About public speaking opportunities...

Almost every trade show has an Exhibit Coordinator. I would find yourself a list of trade shows, and then call on some of the Exhibit Coordinators. Most of the time they are trying to sell booths, so its not too hard to get on the phone with them (but do it a couple of months in advance of the show).

The professional trade associations that sponsor conventions are always looking for speakers.

Some time ago, for about 3 years, I did a lot of convention speaking. The way I managed to get the bookings was to create a good direct mail piece and mail it to every pro trade association in a particular industry.

Usually there is a national association supported by smaller state-wide associations in any particular industry. There also is a reference book listing all trade associations in America. The name of the book escapes me, but usually it is available at your local library.

Use that as a starting point and snail mail a nice looking brochure and cover letter about yourself.

Better still, include an audio CD of you speaking - either from a past speaking gig, or professionally recorded to make it sound great. It needs to be able to grab the attention of the associations.

Usually the trade associations publish a list of all board members - both on a national level, and on the state-wide level. Obtain a copy of that list from a member, and also mail to every board member individually.

This does work.

:-Don

All about networking, I know this is probably not the answer you are looking for but in this business its who you know not what you know. You need to go to the events and try and find the right people to network with. Form a relationship and try to drop in that you love speaking. It might be a longer shot but you will see a much higher success rate.

I do a lot of convention related seminars in a particular niche industry. Getting the list of convention coordinators is pretty simple (it's on the associations website).

The key is to have a hot topic or two already planned out. You don't have to create the presentation just a one page summary that gives them a high level overview, some points on what they'll learn, and a few credibility items (e.g., testimonials from past seminars). Mail that out to all of the convention coordinators and follow up with a phone call. You'll fill our calendar in no time.

Keep in mind that most convention and symposium speakers are booked at least 3 o 4 months ahead of time. At least that's always been the case for my speaking engagements.

John

Colleges offer a number of speaking opportunities. I have a client that gets the bulk of her speaking engagements. She gets the names of the Dean of the Department that could use her services, and sends snail mail with a sample of her work. She follows up with email and the digital audio sample attached. She includes referrals in both contacts, in a nice, concise one-sheet.

The better the group, the bigger the convention/meeting, the further out in time it will be scheduled. Also, it is actually quite competitive to get these gigs, even if you are charging no fee. Industry speakers, as opposed to 'pro speakers' are usually the bulk of the speaker/faculty... brochure, demo video, and networking with meeting planners is all a part of securing these kinds of gigs.
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Bruce