The Speaker Lab Arvostelua 

I just had my first coaching call with The Speaker Lab and left feeling charged up and ready to go full-on. My coach was engaging, competent, and truly passionate about what he does. It was clear that he genuinely cares about my success. Finally!! I now have real mentors and a clear path forward instead of having to guess or learn through trial and error. If you're serious about becoming a paid speaker, this program can provide the steps and support you need to get there.

The Speaker Lab has been a valuable and transformative experience. I entered the program with nearly two decades of leadership experience, a deep passion for my work, and many stories to share, but I struggled to tie all the pieces together and refine it for a specific audience. The program helped me identify exactly who I am best positioned to serve, refine my keynote, and communicate its value to those who hire speakers. The honest, thoughtful, and highly specific feedback challenged my thinking, transformed my positioning, and gave me far greater clarity and confidence in the speaking business I am building. If you are on the fence, I would take this next step and invest in yourself, it's worth it!

I couldn't have made my break to being a professional speaker without the counsel and guidance of the Speaker Lab. I've spoken for decades, but they took my skills - and business acumen - to a new level. I'd recommend them strongly to anyone who wants to get booked and paid to speak.

The Speaker Lab was an amazing program that laid a strong foundation to build a solid keynote business on. They took the time to walk through every aspect of this profession and had incredible access to top-level coaches. If getting paid to speak is something you want to do, there is no better program to get you started.

I've been speaking in the nonprofit space for many years, but mostly not charging. The Speaker Lab changed that. Using the techniques and feedback from the TSL coaches, a large national nonprofit found my website and reached out... and I signed a paid engagement, charging fairly for work I always knew was good. What TSL gave me wasn't just the tools, it was the confidence to own my value. Game changing. If you're serious about getting paid to speak, this is the place."

I invested $8,000 into The Speaker Lab with the expectation that I would receive real support, real guidance, and real leads for speaking opportunities. Unfortunately, none of that happened.

The program consistently promised actionable leads and a proven system for getting booked, but what I actually received was generic advice, recycled coaching sessions, and no meaningful opportunities. Their “lead generation” is essentially non‑existent — nothing they provided resulted in a single booking or even a warm conversation with an event organizer.

The coaching quality was far below what was advertised. Many sessions felt unstructured, unprepared, and delivered by people who did not demonstrate real expertise in the speaking industry. Instead of practical strategies, I got vague motivation, surface‑level tips, and group calls that added no value.

For the price I paid, I expected a professional, results‑driven system. What I got instead was a disappointing experience that felt more like a sales funnel than a legitimate coaching program. I walked away with no leads, no bookings, and no return on my investment.

I strongly advise anyone considering The Speaker Lab to think carefully before spending this kind of money. In my experience, the program did not deliver on its promises and was not worth the cost.

I crossed multi-six figures in speaking bookings and I have to thank The Speaker Lab and Erick R! Their support and coaching gave me the structure, confidence, and the accountability to treat my speaking like the real business it is. Every time I got stuck, there was someone in my corner helping me figure out the next move - their responsiveness is TOP NOTCH! If you're serious about turning your message into income, this is the place that will walk it out with you.

I expected a generic database dump. What showed up was a list that actually understood what I do. I'm a leadership speaker for young entrepreneurs, helping them with the essential life skills that make or break their early ventures. The lead list TSL pulled for me covered the exact organizations that book speakers for my audience... Junior Achievement, NFTE, FBLA, Babson, university entrepreneurship programs, youth innovation labs. Every name on the list was someone who could actually move me closer to standing in front of the founders I'm built to serve.

You can tell the team isn't just running a service... they're paying attention to who you are and what you do. That kind of investment in their students is rare. If you're a speaker wondering whether anyone is actually going to do the work on your behalf, this is your answer.

