BOOK MARIA TO SPEAK

Why You Should Book Maria for Your Event

With over two decades of experience in the professional speaking industry, Maria Franzoni brings unparalleled insights and expertise that transform how audiences understand the business of speaking.

As a former international speaker bureau owner and agent, Maria has shaped the careers of leading speakers worldwide, guiding them to become more bookable and impactful.

Known for her direct, no nonsense approach, Maria delivers actionable strategies to achieve exceptional results. From understanding what makes the most booked speakers successful to navigating industry challenges, Maria’s talks are both practical and inspiring, providing audiences with a rare, behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to succeed in today’s competitive speaking landscape.

"In her very senior experience Maria gave hope and showed a path to a changed and still interesting speaking world. Was rated as one of the most interesting contributions to the conference."

Katja Schleicher, Speaker/ expert on all things sustainable communication

Speaking Topics

Create a Speaker Showreel that will get you booked

A good showreel will help you get booked again and again, most fail to do so because they are not created with the booker in mind. Having seen more showreels than most people have had hot dinners, Maria knows what a good showreel looks like. Whether you have lots of footage or only one good-quality video, it's possible to create a speaker showreel that will get you booked. In this session, Maria deconstructs her recipe for a great speaker reel.

How to get Listed and work with Speaker Bureaus

As a speaker, at some point you will consider working with Speaker Bureaus to help you grow your fees and your business. Speaker Bureaus can get you higher fees, get you booked by the right clients and take the admin off your shoulders. When the relationship works your business will really fly.

Sounds great, but how do you make it happen? In this session Maria shares the dos and don’ts of working with bureaus and what it takes to get booked again and again and again.

How to Write a Professional Speaker Bio

A speaker bio is one of your most important assets, but most are poorly written. Your bio needs to tell a booker about your credibility, expertise and experience as well as the outcomes that you bring. Writing your bio isn't easy. In this session, Maria shares examples of great bios and bad bios, and a simple structure to create your own. You'll come away knowing exactly how to write a short, medium and long bio for your website, LinkedIn and conference programmes.

What the 1% most booked speakers do that you can do too

2019 was a record-breaking year for the London Speaker Bureau group of companies. Maria had access to booking data and she was curious to see if the 80/20 rule applied to speaker bookings. She was surprised to find that 1% of the roster received 80% of the bookings. She was more surprised to learn that this was the same for other bureaus. She studied the 1% and found that they excelled in 4 key areas. In this session, she takes you through what those areas are so that you can focus on them and increase your bookings.

The ten most important business lessons I learned running an International Speaker Bureau

Maria spent 23 years working in and running international speaker bureaus, booking speakers globally across 80 countries. In that time, she did a lot of things right but also made mistakes when it came to running her business. In this session, she shares the ten most important business lessons she learned so that you can apply them to your business without investing 20 years to learn them.

There will be a takeaway from each of the ten lessons, including tools, software, and book recommendations. Maria is confident that while you may be familiar with some of what she is going to share, there will be several ideas that you can immediately apply to help grow your speaking business.

Show me the Money! How to find paid speaking opportunities

Getting booked is often one of the biggest challenges facing speakers, but if you know how to go about it, it’s easy and fun. Honestly, it is.

Having worked in the speaking industry for 25 years, for 23 of those years in International Speaker Bureaus representing some of the biggest names on the speaker circuit, Maria knows who and where the bookers are.

In this session she not only shows the audience that opportunities are all around us but also shares how to ask for them.

Run your Speaking Business like an International Speaker Bureau

Speaker Bureaus attract big budget enquiries, achieve multiple bookings with clients and they get paid upfront. Who doesn't want a bit of that?

You’d think that with Google and with so many directories where a booker can simply put in their requirements that most bureaus would be out of business, but they are not, they are thriving.

In this session Maria shares the 10 things bureaus do that you can do too and that will that will help you to attract top quality clients, make it easy for them to work with you and stay relevant in the market.

Book a call to discuss your event

FAQs

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Does Maria speak in person or virtually or both?

Does Maria guest on podcasts?

What is Maria’s availability and booking process?

Will Maria speak to audiences who are not speakers?

What sets Maria apart from other speaker coaches in the industry?

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Can we record or stream Maria’s presentation?

MAGNIFICENT.

If I would have to use only one word, that is how I would describe Maria: her energy, her talk and her expertise. No fluff, powerful, straightforward, clear and actionable content. She was a closing speaker at our event last Saturday and she made it perfect!

I highly recommend Maria as she not only inspired all of us, but also effortlessly helped to set up an actionable plan for the year!! - Olga Geidane, President PSA Yorkshire

Maria a guiding light in what can be a very confusing and hard profession. Her knowledge is incredible and her ability to relay what speakers need to know, hear and understand is second to none. She clearly loves what she does and truly cares about all her clients.

