The Smart Way to Use Speaking to Build Your Business With Jenn Zellers
Speaking isn’t just for keynote speakers—it’s a powerful marketing tool for business owners looking to grow their brand, attract clients, and establish authority. But how do you land the right opportunities and make them profitable?
In this episode of Creative Minds Smart Money, I sit down with Jenn Zellers, founder of The Visibility Ecosystem, to dive into how to leverage speaking gigs—without feeling salesy or overwhelmed.
You’ll learn:
✅ How to identify the best speaking opportunities for your goals
✅ The biggest red flags that signal an event isn’t worth your time
✅ How to pitch yourself as a speaker (even if you're new)
✅ The Sleaze-Free Sales Framework for turning speaking into clients & cash
✅ How one speaking gig can lead to multiple future opportunities
Speaking isn’t just about getting on stage—it’s about building a sustainable visibility system that works for your business. Tune in now to learn how to use speaking as a marketing strategy that actually pays off.
🎧 Hit play now and start getting booked with confidence!
Connect with Samantha:
Website: https://www.firestormfinance.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/firestormfinance/
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@firestormfinance?hl=en
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-e-8796b6176/
Newsletter: https://firestormfinance.myflodesk.com/podcastnewsletter
Connect with Jenn:
Website: https://visibilityecosystem.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/visibilityecosystem/
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@visibilityecosystem
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/jenn-zellers/
Interview Questions Generator Freebie: https://visibilityecosystem.com/questionsgenerator/
No-Fuss Podcast Tour: https://firestormfinance--virtualsummitsearch.thrivecart.com/no-fuss-podcast-tour/
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Transcript
Welcome to CreativeMind Smart Money, the podcast where
Speaker:creativity and business smarts collide.
Speaker:I'm your host, Samantha Eck, bookkeeper, business coach, and
Speaker:your go to guide for building the creative business of your dreams.
Speaker:Whether it's mastering your money, streamlining your systems, or growing
Speaker:your business, I'm here to share insights that empower you to thrive.
Speaker:Plus, I'll be bringing in industry experts to dive into all aspects
Speaker:of entrepreneurship, so you can turn your passion into profit
Speaker:without losing your creative spark.
Speaker:Let's get started.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: You're listening to the Creative
Speaker:Minds Smart Money podcast.
Speaker:And today I have special guest Jen Zellers.
Speaker:She equips established digital business owners with the tools to
Speaker:cultivate a sustainable stress free marketing system that fuels business
Speaker:growth, generates lease free sales, and positions them as thought leaders
Speaker:through speaking and collaborations.
Speaker:It's so great to have you today, Jen.
Speaker:How are you?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Thanks.
Speaker:I'm so glad to be here.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Awesome.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Well, before we dive into all of that good stuff that we want to get
Speaker:to, how did you get into speaking and what made you realize it's
Speaker:such a powerful marketing tool?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Gosh, I've been speaking online
Speaker:for, I guess, 10 years now.
Speaker:That's to say, but I've been speaking on summits and podcasts for
Speaker:10 years and I've been hosting my own summits and that kind of thing
Speaker:at least five now.
Speaker:So it's just kind of grown.
Speaker:And through.
Speaker:The other side of my business, Virtual Summit Search, I've ended up working
Speaker:with a lot of speakers and that ended up just sprouting into Visibility
Speaker:Ecosystem and helping folks learn how to do with their speaking opportunities.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah, no, that's awesome.
Speaker:I feel like speaking and visibility is just such a big thing lately,
Speaker:that it's so important to have someone as a resource for that.
Speaker:So not every stage, whether it's a podcast, a summit, or even
Speaker:like some sort of panel is really the right fit for everyone.
Speaker:So how can business owners identify what the best speaking opportunities
Speaker:are for the goals that they have?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: That is a great question because that is
Speaker:definitely something I see come up a lot as folks are like, Oh, it doesn't work.
Speaker:And my response to that is okay, but what goals did you set and did
Speaker:you check out the red flags or the green flags before you got started?
Speaker:So I usually work with my clients to figure out what
Speaker:goals do you have for right now.
Speaker:Sometimes you may be focusing more on building authority and making connections.
Speaker:With the host and people that find you through that speaking opportunity.
Speaker:Or if you're on a summit where there are other speakers making connections
Speaker:with those folks, other times you may really need to get more leads and sales.
Speaker:And so those are going to be potentially different speaking
Speaker:opportunities and collaborations.
Speaker:so first off, making sure that you're setting the right goals.
