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You might feel overwhelmed and lost when building your speaking business, but I am here to tell you there is a way to do it without feeling like drowning. Full disclaimer: I am not a professional or any speaker. I have worked with public speakers over the years and picked a few tips and tricks. I will share with you a few systems that will benefit a speaker.
Here are the ones we will be looking at:
- CRM
- Project Management
- Building A Team
- Communication
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
First and foremost, we have the CRM, the gatekeeper, if you will. What is a CRM? A CRM is an integral customer management system in all businesses, and the speaking business is no different. A CRM keeps everything under one roof. There is a vast variety of CRMs, but many weren’t created with the speaking industry in mind. That said, there are still many great choices for speaking businesses of all sizes if you’re willing to do some customization yourself. Just know that not all CRMs are created equal.
The one I use personally and recommend to my speakers is 17hats. This one-stop shop manages contacts, sets reminders, and sends contracts and invoices to event planners, and they can pay directly from the invoice through 17hats payment processer, bookkeeping, and workflows. Embed your lead capture form from your CRM to your website; once filled out, guess where it goes, in your CRM. 17hats has countless integrations, including Zoom, QuickBooks, Zapier, and more. They even have an app, I can go on and on. In short, it’s the powerhouse of CRMs for speaking businesses. I love it. Use this 17hats code YVA50 to start your free trial today.
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Project Management
A project management system is next up in the beautiful world of systems for speaking businesses. If you’ve never used one, the concept is precisely the same as a collection of Post-Its: organization.
Project management systems are another way to organize your thoughts and tasks in a central location. However, project management systems are designed for internal company use rather than gigs you have in the pipeline. These projects may include partnership opportunities, prep for an upcoming conference, or work on your website. Whereas a CRM is for keeping track of outreach to decision-makers and other lead sources, a project management system keeps your foundations firm and maintains a consistent process.
Like CRMs, there are a few to choose from: Airtable, Asana, Trello, and more. I use Asana; with various project layouts, task organization, and the ability to assign tasks to team members, Asana combines organization with communication. Asana allows me to delegate tasks and content to my team and invite clients to their projects. We can also upload files, and record videos if you need to share specific instructions.
Asana is an incredibly functional tool for small-speaking businesses and larger teams. It is easy to navigate, and, best of all, you can join for free! You can also manage projects between multiple teams, so if you manage a consultancy on top of a speaking business, you can easily stay organized in both places. Win-win.
Building a Team
One of the most important systems is not a technical one, but a personal one: building a team. It is no secret that any business runs more smoothly when tasks are shared, and everyone can play to their strengths—knowing where to start when balancing gigs, travel, and everything in between. Virtual Assistants are beneficial in this aspect, and a VA is a great way to make efficient and lasting progress in your speaking business when you can’t afford a full-time employee. Hiring a VA for a one-time project, such as event management during your busiest season, getting started with a CRM, or researching speaking gigs can also be wise.
My team and, I support speakers in all aspects of their speaking business. Schedule a call here to hear more about how a virtual assistant can help your speaking business.
Communication
As you grow your speaking business and add team members, instant messaging is undoubtedly faster and more convenient than emails. Many team communication apps allow integration with systems, including Asana, and dozens of other tools. Within my own business, we use Slack. There is a free version, which we use because of the number of team members, but there is an affordable paid version for larger teams.
Whether managing a team of twenty or two, Slack is a great way to share ideas, files, questions, and concerns in real-time.
What about communicating with clients? In your speaking business, integrated scheduling will be your best friend. I work with clients in three different time zones and know the struggle. The integrated scheduling applications connect to your calendar Google Calendar, or Outlook, for instance, and allow potential clients to see when you’re free. They can then select a convenient time with their schedule by sending a link.
There are different systems, for automated scheduling, but I am biased toward 17hats online scheduling,(the CRM I mentioned above), and my second choice is Calendly. Both can be integrated with Zoom for online meetings. Calendly and Zoom have free versions and can connect seamlessly to your calendar. In a nutshell, when you say, here is “the link to my calendar,” you can hyperlink your scheduling page. That way, they can jump to your calendar and block some time to meet with you. If you have your Zoom meeting room link in your calendar invitation, they’ll also know they’re meeting with you virtually. Additionally, 17hats and Calendly will send them an automated email reminder, so there’s less chance they’d miss it.
Ultimately, these systems and tools are vital to the growth of your speaking business. Still, trying to figure out what systems are best for you and your speaking business? Reach out, and I will be happy to help.