Before you crafted your speech, you probably studied, analyzed, and observed your target audience. After all, it’s essential to know who your audience is and what problems they face to be able to offer them a new, effective solution that transforms their lives.
But do you really, truly, genuinely know your meeting planners and event organizers?
Perhaps you think meeting planners always go for those shining stars—you know, the speakers with an impeccable sizzle reel, lots of testimonials, and that “wow” factor.
Or maybe you assume event organizers only hire big names that are well known in the industry they’re planning the event for.
Now, of course surprising and delighting your audience and your meeting planner is important—and delivering a transformative, visionary speech is essential. And yes, having a high level of worldly, domain, or fractal fame certainly helps your case.
But there’s something event planners value even more than fame and fireworks in your speech trailer video.
Be Their First Pick—Every Time
You see, event planners are often contractors hired by corporations. The corporations want to ensure their event is a huge success. The event planners do too, because they want to ensure they get rehired every year. And often what determines whether a meeting planner will be rehired or not is their selection of speakers for the event.
Really, it’s a lot like playing pick-up baseball as a kid. The event planners are the team captains who want to put together a winning group that can take home the victory. Speakers of all different experience levels and backgrounds stand before them, anxiously hoping to be chosen.
Who do they choose? Who would you choose?
Someone who never strikes out and consistently hits home runs…
Or someone who’s hit or miss…
A smart first pick would be someone who hits home runs—every time.
Those are the speakers they look for. Event planners want home-run speakers who will make sure they look good. That’s right, they want the safe bet.
They won’t risk their career on a speaker who wings their performance. While it could work, it’s just as likely not to. It’s unreliable and risky—and it could cost them next year’s contract.
If event planners can lock down speakers who delight their audience and make the event a success, they’ll be in good standing with their bosses. And everyone—event planner, speaker, corporation, and audience—wins.
Now, providing safety for meeting planners is not about avoiding taking creative risks. It's not about staying within the limits on stage or avoiding content, frameworks, or performance techniques that challenge the status quo. Speakers that are hyper-safe in their creative and leadership choices likely aren’t provocative enough to transform their audiences.
When you have organized and thorough processes and procedures in place that show your professionalism and efficiency as a highly booked speaker, you can take creative risks and share contrarian ideas while ensuring your event organizers feel safe.
Two Things That Could Destroy Your Chances of Getting Booked
If you’re not famous, being a highly bookable speaker who commands high fees isn’t about your importance or impressive testimonials. It’s about providing safety and comfort to meeting planners through a clear, process-oriented, and responsive approach. By focusing on these elements, you can build trust and reliability—making you the first pick for meeting planners.
Many speakers have a lot of talent, but they don’t have a detailed and efficient sales process. Without a structured, reliable, and repeatable approach for managing inquiries and leads—and turning them into booked speaking engagements—it’s difficult to show event planners you’re the safe choice (and it’s tough for you to book more gigs).
The first steps of the sales process are your first impression with your event planner. But often, before speakers even have a chance to show event planners what they have to offer, they make two big mistakes.
Mistake #1: Relying on Email
Many speakers rely too heavily on email for initial communication. When a message from an event organizer arrives in their inbox, or they get a form request from their website, they respond by email.
Even if your email is enthusiastic, it’s likely still not as effective as a quick phone call. You could spend days sending emails back and forth, without gaining much ground. Instead of making this mistake, you should aim to get on the phone with the meeting planner as soon as possible.
Respond immediately to all leads, saying something like, “Let’s get on the phone right now; I’ve got five minutes.“
Making this one change in your sales process can set you up for success every time an inquiry comes in. It’s also a good idea to set up notifications—so that any time you receive a form request from your website, it shows up on your phone.
Mistake #2: Delaying Your Response
Another common mistake, especially among inexperienced speakers, is waiting too long to respond.
Some speakers believe that if they respond too quickly, it makes them appear desperate. Perhaps subconsciously they think, “I’ll respond in a little bit, so it looks like I’m busy at a gig or doing something important.”
However, the reality is most meeting planners usually send inquiries to multiple speakers simultaneously. Then they typically choose from the first few responses they receive. Promptness is crucial—if you’re not among the first to respond, you may miss out on the opportunity entirely.
Being quick to respond shows professionalism and increases your chances of booking the gig.
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