How can you broaden your niche influence?

The core value is the key message you want to be known for. This enables you to become the leading authority in this space. You can than expand on the core value on your message offering perspectives and citing examples how your message can be implemented and benefit others. For example, in my keynotes about courage I provide examples of courage being employed in everyday life and the positive impact courage makes.

I see this differently. Certainly, one could build a case that identifying your core values is helpful toward broadening your niche influence. But core values are more about how one operates when carrying out their life, business, or speaking practice. Generally speaking, it's only indirectly connected to one's niche, topics, or stories. However, if I were to connect a core value to my USP, it would be along the lines as "Kevin values bringing aspirational and practical solutions to his audiences." But again, that's not directly tied to a specific message.

I refer to this as your expertise - what you are known for. This is your "lane," and if you want to be known for something, you must stay in your lane. Otherwise, you will be a "jack of all trades and master of none."

It seems like there's an endless debate on being a "specialist" vs. a "generalist." I see both sides of the coin. When it comes to disability, its broadness almost makes one force to narrow down because being an expert in disability is hard, near impossible, with so many different lived experiences. Within speaking about disability, the niches are endless. That can include but is not limited to entrepreneurship, sports, architecture, literature, and religion.

I'm not sure I agree with this. You want to be known for something, not everything. If you niche in a topic, as mentioned, stay in that lane. If you niche in an industry, you can go broader. I worked with another speaker who was amazing at everything that had to do with sales. However, he was smart and only promoted what most people were interested in. Once he started working with the client, he informed them of his other ideas within the broader topic. That worked well for him. He not only booked the first speech, he booked additional speeches with the same client. But, to emphasize, he led with his strongest topic.

"A confused customer does not buy." - This is true of a speaking business as with any other. If you try to say that you can speak on lots of different topics and don't narrow your focus to new potential clients, you won't get the job. Once you have done a few events with people, then you can branch out to workshops or masterminds on deeper or broader topics. I would definitely not start with this as your initial business proposal.

If you want to network with speakers, start by joining the National Speakers Association. If you're outside the US, there are other professional speaking associations that affiliate with NSA. (Website for NSA: www.NSAspeaker.org)

Abundance mindset is key to your success in most businesses, but definitely in being a motivational speaker. Connect with other speakers often, those in your same niche and those with similar but complimentary topics they cover. My best referrals have come from other speakers who know the quality of my work and can recommend me to event planners, podcast hosts, and more.

Diversifying your business is important, and adapting to new formats is key. As technology continues to evolve, the experience of speaking and participating in events will also continue to change. Practice makes perfect, and being as versatile as possible makes you a more likely candidate to book speaking engagements.

Putting testimonials from clients on your website is the "social proof" clients look at before reaching out. Two types of testimonials to get. The first lets the world know you're a great speaker. The second tells the outcome of the speech (increased sales, lower customer churn, more repeat business, etc.).