Speaker:Because if you're going on a smaller podcast,
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: but if it takes off, it can be a
Speaker:really long tail effect, versus if you're going on to a summit, and it's
Speaker:a successful summit with a history of doing well, you know how many leads that
Speaker:speakers typically get from that, you can set different goals based on that.
Speaker:there's stuff like that.
Speaker:There's also looking out for the red flags and the green flags.
Speaker:So the red flags would be things like, are they saying, Oh, Hey, I'd love to
Speaker:have you speak at this really generic summit on this really generic topic.
Speaker:And you're like, how many other people have they pitched on this?
Speaker:And then Maybe you reply back and say, all right, I'm interested in hearing more.
Speaker:And they go, great.
Speaker:Do you have 5, people on your email list?
Speaker:For me, always an immediate no.
Speaker:And as someone who's hosted summits, I always reply back and say, Hey,
Speaker:an FYI, as someone who's hosted five summits at this point, I found
Speaker:that the folks with the bigger lists actually tend to get worse results.
Speaker:So just a heads up so that you know that, and that
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: I'm declining because I keep
Speaker:a very clean email list.
Speaker:And all of that.
Speaker:So I always tell my clients, like, if you see those come
Speaker:through, you can just ignore them.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: immediate red flag.
Speaker:Green flags would be things like, do they have a speaker info page ready to go?
Speaker:Whether that's a summit or a podcast, a lot of podcasts now have, you know,
Speaker:So figuring out what your green flags and red flags are, and then
Speaker:making another green flag is, does this actually match your audience
Speaker:and your goals and your topics?
Speaker:And so being willing to say no to things is actually better.
Speaker:I would much rather as a host, someone say, Thank you.
Speaker:I really appreciate the opportunity, but I know that I'm not going to be the best
Speaker:fit for what you're looking for and I need to be able to get the results I just
Speaker:know it's not going to be a good fit then have someone say yes and then not promote
Speaker:it or do just like show up pop their presentation in and then ghost after that.
Speaker:So
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Be okay saying no keep an
Speaker:eye out for those flags.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And I just, I love that you said that because actually I recently applied
Speaker:for a collaboration event where they're like, Oh, you have to have a thousand
Speaker:plus people on your email list.
Speaker:And I'm like, I, I don't know.
Speaker:Like, I think, first of all, I was like, I think it'd take me a long time
Speaker:to get to a thousand people because I want people who are actively engaging
Speaker:in my list and things like that.
Speaker:And like, you know, I go through my list monthly to clean up
Speaker:people who aren't active.
Speaker:So.
Speaker:I was like, well, I don't know if that's a collaboration I'm necessarily
Speaker:interested in, because just because I have a thousand people on my list doesn't
Speaker:mean there are a thousand people that are actually wanting to be on my list.
Speaker:They could be completely ignoring my emails, so.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: And it is okay in those situations
Speaker:to reply back, especially if it's a relative, like I find a thousand to be
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: reasonable.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: than that, it seems like a good fit.
Speaker:And it seems like they're not putting the emphasis on those numbers.
Speaker:Cause a lot of those ones were like, you need 5, people on your list.
Speaker:They'll be like, oh, Or you can pay us a hundred, 250 and you can
Speaker:be a guest speaker and you still have to do all of this promotion,
Speaker:but you barely get feet and like,
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: it's one where it just seems like
Speaker:they're trying to make sure that it's an even playing field and that
Speaker:everybody has an audience, you can
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: back and say, Hey, just FYI, I don't
Speaker:technically meet that requirement, but here's why I keep a clean list.
Speaker:These are my open rates.
Speaker:These are my click rates.
Speaker:And as a host, I'm like, okay, yeah, no, I want that.
Speaker:I want
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: list where they're actually if you
Speaker:have a 500 people on your list and 200 of them sign up way better than
Speaker:someone with a thousand person list where they get a 1 percent click
Speaker:rate and even fewer conversions.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:Yes, and I love that you like, talked about the click rate and the open rate.
Speaker:'cause I feel like that's, that's definitely more important than
Speaker:just a number, giving a number.
Speaker:So what, I know you already touched on this a little bit, but what are some red
Speaker:flags that an opportunity really just might not be worth the time and effort?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: One of the ones that I always have folks
Speaker:look for is did they do their research?
Speaker:So if someone is coming and pitching me and saying, can you
Speaker:talk about Google Analytics?
Speaker:That was something I taught on, know, like six years ago, and not
Speaker:something that I cover anymore.
Speaker:And so if that comes up, I know they found an ancient blog post and
Speaker:did not pay attention to the fact that, isn't active anymore and all
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: stuff.
