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Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Venice

Wow, Venice! What can I say?

It is probably the easiest city in the world to be a productive and enchanted accidental tourist. We spent two days and one night in Venice and it was sublime in every way. But let's start from the beginning (hum: "I very good place to start")

The day before arriving in Venice I delivered my enrichment program entitled "Venice and the Fourth Crusade: The Doge, The Money and the Knights". This picture captures me right after the program. The medal around my neck was conferred on me as a consequence of my investiture in the Patriarchal Order of Mar Gregorios (an Orthodox knighthood order). Lesson 1: When you have a credential that supports your onboard talk always use it. In any event, the talk went well as I described the historical tensions that existed between Venice and Constantinople and the whole context which gave rise to the tragedy of the Fourth Crusade. Lesson 2: Your destination lectures onboard should always strive to help make the place come alive for audience members. I show my customers and client how to do this in my critically acclaimed program: Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps To A Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises. If you have not already invested in yourself by investing in this program, what are you waiting for? Time is of essence, cruise lines are booking next year's enrichment speakers right now.

Speaking of the Fourth Crusade, here Jamey and I are on the the terrace of the façade of St. Mark's Basilica. We are standing under copies of the famous four horses that were originally plundered during the Fourth Crusade from Constantinople. The originals were displayed here until the 1980's when they started to develop effects from pollution. They still are on display just inside the church near this terrace.












Here's a great shot of both one of the horses and the St. Mark's Campanile (bell tower). BTW the horses are obviously quite ancient. In fact, the horses were long displayed at the Hippodrome of Constantinople. I'll bet this photo sells quite well on the stock photo sites. Check out lots of ways that I make money when I travel at www.TravelMakingMoney.com .













Another great shot (if I have to say so myself). This shot was taken from the Rialto Bridge down the Grand Canal at dusk. Honestly, it is difficult to take a bad photo in Venice.












This is the Bridge of Sighs. This bridge connects the Doge's Palace and the prison. It was named this because crossing it meant you were either going to prison or to the executioner. Thus, the condemned usually let out a long sigh as they crossed this bridge. Notice the Gondolier in the canal. As I took this photo he is singing (in Italian, of course) to young lovers sitting forward... ahh, I love romance.













The Bridge of Sighs is actually a two-way street. Here Jamey stands on the left side of that street within the bridge. There is a similarly sized passage coming back that other direction.
















Here Jamey and I are on the second floor of Doge's Palace in front of an open window which overlooks the courtyard. Notice the onion shaped domes of St. Mark's in the background.












Here Jamey stands in the "Golden Staircase" in the Doge's Palace. The Doges of Venice were interesting cats. They were elected heads of state of Venice. They were elected for life but did not have absolute power. In fact, the division of Venetian power was quite diffuse, shared between many committees. In any event, the Palace is gorgeous.














The St. Mark's Campanile.














O.K. So I love my name.














The church of Madonna della Salute (Our Lady of Good Health). Notice a portion of a pontoon bridge. The remaining spans of the pontoon are dismantled and floating opposite the church. Every November 21 the Venetians celebrate a "festa" honoring the Madonna for delivering them from a plague. This is the time when the pontoon bridge is assembled and a procession from St. Mark's square crosses over the Grand Canal led by the Patriarch. As you can see, like the rest of the Venice the church is beautiful.












A photo of St. Mark's square taken from the aft of the ship as we cruised by. Man, I love being an enrichment speaker - come join me. Notice the thongs of people, I'm sipping Earl Grey and honey.










Grass is a supreme rarity in Venice. I captured a little of it in this photo. Is the grass always greener?











Please understand that you are always welcome to comment of the content of this blog. I hope you are enjoying it.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Naples / Pompeii

Naples was the second port on our Med cruise. It's such a short distance between Livorno and Naples that we pulled into port about 5am. I watched from the deck as we did. It was such a peaceful, gentle process. The city was just starting to wake up and the glint of the dawn was barely visible on the horizon. It was sublime and surreal at the same time. BTW it was my second port and I still had not been scheduled to speak. God... I love being an enrichment speaker! Why not join me?

Naples was special for me because the ancient ruins of Pompeii are just on the other side of Mt. Vesuvius, very close to the city.

For those of you who don't know, I was raised in a predominantly Italian family. Both of my mother's parents came from the old sod and I was extremely close to my maternal grandfather who I lost when I was 12. What made Pompeii so special to me was hearing my grandpa tell fabulous stories of his own travels there as I was growing up. So for me to tour Pompeii years later was to create a kind spiritual connection with my grandpa. I know it sounds weird but the feeling and "connectedness" was palpable to me.

We booked our excursions through the shorex office and I'm glad we did. Our guide was excellent having been a guide for many National Geographic writers and photographers.

Pompeii is an ancient Roman city in the shadow of Vesuvius which is still a potentially active volcano. Here I stand in the excavated amphitheater. They have plans to make this an active venue again. Isn't that wild? The first act slated for the grand re-opening (2 millennium later) is Andrea Bocelli.

Here's a little history of Pompeii I lifted from WikiPedia. "Along with Herculaneum, its sister city, Pompeii was destroyed, and completely buried, during a catastrophic eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius spanning two days on 24 August 79 AD."

"The volcano collapsed higher roof-lines and buried Pompeii under many meters of ash and pumice, and it was lost for nearly 1700 years before its accidental rediscovery in 1748. Since then, its excavation has provided an extraordinarily detailed insight into the life of a city at the height of the Roman Empire. Today, it is one of the most popular tourist attractions of Italy, with 2,571,725 visitors in 2007, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site."

What is so cool is that the houses were all built on a zero lot line. Some of the places were quite palatial too. Here Jamey and I are standing in the House of Faun. "The House of the Faun was named for the bronze statue of the dancing faun located, originally, on the lip of the impluvium, a basin for catching rainwater; it has been moved to the center of the impluvium, as you can see in the picture to the left. Fauns are spirits of untamed woodland creatures, which Romans often connected to Pan and Greek satyrs, or wild followers of the Greek god of wine and agriculture, Dionysus." This statute is a copy. The original, picture below, is in the Naples Archaeological museum.




