need to be able to find out how to add value AND convert within the time slot you have.
• The goal is creating irresistible content that is high value and has high conversions.
• One of the most common mistakes people make is that they sell at the end of their talk. Whilst this may seem the most effective, you need to be ‘selling’ from the start. Infusion selling means thinking about your content and shifting your audiences thinking in a way that allows them to have new revelations surrounding your content.
• Remembering that selling is serving is important. As long you’re offering a genuine product or service, you are serving your audience.
• The best way to get an organiser to let you sell from stage is to ask.
• Whilst it may seem simple, it’s the most effective method. For best results, you can offer a partnership with the event organiser.

THE ONE THING YOU NEED TO REMEMBER ABOVE ALL ELSE…

When it comes to selling by speaking, it all comes down to mindset. You need to understand that speaking isn’t entertainment or education, it’s selling. Every time you open your mouth, even if you’re not directly selling a product in your session, you are selling yourself and building influence. At the end of the day, influence creates sales.

HIGHLIGHTS YOU SIMPLY CAN'T MISS

• How You Can Work with Me – 04:00
• Introducing Colin – 10:00
• Why You Should Be Speaking at Events - 18:00
• Biggest Worries in Public Speaking – 21:00
• What Should You Charge When It Comes to Public Speaking? – 25:33
• High Value and High Conversions - 31:33
• Selling by Speaking (Without Being Salesy) – 37:40
• Finding Out If You’re Allowed to Sell from Stage and How Do You ACTUALLY Sell – 52:00

LINKS TO RESOURCES MENTIONED IN TODAY'S EPISODE

• The Sell with Story Guide
• Colin Boyd Instagram
• Colin's website

Transcript below

Hello and a really warm welcome to this week’s episode of the podcast! How are you this week? I am pretty good. I have to say I’ve had a good few days in the office, catching up on everything since I got back from the states and I’m feeling much happier about my work level and what’s left on my to do list. However, as always and I’d love to hear if you’re like this because this is totally me. All the stuff that I do first is the quick easy non-pain giving things and then I leave the big but really important stuff to the end. So for instance, I’m speaking next week and I should have my presentation in by Monday and I’m recording this on a Friday and I haven’t yet started. Now before you think I’m a dreadful speaker because I do that so last minute, I’m actually one of those speakers that doesn’t ever do it verbatim. So I can’t. If I tried to do it verbatim. If I stood up with the script and tried to rehearse and then remember it I just I would just be a nightmare. I would find it really awkward if I forgot my place. I would mess the whole thing up and it just wouldn’t work. So actually I always have a rough idea of what I’m going to say and the slides just literally remind me what the next thing is I’m then moving on to.

So although it sounds dreadful but I literally have three days to do this presentation for a fairly big talk. It actually doesn’t kind of surprise me because that’s a bit of how I work but really. I should have done it sooner but like I said you know what it’s like oh I’ll just so my finance things. I’ll just do a couple of invoices. I’ll just send a few emails because those are the things that make you feel really happy because you can take them off your list really quickly whereas you leave the big massive stuff on because you know that it’s going to take ages to do so. I’m terrible at that. So even though I’ve had a good few days in the office and they need to knuckle down and do some good proper work also during my trip to the states which now was quite a few weeks ago, I did a insta story and announcing to the world that I was coming up with ways in which you can work with me because I’ve really let you do it and let myself down in the sense that I put out all this content and I love putting a podcast out there and I love giving you all this free content but what’s great about something like a podcast is it really gives you a thought and an idea and a kind of a kickstart of oh that could be good but what can you get into an hour’s podcast or a 45 minutes podcast to actually then help you achieve something? And you need that kind of ongoing support or a different method such as courses or memberships and I need that too.

So for instance James Wedmore has a podcast he has so much content out there but I pay a considerable amount of money to be in his next level business by design program which is a more intensive coaching program because I need to basically I need to put some money in the game to make me do it is the total truth of it. And interestingly enough we end up talking about this on the podcast interview today that’s going to be playing. But anyway, before I get to that what I was saying was I did a Instagram story where I said to my audience on Instagram and now I’m saying to you that I’m going to be bringing a two or three ways in which you can work with me which I’m really excited about because the thing that I love more than anything is helping people. And I can’t help myself, I do it all the time anyway so it’d be great to put some structure around that. So I want you to keep an eye out. I want you to drop me a DM or an email or contact me somehow whether it be through social media or like I said you drop me an email through the Teresa Heath Wareing websites and I want you to just let me know whether this is something that you might be interested in so I can get you on the list.