The Speaker Lab is a treasure trove of information from people actively winning on the speaking trail. But more than information; it's a source of clarity, inspiration, tangible tactical help and support. Every question receives a helpful response. Every coaching session and call has actionable steps and practical tools. Honestly, I can't say enough good about The Speaker Lab and the help, growth and opportunity it is providing me.

The Speaker Lab gave me an easy to follow system, a community that provided support and encouragement, and a vision for what was possible. I just landed my biggest paid speaking gig yet, and honestly it feels like only the beginning. Every time I think about what TSL has given me and what's still ahead, I'm grateful I went all in. If you're serious about building a speaking business, this is the place.

The Speaker Lab gave me a real system and real people to lean on. I went from tracking gigs in my own head to actually having a process I can trust. The group coaching calls are gold, the coaches genuinely care, and the advice I've gotten has directly put gigs on my calendar. If you're serious about building a speaking business, this is where you want to be.

I've spent years inside the aging services industry, so I know what a half-baked lead list looks like. What I just received isn't one. TSL built mine around the 25 industry contacts I submitted them. They intentionally pulled in and found decision makers from state aging associations, senior living chains, hospice operators, and home care providers. Hundreds of contacts, every one of them in my exact targe market! My last 5 months at The Speaker Lab has been nothing but a positive experience. Grateful for their support and I'm ready to take massive action and get to work.

The Speaker Lab gives you something rare… actual coaching that pushes you to sharpen your message, not just hype you up. I've spent 40 years in commercial sales and leadership, and the feedback I'm getting on my positioning has been clarifying in a way I didn't expect. The frameworks work, the coaches genuinely care, and the guidance is practical and direct. If you're serious about turning your message into a real speaking business, this is the place to do it.

The Speaker Lab gave me a clear framework for building two distinct speaking tracks at once... one for the corporate HR and leadership conference world, and one for university career services helping graduating seniors transition into the next chapter. The team got specific about who actually books each kind of talk and delivered targeted decision makers rather than a generic list. What sets TSL apart is the depth of attention to your actual positioning, not just throwing volume at you. I'm walking away with a real pipeline of opportunities and the confidence to work it. If you're serious about building a speaking business with intentionality, this is the place.

By submitting this review I am hoping to save you thousands of dollars to pay for someone to tell you that you will need to create a speaker reel, a value statement, and then spend hours and hours cold calling and emailing companies that are looking for speakers. That’s it. They are very self serving. They canceled my appointments if I was 5 minutes late, even though I paid them for that time, then it would take weeks to reschedule. I was excited to the opportunity and they spoke like it was a guarantee but it wasn’t. They refuse to give refunds and can’t guarantee results.

The enrollment advisor told me that I was getting a 0% interest loan through affirm along with a $4k discount. I even have it in writing. He did everything over the phone which I thought was unusual but against my better judgement trusted him. I've just seen that my interest rate with Affirm is 33% and my loan amount $23k. I cannot believe this happened. Of course SpeakerLab is stating that I made the arrangement with Affirm although that is completely false. I will likely have to sue SpeakerLab for their fraudulent behavior. This has become a nightmare.

I went into The Speaker Lab’s VIP Accelerator with clear intent and realistic expectations. I was not trying to become a full time professional speaker. I already speak regularly inside my company. My goal was simple. Add a small number of paid keynote engagements per year that align with my work in product leadership.

What follows is an honest assessment of fit and outcomes from the perspective of a senior operator. My goal now, as I still feel the sting of the monthly payment on this sunk cost, is to save a few others from wasting their money.

I expected the program to cost between $5,000 and $6,000. When I spoke with the salesperson, I was shocked to hear the price was $15,000. The pitch leaned heavily on the founder’s story. He seems like a good person, but I never met him or saw him live. He appeared mostly in recorded content, some of it years old.

The salesperson cited claims like 5,000 paid speaking gigs per day in the US. That may sound compelling if your goal is volume. I was explicit that it was not mine. I wanted a handful of high quality, well paid engagements per year. Another line that resonated at the time was “there are no tariffs on speaking,” which landed given the broader economic climate.

