068: Getting Paid to Speak and Negotiating Speaker Fees

How can you get your first paid speaking engagement? How do you figure out what to charge and how to negotiate?

In this episode, you’ll hear from 7 women entrepreneurs and speakers who share how they got their first paid speaking engagement.

I also share how I got my first paid gig for Speaking Your Brand and how I got paid to be a political analyst on TV news.

There are lots of great reasons to speak for free and I speak for free several times a year for:

• Brand awareness
• Credibility builder
• Lead generation
• Networking
• In-kind exchange (ticket to conference)
• Practice
• Enjoyment

However, it also feels really great to be paid to speak - plus it’s nice to have direct revenue for your time and effort.

As you listen to each speaker, see if you can spot the commonalities in their stories. I’ll share at the end what I see as the top takeaways.

You can connect with the women featured here in the free Speaking Your Brand community. You can get access by going to https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/join/ or text the word SPEAKING to 444-999.

The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals create their signature talks and gain more visibility to achieve their goals. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power: on stages, in businesses, on boards, in the media, in politics, and in our communities. Check out our coaching programs and workshops at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.

Guests Featured:

• Diane Diaz of The Brand Teacher
• Tara Lynn Foster
• Kate Ahl of Simple Pin Media
• Jan Bowen
• Lara Currie
• Jill Allison Bryan
• Dr. Carmen Landrau

Other Episodes Mentioned:

• Episode 45: Your Visibility Roadmap
• Episode 50: The 3 C's of Visibility: What It Takes to Get Known
• Episode 2: [Coaching} Taking Your Speaking to the Next Level with Diane Diaz
• Episode 14: [Coaching] Shifting Your Presentation from Practical to Inspirational with Tara Lynn Foster
• Episode 19: How Publishing a Book Impacts Your Speaking Opportunities with Jan Bowen
• Episode 28: [Coaching] Networking the Right Way to Find Speaking Opportunities with Carmen Landrau

Links:

Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/68

Join the free Speaking Your Brand community at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/join/ or text the word SPEAKING to 444-999.

Sign up for a Strategy Session at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/strategy.

Ready to create your signature talk and framework? Email me at carol@speakingyourbrand.com or click here to schedule a call.

Say hi to me on Instagram and Twitter: @CarolMorganCox.

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Become Bookable Live Online Workshop - April 15, 2026
If you want to speak more but you’re not sure where to start or your efforts haven’t produced the results you want, I’m hosting a live online workshop called “Become Bookable: How to Get Speaking Invitations” on Wednesday, April 15th.

A lot of brilliant women assume they just need to pitch themselves more. But the real reason speakers get invited isn’t because they pitch harder — it’s because they’re positioned as bookable.

In this 3-hour interactive workshop live on Zoom, I’ll show you how speakers actually get invited — and help you clarify the positioning that makes event organizers say yes.

As a podcast listener, use the coupon code “Podcast100” to save $100 on your registration.

Learn more and register at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/bookable