Guest Bios:

Brittanny Kreutzer started The Speaker Exchange Agency with a background in sales and a love for the speaking industry. She was given a taste of the speaking industry while interning in college for Nancy Lauterbach, a past speakers bureau owner. Upon graduation from college she began a successful career selling radio space and developing radio campaigns for CBS Radio in Kansas City; however, after a few years the excitement of the speaking industry drew her back in. After working at a speakers bureau for several years and becoming one of the top sales executives, she took a break to spend time with her newborn baby Madison. The love she has for this industry struck again and after only a short month's break, Brittanny combined forces with her past colleague and friend, Julie Homsey, to create The Speaker Exchange Agency, LLC. 

Jeff Bigelow  joined SpeakInc in 1995, became Partner in 1996, and with over seventeen years of experience in the industry, still loves what he does. Jeff is a graduate of California State University of Northridge with a B.A. in Radio, Television, Film. At SpeakInc he works both in the corporate market, as well as the association market and is actively involved in the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE). Outside of his time in the office, Jeff can be found relaxing at the nearest beach or swinging the clubs on one of Southern California's amazing golf courses. What brings him the most joy, of course, is spending time with his wife, Denise, and daughter, Faith.

Takeaways:

• There are a lot more speakers now, requiring more time to review information.
• The buying cycle for clients has dramatically shortened.
• Clients are increasingly using AI tools like ChatGPT to find speakers.
• Understanding the psychology of the audience is crucial for speaker selection.
• Pre-booking calls have become more common and important.
• Speakers should provide valuable information, not just check-ins.
• Top speakers maintain strong communication and relationships with agents.
• Speaker fees have increased, but value should not be tied solely to fees.
• AI is a growing topic of interest in the speaking industry.
• The human element in the speaking industry remains irreplaceable.

Chapters:

• 00:00 - The Evolution of the Speaking Industry
• 03:01 - Shifts in Client Expectations
• 05:57 - Understanding the Buying Process
• 09:02 - The Role of Tone and Style in Speaker Selection
• 12:01 - The Importance of Pre-Booking Calls
• 15:12 - Staying Top of Mind in a Crowded Market
• 19:01 - Understanding Speaker Engagement and Connection
• 22:19 - The Top 5% of Speakers: What Sets Them Apart
• 25:17 - Navigating Speaker Fees in a Changing Economy
• 30:15 - The Impact of AI on the Speaking Industry
• 34:00 - The Future of the Speaking Industry: Human Element vs. Technology
• 35:35 - What We Love and Hate About the Speaking Industry

Resources

Learn more about Brittanny Kreutzer:

• Website
• LinkedIn

Learn more about Jeff Bigelow:

• Website
• LinkedIn

Learn more about Josh Linkner:

• Website
• YouTube
• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• X
• Facebook

ABOUT MIC DROP:

Hear from the world’s top thought leaders and experts, sharing tipping point moments, strategies, and approaches that led to their speaking career success. Throughout each episode, host Josh Linkner, #1 Innovation keynote speaker in the world, deconstructs guests’ Mic Drop moments and provides tactical tools and takeaways that can be applied to any speaking business, no matter its starting point. You'll enjoy hearing from some of the top keynote speakers in the industry including: Ryan Estis, Alison Levine, Peter Sheahan, Seth Mattison, Cassandra Worthy, and many more. Mic Drop is powered by ImpactEleven.

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ABOUT THE HOST:

Josh Linkner — a New York Times bestselling author — is a rare blend of business, art, and science.

On the business front, he’s been the founder and CEO of five tech companies, which created over 10,000 jobs and sold for a combined value of over $200 million. He’s the co-founder and Managing Partner of Muditā (moo-DEE-tah) Venture Partners - an early-stage venture capital firm investing in groundbreaking technologies. Over the last 30 years, he’s helped over 100 startups launch and scale, creating over $1 billion in investor returns. He’s twice been named the EY Entrepreneur of The Year and is the recipient of the United States Presidential Champion of Change Award.

While proud of his business success, his roots are in the dangerous world of jazz music. Josh has been playing guitar in smoky jazz clubs for 40 years, studied at the prestigious Berklee College of Music, and has performed over 1000 concerts around the world. His experiences in both business and music led him to become one of the world’s foremost experts on innovation. 

Josh is the co-founder and Chairman of Platypus Labs, a global research, training, and consulting firm. Today, he’s on a mission to help leaders Find A Way™ through creative problem-solving, inventive thinking, and ingenuity.

Learn more about Josh: JoshLinkner.com

SPONSORED BY AMPLIFY PUBLISHING GROUP:

Partnering with CXOs, keynote speakers, change makers, and other visionary leaders, Amplify Publishing Group (APG) is a leader in the hybrid publishing space with more than twenty years of experience acquiring, producing, marketing, and distributing books. 

Passionate about ideas and voices that need to be heard, they're known for launching books that start engaging and timely conversations. At each turn, they have been at the forefront of innovation and have spearheaded a critical disruption of the publishing industry.

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POWERED BY IMPACTELEVEN:

ImpactEleven is a speaker training, development and accelerator Community working tirelessly to develop and serve thousands of voices with infinite influence to transform lives and the world for the better.

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