We spent the morning touring Pompeii and we were back to the ship by lunch. This worked out quite nicely because we beat the crowds in the morning and we made it back to the ship, had lunch and struck back out with plenty of time to explore Naples on foot. We walked from the ship to the Naples Archaeological museum (about a mile one way). My big tip for you is that no trip to Pompeii is complete until you have also toured the museum.

Why?

Because most of Pompeii's great treasures are housed there including this faun statute.








Another characteristic about Pompeii is much of it was covered in mosaics. Here I stand between mosaic columns that were found. It is absolutely pristine work when you see them this close.













Another thing I was surprised to learn about Pompeii was the shear number of brothels they had. There was about one every other block. They weren't difficult to pick out as they always had symbols like this affixed to the exterior.

Apparently, the ancient Romans were very nature loving including all aspects of sexuality. The archaeological museum also has an impressive exhibit of the sexually charged art that was found throughout Pompeii. Fascinating.





Naples produces an excellent slightly-sweet liqueur called Limoncello made from the rinds of lemons like this. I had to get a picture with this as this was picked from the bunch of the largest lemons I had ever seen.











On our walk from the ship to the museum I snapped interesting looking photos along the way. Like this alleyway leading to a church.

















I was amused to see this sign for a Coffee shop as I live relatively close to the Mexican border.













This was cool too. I live in Corpus Christi, Texas which is where Eva Longoria is from and where she got here start in modeling. I saw her face all over Europe in ice cream ads like this. The ads reminded me of home. It was also a reminder that great things can come from small starts like Eva herself.










The museum also has a bunch more great art that did not come from Pompeii like this ancient Roman replica of a Greek statute.

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Pisa & Florence


By popular demand, I will be posting pictures of our recent Med cruise and side trips as I have time to upload and annotate them for you.

It was by any one's standards a trip of a lifetime. But as a cruise ship speaker you can do this type of trip every year or every six months if you wanted. That's the beauty of it... the whole deal is set up to allow you to trade your talents for luxury cruises anywhere in the world. It's exciting and I am glad you are plugged into the source that can help make it happen in your life, the Speak on Cruise Ships program.

For those of you who don't know I traveled with my 13 year old son Jamey. He's a great child and this trip created father-son memories that neither of us will ever forget.

We were on Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Sea which sailed from Barcelona, Spain. Our first port was Livorno, Italy. Livorno is a port in Tuscany which is closest to Florence and Pisa.

For this port I purchased a shore excursion entitled Pisa and Florence On Your Own. I am a fairly intrepid traveler but because of the distance of these cities from the port and the limited amount of time, I decided it best to at minimum arrange my transportation to and from these cities with the shorex office.

We disembarked the ship about 7 am and boogied over to Pisa. Pisa was once a great naval power whose rivals were Genoa and Venice. Unfortunately, their power waned when the Arno river, which passes through the town, silted over. In Medieval days the Arno was Pisa's only access to the Mediterranean and a naval power without access to a port isn't really a power anymore.

In the glory days, however, the people of Pisa built a great church to which they later added a bell tower or a campanile. Fortunately for Pisa's future fame the architech chose a marshy site to place the campanile and by the time the first three levels of the tower was built it was apparent that the tower would forever have problems with its now familar lean. The architech was disgraced and ran out of town and efforts were made as the tower was finished to correct the problem. To no avail.

In these pictures you can see just how far out of true perpendicular the tower is. In this second picture I do my own impression of the lean.

Over time the tower leaned more and more to the point where it was feared that it would topple over. Consequnetly, officials closed the tower to foot traffic and tried to correct the problem. It took years but through a process of cables and reinforcing and counter-balancing the foundation with lead engineers were able to decrease the lean to what is was measured at in the 19th century. Officials also re-opened the tower and for those who wish to climb to the top
(and pay 15 euros) it is open.

The campanile is Pisa's main attraction although it does have a major university whose most famous alum is Galileo Galilei. We spent about 75 minutes which was not nearly enough but it was on to Florence...

Florence is a remarkable city also on the Arno river. In many ways it was the epicenter of the Renaissance mostly due to the patrimony of the Medici family. The Medici's were a powerful banking family (who were later Princes of Florence) and they commissioned some of the greatest works of art in Western culture. Works like David by Michelangelo and the Rape of the Sabine Women by Giambolgna, the baptisery bronze doors designed by Brunelleschi (shown below) and so much more.

I really appreciated the Piazza della Signoria which is a L-shaped square in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. It is a splendid outdoor (and free) gallery of some of the best Renaissance sculpture.

The various eye-catching statues in this square include:

At the entrance of the Palazzo Vecchio, a copy of David. The original by Michelangelo is being kept at the Gallery of the Academy of Fine Arts.



The "bronze equestrian statue of Cosimo I" by Giambologna (1594)

The Fountain of Neptune by Bartolomeo Ammannati (1575)

"The Lion", referred to as "il Marzocco" with a copy of the "Florentine Lily", originally made by Donatello (copy)

"Judith and Holofernes", by Donatello (copy)

"Hercules and Cacus", by Bandinelli (1533)







Just off the the Palazzo Jamey and I stopped for a bite of pasta (of course). It was quite yummy. This is a photo of the table in front of us where some pigeons were helping themselves to scraps of bread left by the previous diners.

I thought it was a cool photo.









Here I am with the Ponte Vecchio in the background. This is the commercial bridge that spans the Arno river. Jewelry shops line the brige all the way over.











One of the projects we were working on during the trip is a video program covering the details of speaking on an actual cruise. For some of the program notes for this video check previous posts.

Here I review video we shot in Florence. Apparently, I was pretty happy with it.

Now if you still haven't joined the family at Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club what are you waiting for? http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Friday, August 01, 2008

Cruise Ship Speaking: Wrapng Up, Signing Off, Following Up (Part 4 - Lessons Fron an Actual Cruise)

As a cruise ship speaker you will be speaking most every sea day. Sometimes you may skip a sea day but it’s only because you were doubled up on another day. For example, on my recent 12-day Med cruise there were 5 sea days and two of those days I was doubled up (having one presentation right after the other) and ended only presenting three of the twelve days. Life is good. This is not the norm but it can happen.

After you wrap up your onboard presentations your cruise will come to an end. You knew it was coming. And on the last day you will sign off the ship. There is nothing special about this you’ll just get off the ship like all the other passengers.

