Your two months into the new year and your event goals and aspirations are about to come to reality. But where do you begin? How do you book speakers to speak to your members to educate and inspire the room? How do you set yourself up for success from the start to receive the post event positive feedback you can share with future members? Booking speakers for your event can seem both perplexing and overwhelming.
Assuming you are starting from scratch, which means you have not seen the speaker, or nobody has referred them to you, you have two choices. Do a little research on your own and book the speaker directly or work with a speaker’s bureau.
How do I hire a speaker for an event?
Put the puzzle pieces together and look at our tips below and Forbes – How To Book A Motivational Keynote Speaker For Your Next Meeting to find what you need to book great speakers for your next event.
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How can I get free speakers for an event?
Searching online would be a great way to start to find those willing to give their time and knowledge in your industry. This might be an opportunity to help someone up-and-coming in the industry get exposure and grow with your organization.
Look for someone well known, and local, who has knowledge of your industry. Reaching out to public speaking groups in your area, such as Rotary or Toastmasters, allows for local industry experts to attend.
Consider obtaining a recommendation by word of mouth and through sending out emails to your contacts to find out if they can give you any leads on good “free” speakers.
Otherwise, if you are willing to pay to get your boots off the ground, a speaker’s bureau would be a great resource. They will have skilled agents that can suggest speakers based on topics, industries, pricing, location, and more.
After that, you are set up to request a signed contract to speak – including needs wants etc. Once the contract is signed which may take some time, you can finally solidify the details needed from your speaker. Check out Tedx’s simple outline of an invitation to help guide you.
When a speaker says no…
If a speaker says they are not available or are not interested in speaking at your event, don’t fret. Be graceful and thank them for considering the opportunity. If it feels appropriate, you could also ask them if they have any recommendations for other speakers. Better yet, if it’s a recurring event, maybe they will consider speaking at a future event.
Your speaker has accepted! Now what?
Once you have your speakers, take the heavy lifting off speaker management with Attendee Interactive. Explore our dynamic administrative portal where event planners and administrators can manage their program information and event content with ease.
