Wow! We can’t believe how many event managers we have looking for great speakers on our site.
Innovation Women was designed to help event managers locate awesome female speakers for their events and conferences, producing gender-balanced speaker panels. We offer event managers free access to our database of speakers and encourage them to use the site when they need speakers on specific topics. Here are a few helpful hints for event managers in using this tool. (Speakers: there are some good insights here for you too.)
- Look for speakers first by searching in the topics field.
- Use general terms to narrow the focus and then look at the profiles for more detailed information and specifics.
- The “industry” label can be used to designate either the person’s industry or the type of company they work for – i.e. “Marketing” could be a marketing firm or a marketing person at any other kind of company.
- Check out the links – many speakers offer a wealth of background information in their LinkedIn profiles, Twitter accounts, blogs and websites.
- Pay attention to the payments category – know that the people who “get paid but make exceptions” are generally making exceptions for causes near and dear to their hearts. A speaker who usually gets paid is unlikely to speak for free for your professional event unless it is nearby and there are additional benefits for them.
- Plan ahead – many of the best speakers are in high demand. We’re hearing from some speakers that they have received requests to speak “tomorrow” and while they would love to… We know that emergencies happen but it is hard to schedule anything at the last minute. Consider inviting alternates to attend your event, then you know they have already carved out the time on their calendar.
- When you are asking someone to speak for free at your event, consider what you can offer them. Yes, you are doing a lot of work to put together a great event and it is a great opportunity for visibility for them, but what else can you offer a speaker? Consider extras like their company’s collateral on a side table, mentions and links in your newsletter, or maybe an introduction to one of your advisors or other key players?
- Many speakers have added Example Talks — feel free to browse!
Can’t find someone in our database? Ask us directly for help! We make a lot of introductions and are happy to help you find a great speaker.
