[Part 4] Booked Without Burnout: Should You Pay to Speak?

We’re wrapping up our Booked Without Burnout series, and this one might surprise you: should you ever pay to speak?

I know - it sounds backward. After all, you want to get paid for your expertise, not the other way around.

But there are times when paying for a speaking slot makes strategic sense, especially if it’s tied to a sponsorship or marketing opportunity that gets you in front of your ideal clients.

This is Part 4 of my 4-part series on how to land more speaking engagements. In Part 1, I shared outbound strategies: what to do when you pitch yourself. In Part 2, we talked about inbound strategies: how to set yourself up so event organizers find you. In Part 3, we looked at getting paid to speak.

In this episode, I share:

• How to evaluate whether paying to speak is worth it for your goals
• The key questions to ask before you invest in a speaking opportunity
• How to turn a sponsorship into a visibility and revenue boost

Plus, I’m including an episode from my Confident Speaker podcast, my fully AI-generated show. The script, voice, and show notes are all created by AI using a custom knowledge base built from 400+ episodes of Speaking Your Brand. You’ll hear “AI Carol” and see how closely it matches my style (it’s kind of wild!).

If you’ve ever wondered how you can use AI to amplify your brand voice, this episode is a behind-the-scenes look at what’s possible.

Listen in and find out when it might be smart to pay to speak - and how to use AI to grow your visibility without burning out.

Links:

Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/444/ 

Check out my companion podcast “Confident Speaker”: https://confidentspeaker.transistor.fm/ 

Apply for my Automate & Amplify with AI program: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/ai/ 

Attend our 1-day in-person Speaking Accelerator workshop in Orlando: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/ 

Enroll in our online Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/ 

Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox

Related Podcast Episodes:

• Episode 443: [Part 3] Booked Without Burnout: Getting Paid to Speak
• Episode 442: [Part 2] Booked Without Burnout: Speaking Invitations that Come to You
• Episode 441: [Part 1] Booked Without Burnout: A Smarter Way to Land Speaking Gigs
• Episode 433: Behind the Scenes of My AI-Powered Business: Real-World Use Cases

JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

Episode Transcript

Carol Cox: Should you ever pay to speak. (00:00):
undefined
This is part four of our Booked without
Burnout series. I have some thoughts about
this, as does AI Carroll,
which you'll hear in this episode of the
Speaking Your Brand podcast.
More and more women are making an impact by

(00:20):
starting businesses, running for office and
speaking up for what matters.
With my background as a TV political analyst,
entrepreneur, and speaker,
I interview and coach purpose driven women to
shape their brands, grow their companies,
and become recognized as influencers in their
field. This is speaking your brand,

(00:41):
your place to learn how to persuasively
communicate your message to your audience.
Welcome to the Speaking Your Brand podcast.
I'm your host, Carol Cox.
We're wrapping up our four part series on
helping you land more speaking engagements
called Booked Without Burnout.
Part one was about outbound strategies.

(01:01):
What to do when you pitch yourself.
Part two was inbound strategies.
How to set yourself up so those speaking
engagements come to you.
In part three, we talked about how to make
the leap into paid speaking opportunities.
Now here in part four I'm going to talk about
should you pay to speak?

(01:22):
Yes, you heard me right.
Should you actually pay a conference or an
event to speak?
Now that seems kind of backwards.
After all, you want to get paid to speak,
but I think there may be a time and a place
where paying to speak could be a good fit.
Now think of it as sponsoring a conference if

(01:42):
you would sponsor the conference anyway.
So maybe you get a booth at the conference,
or you get your logo and company information
in the materials that they provide to the
attendees. It may make sense to go ahead and
do that. Sponsorship.
If you also get a speaking slot at that
conference. So you want to make sure,
of course, that if you're doing this,

(02:03):
that you understand why you're doing it,
the goals that you have,
what you could get out of it,
for example, that the audience are potential
clients for you. So that could be a good
enough reason to pay to speak.
But I have more for you on this topic.
I am going to play a recent episode from my
companion podcast called Confident Speaker.

(02:25):
If you haven't checked it out yet,
I highly recommend that you do so you can
find it in Apple Podcasts,
Spotify, wherever you listen to podcasts.
It's called Confident Speaker,
so you can just do a search for that.
But here's the twist with this companion
podcast it is 100% AI generated.
The script is written by AI,

(02:47):
the show notes by AI, and the voice that
you're about to hear is my AI voice clone.
But here's what makes this podcast so
fascinating, at least to me.
And I think you'll find the same thing,
is that the content for these is that the
scripts are generated based on all of my

(03:07):
prior Speaking Your Brand podcast episodes.
So what you're about to hear,
you'll find not only sounds pretty much just
like me, like this is human.
Carol talking to you right now.
Ai Carol sounds pretty much the same.
But as you listen, you'll find that how I'm
talking about these concepts sounds the same
as if I had scripted it and done it myself,

(03:30):
because it's based on all of that prior
podcast content that I have created.
I do this using what's called a rag,
which is an AI enabled knowledge base.
Now, if you're curious how you can do this
yourself, either if you have your own podcast
or if you want to have a podcast as a
marketing channel, but you don't want to do
it yourself, you could create an AI generated

(03:52):
podcast like I have.
You can get more information on my four week
Automate and Amplify with AI program as
speaking your brand new AI.
Again, that's. Com slash AI.
And I walk you through how to do something
like this and more for yourself.