In the day or two after the cruise the cruise director will review and report on all the passenger evaluations. He or she will also do their own report based on his or her own impressions and that of the staff, like for example the activities coordinator we talked about in part 1 of this article series. If you have performed well and in accordance with this article series and my Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises program (http://www.speakerscruisefree.com ) you will no doubt have received positive reviews.

When you return home you should always send a little gift to whoever booked you. It need not be a lavish gift, but a little something like chocolates, flowers or a plant. I use a wonderful service that will allow you to send beautiful hand printed greeting cards as well as lovely gifts VERY reasonably. You can check out the service and send a free card at (http://www.sendoutcards.com/dhall ). This is my gift to you. (Note: if there are no gift accounts available when you try, email me at Daniel at SpeakersCruiseFree dot com and I’ll set you up personally.)

If you are ready to schedule another cruise contact your cruise contact and set it up (but wait until after your gift arrives). It is quite likely that your cruise contact will call you to thank you for the gift. This is a great opportunity to schedule something new.

Well there you have it the whole cruise speaking process from beginning to end I hope this article series was informative for you. After this last Med cruise I am convinced more than ever that cruise ship speaking is the best gig on the seven seas. I hope that I have been an encouragement to you because in fact I know that if you want it you CAN have it. Get started today. Carpe Diem.

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Preparing For and Doing Your Talk Onboard (Part 3 Lessons from an actual cruise)

The time has come to do your talks. First, how will you learn about when you’ll do your presentations?

As a general rule you will only give your presentations when you are at sea or on “sea days.” At your meeting with the activities coordinator and he or she will sometimes tell you “about” when your talks will be. Sometimes the activities coordinator will call you the evening before or the morning of your talk.

But don’t count on it.

The absolute best way to know when your talks are scheduled is to closely monitor the daily onboard newsletter which will be delivered to your cabin every evening. This is the ultimate authority on when and where you will present.

Next, you must show up at least 30-miuntes before your presentation. If you are unsure of exactly which venue you will present in, go a few minutes earlier to find your way in plenty of time.

Once you arrive at the venue confirm that all of your equipment is there. Note: Don’t freak out if the equipment is not there. Many times the Audio/ Visual Technician won’t arrive with it until 15 minutes before you are to start. If he or she has not arrived by 10 minutes till, call the activities coordinator and advise.

To build rapport with the audience I will greet and introduce myself to them as them enter the venue. I’ll ask their name, where they are from, how they are enjoying their cruise, etc.
For the talk itself I usually use a short PowerPoint program or a follow-along guide (described in Speak on Cruise Ships http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html ) or both.
Clearly, you must not only know your material but you must be enthusiastic about sharing it. Another crucial thing is to introduce yourself and let your audience know how you got to be standing in front of them. In this intro it is crucial that you describe as many common threads as possible. In other words, you want to show that you have much in common with members of your audience. For example, you have common interests, common experiences, have made similar observations, etc.

I will also incorporate as much light humor as my topic will allow. People absolutely adore speakers who can make them chuckle. Similarly, I will use a variety of audience participation strategies like allowing questions and observations throughout my talk and will even incorporate games or role plays where I’ll bring someone up on stage and role play with them. It’s all good fun and gets your audience to invest in the program.

For information on what kinds of programs the cruise lines are seeking and how to put them together I refer you to my Speak on Cruise Ships e-program at http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

At the end of my talk I will always thank them for coming and, using my discretion, I will suggest that if they liked the program that they should tell the cruise lines about that fact when at the end of the cruise an evaluation survey is distributed to them.

That’s it for this installment. Watch for the next one, coming soon.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

What to Expect The Day You Board The Ship (Part 2 Lessons From an Actual Cruise)

The time has come for you to board the ship and start your cruise. Here’s what to expect on the day you sign on.

First, you’ll make your way to the port. Once you arrive at the pier you will proceed to the “pier coordinator” or some such other like titled person. You will present your speaking contract that you probably received two months to two weeks before your cruise. Your contract usually has a booking number and the pier coordinator will check to make sure you are on the ship’s manifest. You’ll sign on and be given keys to your cabin.

Once you arrive in your cabin you’ll usually find a letter for you on the desk or bed. Open and read this letter. It will welcome you onboard and provides directions about when and where to meet with the cruise director or someone form the cruise director’s staff. This meeting will generally be scheduled for later that afternoon or evening.

You’ll probably be tired after your journey. So take the opportunity to freshen up before the meeting. Arrive on time. Here’s your objectives:

1. Be cordial and charming. Take the opportunity to ingratiate yourself. Let them know that you are flexible and offer to do another program if they need. Let them know that you are aware that their plans may change or bad weather may cause a port to be missed so they may have need for another program or a repeat of a previous program. Emphasize with the needs of their position and make it clear through your actions and words that you are there to make their job easier.

2. Confirm your equipment needs if you have any i.e., projector, etc. Also, confirm whether an AV person will be there to assist you.

3. Plan out the logical sequence of when you will conduct your talks. For example, that a destination talk on Puerto Vallarta, Mexico is planned for the day before your stop there and so on.

4. Last, make sure to obtain the beeper or telephone number of the person you are meeting with in case something goes wrong either before or during the talk.

5. Now enjoy your cruise…

That’s it for this installment. If you are still not approved to cruise with onboard enrichment programs. What are you waiting for? Get my critically acclaimed program Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of Free Luxury Cruises at http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Cruise Ship Speaking: Lessons From An Actual Cruise (Pre-Cruise Preparation)

Note to reader: This series is derived from the program notes of a video production intended for my current Med cruise. The article presumes that you are already approved with cruise line enrichment programs and you are in the process of developing at least one new destination driven program. Such is my experience this cruise.

Cruise ship speaking is hugely rewarding. Not only can you get free luxury travel but it is also a great way to promote you and your business ashore. To really do it well and succeed there are some things that need to be done beforehand. This article covers some of those details you’ll need to prepare for pre-cruise.