Speaker:they're coming with a really generic pitch where it's clearly not something
Speaker:that they took the time to actually see if that's your specialty, if someone came
Speaker:to me and said, Hey, I would love for you to teach about social media marketing.
Speaker:Okay, I can technically do that from the lens of creating a sustainable marketing
Speaker:system because social media Marketing assets are part of your visibility
Speaker:ecosystem Like for our clients if you go and do a speaking opportunity like
Speaker:this podcast episode You can take that and turn it into nine to twelve
Speaker:different social media marketing assets But that's not my specialty versus if
Speaker:they said, Hey, I'm doing a social media marketing summit, and I would love for
Speaker:you to talk about it from a sustainable marketing, a sustainable marketing angle,
Speaker:then yeah, obviously they did their
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes,
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: So it's little things like that.
Speaker:And just kind of doing a vibe check, if it feels like we already talked about,
Speaker:like they're putting the emphasis on numbers rather than the value that
Speaker:you are bringing as a speaker, because keep in mind as much as as a host, I'm
Speaker:putting a ton of effort into my summit, my podcast, anything like that, you're
Speaker:also bringing value as a speaker.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yep.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: that it's your time.
Speaker:It's your effort.
Speaker:And without that, I'm either doing a solo podcast, which is fine, but it's
Speaker:really nice being able to bring on other people and get different perspectives and
Speaker:different topics, I don't have a summit.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes,
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: if it's just me, it's, that's kind
Speaker:of the antithesis of that event.
Speaker:So just remember that you can.
Speaker:can say no if it seems like they're putting the number, the emphasis on the
Speaker:numbers, and also don't devalue yourself.
Speaker:I see a lot of people who are like, well, the host is
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: going the other way and saying, well,
Speaker:you need to pay me at least 250 for this.
Speaker:both putting in value and you're both getting value out.
Speaker:So that's kind of some of the red flags that I would keep an eye out for.
Speaker:Is it a really, really imbalanced value?
Speaker:like Are they getting way more out of this than you're getting out of
Speaker:this and whether the vibes check out and if they've done their research
Speaker:are probably three of the big ones.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah, and I love that.
Speaker:I love that because I feel like it's also really important that you say
Speaker:that you can say no to an opportunity and I think it's important to note
Speaker:that even like if you applied for that opportunity and you get further along
Speaker:the process and it starts to seem like it's not a good fit, there's still
Speaker:that opportunity to also say no because you want, you know, that visibility to
Speaker:line up with what you're looking for.
Speaker:As someone who's going to be putting yourself out there and adding that value
Speaker:to someone else's, I don't even like their visibility because if you're on someone
Speaker:else's podcast, you're adding to their visibility as well as your visibility.
Speaker:So you want to also consider that factor.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yeah, I mean, you can even go and
Speaker:do an entire podcast interview.
Speaker:And if the vibes feel really off during that, you can say, Hey, I really, I, I'm
Speaker:not totally comfortable with airing this.
Speaker:Do you
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: from the content calendar?
Speaker:That's okay to ask that.
Speaker:And then they refuse for some reason.
Speaker:then you don't share it and you like, yeah, it's okay to get all
Speaker:the way down to the very last step and still say, eh, maybe not.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes, yes, because I've seen so
Speaker:many people who talk about these interviews that they go on where it's
Speaker:basically just someone who's a podcast interviewer that is pitching to them.
Speaker:And I'm like, that's totally fine to say, you know what, I, I decided
Speaker:this isn't for me, because it's more important that you feel comfortable
Speaker:also advertising whatever is being put out there with your name on it.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yeah, being associated with it
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:Yeah, exactly.
Speaker:Now speaking of speaking, how can someone with little speaking experience
Speaker:start to land opportunities without feeling like some sort of imposter?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yes.
Speaker:So as a summit host, I personally love giving new speakers a chance
Speaker:to shine because a lot of the time they're more excited about the
Speaker:opportunity than somebody who's been speaking on a hundred podcasts and
Speaker:done 15 summits already this year.
Speaker:So don't feel like just because you haven't spoken or at all that you don't
Speaker:still have value main thing is going to be to communicate that value to the host
Speaker:so whether it's through an application or if you're doing like I do for clients
Speaker:and putting together pitch emails and Sending those out to the hosts Just make
Speaker:sure it's really really customized to the host like when I was putting together
Speaker:your podcast tour I made sure it was over
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: yes,
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: absolutely tailored to every single one.
