Hints to Help You Choose the Perfect Speaker for Your Conference
by Alan Patching
What speaker for our conference? - this is the question that hounds conference organisers the world over.
Insider or outsider? Each has benefits and drawbacks, and usually a mix is the way to go. The secret is not just identifying the speakers who will make up the mix, but also arranging the timing of their presentations to give maximum clout to the event. Too many 'inside' speakers with too much detailed content pushed to the audience in overhead slide format with no relief is a sure recipe for minimum retention of the material delivered. Too many 'outsiders' with broad perspectives might just leave the audience wondering whether the event really addressed the core issues with which the business is dealing. There is no pre-set formula to cover every type of event. However, there are some guidelines which can assist make any event flow:
- Be absolutely certain about the objectives of the event before beginning to consider speakers. This might sound obvious, but a surprising number of events are organised simply because there must be an annual event, and without identification of specific strategically aligned objectives for this particular event.
- Determine what information needs to be delivered in order for the identified objectives to have any chance of being achieved.
- Decide who needs to hear this information if the objectives for the event are to be achieved.
- Understand the level of complexity of the information that needs to be delivered.
With these four steps behind you, you're well positioned to begin thinking about speakers. If the information to be delivered is detailed and complex, it might be a good idea to plan a program which breaks up these technical sessions with something energising and inspirational, or perhaps a broader perspective that interests but doesn't demand focused thinking to be absorbed.
Be cautious selecting a speaker from another company within your industry or even from a different industry to provide this essential change of pace. Be absolutely certain the speaker you are considering can deliver with interest and humour and provide the audience with the necessary relief from continuous delivery of complex detail, and not just add a new level of overhead slides. Generally speaking, the right decision for the role of 'lifting-the-energy-levels-outside-speaker' will be a professional presenter. And this leads us to another set of questions.
Entertainment or content oriented? A bit of both is usually the ideal. There's a place on specific conferences for comedians, humourists, sporting greats, novelists, adventurers – you name it – and there's no shortage of speakers in all categories. The ideal for conference organisers is to:
- Find the correct category to fit the mix for the particular event (in other words last year's mix might not be at all appropriate for this year's event) and
- Ensure the speaker chosen from the category, as well as being recognised for achievement in a particular field, actually knows how to engage an audience. The next sportsperson (for example) who is encouraged by a perhaps overly enthusiastically agent to add public speaking to his or her schedule of potential income earning activities despite being unable to engage an audience at any level whatever most certainly won't be the first. Fortunately, there's an effective information source available to event organisers ? the professional staff of the leading speaking bureaux, and I advise seeking the advice of these people rather than simply using them as a sourcing consultant to contact a speaker you have pre-determined to be ideal for your event.
The old maxim remains true, we really do need to open the mouths with laughter before we begin to shovel in food for thought. Add interest and fascination to laughter, and keep in mind a great story will not fire anyone's attention for too long if poorly delivered, and you can't go too far wrong in deciding the appropriate balance of entertainment and content in selecting your external speakers.
And now to our next question.
Easy to work with and flexible to our needs, or a 'guru' in his or her field and we'll go out of our way to meet their requirements?
Flexible guru would be best. They might be rare, but such speakers really do exist.
There are two key areas in which flexibility is important. The first is flexibility of topic, meaning the speaker is willing and able to tailor the presentation to have specific meaning to the particular event audience.
There's no shortage of 'one speech' presenters out there, and one of these might be exactly what you need. However, it is important to ensure external speakers really do have the breadth of experience in their professed area of expertise or competency to offer the flexibility of topic range they do offer, and to tailor a topic as mentioned above.
The second area of flexibility to remain aware of is personal flexibility. I've worked with several of the international gurus including Dr. Tom Peters, Dr. Wayne Dyer, Dr. Denis Waitley, Robert Kiyosaki, Zig Ziglar and Joe Gireard. In my experience these guys generally bend over backwards to assist the event organisers make the event everything they hope it will be and more. I've also worked with speakers who have a list of demands as long as an ego centred, tempestuous brat pop-star. People like this make life a nightmare for event organisers.