Working with Maria is a must – simple - Elliot Kay, Co-Founder of Speaker Express"

Maria is a true expert in the professional speaking industry and has a wealth of knowledge about how to survive (and thrive) as a speaker. She is generous with her support of speakers, both those who are new to the profession and those who have, er, been doing the rounds for a while! But, most importantly, she is genuinely committed to their long-term success and business growth. She knows nearly everyone and absolutely everything and is a rockstar coach to have in your corner. If you're looking to grow your speaking success, talk to Maria. - Allister Frost, Change Optimist

Maria gave a great talk with many honest insights about the speaker industry as a special guest at the Virtual Speakers Association. Trustworthy and profession EDIT aria understands what it takes to succeed. -Jessica Breitenfeld, Head of Education - VSA International

Maria was willing not only to share thoughts and tips but gave us tangible examples of implementation as we went along. Yes, she even gave us homework! - Jason Sandler, President Professional Speakers Association of Southern Africa

Resources

Now that you have booked Maria, here are some resources to help you make the event flow smoothly.

Maria's Headshots

Access Maria's headshot folder and pick the pose, size and style that you want for your perfect event.

Download Maria's Headshots

Short, medium and long bios for promotional use

Short Bio

(79 words)

Founder and Chief Mentor at Speaking Business Academy.

Maria Franzoni is one of the most experienced speaker bookers in Europe and recognised as a speaking industry expert. She supports speakers (established and new) to turn their speaking into profitable businesses. She does this by helping speakers to be more bookable. From understanding the complex and fragmented “speaking industry”, so as to position themselves as highly paid experts, through to developing simple sales and marketing strategies to monetise their expertise.

Medium Bio

(124 words)

Speaking industry expert.

Maria Franzoni is one of the most experienced speaker bookers in Europe. She supports speakers (established and new) to turn their speaking into profitable businesses. She does this by helping speakers to be more bookable. From understanding the complex and fragmented “speaking industry” to position themselves as highly paid experts, through to developing simple sales and marketing strategies to monetise their expertise.

Maria has held senior positions with 2 leading bureaus; CSA Celebrity Speakers and London Speaker Bureau – named by the New York Times as “the only international speaker bureau”. In 2007 she founded her own multi-million-pound Speaker bureau whilst maintaining her role at London Speaker Bureau. She is the host of the long running Speaking Business podcast for professional speakers.

Long Bio

(211 words)

Founder and Chief Enthusiast at Speaking Business Academy.

Maria Franzoni has 23 years of Speaker Bureau experience, having held senior positions at CSA Celebrity Speakers; London Speaker Bureau and having run her own international speaker bureau (Maria Franzoni Ltd) for 14 years. She is a founding member and former co-chair of the European Association of Speaker Bureaus and host of the Speaking Business Podcast, a no waffle, practical podcast for professional speakers.

Maria supports speakers (established and new) to turn their speaking into profitable businesses. She does this by helping speakers to be more bookable. From understanding the complex and fragmented “speaking industry”, to position themselves as highly paid experts, through to developing simple sales and marketing strategies to monetize their expertise.

Maria has worked with the great and the good of the speaking world, including first man on the moon Neil Armstrong; Body shop founder and environmentalist Anita Roddick; neuroscientist Beau Lotto; business magnate Richard Branson and F1 and NASCAR racing champion Jacques Villeneuve …. To name (drop) a few.

Prior to working with speakers Maria worked in retail management, management consultancy, educational travel and as an entrepreneur. Her experience in other industries has given her an excellent foundation for her work with speakers.

Intro Script

No need to use one of the above Bios for bringing Maria out on stage. To make your event flow much easier, you can use the text below.

Our next panellist/guest/speaker is one of the most experienced speaker bookers in Europe having held senior positions with 2 of Europe’s leading bureaus; CSA Celebrity Speakers and the London Speaker Bureau – named by the New York Times as “the only international speaker bureau”.

In 2007 she founded her own multi-million pound international company while still maintaining her role as part of the London Speaker Bureau global network. Today she works with Speakers teaching them how to apply the strategies and systems used by speaker bureaus to be more bookable and charge higher fees. Please welcome Maria Franzoni.

Technical Requirements

To provide an engaging and smooth experience for your audience, here are the
preferred technical requirements for Maria Franzoni's presentations:

Presentation Format: Maria uses PowerPoint for her presentations and will
send the final file in advance. She will also bring a backup copy on a dongle.
Multimedia: Maria integrates videos and music into her presentations, so
please ensure sound capability for video playback.
Microphone: For optimal audio, Maria prefers a lapel or head microphone,
depending on room size and setup.
Control: A clicker is requested to advance slides.
Comfort Monitor: If available, a comfort monitor is helpful, though not
essential.
Timer Display: Maria likes to keep an eye on the time; a visible clock or timer is ideal.

Thank you for helping create a professional and well-prepared environment for the
best audience experience.