Speaker:No email was exactly the same just show how easy you're going to make it for them.
Speaker:you're going and sending a pitch email and including a couple of sample
Speaker:questions that they could ask you and making sure that they know, like, Here's
Speaker:the topic that I'm suggesting, but also you can go ahead and reach out if
Speaker:you'd like to talk about alternatives.
Speaker:Maybe they have somebody already in the content queue for the podcast that
Speaker:you don't know about and is similar to your topic, but you know that you have
Speaker:different angles that you can play with.
Speaker:really, really customize your pitches and your applications.
Speaker:And be okay with being new, like you have to start somewhere.
Speaker:That's
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: yes,
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: to recommend for my clients to start with
Speaker:a podcast tour, because it is proactive.
Speaker:That is one thing with summits is they may or may not repeat them.
Speaker:You don't know necessarily when they're coming.
Speaker:A lot of it is just being in the right place at the right time
Speaker:or knowing the right people.
Speaker:So the other thing is tell people that you want to speak.
Speaker:If
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: that you want to speak, a lot of
Speaker:the time they're a little bit leery of recommending you because there's
Speaker:so many people who, like we talked about, are setting the wrong goals
Speaker:and therefore think that it doesn't work or various different reasons why
Speaker:they're like, no, I don't want to speak.
Speaker:So if they know that you want to, they can very wholeheartedly say
Speaker:yes, you should go and, and like, bring on Jen, bring on Samantha.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:And I, I do love that you mentioned that, you know, our podcast tour and
Speaker:how you did the, the emails for me.
Speaker:Cause I think that's so important, but I think it's really cool too,
Speaker:that we can mention that you did the research and you found podcasts
Speaker:that were actually applicable.
Speaker:And I think that's another important step is finding opportunities that are
Speaker:actually applicable to what you're doing.
Speaker:Because again, like we mentioned, not every podcast or summit or So,
Speaker:you really need to do that research and make sure that whoever you're
Speaker:contacting is actually going to resonate with what you're trying to put out.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yes.
Speaker:And that is definitely key.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:So, now, what makes a speaking topic not just interesting, but
Speaker:actually profitable for the speaker?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yes, this is a great question.
Speaker:That's one.
Speaker:Another reason why people often think that speaking doesn't work is because they
Speaker:don't have a profitable speaking topic.
Speaker:They say yes to
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: them, they go super, super generic.
Speaker:So I know when we had first talked, I forget exactly what you had me your
Speaker:topic was, but we were able to go and get something that sounded really juicy
Speaker:and really exciting because especially for your area of expertise, A lot of
Speaker:people think it's boring, but it's not.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: if you can go and make sure that
Speaker:you're putting an angle on it that is intriguing, it makes people go, Oh, okay.
Speaker:I want to know more about that.
Speaker:The other thing is that needs to tie back to an offer.
Speaker:I don't care which offer it is.
Speaker:You can have different topics that tie back to different offers, but it allows
Speaker:you to talk about clients and use what we call this lease free sales framework
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yep.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: able to.
Speaker:Get people interested in what you do and what you offer.
Speaker:And that's what makes it profitable.
Speaker:Cause if it doesn't tie back to something that brings in money,
Speaker:there's no story to tell about how that money is going to come in.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: And I mean, I feel like that's, that's
Speaker:so important what you're saying, like tying it back to an offer.
Speaker:Like you can still have like one solid offer.
Speaker:And then just another podcast interview I was doing.
Speaker:So I was talking about like how they only had one offer, but they tie
Speaker:everything kind of back to that offer.
Speaker:So you can come at it from those two.
Speaker:different angles and really get into it.
Speaker:And yeah, like when we first started, I was just like, Oh yeah, I'm just talking
Speaker:about numbers and things like that, but I'm, I know there's something more to it.
Speaker:It's just, you've got to approach it in a different, in a different way.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yeah.
Speaker:And don't be afraid to get creative with the audiences that you're targeting to,
Speaker:because maybe you work with photographers and so you're looking only for a podcast
Speaker:that speaks specifically to photographers.
Speaker:But you can expand out into creative entrepreneurs and
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: just look for segments.
Speaker:The audience of that podcast needs to have a segment.
Speaker:The audience of that summit needs to have a segment that includes your audience.
Speaker:It might be a part of their audience equals a part of your audience,
Speaker:or it might be a part of their audience is your entire audience.
Speaker:As long as there's overlap, That's fine.
Speaker:That is how
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: I've had people who are like,
Speaker:Oh, no, I can't do a podcast tour because I've run out of podcasts.
