Paying to Speak is Like, Hmmm, Paying for Sex

July 9, 2010 at 1:43 pm | Posted in Adrian Miller Sales Training, entrepreneurship, public speaking, sales, Sales Training | Leave a comment

I do an extensive amount of public speaking, at business conferences, trade associations, networking groups, executive retreats and more. Some of these are paid gigs and others are unpaid and I tend to look at them as a marketing opportunity where I can present myself as an “expert”, share knowledge and build name recognition.

With me so far.

Well, what do you think about a (small) association that asks their speakers to pay them! Yup. That’s right. Pay them.

I was recently presented with this “opportunity” which I politely declined. I got mixed reactions from colleagues. Some said that by asking for payment they didn’t value me as a speaker and/or my expertise. Others said that they understood their rationale and that there was nothing wrong with it.

What do you think?

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