To date the Inspiring Speakers Blog has mainly been geared toward emerging and professional speakers looking to improve their speaking skills and build up their speaking business.
Today I’d like to welcome all those who are looking for information on how to find, select and book professional speakers. From now on we will also be addressing your concerns, from how to select the right speaker for your event and understanding speaking fees to what to include in your speaker contract and how to prepare a room for a speaking event.
If you are planning an event and are considering booking a professional speaker, working with a speaker bureau is truly the best way to discover your options. Speaker bureaus are dedicated to helping event planners find and book the most relevant, entertaining and inspiring speakers for their particular event.
There are a number of questions you should ask yourself before you contact a speaker bureau. These questions will help you narrow your focus – and the answers will help a speaker bureau determine the right speaker for you and your event.
Question 1: What is the objective of your event?
Every event has its own unique goals and purposes. What type of event are you holding? Is it a conference or an annual industry meeting? Is it a presentation for a high school or university, or a leadership conference? Why are you bringing people together? What message do you want the audience to take away with them? And what do you want to accomplish by having a speaker at your event? Pinpointing your event’s objectives will give your speaker bureau an initial direction to take in their search for a speaker for you and your event.
Question 2: Does your event have a theme?
Most speakers have areas of expertise and themes that they focus their talks around. Do you want a speaker who will present specific information related to your field of work or do you want a speaker with a more general motivational message? Are you looking to educate your audience or to entertain them? Or both?
Question 3: Who is your audience?
Who will be attending your event? Are they professionals or students? Are they people looking for information on a specific topic or people looking for more general motivation? What sort of speaker – and what topics – would most interest and inspire them? Are there speaker names who they recognize and who would encourage them to attend? Or are there speakers who they may have seen speak before and would like to hear again?
Question 4: What is the format of the event?
Are you looking for a keynote speaker to open, close or headline your conference? Or are you looking for someone to run a half-day workshop on improving a specific skill? Perhaps what you really need is an emcee to host an event or award ceremony – or a speaker who can entertain your audience during a sit-down dinner. Knowing exactly what it is you want your speaker to do will greatly help a speaker bureau narrow down your speaker choices.
Question 5: What is your budget?
The amount of money you are willing to spend may influence the types and calibre of speakers available to you. Keep in mind that speakers from out of town will cost more than local speakers due to travel expenses and accommodation. What would you like to spend? And what is the most you are willing to spend?
Question 6: When is your event?
It is important to begin searching for a speaker as early as possible – the sooner the better, in fact. Speakers often book events as far as a year in advance. Do you have a date already set for your event? Or do you have the flexibility to find the right speaker and work your event around their schedule?
The right speaker can truly make or break an event. So it’s important to know the answers to these important questions before you contact a speaker bureau. By analyzing your event’s objectives, theme, audience, format and budget, you’re sure to select the perfect speaker and make your event one worth remembering.