Speaker:Have you though?
Speaker:Or have you run out of really, really, really specific podcasts?
Speaker:And we can start broadening that net because you've established yourself
Speaker:inside of that specific niche.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes, yes.
Speaker:And I think that's so true.
Speaker:And then like, you know, how we're talking about like me, we had such a
Speaker:broad net with creative entrepreneurs.
Speaker:And then we kind of narrowed it down.
Speaker:Like one of the podcasts that Jen found for me was a calligraphy podcast.
Speaker:And it's so niche.
Speaker:But like, I have an interview with them coming up in March.
Speaker:And like, It's, it's, it's a perfect opportunity because who knows how
Speaker:many calligraphers need a bookkeeper, but we didn't, we didn't just
Speaker:stay at creative entrepreneurs.
Speaker:We went down and we talked about to more niche people within the creative
Speaker:entrepreneur space, which is so important.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: As long as there's that
Speaker:overlap, you're good
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:So how do you balance sharing value pack insights while also
Speaker:putting position yourself for future opportunities or sales?
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: great question.
Speaker:So this comes back to a little mini framework that I have, which
Speaker:is give them what they need.
Speaker:Which I know sounds completely backwards to everything that you've probably
Speaker:been told, but you actually don't want to give them what they need.
Speaker:You know that they need bookkeeping.
Speaker:What they think that they need is something completely different.
Speaker:And so that is where getting that creative angle actually help you a lot because
Speaker:people may not tune into something that is like, learn how to do your
Speaker:books better on a podcast or a summit.
Speaker:But.
Speaker:you go and say, what story do your numbers tell?
Speaker:okay.
Speaker:We're not just sitting here thinking, okay, I'm going to have to do math and
Speaker:I'm going to, I hate doing my books.
Speaker:I don't, I'm not, I maybe I'll tune in later.
Speaker:They never do, by the way, they never tune in later.
Speaker:So you need to make it really juicy and intriguing enough so
Speaker:that they will actually tune in.
Speaker:And So if you can go and take, you work backwards from what you know that they
Speaker:need, figure out what they think that they need, start with that, give them
Speaker:what they want, and then through your presentation or through your interview,
Speaker:shift it what you know that they need.
Speaker:And so that way you're not necessarily giving them the how,
Speaker:you are getting them ready for that.
Speaker:And so then.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: make it profitable.
Speaker:them ready for that how, and then you give them the how through a freebie,
Speaker:which is just part of the how, and then you can move them up to a paid offer.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:I love that.
Speaker:I love that.
Speaker:And what is the process for crafting a talk that resonates with both the
Speaker:audience that you're pitching to and then the potential clients as well?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: So, I mean, potential clients are
Speaker:in the audience, so it's really the
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: But It really, again, comes back to that.
Speaker:So you want to give them what they want, not what they need, but lead
Speaker:them to what they need by the end.
Speaker:And make sure to incorporate, like I said, what we call your
Speaker:sleaze free sales framework.
Speaker:And different layers to that, but it includes talking about
Speaker:how you work with people.
Speaker:So you're not going, especially if you're on, say, a summit.
Speaker:most of the time you're not allowed to pitch, so you have to be really careful.
Speaker:And that is actually where my Sleeves Free Sales framework came from, because
Speaker:I was like, Okay, I need to actually make money though, but I can't go and say,
Speaker:You should buy a No Fuss Podcast Tour.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: So, you go and you seed in
Speaker:different ways that you work with clients, and you help people see
Speaker:what it's like to work with you.
Speaker:And there's different ways to do that, without being gross and
Speaker:slimy, which is, Why is the sleaze free part of that framework?
Speaker:Because you have all been on those podcasts or those webinars
Speaker:or those summits where it ends up just being a pitch fest.
Speaker:Like you said, it's someone goes on an interview for a podcast and it's
Speaker:the host or the guest is literally just pitching the whole time,
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yep.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: that you say and turning it into a pitch.
Speaker:So we don't want to do that, you can do it in a non gross way.
Speaker:you are weaving it into your presentation.
Speaker:And so that's how we always do it, is we work backwards from where do you want them
Speaker:to go after, how do we get them to that endpoint at the end of your presentation,
Speaker:and then working backwards from there.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:And I love that you said like, you know, your potential clients are also the
Speaker:audience because I think it's important.
Speaker:Like, yes, you might be going to a summit and it's a perfect fit for you.
Speaker:And you might be thinking, okay, well, some of these people aren't
Speaker:going to be a perfect fit for me, but in the end they could be,
Speaker:they could be a potential client.
