Just like having your own free mini-seminars, becoming an in-house speaker is a great way to educate consumers, establish your credibility and help market your products and services.

Take a look at your local Chambers of Commerce. Chambers are always looking for more benefits they can offer to their Chamber members and your educational seminar or workshop is just one more thing that they can add to their list of benefits. Ask them if they would like you to come and speak at one of their events. You could have a talk about the dangers in choosing a professional in your field. We all have scam artists in our own fields. Educate their members about the scams that are out there and how they can spot these scams and save their hard earned money.

You can also look at trade associations. They are similar to Chambers of Commerce but are organizations geared to businesses in one specific industry. You could become the specialist in working with HVAC business owners, or Home Remodeling businesses. I know these two groups do have have their own trade organization. Check around and see what other industries have organizations like this and contact them. Most of the time, they really want to help their members out any way they can and if your talk will help educate their members, they'll be very grateful to have you speak at one of their events.

When it comes to your presentation and what to talk about, there are a few things that you should keep in mind. Here's a checklist to help you get things as organized as possible and make your presentations a hit every time.

Your time frame
Most of the time, there is a standard time frame that each group might have. It's best to make a list of topics you can talk about and figure out which of these topics will fit into specific time frames. Generally, most organizations will want you have a presentation for one of the following time frames: 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes, 60 minutes, and 90 minutes.

Most of the time they will only have time for 10-30 minutes depending on the event itself so you don't have to worry about the bigger ones for now.

Outline your presentations so you can set up your presentations to fit in to each of these time frames. Trust me from experience, it's no fun to run out of time and have your great presentation cut off. You want to be able to complete your presentation and have room for a few questions at the end in order to make the best impression on the attendees of the event.

Let's say you are asked to talk for 30 minutes on your topic. You should plan your presentation roughly around the following time frame. 25 talking about your topic and educating the attendees, 3 minutes to answer questions and the final 2 minutes could be a small pitch for your own products or services.

Notice that I didn't say 30 minutes of pitching your products. You need to establish yourself as the expert and build the relationship before you start trying to pitch anyone. Your purpose for speaking at these events is to establish yourself as an expert in your industry and educate the attendees on the best practices in working with someone in your industry. You could also give them a few things that they can do for free even if they don't hire you. This will endear you to them and you will quickly become an established authority to them. Then, when they are ready, they will be much more likely to chose you to hire than someone else that hasn't done anything to build the relationship.

Be sure to also allow time after your presentation so you can meet the members and talk with them one on one. Many times, if you educated and entertained them, they will want to come meet you after you are done with your presentation. Be sure to make time for this as this is where you have one more chance to build the relationship and really make a great impression on them. Answer their questions, thank them for having you and don't be afraid to feel a bit like a celebrity. It can happen and that's ok. Just don't let it go to your head too much. (grin)

Speaking at local organizations is a great way to establish yourself and your company in any market and if you are looking to niche to a specific industry, this can be the most effective way to do this. Just remember, to educate, not pitch or sell to them. Once you have established your credibility to them, they will be much more likely to buy your products and services and your marketing efforts will have paid off much quicker.