If you want to get paid to speak, it all starts with a powerful pitch. Whether you’re looking to book more speaking gigs at conferences, land podcast interviews, or grow your speaking business in general, how you present yourself in an email can make or break your chances. The truth is, most event organizers are busy and receive dozens—if not hundreds—of messages from aspiring speakers. The good news? You don’t need to be a bestselling author or have a TED Talk under your belt to stand out. What you do need is a clear, compelling, and personalized pitch that quickly communicates your value and shows exactly how your expertise will benefit their audience. With the right tools, like Your SpeakerDATA and Your SpeakerGPT, you can skip the guesswork and focus on what really matters—crafting a pitch that works.

Step 1: Find the Right Opportunities

Before you send a single pitch, make sure you're targeting the right events. This is where Your SpeakerDATA comes in. It’s a powerful database that connects speakers with over 4 million speaking opportunities—including conferences, podcasts, and virtual events. When you align your pitch with an opportunity that matches your area of expertise, your chances of success skyrocket. For example, if you're a leadership coach, you’ll want to pitch to HR summits, executive forums, and business podcasts. SpeakerDATA helps you cut through the noise and find those perfect-fit gigs that are more likely to convert. And remember: podcast interviews are an often-overlooked goldmine. They not only grow your audience but also add credibility and visibility that can lead to more paid speaking engagements down the line.

Step 2: Write a Pitch That Works (With Help From AI!)

Once you've found a speaking opportunity, it's time to craft your email pitch. A great pitch is concise, personal, and focused on value. With Your SpeakerGPT, you can quickly generate custom bios, topic descriptions, and even full email pitches tailored to the opportunity at hand. One particularly effective strategy? Ask about the process. Instead of diving straight into a request, open your message by asking how they select speakers. This low-pressure approach is more likely to get a reply and can help you stand out as respectful, professional, and easy to work with. Most organizers are more open to answering a question than responding to a direct pitch.

Here’s a structure to follow:

• Personalized greeting

• Short intro of who you are and what you speak on

• Curious, friendly question (e.g., “Could you share a bit about your speaker selection process?”)

• Optional: One-sentence hook or value proposition

• Warm sign-off and contact details

Here’s a template you can use:

Subject Line: Curious About Speaking Opportunities at [Event/Podcast Name]

Hi [First Name],

I’m [Your Name], a public speaker who helps [audience] achieve [result] through talks on [topic]. I’ve followed [Event Name or Podcast] for a while and love what you’re creating for the [industry] community.

I wanted to ask—could you share a bit about how you select speakers for upcoming [events/episodes]? I’d be happy to send over my one-sheet or topic ideas if that’s helpful, but mostly I just wanted to learn more about your process.

Thanks so much for your time and all the work you do to bring valuable content to your audience!

Warmly,
[Your Name]
[Your Website or Speaker One-Sheet]

Bonus Tips to Grow Your Speaking Business Through Pitching

• Ask instead of demand. A question like “How do you choose speakers?” is a great conversation starter and shows you’re respectful of their process.

• Keep it short. Busy organizers don’t have time for long emails. Aim for 150–200 words max.

• Follow up. If you don’t hear back, send a brief, polite follow-up in 7–10 days. It often makes the difference.

• Track your outreach. Use a simple spreadsheet—or better yet, try SpeakerCRM to stay organized, follow up on leads, and manage your speaking pipeline in one place.

• Refresh your speaker assets. Make sure your bio, one-sheet, and video clips are current and ready to share at a moment’s notice.

With the right pitch and a smart approach, you’ll start landing more speaking engagements and growing your speaking business with confidence. Tools like SpeakerDATA and SpeakerGPT don’t just help you work smarter—they help you find the right opportunities and communicate your value clearly. If you’re ready to level up your outreach and start pitching like a pro, consider subscribing to SpeakerHub. You’ll get full access to these tools and more to help you connect with the right audiences, secure more gigs, and ultimately, get paid to speak.