Ben Eubanks Calls Out Ineffective Sales Tactic Targeting Event Speakers

In a recent LinkedIn post, Ben Eubanks addresses a sales and marketing tactic he describes as “obnoxious” and “no better than cold outreach”: directly pitching products and services to individuals who are speaking at industry events.

Eubanks, who is scheduled to speak at ATD next week, shared his frustration with receiving unsolicited sales pitches from individuals targeting speakers. He highlighted the ineffectiveness of this approach, noting his own experience:

“I’m speaking at ATD next week. I just deleted my 6th email today from someone trying to do this.”

He argues that this strategy is fundamentally flawed because simply being a speaker at an event does not signal an interest in purchasing the solicitor’s offerings.

Questioning the Pitch’s Efficacy

Ben Eubanks contends that this trend, which he believes originated from a “some evildoer somewhere,” is a misguided attempt at lead generation. He draws a parallel between these pitches and traditional cold outreach, suggesting both suffer from a lack of personalization and relevance.

“It’s no better than cold outreach. Just because I’m speaking doesn’t mean I want to buy your training tools, content library, AI thingamajig, or time share (that last one’s kind of a joke).”

According to Eubanks, the assumption that speakers are open to immediate sales pitches simply because they are participating in an event is a significant miscalculation. He suggests that event speakers, like all professionals, are often focused on their own contributions and the value they can derive from the event’s content, rather than being receptive to unsolicited sales attempts.

A Better Approach to Engagement

Instead of aggressive, templated outreach, Eubanks proposes a more thoughtful and effective method for engaging with speakers and building genuine connections. He advocates for attendees to demonstrate genuine interest in the speaker’s content and expertise.

Demonstrating Genuine Interest

Eubanks outlines a clear alternative strategy for those looking to connect with event speakers in a meaningful way:

1. Attend their session: Show up to the speaker’s presentation.
2. Engage with the content: Take notes and absorb the information being shared.
3. Share insights online: Post about the session, highlighting key takeaways, and tag the speaker.

This approach, Eubanks argues, demonstrates genuine interest and provides a natural basis for further conversation. He contrasts this with generic pitches:

“Chances of a conversation after that? Much, much higher. Chances of a conversation based on the template outreach and generic pitch? Minimal.”

In Eubanks’s view, investing effort into understanding and appreciating a speaker’s work significantly increases the likelihood of a positive and productive interaction, ultimately leading to more meaningful professional relationships than a hastily sent sales email.