Speaker:You might not even know it.
Speaker:So instead of just thinking of that broader aspect, okay, so this
Speaker:is just someone else's audience.
Speaker:You want to think of that prospect that they are all potential clients.
Speaker:How do you talk to them in a way that's not?
Speaker:You know, that sleazy sense where you're also talking about what you offer, but
Speaker:not in a way that sounds pitchy or salesy.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: But I will say, you're going in
Speaker:front of an audience where you don't have potential clients there, You're
Speaker:really going in as a favor to the host
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: only other way that you're going to
Speaker:make money if those folks are not currently potential clients is if they
Speaker:know somebody who is or they become that potential client down the road
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yep.
Speaker:Yes,
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: it's totally fine to do that.
Speaker:You can absolutely go in and say, Hey, I love you.
Speaker:Like I've done that.
Speaker:I have someone who I don't typically work with folks who
Speaker:are product based businesses.
Speaker:Our sleaze free sales framework works better for folks who have
Speaker:like courses or memberships or they coach or something online where
Speaker:it's a digital service or offer.
Speaker:But I knew someone who, well, I know someone who has a direct seller
Speaker:membership I've, I've been around that world in the past and so like I know
Speaker:that my stuff can still work for them.
Speaker:So I knew that I probably was not going to get clients, but I was
Speaker:like, you know what, it's okay.
Speaker:I would just like to offer value.
Speaker:It's an hour of my time.
Speaker:I can do that.
Speaker:it's okay to do that.
Speaker:But yeah, do too many of those, or else you're going to be just
Speaker:giving away your time all the time.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: and your time is so valuable.
Speaker:So how does speaking plant seeds for like long term business growth rather than just
Speaker:being some sort of one and done event?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yes.
Speaker:I love this question because there are so many ways that you can
Speaker:do this, and this is where your visibility ecosystem springs from.
Speaker:Like, this is, Where we came up with this because if you are in a podcast,
Speaker:if you're on a summit, if you're doing any kind of collaboration, especially
Speaker:if there's video or audio, can turn that into so many different marketing assets.
Speaker:You're going to be bringing in leads and hopefully sales, whether
Speaker:it's immediately or down the road.
Speaker:One podcast episode can do so much for you.
Speaker:Again, this is why we always start with the podcast tour because it's
Speaker:just a springboard for so much.
Speaker:So say we come off of this and I could take video or the audio from this,
Speaker:turn it into three reels or Tik Toks or they're short from videos, whatever, three
Speaker:carousel posts, three graphic quote posts.
Speaker:And I go and I do three short LinkedIn posts or threads.
Speaker:Those all then showcase me as a speaker and it shows hosts
Speaker:that I'm promoting the episode.
Speaker:And
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: best at doing this because I
Speaker:do it all day for my clients.
Speaker:And so it's one of those cobbler's kids situations where the cobbler's
Speaker:kids have no shoes because you're always doing it for other people.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: again, this is what we do for clients
Speaker:is go and turn that podcast episode into those nine to 12 different assets.
Speaker:But you can also go and.
Speaker:Take something that you said in that podcast episode, turn it, just
Speaker:expand that, turn it into a blog.
Speaker:You can take pieces out of it, turn it into an email.
Speaker:And I don't just mean an email, like one of those short little snippets is, Hey,
Speaker:I was just on creative mind, smart money.
Speaker:You should listen in, click this button.
Speaker:No, no.
Speaker:Do like you do with the blog posts.
Speaker:It doesn't have to be as long, but pull a piece out, expand on
Speaker:that a little bit and say, if you want the rest, come and listen.
Speaker:you can do that on LinkedIn, whatever platforms that you're
Speaker:marketing, that one piece.
Speaker:into so much more and you make those evergreen and so that way you have say
Speaker:you do five podcasts a quarter that's 20 podcasts a year if those 20 podcasts
Speaker:even just have 10 pieces of content made out of them for social media say that's
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: from one year of podcasts if you
Speaker:do that for three years straight like you could post multiple
Speaker:times a day and With different
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: mix them all up.
Speaker:Like you will never run out of stuff to post.
Speaker:And I promise if you're posting something that you appeared on year or
Speaker:two ago, nobody's going to remember, or if they do, they're like, Oh yeah.
Speaker:was a good episode.
Speaker:I should go listen to that.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:No, and I love that because I feel like, you know, a lot of people just
Speaker:think, okay, I'm just going to go on this podcast interview and then be done
Speaker:with it and in the past, you know, I have had people who have never utilized
Speaker:like the resources that I've given them.
