The Secret to Landing More Speaking Gigs | Cam Beaudoin | 625

And welcome, welcome, welcome. This is Peter Winick. I'm the founder and CEO at Thought Leadership Leverage, and you're joining us on the podcast today, which is Leveraging Thought Leadership. Today my guest is Cam Bodwin. Cam is interesting in that he coaches speakers to maximize their lead pipeline, and he does some really cool stuff with DemoReels, which that's evolved over the years. So without further ado, welcome aboard, my friend. Welcome, Cam.

Hey, Peter. Thanks so much for having me. This is gonna be great, I think.

Yeah. Well, I hope so. If not, if not, uh, you know, we'll, we'll do something else.

Well, we were riffing off each other when we were doing the pre-call, like, uh, like a week ago. So I think this is, it's just gonna be awesome. I think it's gonna be really great.

Yeah. So you and I were chatting and, and I, I really liked your thinking and perspective. So give, give us sort of the high-level overview of the type of work you do. One is that you've been a speaker, you are a speaker, but then how did you, how did you find the opportunity that you did in this, in the speaking space? Because I think it's kind of interesting.

Yeah, sure. So I was a speaker for about 7 years on disability inclusion and accessibility, and those are some pretty big words, but it all kind of boils down to, can technology be used by people with disabilities? Like, like, that's pretty much it. If you're blind, how do you interact with your phone? If you're, uh, if you're deaf, like, our videos, do videos have subtitles and things like that? So that's pretty much what I would go and speak on and kind of evangelize what it is to, uh, for my, for my peers, my colleagues, my friends who have disabilities, you know, how do I evangelize them and, you know, make sure that they're at the forefront when people are building out technology.

So, so that's, that's a really good topic from not just from the topic, but from the standpoint of you've really clearly defined your niche.

Absolutely. Right.

When I, when I look at you, I'm, I'm trying to extrapolate template and the model of how speakers can figure out sort of how to navigate the way.

Yeah. Yeah. And isn't it funny? I'm sure you have the same conversation with a lot of people that you help as well when they go and say, you know, like, and you ask them, who do you help? And they say everyone. And you're like, wait, we got some other work to do here. We got, we got some stuff to work on here.

That is my, unfortunately, a fairly common answer, but I actually think the worst answer anyone could give.

Right, right, right. Yeah. So in the middle of the pandemic, I kind of realized, I said, you know what, let's, let me give a real kick at the can here and try and like elevate and improve my public speaking skills. In fact, I went out and first looked for voice coaches who could help me remove ums and uhs from my talk because I thought that was just kind of slowing everything down. Anyway, the reality is you just got to slow down your talking. And for anyone who's looking at remove ums and uhs, just slow down and take a pause for a second. So through that process, I, I joined some, um, um, speaker programs and, and how to like launch a business. And I found that everyone, all my, my friends, they were getting so hung up because all these speaker programs, they say you need a demo reel, you need a website, you need all this kind of like ancillary extra stuff that needs to get created for speaking business.

There's a little bit of a, you know, who got rich during the, you know, the gold rush, you know, you're selling pickaxes. So a lot of, and I'm not dinging anyone specifically, but there, there's a whole cottage industry of quote supporting speakers and selling them stuff that they may need or not need. So that's one thing I would be somewhat, I wouldn't say skeptical, but somewhat pessimistic about, right? If you want to get in this space, step one isn't spend a zillion dollars on every bell and whistle. But I, I think, you know, you sort of the next place you were going is, okay, well, you need a speaker reel. Okay, well, if I haven't spoken anywhere, How do I get a speaker reel? So there's a bit of a chicken and an egg problem where if you've been speaking for a long time and want to upgrade your reel, like you should do on a regular basis or whatever the case may be, that's a fairly easy process. But if you don't have the footage, that was sort of the thing that you scratched your head and said, ah, here lies an opportunity. So what did you, what did you come up with?

Well, I think a big part of, of a demo reel, a good one, is that are you solving a problem? Are you clearly communicating a problem that you, you can help solve? For that event planner, for their audience. And you know what, you know what else I found is that, can you articulate the problems of an event's audience better than the person who's hiring you? Like, that is like a really big, like, key factor in all of this. So what I said is, well, why don't I just put a speaker in front of a camera and go and find some really cool location where they can go and record themselves. And a cool location can be a really funky auditorium, or it can be like a photo studio, right? What if I just ask them a bunch of questions about their business and who they help solve, and then add that into a 2 to 3 minute video that clearly defines who they help, why they're there, that positions themself as the guide to, to really, you know, guide an event organizer to, you know, speak to them.

Because I, I think this is a place where not only new speakers, but even experienced speakers sometimes miss the mark where a speaker reel is not just look at me, look at me. It's not a highlight reel of sports, right? Where you're like, oh, the big home runs I hit or the plays that I made. I think that's somewhat egocentric to say, oh, here's my best of.

Right.