(04:12):
So go ahead and check that out.
Now here's AI Carroll.
Welcome to the Confidence Speaker podcast by
speaking your brand. This is your host,
AI Carroll. Here's something that might
surprise you. You may be asked to pay to
speak at a conference. I know that feels
completely backward, right?
You've spent years building your experience

(04:32):
and expertise.
Now someone wants you to pay them to deliver
that wisdom to their audience.
Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?
Let's talk about when it's worth it to speak
for free, or even pay a small amount,
and when you should be charging for your time
and talent. Early on in my speaking journey,
I said yes to a lot of unpaid engagements,
chamber luncheons, local meetups,

(04:54):
library workshops.
I wasn't getting paid,
but I was getting something else visibility,
experience, and invaluable speaker feedback.
So here's the real question should you ever
pay to speak at a conference?
The answer is it depends.
And here's how to approach it strategically.
Tip number one know what you're getting in

(05:14):
return. If a conference asks you to pay a
speaker fee or buy a ticket in order to
speak, it better be offering something
worthwhile in return.
Ask yourself, Will I be in front of my ideal
audience? People who could become clients or
connect me with other speaking opportunities?
Can I film my talk in a beautiful venue to

(05:34):
use for my speaker reel?
Do I get access to top tier networking with
fellow entrepreneurs or decision makers in
the audience? If the ROI is clear and matches
your goals, the investment might make sense.
But if it's simply paying for the privilege
of being on stage, that's a red flag.
You're doing them a favor,
not the other way around.

(05:55):
Tip number two set a limit on free or paid
speaking. This is one of my favorite
strategies. Decide in advance how many unpaid
or pay to play speaking opportunities you're
willing to do in a year.
Maybe it's two. Maybe it's one per quarter.
Once you've hit that number,
you have a built in way to say no to the next
invitation or to negotiate a fee.

(06:16):
Instead, all you have to say is,
thanks so much for the opportunity.
I set aside two free talks a year and I've
already filled that for this year.
Do you have a budget for speakers?
It's a boundaries win and it positions you as
a professional. Tip number three position
yourself as a paid speaker.
If you don't want to be asked to speak for

(06:37):
free, stop positioning yourself as someone
who will have a speaking page on your website
that includes your signature topics,
testimonials, and speaking fees or ranges.
Even just putting speaking engagements start
at $2,500. Lets potential organizers know
you're not speaking as a favor,
but as a professional service.

(06:58):
It also helps you attract better quality
opportunities from the start.
Remember, you don't have to say yes to
everything. Early on, gaining experience is
valuable, but as you grow in your speaking
journey, your time on and off stage holds
real value. You've spent years building your
message to stand on that stage.
Own the mic and deliver your story.

(07:19):
That's not just speaking,
that's leadership. So here's my challenge for
you. The next time you're asked to speak for
free or pay to speak, pause,
ask, is this worth it to me with where I am
and where I'm going?
You get to decide.
And that's a powerful place to be.
For more support and to work with us to grow
your speaking business,
head over to Speaking Your Brand.com.

(07:40):
And don't forget to follow the Confident
Speaker podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify,
so you never miss an episode full of honest,
actionable insights.
This on demand episode was generated by my AI
voice clone trained on speaking your brand
content. Keep speaking up for what truly
matters. You've got this.

(08:00):
Hi. This is human.
Carroll. So what do you think of AI Carroll.
And not too bad, right?
You're probably not going to take my
podcasting role just yet,
but if you're looking for quick answers to
questions you have around public speaking,
thought leadership, and personal branding,
check out my companion podcast,
Confident Speaker.

(08:20):
The episodes are only 3 to 5 minutes long,
so they're very focused and very targeted.
And if there are questions that you have that
I haven't yet addressed on that podcast,
you can send an email to On Demand at
speaking your Brand.com.
Again, that's on demand at speaking your
Brand.com with your question.
An AI Carol will reply back in a minute or

(08:43):
two with an answer.
I hope you enjoyed this four part series on
getting booked without burnout.
Share this podcast with a friend or colleague
who is also looking to get more speaking
engagements. And of course,
be sure to follow the podcast on Apple
Podcasts or Spotify.
Both the Speaking Your Brand podcast and the
Confident Speaker podcast.

(09:04):
Until next time, thanks for listening.