Pampering Your Speaker
By
Mike McKinley
Copyright © 2008 by Mike McKinley. All Rights
Protected.
Speakers are kind of a strange group of
people who drop into your meeting, do their
presentation, grab their bag and off they go. There are
some little things that meeting planners can do to help
the speaker feel like “part of the family” and increase
value to the meeting and the participants.
Picking up the speaker at the
airport.
It is the first friendly face that the speaker sees
and one can have a wonderful conversation with the
person if they are an attendee at the conference. The
attendee also feels good about having a chance to visit
first-hand with the speaker.
Inviting the speaker to be part of
social events.
These might be receptions, banquets, golf outings,
tours or other functions that are scheduled. It is a
great way to gain insight into the group. I’ve gone
bowling, sang karaoke, competed in lasso roping, ridden
go-carts, dressed up as the Wizard of Oz, and several
other fun things. The speaker gets to know the audience
better and the audience enjoys the speaker
participation. This is also an opportunity to gather
more information to personalize the presentation to
better represent your organization.
Making time for your speaker
on-site.
There are always last minute details or A-V
questions that need to be addressed. It’s good to inform
the speaker about things that have happened at the
meeting prior to their presentation so they may include
that information in their presentation or to prevent
them from being blind-sided.
Food in the sleeping room.
It is a classy touch to have a small basket of fruit
for the speaker during the time they are on-site. It is
especially nice if the speaker comes in late from a day
of travel and has something waiting for them.
Meeting Planner cell phone numbers
on-site.
Speakers need to have one or two people that they
can call in case there are changes in travel plans, they
are lost while driving, or if they are in need of some
last minute information.
Every speaker has different needs based on their
presentation and style. It is important to ask the
presenter exactly what they need for their presentation
regarding A-V, staging, lighting, tables, water, and
details of their introduction. Presenters will love it
if you are willing to partner with them on some of the
things that make them comfortable and able to do a
bang-up job as a guest speaker.
Michael McKinley, CSP, CPAE, is a speaker that presents
hard-hitting content delivered in a fun way. His topics
deal with customer service and motivation.
Copyright © 2007 Mike McKinley. All Rights
Protected.
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