# The golden link: borrow a room that's already full _From zero replies to a full room, and how an LLM got me four speaking yeses in three days._ By Terry Rice Published November 2, 2026 **The short version:** Pitching people one at a time runs on hope. Find the person who already has your audience, offer their people something useful for free, and let the attention come to you. ## Hope is not a strategy Referrals are great. I'll take every one I can get. But there's a bit of hope involved in waiting for them, and hope is not a strategy. When I first started out in New York, I got in front of the right people by speaking, often for free. I went to the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. I went to the Brooklyn Public Library. After a while I started going to coworking spaces, and then WeWork asked if I could come to all of their locations in New York City. I said yes. I had no real job at the time. That's how I learned what I now call the golden link: find someone who already has access to your audience, then volunteer to lead an event for them. ## What didn't work first About 11 years ago, I was a member of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. I DMed all the other members: "Hey, I'm a member of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. I'd love to meet you so I can help you with your marketing." Sales, sales, sales. Nobody replied. So I went up one level. I asked the Chamber if I could run a free event for their community. That's when people started coming to me. ![](https://content.everyexpert.com/users/user_3C5hdmjmJN4tpmscq7VFRG40aD1/images/9cf194f8-1293-4258-afe5-7e1fe02b56a4.png) ## The event does the selling Keep it short and useful. A 15-minute workshop works: "Three ways to stop wasting money on taxes," or whatever fits what you do. Then absorb the attention that comes from it. At the end, say: "If anyone has questions, I'll be over here in the corner. Here's my email." Add your booking link and you're set. ## The modern version: 20 requests, four yeses Here's how I do it today. I asked an LLM to help me find rooms in New York City that welcome people like me: open mics, masterminds and alumni associations that fit my audience and bring in speakers on a regular basis. It came back with 20 organizations. Then I asked it to reach out to each one and ask if they wanted me to speak. It sent all 20 on a Saturday. I got four yeses within three days. One was the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center. ## Not a speaker? Same play. If public speaking isn't your thing, give away something useful instead: a workbook or a playbook. "Three ways to stop wasting money on taxes." "Four ways your go-to-market strategy for consumer products has to change in 2027." You can give away information like that at scale, and use AI to find the groups who want it. ## How to run it 1. **Ask your LLM for 20 rooms.** Groups in your city or niche that already host speakers and fit your audience. 2. **Pick a 15-minute workshop you could run tomorrow.** One topic, one useful takeaway. 3. **Have it draft a short request to each one.** Read every note before it goes out. 4. **Close every event the same way.** Tell people where to find you, and share your booking link. Here's a prompt to start with: ``` Here's my background, who I help and what I talk about: [paste it here]. Find 20 groups in [your city or niche] that regularly host speakers and fit this audience, like open mics, masterminds, alumni associations and chambers of commerce. For each one, give me the name, who to contact and how. Then draft a short note offering a free 15-minute workshop for their members. ``` ## Your homework ![](https://content.everyexpert.com/users/user_3C5hdmjmJN4tpmscq7VFRG40aD1/images/675f9b07-6e67-429e-a96b-d043d10a6db4.png) **30 minutes.** Find 20 rooms that already have your audience, and send your first five requests. ## Bring it back The Expert Accelerator runs live on Thursdays at 12:00 PM ET. It's free for every EveryExpert member: [https://www.everyexpert.com/events/accelerator](https://www.everyexpert.com/events/accelerator) I run office hours every week. Check the best-practices channel for the latest schedule and to sign up. Not on EveryExpert yet? Join at [https://www.everyexpert.com](https://www.everyexpert.com) and set up your page so people can book you. [Join EveryExpert](https://www.everyexpert.com)