Speaking at a conference *can* be used as a marketing tool, however it takes a lot of effort, time and practice to establish yourself as enough of an expert to drive additional business. Figure that for every hour you will spend speaking, that “s roughly 75 hours of preparation time, not counting any travel that goes into it. (That “s why some people simply create one presentation and do the same one over and over.)
If you “re attempting to raise your rates, time is better spent working on your business until its solid, and then pursuing leads.
If you would like to attend conferences, work out the cost-benefit analysis and see if it is worth it for you to do the speaker route or simply pay for it.
Originally Posted: https://www.quora.com/Should-I-pursue-speaking-opportunities-at-conferences
Originally Posted On: 2016-09-15