Speaker:Like, you know, when we give them the full podcast and everything
Speaker:like that, but the thing I think.
Speaker:That a lot of people don't tend to understand this, the, when we do
Speaker:interviews, it's not just for the podcast host, it's also for you and it's a
Speaker:great opportunity for you to share your expertise to certain audiences, but
Speaker:then also utilize that to share with your audience in, in different ways.
Speaker:You can take a snippet of your voice, you can take how you said the certain thing.
Speaker:You're like, wow, I, I can't believe I said it that way.
Speaker:And utilize it in your marketing and it's the best way to do that.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yep.
Speaker:And it attracts more of those beacon opportunities.
Speaker:The more that you're out there promoting speaking opportunities you've already
Speaker:done, whether like, even if it's a summit that's over and they didn't ever
Speaker:green it, like that's something I always do with mine is make them evergreen.
Speaker:So my host can keep promoting them if they want to, and I can promote them.
Speaker:even if it's not, it's still showcasing you as a speaker and
Speaker:people are going to go, Oh, wow.
Speaker:If they're still promoting this and like sharing what they've done,
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: I really want them on my podcast.
Speaker:I want them on my summit because a lot of people, like you said,
Speaker:don't use those resources.
Speaker:They don't promote it.
Speaker:So you're going to start getting more of those inbound invites and
Speaker:eventually you don't have to go on podcast tours because your content
Speaker:calendar is full of inbound invites.
Speaker:instead of outbound outreach.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes, yes.
Speaker:Now, I think you kind of already answered this, but what's the best
Speaker:way to turn a single speaking gig into multiple opportunities or even
Speaker:long term client relationships?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yeah.
Speaker:So yeah, I already covered a big part of the visibility ecosystem approach
Speaker:with turning it into different stuff.
Speaker:So that's where, when we're working with clients on it, say, okay,
Speaker:what platforms are you active on?
Speaker:And you get specific on what pieces of content are going
Speaker:to be most helpful there.
Speaker:So like for me, if I'm not active on Instagram, which I'm really not,
Speaker:maybe I'm not doing The post for that, or maybe I'm on, I've got a
Speaker:nine grid up and I'm doing stories.
Speaker:So instead of doing like graphic quotes, we turn those into stories instead.
Speaker:So it's making sure that you're customizing it to where you're active
Speaker:and not forcing yourself to be on platforms that you don't want to be.
Speaker:But the relationship side, that is another great question, because that
Speaker:is something that a lot of people miss.
Speaker:And I'll be honest.
Speaker:I also sometimes miss it.
Speaker:again, just for me, Coppler's Kid Syndrome, for other folks, maybe
Speaker:you just don't have a system.
Speaker:And so, if you set up a system, it doesn't have to be super
Speaker:complicated, but just make sure that you are able to automatically
Speaker:remind yourself to follow up, so.
Speaker:In our visibility ecosystem hub that we set up for clients,
Speaker:we have automations in there.
Speaker:And so what it'll do is say I'm doing pitches, it will automatically remind
Speaker:you, Hey, tomorrow, don't forget to follow up with creative mind, smart money.
Speaker:Or if you've already been on a podcast, you can set it to automatically
Speaker:say, Hey, it's been six months.
Speaker:Don't forget to check in with Samantha and just say, hi.
Speaker:And so that way you can help yourself to maintain these relationships
Speaker:you'd be surprised how many times that you're like, hey, I just want
Speaker:to check in, see what's going on.
Speaker:Is there anything I can signal boost for you on social or in my emails or whatever?
Speaker:And they go, Actually, I do have a launch coming up.
Speaker:I would love to give you an affiliate link for that.
Speaker:Or actually, I have a summit coming up.
Speaker:I'm so glad you reached out.
Speaker:Do you want to be in it?
Speaker:And then makes it easy for them.
Speaker:They don't have to really pitch you.
Speaker:And so yeah, if you just make it easy for yourself with those
Speaker:relationships, even beyond going and creating all the marketing assets
Speaker:that can take you a long way to.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:And I love that you mentioned that.
Speaker:I think it's so important because I think on Threads, we had talked about
Speaker:it at one point where we're like, we wish that there was more of a
Speaker:relationship after podcast interviews.
Speaker:And I think that's so important because again, a lot of the times
Speaker:it's an interview and then you never hear from that person again.
Speaker:And I'm like, you're such a cool person.
Speaker:Like you reached out to me for a reason.
Speaker:You wanted to be on my podcast episode.
Speaker:How do we like continue that relationship?
