I'm a therapist looking to market myself and my OBGYN colleague for speaking engagements to women. What's the best way to start?

The route I'd take is to start researching conferences that you'd like to speak at.

Find out where and when they occur. Look for a "call for proposals" — lots of conferences ask speakers to submit talk ideas.

Find out who runs them. See if you have any mutual friends. If not, see if you can find a way to be helpful to them (without asking for anything in return). Building good will has paid me back many, MANY times over as a speaker.

Look for local meetups. Maybe organize your own. Start to get experience as a speaker and build a reputation.

It starts slow, but things ramp up quickly once momentum picks up. I used this approach to build my own speaking career.

I'd be happy to share my strategy and story with you if you're interested.

Good luck!

Start blogging! You'll be surprised at how quickly this can build your reputation and how far it will extend your reach.

We have a long-term client who is an OBGYN office. They started blogging a few years ago and while they do not post as much as I would like, the content they do post receives lots of patient views and industry members have acknowledged it and sought assistance.

Each time I visit with the main doctor he talks about the power of blogging and how it has extended his reach and client base more then he ever expected.

I'd recommend a brand name.

The 2 of you need a simple "handle". Let people mention you to colleagues and acquaintances as easily as possible. Ensure they know how to get to your site for more information.

Without a single name to mention and find you by, people will get bogged down in a cumbersome explanation – about "an OBGYN and clinical therapist duo who are running workshops for women". That gets awkward. Personal names are forgettable. We all forget the names of people we're introduced to.

Better to have a brand name. Let people mention that. Then your website can do the talking. Apart from being a time saver in actual conversation, this will help the 2 of you seem "established" and reputable. With a brand, you can develop a consistent message by which to introduce your project. Furthermore, you'll be able to separate that project from your own 2 personal identities, which may prove important later on.

Would you like to discuss naming? I have a few ideas. Let's set up a call.

Love it. Identify the target audience that you'd like to serve very precisely. It doesn't have to be forever. It just has to be enough to begin. Then write a kickass session proposal of what you can offer that precise audience and why you should be on a stage in front of them. From there it's a number and sales game of finding the decision maker information, building relationships, offering value, and making the ask. There's a great resource for this by Pete and his team over at Advance Your Reach. Good luck!

A few thoughts on this:
Chamber of Commerce - Often local chambers have various types of speakers present on topics of community interest. I'm a radiologist and gave a talk on 3D mammography to a local chamber and saw our screening rates dramatically increase.
Loca Paper Guest Columnist - Local papers are hungry for content. If you are an expert and can write about health issues such as but not limited to preventative services you will likely have your work published.
Community Services Groups - Similar to Chamber's of Commerce, local Rotary, Lions, and City Clubs are often receptive to various speakers including health professionals.
Community Health Events - Does you county or city public health department put on an annual health fair? Can you participate, perhaps have a both and offer a free service there?

Happy New Year (2020) !

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Sincerely ,

Professor Obi

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