If you are cruising to a new destination and need to develop a brand new destination driven program specifically for the new itinerary consider:

1. Before you start work in earnest make sure that you have ran your new program idea by your contact at the cruise line. No sense putting any effort into the topic if it is a flop before you start. Important note: If you want to know why destination programs are so important and how you can put them together even if you are not an expert in the destination then check out my program Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises at http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

2. Make sure to give yourself plenty of preparation time. To pitch the cruise lines on your new destination topic all you need is a catchy title and bullet points written in the specific way I outline in Speak on Cruise Ships. But once you have the go-ahead with your topic you’ll need to finish any research you may need to really make your destination topic shine. There is no substitute for good preparation which can take some time. Give it to yourself.

3. Now research to your heart’s content. When I first started it usually took me two to three days to complete the research for a brand new destination talk; now it takes me about 90 minutes.

4. Once I have my research completed I then craft my presentation into the finished product that I deliver onboard. If the presentation lends itself I usually use PowerPoint for my presentations but only following these guidelines.

a. Words only appear in the title (three words max.).
b. There’s an appropriate picture on every page that conveys the message for the main points I wish to communicate.

c. I don’t read from PowerPoint I only use it to augment what I am doing from the stage and I keep the focus on me as the speaker.

d. Generally speaking 22-24 PowerPoint slides gives me enough material to cover 45 minutes. Note: There is usually an additional 15 minute question and answer period after your program.

5. On every new program I do I practice at least once before I deliver it onboard. Even if I’m very familiar with the content I’ll still gather up my family members and do the presentation for them. This is a good way to work out any bugs and also test-drive the time it takes you to do the program. Time onboard (or with any speaking gig) is crucial. If you are given an hour you take at max 60 minutes and not a minute over. Using these tips will make you pre-cruise activities more effective and drastically increase the probabilities that you will succeed once you climb aboard.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

We're Off To The Med - What It Means For You

Today my son Jamey and I are hopping the pond to Barcelona, Spain. I am speaking on the Brillance of the Seas on a 12-day Med cruise. We embark tomorrow. But this blog is not about telling you about my travels; it's about how you can cruise free too serving as an enrichment presenter for the cruise lines.

So here's what this cruise will mean to you...

Jamey will be capturing many of the the details of cruise ship speaking by video taping me as we go (this will later be developed into a product). But I'm going to publish my program notes for that video project which will point out some of the lessons covered in the video.

I really want to give you a taste and flavor of what its like to do one of the best (and most fun) gigs in the speaking business. This video will be as reality based as it gets... it should be fun!

I'll publish them as often is as feasible for the Internet service I have. But to give you a sneak peek here's some of the things we'll cover:


  • preparing a destination topic for a brand new destination that you may know little about
  • steps to take when travelling to arrive refreshed and ready to rock from the platform
  • promoting your presentations onboard
  • preparing for your talks
  • connecting with your audience
  • etc., etc.

Bonus: I'll even tell you about some of the bloppers.

I'll try to get an email out to you with each new post. If you haven't already joined my mailing list you can do that here: http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Turning Cruise Speaking Into Passive Income

One of the things I talk about in my Speak on Cruise Ships program is packaging yourself so that you are attractive to the cruise line enrichment programs. Sometimes this will require that you develop new content specifically for the cruise lines (don't worry its easy to do if you follow the steps in the program) - but here's the rub - you can take that new content and use it to create passive income streams. Watch this video to get the story --



Creating passive revenue streams from cruise content is one of the many things I help the members of the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club -- you can get a free 30-day trial membership by investing in my Speak on Cruise Ships program. What are you waiting for?

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Selling Books & Other Info Products Onboard A Cruise Ship

Cruise ships can be a great place to sell your books and other information products. Product sales are fairly easy to set up with the cruise lines when you're already speaking onboard and can be quite profitable. I explain the complete process of how it's done in this video.



If you still have not invested in my Speak on Cruise Ships program, what are you waiting for? In order to sell onboard you must be approved in cruise enrichment programs. This is the program that will show you how.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Big News For You: The Cruise Speaker Directory

If you are a member of my Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club I am personally invested in your success. So, in an effort to place more of you faster, I am in frequent communication with the enrichment coordinators of almost all the major cruise lines.

We primarily discuss their needs and wants in placing speakers in their enrichment programs and I make recommendations for speakers in the Club.

Well, during one of these conversations the request was for a naturalist speaker and I could not for the life of me remember the name of the person I wanted to recommend and I said, "Gee, it would be a lot easier on both of us if I had a directory of all my speakers in one place."

It suddenly hit us both... and then the coordinator said with great enthusiasm, "I would LOVE to have a directory like that!"

I then called several other of my cruise contacts and asked them about the idea and I received a similar response... in fact, some of these reactions were down-right ecstatic! It seemed that the idea was one whose time had come.

Thus, was born "The Cruise Speakers Directory",

The Directory would contain a basic one-sheet (with a few tweaks) for each speaker in the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club who submitted one and then be distributed to exactly those people at the cruise lines with the power to book them.

The directory will be organized and categorized into destination, arts & crafts and general interest speakers and presenters.

We are still fine tunning it all but here's the most important thing: Everything is being done in consultation with the enrichment coordinators at the cruise lines.

That is, in order to place more speakers, more quickly the directory will provide exactly what they are looking for. Brilliant marketing, no?

Question is: Do You Want In?

Well, only current members of the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club will be eligible for a listing. (If you're a member we're going to be talking a bunch more about this during our open coaching sessions in the weeks and months to come .)

You can can get a FREE 30-day trial membership to the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club by investing in yourself by investing in the Speak on Cruise Ships e-program. Thereafter, Club membership is only $29.97 per month.

Now is a good time to get in it as each member will get a free listing in this inaugural issue. However, I cannot guarantee it being completely free to members in the future... so take action now and don't miss out.

This is a time limited offer so if you were on the fence before reading this post, the time to take the plunge is now.

Go get the Speak on Cruise Ships e-program and claim your membership.




Saturday, June 14, 2008

Cruise FREE - Ask Daniel Anything

Have you always wanted to trade your talents for FREE
luxury cruises?

Does the lure of luxury travel to exotic destinations
excite you?

Have you wondered how to get approved to cruise F-R-E-E?

Have you questioned whether my Speak on Cruise Ships
system works?

Then allow me to answer your questions. Ask me anything!

And the event is totally complimentary as a thank you
for being one of my loyal blog readers.

I've never done this before... so its a bit scary.

Tune in to find out what happens and make sure to
ask your questions because I very rarely let people
outside the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club have
this kind of access to me.