So there’s going to be a couple of things that I’m gonna be offering. The first thing is going to be a more membership type program where it’s going to be potentially bigger numbers. Obviously they’re not going to start off massive but then I’m going to be adding content every single month. I’m going to be doing live calls. question and answers, hot seats, that sort of thing. And then if you wanted something a bit more intensive, I’m actually going to be doing a 90 day program where you can work with me much closer as more of a kind of mentoring slash coaching. I hate saying coaching I’m not I’m not a coach or a trained coach but obviously I consult with clients all the time where basically we’re going to drive your business forward in 90 days. So you’ll work in a much smaller group. You’ll have a lot more intensive me time and call time and it will be much more bespoke to you in your business. So I think those two are going to be really good. And as always I will still offer one to one consultancy. But obviously as you can imagine the cost differs from each of those three levels so hopefully there’s something there for everyone. And I’m just really excited. I just I love doing the podcast. I love hearing from you. So it’s gonna be great that I can do some kind of more and more closer work where we get to have a two way conversation. So it’s gonna be cool and I hope you think so too.

But anyway let’s get on with today’s episode of the podcast and our gonna going to say again. It’s a really good one. I know I say that every time. I mean going to write than alternatives to it’s a really good one but I promise you as always it is good. So this week, I am speaking to the very lovely Colin Boyd, who was initially from Australia. So you’ll hear that lovely Australian accent and now he lives in Newport Beach in California. And I met Colin because he is in James Wedmore’s mastermind group which is the group I think either one or two levels above the group high men. So that group had the likes of Amy Porterfield, Rick Mulready and Jasmine Star. So it’s a bit of a rock star group if I’m honest. But actually Colin came and spoke at the first Business by Design event that I actually attended and he got on stage and talked about selling from stage.

Now these two words probably fell 90 percent of you with fear because not only is it getting on stage and speaking which I know is a big thing for lots of people and even if they want to do it it terrifies them and it still scares me every time which I don’t see as a bad thing. But I know that speaking from stage is is a thing that scares people anyway. Then at the selling element which again on its own. Some people find really difficult and I personally again find that difficult because you don’t want to come across salesman or pushy. So the funny thing is at those two things together and they sound terrifying but he got up on stage he delivered a really good presentation and as you know I go to a lot of conferences I speak at lots of conferences and and I see a lot of speakers and not all of them are brilliant. I don’t mind sharing with you some are not that great but he was brilliant. He was really entertaining very charismatic and although at that event he didn’t actually sell something because of the type of event it was. I could see how easily he could have done it and he gave great advice. Gave one of those speakers where you jotting down loads of notes. So I knew I had to have him on the podcast. So today he’s going to be talking all about how you can sell from stage and we’re going to be talking about why you even want to think about actually becoming a speaker or using speaking as a way to develop your brand or your position in your industry who show you as an expert.

And then we’re going to go through some things around selling which again even if you don’t speak I think you’re going to find really useful just generally in your business. Now obviously I did a podcast fairly recently all about selling so I will link up to that in the show notes so you can go and check though on dates as well if you want to.

So let me just tell you a little bit about Colin before we get started. So Colin helps experts course creators and coaches to speak confidently onstage to sail without coming across pushy or sales. Like I said he’s obsessed with creating step by step strategies that anyone can follow to become confident and powerful speaker whether they’re sailing on stage or webinars or live videos. He’s had over 10 years experience so he really does know how to entertain and move an audience to action. He’s best known for his selling from stage Academy which is a leading programme for growth for business through speaking. And like I said he lives in Newport Beach California. Lucky man with his amazing wife and two young children. Colin is super smart and gives some great advice. He also gives you an opportunity to download his PDA off which is all about selling with a story which again I’ve talked about. Storytelling is a great way to connect anyway and especially if you’re trying to sell something. So I’ve put a link to that in the show notes which you can find at Theresa Heath wearing dot.com forward slash 63 but that’s enough for me.

Here is the lovely Colin. So I am so excited this week to welcome the very lovely Colin to the podcast. Welcome to the podcast Colin.

Colin: Thanks Teresa. I’m really excited to have this conversation.

Teresa: Oh no. You know what I’ve mentioned in the bio how we met and I originally saw you at James’ events and ever since then you’ve kind of stuck with me and the things you said and how you came across and what I do in my business and the fact that I speak of this it’s resonated with me but it’s just there was just such good common sense advice and entertaining advice that actually it didn’t matter whether you were speaker or whether you know you you’re not into hard selling or whatever it was it was just like generally. That’s just really really good advice. And it was great fun. And I don’t know about you but I go to a lot of conferences and you watch a lot of speakers and it’s great to see a speaker he really knows what they’re doing because sometimes you sit there like Oh I’m exhausted today and you know you could pick up the dots that you were perfect. I loved it. So call it in case my audience have come across you before. Do you mind just quick to going over how you got to do what you’re doing now and sort of where you’ve come from that would be awesome.