Speaker:How do we keep getting to know each other?
Speaker:How do we help each other out?
Speaker:Because.
Speaker:You know, you're getting, not only are you interviewing each other during the
Speaker:podcast, but you're also getting to know that person, so it's more beneficial for
Speaker:you to utilize now that relationship, to grow on it, and help them grow, help
Speaker:yourself grow, everything like that, because you've started a relationship,
Speaker:why not keep the momentum going?
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: it's so true and it's something
Speaker:that will also make you stand out because like you said, 95 percent
Speaker:of the time it doesn't happen.
Speaker:People aren't following up and it's not because we don't want
Speaker:to, it's because we forget.
Speaker:So
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: yourself to not forget.
Speaker:Yeah,
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: to immediately do that today, too,
Speaker:because I'm going to go set up a system to make sure that I do
Speaker:that, too, because you're right.
Speaker:It's just a forgetting thing.
Speaker:You go on a podcast episode and then six months down the road, you're
Speaker:like, oh, yeah, I was on that episode.
Speaker:When it comes out, you're like, maybe I should talk to this person
Speaker:again instead of just ignoring them.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: and I also don't, I've seen people who
Speaker:are like, Oh yeah, I just automatically schedule an email in my Google workspace
Speaker:inbox to send an email after six months, but not, I don't recommend that.
Speaker:I remember the reason I recommend sending a reminder to yourself is
Speaker:because what if they go and they reach out to you and say, Hey, I would
Speaker:love to have you on a summon is five months after the podcast interview.
Speaker:then you send them an email in six months after the podcast interview.
Speaker:So one month later going, Hey, what's up?
Speaker:Anything I can help?
Speaker:And they're like, what is happening?
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yes, because you'd forget
Speaker:about the scheduled email.
Speaker:That's exactly right.
Speaker:So, for someone who wants to start using speaking as a marketing
Speaker:strategy, what's the first step that they should take today?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: I, like I've said, I always recommend
Speaker:doing a podcast tour first, because it is the most proactive way to get started.
Speaker:Podcasts are a lot easier to, I hate using the word target, but they're
Speaker:easier to target because they're ongoing.
Speaker:Typically, maybe they do seasons and they're on a hiatus.
Speaker:That's fine.
Speaker:But podcast is ongoing versus a summit, which is a one time event, and
Speaker:maybe they're repeating it, but you don't know if they're going to, then.
Speaker:It's going to be a lot easier to find the podcasts that are a good fit.
Speaker:And then, like I said, though, as you share those more and more, the summit
Speaker:hosts are going to start reaching out.
Speaker:The people who have group programs or memberships and are
Speaker:looking for guest experts, and maybe they even pay are going to
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Yeah.
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: seeing you and reaching out and asking
Speaker:you to come and speak on their platforms.
Speaker:So podcast tours are always where I start my clients.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Awesome.
Speaker:And that's such good advice.
Speaker:And if you guys are looking for a quality podcast or definitely check
Speaker:out Jen but where can my audience connect with you, book you, or just
Speaker:learn more about working with you?
Speaker:jenn---visibility-ecosystem_1_02-18-2025_130234: Yeah, you can just check
Speaker:out visibilityecosystem.
Speaker:com and I'm at visibilityecosystem on threads.
Speaker:That's pretty much the only place I'm active though.
Speaker:I'm starting on LinkedIn finally.
Speaker:yeah, I mean, it's best place to find me is over there.
Speaker:samantha-eck_2_02-18-2025_120417: Awesome.
Speaker:Well, thank you so much for coming on today, Jen.
Speaker:I really appreciate it.
Speaker:And I think this is so valuable.
Speaker:I really appreciate you taking the time to just give your expertise and
Speaker:yeah, thank you for being here today.
Speaker:Awesome.
Speaker:That's a wrap on today's episode.
Speaker:I hope this conversation gave you the confidence to step into the world of
Speaker:speaking with strategy and intention.
Speaker:Remember, the right opportunities can open doors to visibility, credibility, and long
Speaker:term business growth when chosen wisely.
Speaker:If you found this episode helpful, share it with a fellow entrepreneur
Speaker:whose life Looking to grow their brand through speaking and if you
Speaker:haven't already leave a review.
Speaker:It helps more creative business owners like you discover these
Speaker:insights and take action.
Speaker:Want to connect with today's guest or learn more?
Speaker:Check out the show notes for all the details.
Speaker:Thank you so much for tuning in and I'll see you next time for
Speaker:more money and business wisdom.
Speaker:Farewell fellow travelers.