Details of the call are below:

====================================================

EVENT: Ask Daniel Anything

DATE & TIME: Monday, June 16th at 12:00pm CST
(1pm EST, 11am MST, 10am PST)

FORMAT: Simulcast!
(Attend via Phone or Webcast -- it's your choice)

TO ATTEND THIS EVENT, CLICK THIS LINK NOW...
http://instantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=3265257

==================================================

Looking forward to connecting with you.

God bless and happy cruising,

Daniel Hall
Author, Speak on Cruise Ships

P.S. Really! Don't miss this opportunity to get
all your FREE Cruise questions answered. Here's
the link...

http://instantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=3265257

Remember this event won't cost you one red penny.
So take advantage of the opportunity while you can.

P.P.S. The phone lines are limited to 200, so make
sure you get on a minimum of 5 minutes early.

Monday, June 09, 2008

What Can You Learn From How I Started In Cruise Speaking?

Case studies can be powerful teaching tools. Below is a video in which I describe my experience of how I "fell-into" cruise speaking.

What lessons can you glean from my experience?


It all starts with getting your copy of Speak on Cruise Ships.

Friday, June 06, 2008

Cruise Speaking Myths Busted

Back in January I wrote about speaking at Jonathan Sprinkles Six Figure Speaker Bootcamp --

(http://www.speakerscruisfree.com/cashcow.html ).

At that event I spoke about some of the cruise speaking myths I heard ... and I busted them.

Question is: are your beliefs causing you to fail even trying to become a cruise enrichment speaker?

Watch this video and find out...



You can get your cruise speaking career started NOW by investing in the critically acclaimed e-program "Speak On Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps To A Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises"
at

http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

And to make sure you succeed you also get a 30 -day trial membership in the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club where you get personal access to me. You can read about the Club here --

http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/clubfaq.html

Thursday, June 05, 2008

3 Tips To Set Up PC Based Credit Card Processing

Whether your business is offline or online you will significantly increase sales -- and profits -- when you can accept all the major credit cards for payment of the goods and services you sell.

In the old days getting a merchant account so that you could process credit cards was a colossal hassle. Generally you were expected to have great credit and have an established brick and mortar business. If you were a home based business or, God forbid, you were trying to do business online your chances of getting approved were nil.

Happily, as ecommerce on the Internet has matured it has become increasingly easier to set up pc based credit card processing. This article is intended to communicate three important tips for setting up pc based credit card processing in your business. By the way, even if you run a brick and mortar business it is advantageous to set up pc based credit card processing for the simple reason that with it set up this way you can do business anywhere in the world you have an Internet connection.

Tip Number 1

Choose a processing company that is sensitive to the needs and structure of your business. For example, if you are running an Internet based business make sure the company understands the nuances of doing business online. A good way to determine this is to ask the company about the percentages of their merchants who have this type of model. Beware if they quote you a percentage less than 50%. The rationale here is if the majority of their business comes through similarly situated merchants it reasonable to infer that they are a good choice.

Hint: Are you doing business with them online through their website or are you talking to an officer at your corner bank? The lesson is you might want set up your merchant account through a credit card processor that looks like your own business. If you’re online go to a processor that is doing business online. Conversely, if you are brick and mortar you may want to do business with a brick and mortar processor like your corner bank. Chances are good that they both will have options for pc based credit card processing.

Tip Number 2

Always do business with a PC based credit card processor who does their own processing and whose underwriting department is onsite. The vast majority of credit card processors, online or off, are resellers or “third party” processors. Stay away from them! There are a couple reasons why.

First, processing fees will almost always be higher by setting up with a reseller. Second, and more importantly, using a reseller you are much more likely to have your funds frozen if there are ever any perceived problems with your account.

Here' the horror that could happen if you don't choose your pc based credit card processor wisely. You could have a chargeback or transaction over your stated daily transaction amount (you provide this when your account is initially set up). In either case, it could raise a red flag for possible fraud in the underwriting department of the company actually processing your transactions (not the third party reseller) and cause your account to be shut down and funds frozen.

As an attorney I have represented businesses where this exact thing has happened and $1,000's were frozen. It took time and money in legal fees to finally resolve the dispute and only because I threatened litigation.

Case in point: when you do business directly with a pc based credit card processor who is actually doing the processing and the underwriting (fraud detection) department is onsite there is easier communication and a far lesser probability that your funds will ever be frozen.

Tip Number 3

Always ask for as high of a daily sales volume as the pc based credit card processor will allow you when you set up you account.

Several of the businesses I have represented had a problem with underwriting departments (see Tip Number 2 above) because they set their average daily transaction volume too low. What happens is sometimes your business will grow very quickly and you'll start processing transactions over the limit of the average daily volume that you initially stated which will raise a red flag with the underwriting department and possibly lead to having your funds frozen.

The solution is to set your limit as high as possible in the beginning and then communicate with the underwriting department before you reach the daily limit. This way your limit can be adjusted upward and shouldn't have problems.

Daniel Hall, runs many Internet based businesses and is also a Texas attorney who has represented merchants having problems with their credit card processors. Get a free guide to choosing a pc based credit card processor here or http://www.netcreditcardprocessing.com

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Wednesday, May 14, 2008

How Your Business Can Explode in Profit Without Costing You a Dime: Unabashed Copycatting

I have been in business since 2005 and it has
progressively gotten more profitable every month
since the beginning. I attribute this fact to a
number of things. However, there is one key habit
that I want to share with you that costs nothing
to implement but yet can help you increase your
profit exponentially.

Want to know the habit?

Here it is:

Constant and discerning observation.

What do I mean?

Simply this, I am on many, many lists mostly in
the niches of speaking, Internet marketing,
writing, publishing, information marketing, etc
and attend many conferences and seminars in these
areas as well.

I closely monitor what other successful business
are doing and more importantly how they are doing
it. What I look for are trends and new
applications or new uses for old applications. Obviously,
I'm not advocating plagiarism. I just follow what is
working and adapt (change) it to my own purposes.

In this process I constantly find new ideas that I
can profit from. Here's a short list of some of
the things I look for (and now perhaps you can
too).

