from the Business Ledger

 

The Business Newspaper for Suburban Chicago
Vol. 9, No. 18
Sept. 3, 2001 
Proper speaker can make or break meeting   
By Melanie Kalmar
Associate Editor   

Anyone can hire a speaker for a meeting or conference.It’s just that hiring the right one takes al little know-how and a lot of due diligence.   

“There are a couple of ways to book a speaker,” said Tim Seeden, executive director of the National Speakers Association Illinois Chapter (NSA) in Lisle. “One of the things you want to do is make sure that the talk is going to be customized to your organization.” 

Explain the scope of the assignment to the speaker, making sure there aren’t any misunderstandings about what’s expected of him. Discuss the speaker’s audio/visual needs to prevent any problems and ask the speaker if he has any other special requirements. 

Seeden tells meeting planners to have the speaker sign an agreement because business deals require contracts. 

By checking a speaker’s references, a meeting planner eliminates the guesswork and learns whether the speaker freshens up his presentation or regurgitates the same material. 

Credentials of the speaker are another important consideration. 

Seeden is partial to members of professional speakers associations. 

“There are certain standards or practices that they have to incorporate and it literally comes down to ethics,” he said. “When you belong to an organization there’s a certain branding that comes with it. It’s almost like a seal of approval.” 

The budget is something to consider when booking a speaker, Seeden said. For meetings or conferences taking place out of town, he suggests hiring local talent to eliminate travel and lodging expenses. A business that goes this route should make sure that there are qualified speakers in the area before moving forward with the conference. 

Costs will undoubtedly come up when booking a speaker. Seeden said there are two kinds of fees, all-inclusive and per diem. A per diem typically covers meals, tips and ground transfers. It’s difficult to budget for because it’s a mystery until the speaker submits his bill. 

Seeden recommends that meeting planners share their budget cap on expenses with the speaker during negotiations. 

“You may want to consider, to the organization’s advantage, an all-inclusive fee up front,” he said. “You save money that way. It makes it easier to budget. You’ll know the inclusive cost up front, no surprises.” 

Great ways to find speakers for engagements are professional speakers’ bureaus and associations, talent agencies and the Internet, Seeden said. NSA has thousands of speakers listed on its web site at www.nsa-il.org.