No matter what your budget, you are making a financial and reputational investment when choosing to bring in a keynote speaker for an event or meeting\u2014and want your boss, committee, board, and members, etc. to be totally and completely \u201cwow\u2019d\u201d with the result. That\u2019s no easy feat and begs the question: How do you make sure you\u2019re getting the right keynote speaker, and how do you get the most out of your speaker investment?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
To make the speaker search process a bit easier for you to navigate and to save some time that you can use to focus on the other million tasks on a meeting planner or event professionals’ plate, we\u2019ve compiled a list of the most important things to think about as you are deciding who will be the right fit for your program and audience and how you can get the most return from your keynote speaker investment.<\/p>\n\n
Ready to find the ideal individual to speak at your next event or meeting?<\/p>\n\n
Here are the top ten most important things to ask yourself when you are looking to hire the perfect keynote speaker for your event or meeting along with a few of my most trusted tips that you should take into consideration when thinking through each one to ensure a successful outcome with your speaker search and selection process.<\/p>\n\n
1.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>WHAT IS THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF THE KEYNOTE?<\/b><\/p>\n\n For instance, is it to provide in-depth and actionable takeaways for your audience on specific learning metrics, or is it to hire a big-name speaker or well-known celebrity to help you get more butts in seats as a conference closer? Often the two do not overlap, so knowing what drives success will immediately help you and your Leading Authorities\u2019 program consultant target the right individuals.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n MY TIP:\u00a0<\/b>Think about whether you are looking for a speaker who has personally done something big, or if you would prefer a best-selling author, professor, or subject matter expert.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n Often what we\u00a0hope<\/i>\u00a0our team and audience will like, isn\u2019t reality.\u00a0Think through what has worked well in the past, and what has fallen flat\u2014and why. Being honest and transparent when detailing your expectations will help ensure you find the right fit.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n Depending on your topic, a great keynote speaker usually starts in the $10,000 range and can exceed $100,000.\u00a0 Keynote speaker prices vary greatly, and individual speaking fees are not solely based on popularity or success but instead depend on a lot of different criteria, including the speaker\u2019s availability to accept engagements and the location of the event or meeting. For instance, a current CEO or prominent journalist will have very little time to accept paid engagements, so may set her fee exceedingly high so she can do her best to accept the few offers she may get.\u00a0Whatever your budget, your Leading Authorities\u2019 program consultant will be able to provide a proposal of recommendations within your range.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n MY TIP:\u00a0<\/b>If it is not already included, ask your program consultant if you can include travel and expenses \u201cbuyout\u201d. This reduces unexpected and exorbitant expenses on the back end.\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n\n Whether you are selling tickets to pack a convention center or looking for a low-key board dinner, we can help guide you to the right person who is comfortable and enthusiastic about your promotion plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n MY TIP<\/b>:\u00a0Consider asking your speaker to use their social media channels to Tweet about your event in the weeks leading up to the big day, or as a recap after the event.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n All these things are important to discuss with your consultant during the talent finding process and to include in the offer when you\u2019re ready to move forward.\u00a0Your consultant will be able to save you time and effort by detailing out each person\u2019s individual requirements, so you are not disappointed in the 11th<\/sup>\u00a0hour of an offer.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n MY TIP<\/strong>:\u00a0Put all your requirements, no matter how small, in the contractual offer.\u00a0Negotiating with the Speaker for additional \u201casks\u201d, no matter how small, after the contracts are signed can be disappointing and fruitless.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n Unlike traditional keynotes, celebrities can have unique requirements including private air, travel and expenses for an entourage, restricted to moderated Q&A, limited meet and greets (if allowable at all), consecutive appearance time limits, etc.\u00a0While each celebrity is a little different, talk with your consultant and know what to expect in advance.\u00a0To a more extreme degree, for entertainment, be prepared to review a lengthy technical rider, backline, and hospitality requirements.