4/25/2025
Editors: Rebecca Morgan & Ken Braly
See “About SpeakerNet News” at the end for information on how to submit tips and use this newsletter. Remember, your “dues” for this free ezine are submitting two tips a quarter. Send your best tips to editor@SpeakerNetNews.com.
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From the Editors
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We’re looking for a few people to help source and craft relevant tips. Or add your own tips. Is that you? It would likely take less than an hour every week or two, and you could gather useful info from sources you’re probably already consuming. Plus, what a cool thing to add to your resume that you’re an official part of a nearly 30-year-old industry publication!
If interested, please email us ASAP and we’ll set up a time to go into detail. editor@SpeakerNetNews.com
SNN Webcast Info
Wednesday, May 14
Sell Smarter with AI:
Turn Speaking Leads into Booked Gigs (webcast)
with Julie Holmes
Everywhere you turn these days, somebody is touting how AI (Artificial Intelligence) is going to change the world. It’s going to be such a boon to our business, they say.
Yes, maybe it can help you write an email, but where have you seen AI put to actual use doing something vital to your day-to-day speaking business?
As you know, actually speaking is a small part of the job. It’s finding speaking engagements that is the real work. Can AI help with that chore? In our next session, you’ll see how our expert uses AI daily to do exactly that.
Read more about this session at the bottom of this newsletter, then register for the live program or pre-order the recording.
Note: Special time: 9:00-10:00 am PDT
Note: Everyone who registers for the live webcast session or orders the recording will get a link to the recorded video of the online webcast, as well as the audio MP3 for convenient re-listening.
Save the date:
- Wed., May 21 — “Properly Use Props: Increase Engagement in Virtual and In-Person Presentations” with Jason LeVasseur, CSP, VMP
Miscellaneous Tips
How the C-suite is changing — David Newman
Great article from the Financial Times titled, “The C-suite Evolution: Is Your Thought Leadership Staying Ahead?”
Power in the C-suite is shifting, and the profile of the CEO is changing. Not only are they expected to take on a wider range of responsibilities while navigating uncertainty, but they’re also facing competition from other leadership roles:
- Chief financial officers are increasingly moving into CEO roles. About 15% of FTSE 100 CEOs were CFOs immediately before they became CEOs.
- Chief data officers are quickly moving from roles focused on data governance and regulatory compliance into much more strategic responsibilities, often working directly with the CEO on getting data-driven results.
- The role of the chief human resource officer (CHRO) is also evolving. A recent Accenture survey revealed that 89 per cent of CEOs believe CHROs should have a central role in creating long-term profitable growth.
- And new roles are still emerging — from chief innovation officer to chief sustainability officer and chief AI officer. Specialist skills that were once seen as niche are now critical to business success.
Headshot photographer recommendation — Lynn Brown Rosenberg
I highly recommend Anthony Castro (Thesaltypoet@aol.com) for headshots. He works in the Greater Los Angeles area. Headshots are $500, but for SNN subscribers it’s $350 until July 25. Use the discount code: Rosenberg. Contact Anthony, or his assistant Steve Lopez at 562/332-7605.
Does your video thumbnail entice viewers to click? — Rita Risser Chai
My brother, an MD terrified of speaking, was invited to TEDx. As fascinating as his subject of brain resilience is, as great as his talk was, I believe the reason he has more than 400K views in the first 2 weeks is because of the video thumbnail. It shows him doing a plank. Among the thousands and thousands of talking heads, he stands out. It makes me wonder what the rest of us can do to get that kind of attention. Here it is if you want to see for yourself.
Travel Tips
Travel healthy snack and hydration tip — Jessica Setnick
My dietitian colleague, Meridan Zerner, shared this tip: Carry on your empty enviro-friendly water bottle (which I often fill with baggies of healthy snacks like mixed nuts, dry roasted chicken peas, freeze dried fruit, turkey jerky, etc.) which is then ready for use and optimal hydration at your destination.
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“Best Practice Travel Tips from Road Warriors.” Ten years of the best travel tips from SNN readers. 8 eBooklets. Special limited-time pricing now for SNN readers. Download your set today. |
SpeakerNet News Webcast Info
Wednesday, May 14
Sell Smarter with AI:
Turn Speaking Leads into Booked Gigs (webcast)
with Julie Holmes
Here’s the hard truth: Finding great speaking opportunities takes more hustle than delivering the actual keynote. But what if you could flip that equation using AI as a strategic advantage? As a global speaker on AI & innovation, Julie doesn’t just talk about AI — she built it and uses it every single day for her own speaking business.
In this no-fluff session, Julie will show you exactly how she rebuilt her speaking business from zero to six figures in six months using a systematic approach now supercharged by AI. This isn’t theory; these are the exact strategies she uses daily to find, pursue, and close high-value speaking gigs.
You’ll walk away knowing how to:
- find the right people at the right time — Identify decision-makers when they’re actually ready to book.
- cut through the noise — Craft personalized outreach that gets responses, not eye-rolls.
- build a repeatable system — Turn one-off bookings into a consistent revenue fountain.
This session is all about working smarter, not harder (but make no mistake ... there is still work to be done!). Julie will show you how to use AI as your “intern” to handle the heavy lifting while you focus on what machines can’t do — bringing your unique expertise and personality to close the deal. The stage is yours!
Register for the live program or order the recording.Note: Everyone who registers for the live webcast session or orders the recording will get a link to the recorded video of the online webcast, as well as the audio MP3 for convenient re-listening.
Date: Wednesday, May 14
Special Time: 12:00 pm Eastern (11 am Central, 10 am Mountain, 9 am Pacific)
(Enter your location here to get your local time)
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $49 (webcast)
Special Limited-Time Offer:
If you would like more ideas for using AI to grow your business, we’re suggesting the recordings of several earlier programs to complement this program:
- “Searching for Speaking Engagements: Secrets to Leveraging Search and AI to Find Speaking Opportunities and Grow Your Business” with Sam Richter, CSP, CPAE
- “Ridiculously Easy Ways to Amplify Your Reach and Your Revenue with AI” with Shawna Suckow, CSP
With your order of this live or recorded session, at checkout you will be offered these recordings.
About SpeakerNet News and the Editors/Publishers
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