Simply promising a desired outcome feels like a generic 'win the lottery' pitch. By first articulating the audience's specific pain points in detail, you demonstrate deep understanding. This makes them feel seen and validates you as a credible expert who can actually deliver the solution.

Host Rob Walling abandoned a talk idea based on 'hard thing' founder stories because it lacked an actionable takeaway. An effective talk must provide a path to action or deeper thinking, not just normalize struggles or entertain.

Instead of a feature-focused presentation, close deals by first articulating the customer's problem, then sharing a relatable story of solving it for a similar company, and only then presenting the proposal. This sequence builds trust and makes the solution self-evident.

Event programmers place immense value on recommendations from speakers they already know and trust. Building relationships with established speakers can lead to warm introductions that are far more effective than cold submissions, giving your proposal immediate credibility and a closer look.

A top reason speaking submissions fail is a mismatch with the core audience. For instance, at IMEX, educational content is built for event planners (the buyers), not the hotel salespeople (the exhibitors). Deeply understand who the educational sessions are designed for before submitting a proposal.

Professional speaker Jess Ekstrom notes that audience size does not correlate with speaking fees. Some of her most lucrative engagements have been for intimate groups of 12, while massive arena talks have paid nothing. The value delivered to the specific audience, not the crowd size, determines the fee.

A powerful personal story is not enough for a world-class presentation. The key is to distill that narrative into a single, transferable idea. According to TED's strategy chief, an audience must be able to apply the core concept to their own lives, even if they don't relate to the specific story being told.

For impromptu pitches, use the "What if you could... so that... for example... and that's not all" structure. These four sentence starters guide you to create a tight, memorable, and impactful pitch that clearly communicates value.

Don't shy away from personal stories in a corporate setting. The key is to ensure the story, however personal, connects to a professional takeaway for the audience. A story about a divorce, for example, can effectively illustrate lessons on navigating change or self-advocacy, making a talk more human and memorable.