Yes, there are elements of that that need to be in a speaker reel in terms of can you, can you see audience reaction? Can you see a big arena, small arena, et cetera? But I think I love that your idea of sitting down and having a conversation, because if you look at it through the lens of the event planner or whoever's P&L the event is hitting, what are they trying to achieve? And it's not, they didn't, they didn't get 500 people together to create an audience for you to have a fun time for an hour. That's not what they did. They have a business goal and the business might be doing well or not so well. It might have went through some changes or some acquir— whatever the stuff is. And the question, you know, the trick is you're just a tool to help them raise a level of awareness, a discussion, a conversation, an insight, et cetera. And then you go home, right? So I think this interview format where you get to be more human than just a keynoter from an entertainment standpoint, And then the buyer can go, oh, that's interesting. Yeah, they can adjust that message to meet where I am today.

Exactly right. A speaker demo reel is a sales asset, right? We have to get it out of our minds that you just like what you said, it's not a highlights reel. The demo reel doesn't get you booked for the gig. I've never heard a speaker saying, oh, because I, you know, I've got this 3-minute video, I got booked. No, no, no. It gets you the call with the event planner. Then your job is to go and convert that into a sale, right? What does it do? It really creates interest in the event planner's minds as like, you know, like just like what you said, oh, this person looks like they can solve the problem that my people have that, you know, this transformation that we're going through, they can help ease our way through this transition. Let's get them on the call. Let's get the speaker on the call to see if they can come help us more.

Well, I, I think it's that, and I would add to it that in most instances today, the decision to book a speaker is not a one person decision. It might have been some years ago. More things than we'd like are done by committee. So if you are person 1, right? And you were in Las Vegas and you saw this great speaker and you come back to your team and say, oh man, I saw this guy Cam and he's great, da da da da da.

Okay.

It might lose something in the translation. Well, what was great about him? Was it his content? Was it his energy? Was it his delivery? So I might not be able to articulate that well, right? So now. The reel also sort of neutralizes the game of telephone because that gets passed around internally amongst the decision makers. So now when we're all saying, I saw Cam and he had a good energy level, assuming they all saw the video, they go, yeah, I kind of get that. You know, he's likable. He's got empathy. He'll resonate with our culture.

Yeah, exactly. There are 3 to 5 people on average now that need to make a decision on a speaker. And especially when you start to look at the 5 figures, you know, $10,000 to $15,000 plus, you know, it's not just, uh, let me cut a check. It's let me make sure there's value in bringing this person in. And I think there's like, that actually creates opportunity to me. That's why it's become so valuable like that. That's why you can set yourself apart and how you can set yourself apart by honing in that message. And then like saying, I've got this video, I've got this speaker kit. Like I've got all my components together. Everything you need to make a decision on me is all right here in this nice little package.

And I think the other thing that folks need to convey as a speaker is it's not just the canned thing, right? Here's my 45-minute speech, et cetera. But you need to be able to convey that I want to understand where your business is. What do you want me to accomplish for you? What does success look like for you? What are the points that you want me to raise? What are the things you want me to avoid, et cetera? Not that it's a one-size-fits-all, you know, the, the performance is at 2 o'clock, you know, and it is what it is. And I think you can do that through a reel.

So, right, right.

If you're enjoying this episode of Leveraging Thought Leadership, please make sure to subscribe. If you'd like to help spread the word about our podcast, please leave a 5-star review at ratethispodcast.com/LTL and share it with your friends. We're available on Apple Podcasts and on all major listening apps, as well as at thoughtleadershipleverage.com/podcast. One other question I have for you relative to the Reels is pre-COVID, a Reel meant one thing and today it doesn't, right? And pre-COVID was a, showed you in a variety of audiences in a variety of formats, probably highlighting a bunch of cool logos of big organizations, et cetera, audience reaction. You can sort of see the template. Now, you know, we went immediately, you know, during COVID and shortly thereafter to much of what is being delivered is remote. Now it's sort of hybrid. So how do you show both, or do you show both of both the live and the, and the remote element?

Well, let me just back up one second, 'cause there's one thing you said before COVID a demo reel was like 5 to 7 minutes. Now it's like 2. So before we talk about anything else, TikTok, Instagram, like all the short-form content has really shortened our attention spans to watch videos. People just wanna make a decision. Do I get on the call with this person or not? Like, that's it. So first off, first thing you gotta do is make sure it's tight. It's really, really, really tight. So second to that, yeah, there's a higher—

well, just stay there one second. I don't mean to interrupt you, but I think what I've seen happen is speakers obsess over their speech. I mean, like obsess over every frame and every this and every, like almost at a, a level of OCD. And I think that's important to have a high quality bar, but I think you also have to have in your mind, well, what is the use case? If this is a 2-minute video and someone's got a, a meeting to go to and they have to prep for it, they might be watching it on their phone in the elevator, right?

Not sitting in front of like you are in your office, your big fat screen, right?

Amazing, et cetera. I think you have to understand sort of, okay, well, how are people actually using this and why? And then I'm not gonna sit there with a scope and say, oh, that, that color blue shirt, I would've liked a paler blue shirt, you know?

