First of all, to admit you need a speech coach is a kind of confession—a confession that you need help.
Some of us don’t like to ask for directions when we’re lost, and some of us will struggle on our own for years before surrendering to some speech coach who’s going to tell us things we don’t want to hear.
But once you’ve confessed, to yourself and others, that you can’t do it on your own, you have to start looking for a speech coach that’s right for you.
The first place to look for one is in your network of friends and colleagues. Ask them if they’ve ever worked with a speech coach, and if so, why? What did they hope to get out of it? And was it helpful? How did it go, what was good, what was not so good?
Did the speech coach have a methodology? A workbook, or publication, or instructional materials to offer? Did the speech coach require any pre-work, or supply any post-engagement follow up? Did the speech coach interview them before the meeting, and was the speech coach able to listen to their responses and grasp what they wanted and needed to do?
Was the speech coach knowledgeable about the business, or were they more interested in style than they were in substance?
Ask if the speech coach had flexibility, if they were skilled at helping you shape your content, and refining your slide deck? Did they have any familiarity with your industry, your company, the people in it, or the technical aspects of your work?
Ask if they had used the speech coach more than once, and why? And if they had only used the speech coach once, ask if they would consider using him or her again, and if not, why not.
Ask about methods. Ask them what they did with the speech coach? How did he or she work with them? Did she give them exercises to do, or did she ask them to deliver a presentation? Did the speech coach use video in his work with them, or did she downplay the usefulness of video?
Did the speech coach let them run through a speech or presentation without interrupting or stopping them? Or, did she quickly point out what was not working when they began to speak?
Or did the speech coach work with them both ways, and tell them, “This time I’m going to let you run through it, and give you feedback at the end.” Or, “this time I’m going to interrupt you and coach you in real time.”
Get the speech coach’s name, phone, email, and location. Get some idea of what they charge. Call them or email them. Talk to them. Get them to come visit you if possible.
There are millions of speech coaches because there is very little barrier to entry in the field. Few of us can start manufacturing automobiles when we get laid off from a job, but many of us can hang a shingle out on the Internet and launch a speech coach business.
As usual, your network is the place to look. Word of mouth trumps the unknown company that manages to get the top spot in a Google search. After all, that number one ranking indicates they have great SEO, but it does not necessarily indicate they provide great speech coaching services.
Bottom line? Ask a ton of questions.
Sims Wyeth & Co. provides public speaking courses, leadership skills, presentation skills, voice training, speech training, speech writing, and courses that address stage fright, body language, presentation strategy, persuasive speaking, sales training, and effective use of PowerPoint, all of which contribute to greater executive presence and personal impact.