Ask any professional speaker what an industry novice should go about securing a speaking job, and the answer is usually something like…

• Attend Toastmasters meetings and practice your skills.
• Join the National Speakers Association to learn more about the industry.
• Give talks at Chambers of Commerce and Rotary Clubs.

But what if you know you’re a good public speaker…you understand the intricacies of the public speaking industry…and you’ve done your share of free free presentations? Where are you headed then? How do you go about looking for public speaking jobs?

Here are 4 tips to help you find seemingly difficult public speaking jobs online.

1. Go to Google and Yahoo, and search for the following phrases ‘speaker calls’ and ‘speakers wanted’. (Without the quotes.) In the results, you’ll instantly find links to organizations and conferences looking for public speakers. While these searches cover many different topics, you will find that many tech speakers are frequently searched for. So if this is your niche, there’s a good chance you’re in luck.
2. Check out the Speakers Forum sponsored by Speakers Platform. Honestly, this forum is not overflowing with public speaking jobs. But sometime you will find a gold nugget. In fact, this is where I found my first public speaking job many years ago. The meeting organizer was hiring several different speakers, and I was one of them. You can check it at: ([http://www.speaking.com/educationforum/index.cgi])
3. Follow the conference schedules for the target associations. Most associations hold some type of annual or semi-annual conference. Speakers are frequently sought after, making this an ideal place to locate a public speaking job. They will typically start looking for speakers 6-8 months in advance. Sometimes less, sometimes more. You should find out when your next conference will be held and start checking the association’s website 6-7 months in advance. Search engines sometimes don’t catch speaker requests right away. The American Society of Association Executives has an extensive directory of associations at ([http://www.asaenet.org/AssociationSearch.cfm?requesttimeout=240&sn.ItemNumber=7333]).
4. Apply to training companies. Fred Pryor/CareerTracks frequently hires contract speakers for a variety of topics. The job requires travel and the ability to sell your products to attendees. According to Pryor’s website, the top contract trainers earn more than $75,000 (USD) a year. You will be very busy. But it’s a great experience, especially for budding speakers. Contract training opportunities can be found at (http://www.pryor.com/career/seminar_leader.asp)