As a public speaker, you know that spreading your message is key, but sometimes it’s challenging to expand your audience or secure more public speaking gigs. Hence, we need to master email marketing for public speakers.
Most experts believe that email marketing is the perfect ally or practice for any public speaking entrepreneur. It helps speakers connect with more people, inspire them and boost their earnings.
Let’s explore how you, as a public speaker, can amplify your influence, book more events and ultimately make more money with email marketing.
Who are your potential audience? Email marketing for public speakers
Consider your business niche first and find the right audiences. A mind map can be a helpful tool to visualize your niche and identify connections.
For instance, I’m all about finance, personal growth and economics. So, my audience consists of people seeking money-saving tips and financial advice.
Similarly, if you sell books on WooCommerce, your target audience would be avid readers and knowledge seekers.
The main aim is to identify and reach out to those who can be your potential buyers.
Let’s talk about this guy named Shane Sams. He’s all about helping people make more money and live their best lives. The best part – he’s quite the talker! Shane loves public speaking, getting up on stage and sharing his financial wisdom with the world.
Shane is super passionate about personal finance and digital marketing. He uses a fancy WordPress website and some clever email marketing strategies to get personal finance enthusiasts excited about his events.
Shane’s audiences consist of –
- Women seeking financial empowerment
- Individuals with side gigs or part-time jobs
- Travelers and adventure seekers looking to save money for their trips
- Individuals focused on saving money and doing extreme budgeting
- People planning for their retirement
So, your goal is to pick the right audience group rather than individuals. You can make multiple groups and maintain a separate email list for each group.
Better email list building for successful email marketing for public speakers
I often resort to a Google Sheet to list down my target audience. It makes sense because you can see everything in one place i.e. the sheet itself. You can easily add new columns and rows for more categories and entries.
Here’s how I’d keep a Google SpreadSheet, as illustrated below.
Transitioning to building that engaging email list, I understand it’s a journey, not a quick fix.
Icegram Express is a WordPress email marketing plugin that works wonders for me. With Express, I can effortlessly make a new email list within the plugin or import it from Google Sheets.
But this is not enough sometimes when you have a large target audience.
Here are five additional things I do so that I get widespread recognition and promotion. It works for me and I’m certain it’ll work for any public speaker.
- Utilize a website opt-in form to captivate visitors with enticing content. A fitness blogger and public speaker, for example, might offer a free e-book on nutritious foods for enhanced mental abilities.
- Provide something valuable, like a free e-course, downloadable template or quiz, enticing readers to share their email addresses. I’ve noticed Neil Patel effectively using this strategy with his free SEO assessment tool.
- Actively promote email sign-ups during workshops and webinars to connect with those genuinely interested in my content.
- Pre-registration events for public speaking engagements serve as a fantastic way to gather attendees, their emails and additional referrals.
- Collaborating with influencers or companies in my niche proves to be a super useful trick. Together, we create webinars, freebies or content that encourages audiences to share their email addresses.
Segmenting your email marketing list for public speaking is crucial
Now let’s talk about segmentation and segmenting your audience based on their interests, behaviors or demographics. Proper segmentation can help speakers to push more personalized communication.
You want to make more money and do it fast? You can’t ignore segmentation.
SaaS tools like Hubspot and Mailchimp can certainly help you with segmenting, but they can turn expensive as your email list grows.
Icegram Express, a user-friendly WordPress email marketing tool, comes in handy here. It is cheap (also has a freemium version) and enables you to categorize your email list effectively.
If your event covers diverse topics like budgeting, investing and retirement planning, you can segment your audience accordingly. This ensures that each subscriber receives information tailored to their specific interests.
How to go with the right email marketing strategy for public speakers?
Now that you understand how to create a flawless email list and segment it for more refined outcomes, it’s time to put into action a strategy.
Here goes my usual approach.
Early outreach: Scaling digitally has turned interesting
Word-of-mouth and traditional networking were usually the go-to methods. While effective, scalability was an undeniable challenge with the traditional way. Moreover, times have changed and everything moved to digital.
That’s when I started utilizing email marketing as a consistent digital outreach tool.
Every month, I send a “Speaker Update” email highlighting a recent presentation or valuable resource. This establishes myself as an expert and thought leader while gently reminding recipients of how I can add value.
To my surprise, these simple reminders have generated numerous new speaking inquiries over time.
By keeping connections fresh through occasional personalized messages, I’m able to reach far more potential clients than ever before.
Relationship nurturing: Essence of long-term success
Maintaining ongoing relationships is crucial for referral business and repeat clients as a speaker. Let me elaborate on some of the techniques I’ve found most effective.