Colin: Yeah so I’m Australian which you can possibly hear my accent but I live in Newport Beach in California and I started out I was in corporate and I remember one day a trainer like a corporate trainer came in and I was working in a job that I hated and I don’t know if you have experience. And yet this trainer came in and she ran like a brainstorming session and I remember asking my manager how much she got paid. And then they told me the amount. And it was basically what I got paid for the whole month for like a two hour session. And I remember thinking, “My gosh I think that’s what I want to do.” And I didn’t even know what on earth that was at the time. I mean this was over 10 years ago. And so I ended up resigning from there. I became a teacher and at the time I was studying life coaching and so I started life coaching and I got my accreditation with the ICF and started doing life coaching that was going great. And then and then basically this moment came where I realize,d I actually really want to be an entrepreneur like I want to do this the time. And so I you know I actually got made redundant which was a blessing in disguise and I had a free speaking engagement. That a friend had referred to me. It was about one hundred and thirty seven people in the audience which the organizer had said to me, Colin this is the biggest audience we’ve ever had. I was a it was a alumni University graduate audience. And so I was thinking you know I don’t know who’s gonna be there, I’m just gonna give it my best shot. It was literally a dark and stormy night. I was walking up the stairs. This was in Sydney at the time with my amazing wife, Sarah. She sat in the audience and I remember doing my first ever free speaking gig. And up until that point I’d think I’d had one paying client. I just was really struggling to get things working right. And I did this free speaking gig and at the end I made an offer which I didn’t even know what that was at the time. My I just kind of at the time I was thinking you know I would really love to get these people connected with me, I made an offer out of one hundred and thirty seven people one hundred and twenty four of them put their business cards or their details into a little vase that I’d bought from two dollar store room and all of a sudden I had an instant database. Four days later, I’d signed 12 coaching clients and then I was standing on the stairs after a coaching session at a hotel and I got a phone call and there was this guy called Tony and he said hey Colin I was at your presentation the other day I thought it was fantastic. I said, thanks so much. And then he said I’m calling from Hewlett Packard. And I’m curious like would you have any availability on this date because we want to run a training session. So I’m like, would I have any availability let me check. Let me check my diary I’ve got nothing on. I’ve got nothing in my calendar at all. OK let me check my. Tony I’m available. And then they said we would love you to do a presentation similar to what you spoke about as about two hours and I said, that’s great. He asked me my fee and I’d never set a fee before in my life. And I said four thousand dollars for my first ever gig right. So I’m crapping myself right. Because that’s what I got told. Like one of my mentors said charge about four thousand dollars for your speech and I was like okay. He’s like, No no you’re serious. And I’m like four thousand dollars and I’m so nervous. And Tony literally goes, Oh that’s easy no problem. Yep, we can do that. I remember just thinking my Okay first of all that’s what I usually get paid for a month of work, right? Back in the day. And. And then I was thinking OK now what do I do. And then because I was such a rookie I said I said Tony I forgot to ask how many people are going to be at the training day. And he said Oh. He said you know we’ll probably have between five, five and a half thousand in the audience. I feel like.. This is my second speaking gig and my first paid speaking gig. Holy moly.

Like what on earth is happening. Now one of my core beliefs is that whatever shows up in your life doesn’t matter how big or how small it is you’re ready for it. Yeah. And so I’m heading into making it we did it. It went fantastic. HP had been a client for over 10 years I’ve done speaking gigs from all around the world. I don’t really do much corporate work now. Like now I mainly help people become effective speakers on a stage and selling on stage but I’ll tell you what, that was an incredible experience and that really just was a catalyst for me of being obsessed with getting on stage but I wasn’t always good on stage or we can talk about that as well. But that’s kind of my my baptism with fire into this journey.

Teresa: That is madness. Like say first off to go. To do a speaking of that size. First off as in your first speaking gig that’s still a really impressive size. When I first started speaking it was in a network room to five or six women or you know at a small local network thing of 20 people. And then I felt like I slowly moved up the kind of you know render the ladder.. Oh now I get to do this any people. That’s just crazy. And then you must have spoke so well to get that conversion, like a 90 percent conversion.

Colin: So I made an irresistible offer. I had no other sense other than I was just trying to contribute. I was trying to give as much as I could. I had an absolutely irresistible offer and it just went gangbusters about it. And this is what I learned is that when you live in a stage the conversion rates are Off the Chain. Like the other day one of my good buddies, Brennan Lazaro. I was chatting with and he was running a two day training session as a bonus to a Philly promotion that he’d done. He’d never ever sold in in stage in a room any and he said. He said he gave me permission to share a case study with anyone and he said Collin you wouldn’t but I couldn’t believe...