Yeah. Yeah. What's it called? Uh, done is better than perfect, right? Just get it out there. Like, that's the most important thing. And so you, you, you've nailed it with that. You know, people are sharing this over Zoom, right? You're getting, uh, if you're in a large corporate environment, you got 4 people around in a boardroom and they're playing it on the screen. That's, you know, like, you know, 12 feet away. So you're just not seeing— it's not up on big screen, you're not listening to headphones. Generally speaking, yeah, that, that's kind of how the viewership is going. So before I was, I was going to talk about the hierarchy of like what's most important, because you asked, do we add virtual conferences? So yeah, if you're presenting something that's super standout, of course I'm gonna add that in there. But there is a hierarchy of what event planners are looking for.

Yes.

Number one's gotta be stage, you know, stage performance. If you don't have that, it's cool. Do you have media appearances? Have you been on the news? Have you been featured anywhere? Have you been like that? Like that looks really good as well because that's just providing social proof that as other people are giving you authority, right? So that's number two. Number three is that interview. So I've had reels where speakers have come into me, they've got like 2, 3 virtual performances., but then because we've added in that interview, it like really bumped up their performance. Next up is like workshops. So things where maybe you weren't mic'd up properly, 'cause you know, like a corporate workshop, you're not mic'd up, you're kind of just yelling out in front of an audience. Yeah, that looks really great as again, audience interaction, showing that other people have hired you, stuff like that. And then kind of down from there, uh, virtual appearances, webinars, panels, things like that. Everything else is kind of added on. But if I'm gonna throw together a 2-minute, 3-minute reel, that I'm putting a lot of weight behind the first 4, right? So, so stage performances, interviews, media appearances, live panels, and stuff like that.

So let's go back to the chicken and the egg piece. So how do you solve the problem of I don't have the stage stuff, or I don't have a lot of it, or enough of it, or the audio wasn't, you know, I'm, I'm a beginning speaker. It's my first 20 gigs or something like that. How do you solve that chicken and egg problem?

Well, you gotta start where you are. And I think that a lot of speakers, they, you know, I have, I have over 100 stages under my belt. I cannot go and say I'm a $25,000 speaker. Like, I just can't do it. I, I just can't do it. So I think a lot of speakers have to really take a, take a perspective of where you are right now. Like, if you're still building your, your signature talk, you're probably not gonna go out there and get a $10,000, well, maybe, maybe $10,000, but maybe not like a $15,000 or $20,000 talk, right? So wherever you are right now, you have to use what that material is to to get to the next step. Yes, you can go record your interview. Yes, you can go find a Chamber of Commerce stage to go do it at. Event planners are getting wise now and they can start to pick out— I've spoken to many now who've said, you know, I've seen 3 speakers all with the same stage. So there's some organizations out there that'll put a bunch of speakers on stage and they're like, why is everyone dressed the same? And like, I've seen 3 or 4 speakers with that same background. So they're getting wise towards it. So it doesn't mean you can't do that. You just got to make it look like like a performance. Like you gotta get out there and give it your all. So work with where you are right now and then use that to leapfrog into doubling your speaking rate. Like if you're going from $2,500 to $5,000, you're doubling your rate, right? And then you take, you know, you do a bunch of talks at $5,000, then you're probably gonna have 1 or 2 good stage performances. Go buy, go invest in a lapel mic, go and hire your own videographer team. It's like $600. If you're not willing to invest $600 into your business, you can be like, what, like, where are we going with this? Right? So then you can like leapfrog that up to $10,000. Then you're getting some, then you're getting like real footage. You're getting some real performance.

Well, and the irony of the speaking business is it's far easier to sell a $25,000 speaker than a $2,500 speaker.

True. Yeah.

Hold on.

Isn't that like a business fact of all things? Like, you know, your best clients are always going to be the ones that pay more than, than those ones that like, you know, short.

Yes. And, but, but I think what's different is when you're at that, let's say 15+ level, $15,000, $20,000, $25,000.

Yeah, definitely division at that $15,000. Yeah.

The buyer is more sophisticated. It's not a nonprofit or an association with a board. And like, you know, the reality is for a $2,500 speech, you can't afford to do, you know, 8, 10 pre-calls to sell it, right? You have to— it is just the math doesn't work. It just doesn't. And the higher your ticket price, The easier it is to sell. So the question is, how do I shorten the time that I'm stuck at the $5,000 level, right? To get to the 10 and the 15, et cetera. Well, this, this has been great. Any final tips for those that are out there that are like thinking about diving in or kind of early and like, what, what, what might you suggest to them?

I would say record everything, like stop being afraid of your own content to just get out there. The more volume you create. Of content. And like I said, even if you just go to a talk and you hand your phone to the person in front of you and say, just record me like doing this. Yeah, that's going to be good content for you to use elsewhere. Good content using your reel on socials, no matter what. Because if you think about your content just gets you the call with the decision maker or decision makers, right? In some situations, you know, your biggest lever is going to be, can you just get better at that call as well? So really focusing in on on like the business and sales aspect of your talk. And then not to say don't focus on your talk, but it's gonna make, you're, you're gonna see a lot more difference if you focus on the early stuff.

Love it. This is great stuff, Cam. I appreciate your time and your energy and your expertise. Thank you.

Cool, man. Thanks for having me.

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