After every speaking engagement, I send a personalized thank you email to both the organizers and key attendees within 48 hours. I want to cement my professionalism and appreciation while the event is still fresh in their minds.
In addition to gratitude, I’ll also reference a specific insight or moment from my presentation that clearly resonated. This shows I was engaged and paying attention to their interests.
I also include a short call-to-action, whether it’s connecting on LinkedIn or inquiring about future opportunities.
Then every quarter, I compile those connections into targeted industry newsletters. These not only share my major announcements but also highlight relevant updates and opportunities within our field.
I do this because I want to position myself as a knowledgeable partner. It builds long-term goodwill and trust.
I also conduct brief follow-up surveys to gather feedback and ensure complete satisfaction. This helps me continuously improve while allowing past clients another chance to express appreciation for my work.
Testimonials are then featured prominently on my email newsletters, website and other B2B proposals.
Perhaps the most valuable is the handwritten thank you cards I send for any referrals received. A personal touch can go far in strengthening reciprocal partnerships.
All of these relationship-focused steps have resulted in numerous repeat bookings and new opportunities over the years.
Fueling engagement between appearances with the right content
As a marketer and speaker, I’m always hungry for experiments to add value and spark more engagements.
With “Motivational Monday” email newsletters and frequent LinkedIn posts, I aim to deliver genuine value to my subscribers on a weekly basis.
Additional tip: You can also embed your LinkedIn feed on your website.
These recurring touchpoints allow me to share relevant insights, while also cultivating my reputation as a thought leader in our field.
I source inspiration from audience Q&A sessions and feedback, ensuring these ongoing messages resonate and meet real needs.
Connecting with subscribers on a human level is also important.
Occasionally sharing candid behind-the-scenes stories from my own journeys makes them feel like insiders in my experiences. This nurtures a sense of community that keeps engagement high over the long run.
Perhaps most importantly, this sustained email content and social copies positions me as more than just a one-off speaker.
Subscribers come to see me as a long-term partner and resource they can rely on for advice, opportunities and support as their own careers evolve.
That level of goodwill and trust has directly led to increased
- Referrals
- Recommendations and
- Speaking fees over time
By maintaining frequent yet deliberate contact beyond live events, I’m able to thoughtfully extend the value and impact of each presentation long after the final applause.
That continual dialogue has taken my speaking influence to an entirely new level.
Icegram Express has been a perfect companion in my email marketing journey. It’s the perfect WordPress email marketing plugin for beginners as well as experts.
Want to start a speaking gig newsletter campaign on Icegram Express? Here’s the Express documentation you must read to start right away.
Also read Icegram Express testimonials to find what other users are saying about this WordPress/WooCommerce plugin.
Leveraging email marketing for public speakers’ signature talk packages: From opportunities to more revenue streams
As my speaking business has grown, I realized I was delivering the same core messages to different audiences on a regular basis. That’s when I developed my signature talk packages. It’s more like custom packages.
Each package focuses on a high-demand topic I’m known for, like “Financial Leadership in Times of Digital Transformation” or “Innovative Personal Finance Strategy To Earn More.”
So, my readers and subscribers get access to:
- The full keynote presentation outline
This 20-30 page content gives my readers the whole tour of my expertise. It includes visual aids, activities and tailored advice for each email segment or niche.
- HD video of my live keynote delivery
Watching the 1-hour recording allows them to observe my high-energy speaking style in action. They can take mental notes on techniques to use.
- Bonus Q&A call with me
I host monthly one-hour group coaching sessions for package subscribers. We dive deeper and my readers get live advice on boosting their public speaking career.
My packages are priced affordably, providing exponentially more value than a single speaking gig. In addition, I promote them monthly through targeted emails describing each package’s benefits.
The results have been amazing. On average, I now sell 5-10 packages per month, making this my largest revenue channel.
Subscribers also often rebook me for additional in-person or virtual programs down the line.
Want to get more subscriptions? Try Icegram Express WP email marketing plugin today and start building a super powerful email list.
Wrapping up
I hope you’ve gained some helpful insights into growing your influence, business opportunities and income through intentional email marketing efforts.
For any public speaker unsure where to begin, my advice would be to start small – craft an initial message, build a contact spreadsheet and get comfortable with your email platform of choice.
From there, focus on truly understanding your niche audience and catering messages specifically to their interests.
- Stay top of mind with regular, quality updates delivered to the right segments.
- Nurture crucial connections through personal touches between speaking gigs too.
- And never stop experimenting to spark continued engagements!
As for me, I’m thrilled with how customized email campaigns and ongoing conversations have taken my impact to new heights.
Icegram Express continues powering my email marketing journey in a seamless manner. Get Icegram Express here (Free, Pro and Max) and master email marketing campaigns for your speaking career.