Everyone realises the legendary 'Murphy' of Murphy's Law has a habit of turning up at major events as much as he/she manages to appear in everyday life for most of us. When things go haywire at a conference, the organiser wants people in all roles, including speakers, to pitch in and be part of the solution, and not to be some over indulged prima donna sitting on the sidelines increasing the extent of the day's problems. If people like the international superstars of the speaking game mentioned above can be co-operative, there's no reason the rest of us in the game can't be just as flexible in our personal and professional demands of conference organisers.
Let's move on.
Specific experience niche speaker with proven business or leadership track record, or someone who is multi skilled and can add value without substantial extra cost?
Wouldn't someone with a great track record and the skills to emcee or facilitate to add value be fantastic.
Today, there can be no doubt whatever of the might of the 'spin doctors". All of us can remember at least one experience where we've responded to some advertising blurb and have been highly disappointed – even to the extent of wondering if there was any correlation whatever between what was advertised and what was delivered. There's no reason to assume such instances don't occur in the conference industry as much as any other industry. The ideal would be to get some idea (hear or see) exactly what a speaker would do for our particular conference before booking them. Promo videos can assist in degree, but the fact remains the number of instances where a promo video can give a clear idea of a presenter's entire scope and ability to meet the specific needs of any particular conference must remain (statistically speaking) in the minority.
The answer must surely be more direct communication between conference organiser/client and speaker. When a speaker suggests such a thing, the barriers are often erected, and focus can be quickly shifted from the importance of the success of the event to the person who 'owns' the client and therefore 'must maintain direct contact and communication with him or her', generally at the exclusion of the speaker in particular. I can understand the reason for this thinking but I question whether it justifies placing the client's need to remove all obstacles to a successful conference in second place.
The answer must surely lie in:
- All parties recognising it's really the client who decides with whom they wish to deal
- Bureaux and conference organisers dealing only with speakers who can be trusted to observe the recognised and established reasonable norms of the business
- Armed with confidence from observing the suggestions of the previous points all parties working together with a primary focus on a WOW outcome from the event, including facilitating direct access of potential speakers to clients who might prefer this approach
So where does all this leave the conference organiser/event planner?
In a meetings industry environment of increasing costs and decreasing budgets, most conference organisers would agree the ideal speaker would be one who:
- is a recognised expert with significant experience in the area/s about which he or she presents
- presents with an engaging style utilising the appropriate mix of entertainment and content for the particular client and the particular event
- is willing to specifically tailor each presentation to the needs of the specific audience, and has a track record of successfully doing so
- has the capacity to add value by perhaps:
- running a follow-up workshop to a keynote
- facilitating a lively and relevant panel session or hypothetical
- emceeing business sessions or corporate concert events
- filling in with a second presentation on short notice in the event another speaker fell ill or was delayed due to unforeseen circumstances
- being prepared to assist in areas totally unrelated to speaking when even the best laid plans go astray
To top it all off, wouldn't it be fantastic for an event organiser if a speaker would be willing and able to present a video or audio recording for the client and the organiser to review prior to making an appointment decision. Not a standard promotional recording, mind you, but one prepared specifically in relation to the event for which he or she is being considered.
An impossible dream, you might think. However, in this world of high technology and outstanding customer service, I'm surprised this is not already the standard required. Some speakers might not be able to comply and others simply might not be interested in going to the effort. Let's face it, the idea would benefit the speaker as well as the client by ensuring he or she was exactly on the right track in terms of the material they intend to present. I am not suggesting the speaker should prepare the entire presentation in advance, simply a detailed outline and perhaps a sample module.
If speakers are sufficiently experienced to face an audience of hundreds, even thousands, they surely must be capable of going one on one with a camera or digital recorder for the benefit of all who have a vested interest in the event outcome, and this definitely includes them.
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