When it comes to planning or hosting an event, deciding who will do the talking is a big priority. Your speaker or emcee will be addressing, entertaining, and engaging your audience, so choosing the right person is important. There are many qualified speakers out there, but not everyone would be suited for your event.

To help you learn the ropes of how to go about hiring a professional, we’ve put together a list of seven things to consider before hiring a speaker.

Know your goals

• Understanding your goals and being able to communicate the intent of your event with your speaker is key. Depending on the type of event you’re hosting, the requirements will be different. Whether your goal is to inspire, educate, or purely to entertain, knowing your goals and sharing them with your speaker allows them to customize their performance to your event’s needs.

Consider your audience

• The person you hire should be able to relate to your audience, understand their wants and needs, and deliver a performance will live up to their expectations. Getting to know your audience will help you weed out speakers that might not necessarily engage your audience.

What is your budget

• Events are costly; hiring a speaker can be an additional and often unexpected burden. Knowing your budget is the key to not overextending yourself (or your resources) later. Good speakers can charge a significant amount of money, so knowing whether an influential speaker is important or not will help you figure out where to spend and where to cut costs in your event budget.

What’s important to you

• Would you rather have someone who dazzles and entertains, or motivates and inspires? As with understanding your audience and goals, knowing what characteristics you want in a speaker or what you want them to get the audience to do twill help you add or eliminate candidates from your list of potential speakers

Who is available to you

• After considering all of the above factors, it’s time to start reaching out to people and find out who is actually available for your event. Influential speakers tend to have busy schedules, so if you already know that you need a specific speaker or that you need a big name for your event, you should do this step first.

Check their references

• Your potential speaker might seem perfect on paper and great in person, but taking the time to check references and review previous performances is crucial. Ask the candidate for their last three performances and references in addition to what they have already prepared. This will ensure that they aren’t just choosing their best performances, and that you’ll have a better idea of their skill.

Trust your instincts

• After prioritizing your event’s needs and narrowing your searches, you need to rely on your instincts. This event is yours, you understand what it needs and what it lacks. Trust your instincts when selecting a final candidate, and choose someone who will give your event exactly what it needs.

If you have found a speaker and are now looking for a unique local venue in Vancouver, reach out to Deeley Exhibition. We are experienced, professional, and happy to provide assistance in planning your private or corporate events.