Description
Effectively Selling to Associations & Societies…Through the Backdoor…Getting Past the Gatekeeper
We all know that speaking at an association or society meeting is like being paid to showcase in front of potential clients…but which ones? Tired of hearing from meeting planners, “We don’t pay speakers,” yet you see big names on their program? They do pay speakers, but not just any speaker. Associations want subject matter experts and thought leaders — they don’t want the person that read the book, they want the person who wrote the book.
Problem 1: Most speakers don’t have a clue how to methodically and strategically go after association business, one vertical at a time…yet alone also utilizing the association self-select strategy. This can easily be driven by lack of category and brand positioning.
Problem 2: Most speakers connect with gatekeepers thinking they are decision makers. This program reveals how to determine who makes speaker-hiring decisions. This is done through the backdoor…relationship bank deposits with the editors.
Problem 3: Most speakers forget to take the multi-pronged approach — telephone, mail, email, social media and LinkedIn direct connections. There are a lot of ways to get seen but it is the live conversation that generally leads to business development.
This program explores many aspects of the association/society, 501(c)6, world and how to succeed in selling your keynotes and training.
About Ed Rigsbee, CSP, CAE
Ed Rigsbee, CSP, CPAE…with his feet firmly planted on both sides of the association-speaker fence, Ed enjoys being one of only a handful of persons that holds both the Certified Speaking Professional and the Certified Association Executive credentials. With 30+ years as an NSA member and over a dozen at the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), Ed knows both sides of the fence.
Ed has been the executive director of the Cigar PEG Philanthropy through Fun for over 20 years. His organization holds a bolt-on event to NSA’s Influence. The IRS recognized 501(c)3 public charity has donated over $835,000 to medical causes and the NSA’s own Foundation.
Ed is the author of books on strategic alliance development and non-profit member recruitment and retention, and quit counting a decade ago when his printed article publication number hit 2,500.
He has been teaching speakers how to sell to associations since the mid-1990s, has presented internationally to speakers and has presented at most of the NSA chapters, as well as the annual convention a number of times.
