How to Choose the Right Keynote Speaker: Myths and Truths

How to Choose the Right Keynote Speaker: Myths and Truths
By Steve Markman, Founder and President, Markman Speaker Management, LLC

Today’s speaker marketplace is comprised of literally thousands of speakers who are potentially available as a keynote or featured speaker for your association’s events. How do you know if you are making the right choice before you commit to a speaker and perhaps paying a very large speaker fee?

Here are some myths and truths when it comes to selecting your keynote or featured speaker.

Myth #1: the higher the speaker fee, the better the speaker. Speaker fees are based on two things – 1) The demand for a given speaker and 2) the perceived demand that the speaker feels exists and how much that demand is worth. Most speaker fees are determined by the speaker, not the hiring organization. If you have a budget there is always a speaker out there for every budget on both the high end and the low end. High end fees do not necessarily equate with quality. 

Myth #2: if someone has been on the speaker circuit for many years they must be really, really good. Not necessarily. They may be on the circuit simply because people keep hiring them because they are on the circuit and so they assume they are really, really good.

Myth #3: if someone has written a book, they must have something meaningful to say. Not always. With the ease with which to self-publish today, being an author is not the same as being a New York Times bestselling author. And the sub-myth is that being a best-selling author means you are a good speaker. Actually it only means you are a good writer. 

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Truth #1: It’s crucial to decide on the objectives of what you want your keynote speaker to accomplish and what you perceive the needs of your audience to be.

Truth #2: You need to decide what type of speaker or speakers you need for each event. It’s usually one (or more) of these types:

• Inspirational/motivational or entertaining speaker
• "Name” speaker, who will allow attendees to say "I saw Mr. or Ms. X at the XYZ Conference.”
• SME – subject matter expert - an industry expert who can be either a professional speaker or an author or consultant
• All of the above, but is someone known as a luminary in the field

Truth #3: you should always try to have a conversation with the targeted speaker before you commit to him or her, to make sure the speaker will tailor their presentation to your needs and objectives and to feel confident you are making a quality monetary investment.

Truth #4: decide your budget and the number of keynote or featured speakers you need/want far in advance. Conference kick-off keynote only? Lunch keynote?  First speaker each day? 

At the end of the day your primary objective should be to hire memorable keynote speakers that will give you a good return on your investment. You want your attendees to walk away from a keynote presentation saying "that was great” and to remember your event many months later, remembering the names of the keynote speakers. Then you will know you made the right choices.

Steve Markman is the Founder and President of Markman Speaker Management, LLC, a Needham, MA-based speaker agency established in 1994.