Sunday 27 September 2015

Tips To Negotiate Fees When Looking For Public Speakers For Hire In Washington DC

By Della Monroe


You may want to invite a speaker to your event but what may be holding you back is the fact that you cannot afford their speaking fees. There are various strategies you can use to negotiate the fees when looking for public speakers for hire in Washington DC. Just make sure that the situation is a win win for all the parties that are involved.

It is advisable to deal directly with the speaker. This is because if you deal with a bureau or an agent that is acting on their behalf, you will have to pay a commission to the agent or bureau, which will drive the costs up. Talk to the speaker and see if they would be willing to accept a lower fee. Some professionals may be willing to lower their fees if they are passionate about the subject that you want them to talk about.

Instead of finding someone who is located out of state, go local and find someone in Washington, DC who can speak at your event. This will reduce your cost by at least half, since you will reduce the expenses that you have to cover. Your other choice is inviting someone who will already be in town for another event.

See if you can get a sponsor, who will cover the cost of hosting the speaker. Some companies won't mind associating their brands with a renowned personality, as this would be a good opportunity for them to brand themselves. This will require a lot of previous preparation, so you will need to start planning your event early.

If the presenter has any materials that they would like to sell during the event, you can allow them to sell in exchange for agreeing to reduce their charges. Since presenters make a lot of cash by selling their materials, there are high chances that they will agree to a price reduction. You can even get them to put together a package, which you can buy on behalf of your attendees in exchange for a free speaking engagement.

By inviting the same speaker to several events that you will be holding on different occasions, you can convince them to give you a discount. This can be events that are spread throughout the year. It can also be different functions that are held at the same event. For instance, you can get them to be part of a question and answer panel and to give interviews and to a motivational talk.

Consider a barter trade with the professional. Ask them if there is anything that you have, which they would be willing to take in return for giving a keynote address. Some of the things you can suggest include advertising their services for free in your newsletters or websites or professionally endorsing their services.

Agree on the presenter's expenses that you are to cover. This includes their transportation, meals and accommodation. Let them know how much you have budgeted for your expenses and the specific service providers that you have arranged for them to use. Also, let them know whether they are allowed to bring any extra parties or you can just cater to their expenses only.




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