* Technology - Is there something I already have
or have access to that can be better used to
market my products and services. Quick example:
Screen capture video. Several years ago I saw how
Jim Edwards used these types of videos to sell his
programs. It quickly dawned on me that I could do
a free 6-part video program that I could then use
as a list building incentive and for the past
couple of years it has worked like a charm.

* Design - I carefully evaluate the web design
features of successful marketers. What colors and
fonts do they use? How is the page laid out? What
is the first thing I see when I go to their
web site? Do I naturally start reading the
headline or copy? I then incorporate those design
features that seem to stand-out to me and that
seem to fit for one of my web sites.

* Copy - I love to read the work of a really good
copywriter. When I find a page that seems to move
me or resonate with me particularly well I .pdf
the site and put it in my swipe file. I'll then
go back and pick apart how the copy was sequenced.
Example: Pre-headline, headline, sub-head, story,
benefits, testimonials, more benefits, more
testimonials, another story, competition
comparison and so on. I'll also pay very close
attention to how things are said. Is there a
particularly effective turn of a phrase. Then I
ask, can something similar be used somewhere in my
own copy? I make changes and test the response.

* Offer - Vitally important is how successful
marketers structure their offer. Is it time
limited, do they offer a payment plan, do they
offer one-on-one help, is there an up sell, when
is it made, how many times is the offer made. Are
there any bonuses? What are they and how are they
offered. And most importantly do they have a risk
reversal guarantee. I have never seen a better
risk-reversal guarantee than the one made last
night by Carolyn McCormick. To listen to this
masterful guarantee go listen to the replay of the
call Carolyn and I did. Its near the end of the
call but the recording is well worth listening to.

http://www.instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=2840070

Can you make a similar guarantee? Can you emulate
the offers of the top marketers?

By observing and then copycatting the best
practices of the folks who are really succeeding
you too can increase profits... and it doesn't
cost you a dime to observe. Just watch. Use what
make sense and your profits will soar.

Want to learn the very best practices for top
selling businesses?

You absolutely must check out this interview with
Carolyn McCormick. Carolyn has been the behind
the scenes strategist for some of the biggest
names in the personal development business. Names
like Tony Robbins, Mark Victor Hansen, Bob
Proctor, and John Gray.

http://www.instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=2840070

True to form Carolyn makes a compelling offer for
her boot camp (notice how she uses a 24 hour fuse)
can you do something similar.

If Carolyn can teach so much in just one hour,
what else can she show you?

http://www.instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=2840070

Go see. There are bonuses and the clock is
ticking.

Monday, May 05, 2008

Adding "Magic" to Your Onboard Presentations

One of the best ways to insure that you are approved to cruise with enrichment programs is to demonstrate to the cruise lines that you can engage and entertain the audience while at the same time delivering your content.

Consider: Can you incorporate a magic trick or two into your program?

They don't have to be fancy... just well done.

Well I wanted to give you some free resources where I'll bet you can find some ways to make your presentations more magical.

http://easybartricks.com/

http://www.learnmagictricks.org/

http://www.myfreemagictv.com/content/freetut

******* Can You Get Luxury Cruises Magically? ****************

Yes you can, with my eprogram "Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of Luxury Cruises" -- http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Monday, April 07, 2008

Proof Positive That the Speakers Cruise Free e-Program Works: An Insiders Opinion

The past weekend was great!

I met up with my friend and colleague Sheri Tousey-Baker who has for a number of years been the enrichment program coordinator for a major cruise line. We talked shop and about the incredible potential that enrichment programs have for both speakers and the cruise lines.

In any event, she was very complimentary of my eprogram Speak on Cruise Ships. She agreed to video record her thoughts about my program which I publish below.



What is so telling about the video is that she is of the opinion (a very important opinion btw) that cruise speakers who try to book directly have little hope of success because they don't know how to prepare, present and market themselves to people like her. In effect, she is of the opinion that without my program would-be cruise speakers booking directly with cruise lines are dead in the water (pun intended).

Why is it so important to book directly?

So you don't have to pay the cruise speaker agency fees which the speakers (not the cruise lines) are expected to pay. And fees can range upwards of $100 per day. Ouch!

So if you are serious about cruising free with onboard enrichment programs then you need to get my Speak on Cruise Ships program at http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

And the Winner(s) Is/Are

"Overwhelmed!"

That's the title I'd use to describe my response to this contest... if you were one of the participants, thank you.

Fact is, there were so many great entries that I had a difficult time choosing a winner.

So I didn't choose just one single entry, I have decided that the caliber of entries (and the thought that went into them) warranted one grand-prize winner and many runner-ups.

Yea!

Here's the deal if you suggested the grand-prize entry you will get a copy of my Speak on Cruise Ships e-program and access to the "Princess Cruise Line: Blueprint For Approval" as promised.

All runner's up will receive a digital copy of my top-selling Amazon book: Speakers Cruise Free: The Opportunity to Trade Your Talents For Free Luxury Cruises. This is NOT the same as my Speak on Cruise Ships e-program.

What's the difference?

Speakers Cruise Free is intended to be a primer for somebody just looking to dip-a-toe while the Speak on Cruise Ships e-program is the ultimate resource for those who are really serious about approved status and want all the resources as well as my personal help getting approved as a member of the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club (read about the benefits of Club membership at this FAQ).

So now that we have hashed-out who's getting what...

... may I have the envelope please?...

(sweet, anxious anticipation)

Again this was very difficult for me and truth be known I liked them all.

...but here are the runners-up (in no particular order and with notations of why each title was chosen)...

A Rhapsody at Sea

(I did my first audition cruise which got me approved on the Royal Caribbean ship "Rhapsody of the Seas" so the title evoked great memories for me. I also like this title because of its literal nature. This tune is a Rhapsody at Sea.)

Ocean Currency

(Liked this one too for personal reasons. I'm working on a new book now tentatively titled "Psychic Currency" about understanding, nurturing, developing and using psychic currency to have a richer, fuller life. This music is very much about developing a type of psychic currency which enables my students to cruise the world with onboard enrichment programs.)

Sea-Say-Free or (Si- C'est- Free)

(Loved the play on words and languages. Definitely evidence of a brilliant mind at work.)

Cruisin' Free and Easy

(Exactly what my program delivers.)

Speakin' of Crusin'

(Again clever play on words that I really appreciated.)

Free Sailin'

(My underlying marketing message.)

