Become A Speaker, Author, & Mainstream Media Personality

how to become speaker author media personality



Once you've reached a certain level of success you can leverage your influence to become a public speaker, columnist, author, or media personality. If you get really big you may even be considered a "Thought Leader" and have your pick of nearly any form of media available. Media outlets like radio, TV, podcasts, webinars, magazines, and newspapers will all be viable options when you've proven that you can generate and grow a large audience. Which media outlet(s) you choose will really depends on the niche you want to carve out for yourself as a media influencer and public personality.

Podcasts

Podcasts are excellent tools to promote yourself, grow your following, and cross-promote with other media personalities. If marketing gurus like Gary Vaynerchuk, Tim Ferriss, Grant Cardone, and Neil Patel do them every week you can bet they are effective! 

Obviously you can create a simple podcast early in your business process to use as a valuable tool for producing high quality content. Right now I'm referring more towards participating in more mainstream podcasts that have tens of thousands of listeners or more. 

Some of these podcasts even charge their listeners or subscribers so you could either start your own or get a revenue share of a podcast you contribute to consistently. If you start your own, be sure to work with a podcast distribution platform and you can start selling commercial space on your podcasts or promoting sponsored items. 

While podcasts admittedly aren't my favorite avenue for media production, I can't deny that they have been proven effective and lucrative for countless producers. Some podcasters have even become multi-millionaires with their audio content platforms.

Radio

Radio may be a declining media platform but it certainly isn't dead yet and can still be a powerful medium to reach hundreds of thousands or even millions of people. The "death of radio" has actually been shouted from the mountains for the last two decades but it hasn't happened and isn't going away anytime soon. The key is to get the most out of it without putting all your eggs in one basket. Unless you have a valuable contract at a major media company with your own show, consider radio a supplemental source of exposure and income. And when you leverage the remaining power of the radio, at least partially leverage it to get listeners to follow you on social media, visit your website, or buy your product. That way you'll extend the lasting benefits of your broadcasts.

Newspapers 

While newspapers are another significantly declining form of media, there are still benefits to be had from contributing to newspapers. Like radio, the death of the newspaper has been discussed for the last two decades as well in this digital age. Newspapers aren't dead yet though and could still be a viable way to reach millions of people. Write a weekly column or give your two cents on major stories. Use the website Help A Reporter Out (HARO) and others like it to get plenty of interview opportunities while helping local journalists as well. When you help them out they will often reciprocate. Become the local, regional, or national go-to expert and make a name for yourself. All newspapers are also online of course so you'll be there as well as their social media pages.

Magazines

Magazines are in pretty much the same boat as newspapers where they are either declining or transitioning to a more digital focus. Everything I wrote about newspapers pretty much applies here, so don't overlook contributing to mags or even the rags. 

Webinars

Webinars can certainly be utilized at any time to create unique engaging content. You can also utilize it when you are beginning to monetize your media, by either charging for your webinar or using them as a platform to pitch your own products and services. At this point in your journey I'm referring more towards very large webinars that big names can create or webinars that corporations will pay you to run to help their brand. If video and/or public speaking are your specialties, webinars are very popular and effective ways to generate leads or directly generate revenue. Plus, you can also have them saved for people to view in the future and to post as strong revenue-generating content you can post on YouTube or your website. 

Books

While we discussed that nearly anyone can publish their own eBook these days, when you have reached a certain level of success you'll either be able to amplify a self-published work, or you can secure a big publishing deal. The more valuable and more well known your brand is, the better your book will sell. While you are writing it primarily for a source of income, they actually end up being very powerful marketing tools and will secure you even more revenue with your websites, products, consulting, multimedia appearances, and other entrepreneurial exploits. Will your book be the next New York Times bestseller? You never know until you give it a go.  

TV

While a lot of cable programs are struggling with internet competitors (Netflix most famously), this is still where a lot of the big money is. There are plenty of options for television roles such as guest appearances, producer roles, consultants, interviews, or program promoting. Go on news shows and discuss your expertise with anchors and other prominent gurus. Start with regional programs first and then work your way up to nationally syndicated shows. You could even start out with a role on a reality television show where you are either a competitor (in your area of expertise), a judge, host, or authority on the subject. It wouldn't be the first time. And who knows, you might even end up with your own television show! And these days with Amazon, Netflix, Hulu, and more competing for interesting new content, there are more opportunities than ever before. 

Speaking Engagements

Another fantastic way to earn money while further marketing yourself is to do speaking engagements at colleges, conferences, and major corporations.You can earn 5-6 figures giving keynote speeches at a wide variety of venues that will end up earning you even more money as a result! Travel the country or the world and make a great living educating and motivating others. If you are great at public speaking and showmanship then this will be the perfect avenue for you to grow your brand and your bank account.

More

The sky is the limit, you could even enter politics and run for office! Remember to work hard, stand out, stay educated, and stay profitable! I know you can do it so get writing, photographing, filming, networking, sharing, publishing, and monetizing! Make it happen and achieve your dream career in digital media. 

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I hope you enjoyed this post about leveraging your digital media expertise and creative content to become a successful speaker, author, and thought leader.

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