I was told most students make money by the midpoint of the program and that I could likely sell a $15,000 keynote. When a $2,000 tuition “grant” was introduced, bringing the price to $13,000, it softened the blow. It was an effective sales tactic, especially given my original expectations.

There was also a money back guarantee. It sounded reassuring until you read the fine print. Full completion, strict participation requirements, and only after all payments were made could you request a refund at the one year mark. When I hesitated, the salesperson became pushy. That should have been my signal. Despite reservations, I proceeded.

The program is positioned as a six month, high touch accelerator, though payments span twelve months. Monthly flexibility was appealing. The promise included coaching, curated leads, cohort sessions, workshops, a rebuilt speaker website, and a demo video. On paper, it looked comprehensive.

In practice, the experience was uneven. The first two modules were genuinely valuable. Selecting a problem to solve and preparing your talk were structured, thoughtful, and helpful.

The decline began with establishing your expertise. Website and demo reel creation felt like an assembly line. Everything flowed through forms. Feedback was slow, impersonal, and at times rude. The final website was a generic Wix template that did not reflect a premium or VIP experience. For the price, this was deeply disappointing.

The core failure came in acquiring paid speaking gigs. By this point, I had paid roughly $6,000. This module should have been the most rigorous and strategic. Instead, it boiled down to searching Google, mining your network, and building a list of 25 leads. CRM and email guidance was basic. The Google driven approach did not work for my industry, even after hiring two separate people to test it. One coach discouraged cold outreach entirely, leaving no clear starting point. I expected a strategy, not spray and pray.

The final module on scaling added little value without solving acquisition first.

The coaches were kind and supportive early on, but could not help with my core problem. Cohort sessions mirrored the modules and did not materially move the needle.

I executed fully. I completed modules, attended sessions, built lists, ran outbound experiments, and launched the website and demo. I booked zero paid engagements through the program.

My domain is enterprise, B2B, and ecosystem driven. Speaking opportunities here are relationship based and platform adjacent. The accelerator’s outbound frameworks did not align with how this market works. Intel Engine leads and templated outreach produced zero qualified conversations.

I did not qualify for the refund because I did not complete 80 percent of coaching calls. By the time the misalignment was clear, continuing to check boxes felt irrational.

About 75% in, a new version of the program was announced. My assumption is that others raised similar concerns. It was too late for me. On legal advice, I requested cancellation and a clean resolution. I have paid $7,583, with $5,416 remaining. The response was another form and a denial of cancellation.

If this saves even a few people from spending over $13,000 on a poor fit, the loss I took makes it worth it. At this price point, the lack of personalization makes the VIP label misleading and value for cost highly misaligned.

This program, and more importantly the community, literally launched my speaking career!
It was hard work, but you're never alone!

I joined The Speaker Lab’s Booked and Paid to Speak Elite program because I was getting speaking opportunities, but they were mostly unpaid and not converting into clients. I knew my message and value weren’t landing clearly, and I needed a real system to turn speaking into a business.

The program helped me clarify my message and focus my speaking into three strong core topics, which immediately made everything feel more aligned and easier to communicate. The group coaching was consistently valuable, and the one-on-one coaching was where the biggest breakthroughs happened. I had multiple “how did I not see that?” moments that directly impacted the opportunities I pursued.

What I appreciated most is that The Speaker Lab teaches a structured, practical approach to getting booked and paid, with a framework you can actually follow step by step. Since completing the Elite program, I have more confidence in the value of my message, my book has been released, and I’m stepping into larger speaking opportunities with a clearer plan for monetizing the room.

I highly recommend The Speaker Lab if you’re serious about building a paid speaking business, and willing to do the work and follow the process. It’s been worth it for me.

TSL provided a methodology to clarify intent, direction and drilled down to details.
I appreciate what I learned and am looking forward to the next step.

DB