The Dramamine Mambo

(I read this and laughed my boom-ala off. Why? It reminded me of one cruise when I did an onboard Origami class during the worst of Hurricane Ivan... with a half a bottle of dramamine in me! I was sick and loopy at the same time. You should have seen the projects from that class. They were a mangled mess. What a hoot!)

Excitin' Seas & Cruisin' Me

(Can you tell I like word plays and sing-songs?)

Free and Easy Cruisin'

(This title again "anchors" my underlying marketing message.)

Great job all you runners-up!

And the moment ya'll have been waiting for...

... the grand-prize winning song title is...

Cruise 4 Free

(It was hard decision but I picked this one as the grand-prize winner because it reinforces my marketing message... it also sounds like an 80's song title. Yes, I came of age in the 80's and love 80's music. Remember Sinnead O'Connor's "Nothing Compares 2 U" or one of my favorite bands U2? More than this, it uses the words from all my products and URL... so it fits and cross-promotes everything else that I'm doing with this part my business. BRAVO! Well Done!)

Here's how to claim your prize if you submitted one of these terrific titles:

  1. Email me at daniel (at) SpeakersCruiseFree (dot) com and let me know which of the winning titles you submitted.
  2. I'll reply with where to get your prize.
So what if your title didn't quite make it?

You can still get my Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of Luxury Cruises e-program .... and get in on my special training Princess Cruise Line: A Blueprint to Approval scheduled for Friday April 4 at 12 Noon Central Standard (the call will be recorded if you can't make it) by investing in yourself through this link.

On another issue: I've been getting a bunch questions about how you can get my personal help getting approved to cruise with cruise enrichment program. I just completed a FAQ about the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club and what that is all about. Check it out here.

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Name The Song For Your Chance to Win a FREE Copy of the Speak on Cruise Ships e-Program (Value $97)

Everyone Wins...

...that is, even if your suggestion isn't the ultimate winner I'm going to give everyone that enters and invests in the Speak on Cruise Ships eprogram a pass to a special training call I'm doing this week entitled "Princess Cruise Line: Blueprint For Approval". This training will be invaluable for you if are interested in getting approved as an enrichment speaker on this wonderful line!

This is how this contest works:

1. Listen to my Speakers Cruise Free theme music.



2.Suggest a title for it by leaving a comment on this blog. All entries are due by Tuesday April 1 at 5:00 pm Central.

3. Don't risk losing out on the "Princess Cruise Line: Blueprint For Approval" training call later this week. Fact is, there will only be one winner. So get the Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises e-program through this special link.

If you've been undecided on whether to get the Speak on Cruise Ships eprogram. This is the perfect opportunity.

Note: If you are the lucky winner and have invested in the Speak on Cruise Ships e-program through this promotion, you'll get your purchase fully refunded. You do not have to purchase in order to enter, its just that if you are not the winner and you have opted not to invest in the Speak on Cruise Ships e-program you'll miss out on the "Princess Cruise Line: Blueprint For Approval" training call later this week. And believe me you DON'T want to do that!

If you want guidelines on how I will use this theme music - see my last post.

Don't worry if you can't make the call it will be recorded and made available to all members of the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club. If you have previously invested in the Speak on Cruise Ships e-program but are NOT a member of the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club -- you can get in here. Note: This special link is only for past customers.

Important Note: I'll announce the winner sometime Wednesday April 2. Also, I am the only and final authority as to the winning entry. I also reserve the right to modify the rules of this contest depending on unforeseen circumstances.

Good luck -- may the most creative entry win!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

What Do You Think of the Speakers Cruise Free Theme Music?

OK... one of the things I talk about in the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club is branding.

It's vitally important!

(Go to Bonus 1 at that link to read about the Club)

I am speaking all over the country (world, when I'm cruising) so I thought I'd better put my money where my mouth was and have some theme music created for my engagements, products, etc.


I was fortunate enough to get former Flock of Seagulls member Mel Morley to compose the music below especially for me. BTW Mel is a huge talent and has also played and recorded with K.C. and the Sunshine Band and Paul Schaffer of Late Night with David Letterman fame.

You can read more about Mel here or contact him at midimel@aol.com

Now I want your opinion.

Listen to Mel's work and leave a comment. I want to know your thoughts.


Thanks.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Cruise Enrichment Party & Miami Trip

From top.

First picture.

This photo shows the assembly line of putting together the gift baskets that were given to cruise line enrichment coordinators I met with in Miami.

We gave a bunch of fabulous gifts as you can see.


Second picture.
Here I am at my post putting the gift bags together.

Third picture.

Me in front of the Miami cruise ship terminal.

Fourth and fifth photo.

Completed gift bags and the lounge where cocktail party took place.







Sixth picture.

Me on South Beach.


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Join the Speakers Cruise Free family. Get started here -->

http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Thursday, March 06, 2008

Cruise Enrichment Coordinator Party


As many of you know I am hosting a cocktail party next week during the Miami Sea Trade convention for cruise enrichment coordinators. This is a part of my ongoing efforts to help place more of you, my valued and esteemed clients and customers, into free cruises. (If you have not yet invested in the Speak on Cruise Ships program you can do that here http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/ .)

To that end I made available the opportunity to the first 16 club members who responded to the offer so they could include their books and products into a gift bag for guests at the party thus getting their materials in the hands of the precise people at the cruise lines who make booking decisions.

When the boxes and cartons started to arrive I quickly changed my flight plans to drive plans. Good thing too because I completely filled the trunk of my C 300 and filled most of the back seat as well.

I am expecting the party to go very well as the enrichment coordinators from both Celebrity and Royal Caribbean jointly sent out a letter of introduction which was enclosed with the invitation. I reproduce the contents of the letter below.

“We would like to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves. We are both responsible for booking enrichment presenters for our respective lines and it is in that capacity that we write you.

For the past several years we have been working with Daniel Hall, first as an enrichment speaker himself and then as a referral source of other enrichment presenters. Daniel is very professional and his speaker referrals have been excellent. This is the case in large part because he takes the time to understand the needs and nuances of our line’s demographic and mission and then refers
appropriate speakers based on what he has learned.

As a case in point, Daniel has made the effort to arrange the Enrichment Program cocktail party during the annual Miami SeaTrade convention that is referenced in this invitation. He has organized this event so that he can meet you and perhaps better
understand your wants and needs relative to enrichment presenters.