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n MY TIP<\/b>:\u00a0Ask your agent if you can bundle these things into a buyout so you can hedge expenses on the front end.<\/em><\/p>\n\n If you have your heart set on a speaker who is more than your budget, often it doesn\u2019t hurt to make a reasonable offer.\u00a0While we do not haggle with speakers on the price they\u2019ve set, we will take them your best and final offer.\u00a0As your agent, we will do everything in our power to get your first-choice speaker locked in.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n When you\u2019ve found \u201cthe one\u201d, it\u2019s time to make an offer. Your Leading Authorities agent will check the professional calendar of the speaker and will pull together an agreement including the date, time, location, audience, etc. for your review and signature.\u00a0After we\u2019ve worked through any questions and have your signature, we\u2019ll extend our offer to the speaker.\u00a0The speaker will review and in 95% of cases, accept quickly.\u00a0In the off chance that they need to decline, we will move on to plan B. Once we are locked in with a speaker, you will receive all the marketing materials for your invitations and promotion.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n MY TIP<\/b>:\u00a0Ask your agent what the expected response time is for the speaker you have chosen so you can set expectations upfront.<\/em><\/p>\n\n One of the best parts about working with the Leading Authorities speakers bureau team is our stellar events team.\u00a0When you partner with our team, you will have a specific point of contact from our events team who will coordinate all of the travel and logistics for your speaker and event and will send you a detailed itinerary with all of the contact information you\u2019ll need such as full lists of contact names, email addresses, and phone numbers.\u00a0They are here to ensure everything with your event runs seamlessly and to help you navigate through any event logistic issues such as travel delays or natural storms.<\/p>\n\n At Leading Authorities speakers bureau, we are here to help you put together the best keynote event or meeting possible.<\/p>\n\n You can use us as a go-to resource for researching new talent, pulling together the industry\u2019s most popular speakers, identifying the hottest topics and trends in the industry, brainstorming new and innovative event ideas to keep your content fresh and keep your audience engaged, helping to handle all of the speaker logistics, helping to address and solve any unexpected event emergencies that pop up last minute, and answering tough questions. We work with you from start to finish and want to see your event succeed as much as we want to see you succeed.\u00a0And did we mention it\u2019s completely free?<\/i><\/p>\n\n If you’re interested in learning\u00a0more about our speaker booking process and want to see exactly how our team can work with you to ensure you make a successful keynote speaker selection for your next event or conference and to generate a high return on your speaker investment,\u00a0reach out to our team<\/a>\u00a0<\/b>to get started today!<\/p>\n\n Want to receive your very own complimentary and customized speaker recommendations to consider for your next event or meeting?\u00a0<\/strong>Simply contact us<\/a>\u00a0and we’ll send you a curated list of speaker suggestions tailored specifically to meet the needs and requirements of your specific event criteria and be a good fit for your event based on the topic, theme, audience, and more.\u00a0Get your customized speaker list<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n You can also get in touch with us by\u00a0submitting\u00a0the form<\/strong>\u00a0below,\u00a0emailing\u00a0contact@lauthorities.com<\/a><\/strong>, calling\u00a01-800-SPEAKER<\/b>, or\u00a0<\/b>live chatting<\/b><\/a>\u00a0<\/b>with a member of our team online.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"2.\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0WHAT WOULD MY TEAM AND AUDIENCE CONSIDER A HOME RUN EVENT?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a03.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>WHAT IS MY BUDGET?\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a04.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>WILL I NEED TO PROMOTE THE SPEAKER?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a05.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>WILL I BE RECORDING?\u00a0WILL I BE LIVE STREAMING? WILL THERE BE MEDIA IN ATTENDANCE?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a06.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>AM I LOOKING FOR A CELEBRITY? ENTERTAINMENT?\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a07.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>WHAT IF I HAVE A LIMITED BUDGET?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a08.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>I\u2019M READY TO CONFIRM A SPEAKER!\u00a0NOW WHAT?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a09.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/b>HOW DO I CONFIRM MY SPEAKER’S TRAVEL AND LOGISTICS?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
\u00a010.\u00a0 \u00a0HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? WANT MORE HELP?\u00a0<\/b>ASK YOUR AGENT!<\/b><\/h2>\n\n
READY TO FIND A PERFECT SPEAKER FOR YOUR EVENT?<\/h1>\n\n