For our part, we are excited about this party as it gives us an opportunity to meet one another and network with fellow enrichment colleagues. If you are in town for the convention we hope to see you there.”


Pretty sweet, huh?

I am grateful.

So tomorrow I set out. Stay tuned for an update when I return.

Friday, February 01, 2008

Lead Generation from Your Cruise Speaking Bookings

Cruise speaking is the best gig on the high seas. Not only can you trade your talents for free luxury cruises for yourself and a traveling companion but there is a potential to grow your shore-side business by using the opportunity to collect sales leads. This article is intended to describe how this strategy works:

• Obviously you must first be approved to cruise free using the cruise line enrichment programs. (If you are not yet approved check out my “Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises at http://www.SpeakersCruiseFree.com/ )

• Next, understand that you may not do any overt (or hard) selling while onboard. Doing so will likely get you scratched off the approved list.

• Be that as it may, it is permissible in most cases to collect names and email addresses of those people who may want to sign up for your e-zine that is, of course, related one of the topics you’re presenting onboard. (You have an ezine, don’t you?) You will need an auto-responder system to make this work. To see my recommendations on which auto-responder I like, see http://www.DanielHallEsq.com/Recommend

• In actuality you don’t necessarily need an e-zine but you do need a valid reason for people to give you their names and email addresses. For example, one of my clients gives everybody that opts-in a free download of one his topic related ebooks. See http://www.cruisewithvictor.com/

• The best way to do this is to pass around a sign-up sheet about two-thirds of the way through your presentation (earlier if it’s a big crowd). The reason behind this timing is it gives your audience a chance to warm up to you; to like you.

• Of course, you must tell (sell) people about what they get when sign up.

• Important: Always clear your plans with your cruise line contact or the person who booked you in the first place. This will keep you out of hot water.

• Once you have these leads, it goes without saying that you must monetize them. This is a subtle process that goes beyond the scope of this article. But suffice it to say that you must use this opportunity to continue to build a relationship: The relationship you started with your in-person presentation. The best way to do this is with a mix of high quality content and laser-targeted offers over the course of week, months and even years.

I hope it’s obvious to you that this same strategy can be used for just about any speaking gig. The first step is obviously one of the most important and if have not already been approved to cruise free as a speaker, you should get started.

Daniel Hall is the author of the critically acclaimed eprogram “Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises” Go to http://www.SpeakersCruiseFree.com/ and get his Special Report “The Top 5 Cruise Line Enrichment Programs and How to Use Them to Get FREE Luxury Cruises.

Monday, January 28, 2008

James Malinchak Weighs In on the Speakers Cruise Free Program

I just came back from speaking at the Jonathan Sprinkles "Six Figure Speakers Bootcamp" (btw if you want to take your speaking career to the next level you NEED to be at Jonathan's next bootcamp http://www.speakerscruisfree.com/cashcow.html.

Also, speaking at the bootcamp was my friend and mentor James Malinchak (see http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/college.html .) James was so excited about my Speak on Cruise Ships he had this to say...



To get started cruising free you go to: http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Julie Pech Talks About Daniel Hall's Speakers Cruise Free Methods

Julie Pech author of the "Chocolate Therapist: A User's Guide to the Extraordinary Health Benefits of Chocolate" is one of my students and she shared this video with me. Now I want to share it with you. If the video is not viewable below you can view it through this link - http://tinyurl.com/32pk3e



BTW I read Julie's book -- it's a hoot and commend it to you; especially if you need justification from eating chocolate!

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Showcasing on a Cruise Ship: Converting Your Cruise Speaking Gigs into Paid Shore-Side Bookings

Speaking on cruise lines provides myriad benefits to you as the speaker including: free cruises for yourself; free cruises for a traveling companion; all passenger perks; and frankly a free way to see the world in luxury. But there is a frequently overlooked benefit that has the potential to lead to paid shore-side bookings.

Of course, I’m talking about treating your onboard bookings as showcases. For those who may not know, a speaker’s showcase is an event in which speakers present for groups of meeting planners, corporate event planners and anyone else who hires speakers.

Showcases are designed for planners to “audition” and evaluate the speaker's talent and is of great advantage to the speakers because if they perform well they can obtain many lucrative speaking bookings from one showcase.

So the question becomes: how do you as a speaker convert your cruise bookings into showcases in order to get paid shore-side gigs?

Truth be known you should consider every presentation you do as a showcase.

Why?

Because every audience you present to either has the power to hire speakers or at the very least everyone in that audience could recommend a speaker to their associations, corporations, clubs, organizations and non-profits.

The same is also true of cruise bookings. The trick of turning a non-showcase (a/k/a your average booking) into a showcasing opportunity is what you say from the platform. What follows are a few pointers to help you make any speaking gig into a showcase:

• Let folks know during the course of your presentation that you travel the country or region as a speaker. This will alert your audience members that you are in the speaking business and that you can travel to their hometown.

• During your presentation drop in a line like: “Last month I was doing a presentation for the (fill-in the blank of your last non-profit or corporation talk).” Again lines like these plant the seed with members of your audience that “hey, I like this speaker maybe my company, organization, non-profit, association etc., can also invite him or her.”

• Work in a referral story into your talk. Say something like, “I was giving this presentation in Phoenix and a gentleman who saw me recommended me to his company to bring me in. What was so remarkable about that talk was… (fill in the main point you want to make.) Do you see how just by inserting this innocuous, short, commercial you again plant the seed that audience members can take you home by recommending and referring you?

There are of course many other advanced strategies for turning your cruise gigs into showcases for getting paid shore-side bookings. But just using those referenced in this article will put you way ahead of the pack. I’d love to hear about your results.

Haven’t been approved to cruise free as a speaker? Check out Daniel Hall’s free Special Report - The Top 5 Enrichment Programs and How to Use Them to Get Free Luxury Cruises http://www.SpeakersCruiseFree.com/

Want to learn more about turning every talk you give into a cash cow? (No brainer, right?) You need to check out Jonathan Sprinkles cash cow speaking training and take it if it’s ever offered. Check out http://www.SpeakersCruiseFree.com/cashcow At the very least get his Six Figure Speaker Special Report at the same address.