You’ve been in business for 30 years. How has the speaking business changed over the last three decades? What has been the greatest influence?
Over the past 30 years, there has been a boom in the number of professional speakers in the marketplace. When I started my business as one of the very first bureaus in the country, there were several hundred speakers who were easily categorized. Today, there are several hundred speakers’ bureaus working with thousands of professional speakers from countless backgrounds and areas of expertise — and with fees anywhere from $2,500 to $150,000. Throughout this tremendous growth, we realized the basics still apply when judging the quality and value of each speaker, and that’s where we continue to excel.
Technology has opened new doors for our speakers. We are booking speakers at “Webinars,” online training meetings, and other “virtual events,” something that was unheard of five years ago.
Additionally, we use teleconferencing and other tools to bring our clients and speakers together to better prepare for each meeting or event.
I attribute some other changes we have seen to the “fallout” of a changing business environment in general. Things have certainly become more complicated over the last three decades, thanks to changes in regulations, increased scrutiny, new operating procedures that involve more departments such as legal and procurement.
These changes have added more time to the speaker booking process, have added to the increase in fees for some services, and have led to an erosion of the trust factor — something that I find sad and disappointing.
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What does your new association with the Disney Institute mean for your business? Are you the exclusive bureau for them?
While not an exclusive relationship, there is a tremendous amount of importance and honor in being associated with Disney Institute. For our clients, it provides them the opportunity to experience the “Business Behind the Magic” and discover powerful lessons in: leadership excellence, quality service, brand loyalty, inspiring creativity, and people management.
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The New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman recently had to return a $75,000 speaking fee, which gives journalists hope everywhere that there is life beyond deadlines. What percentage of speakers actually make that kind of money?
It remains our job to be sure the speakers we recommend are worth the fees they are demanding. As I mentioned earlier, fees range from $2,500 to $150,000, are all over the place, and change frequently with circumstance.
Fees do not necessarily correlate with quality or even experience. We have numerous exceptional speakers who are in demand whose fees remain under $10,000.
The higher priced “celebrity” speaker may carry valuable name recognition but little else.
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You represent a wide list of speakers, some household names. One thing you don’t seem to have is the “flavor of the month” celebrity like Flight 1549 pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger. Did you make a conscious decision to stay away from that speaker?
I firmly believe one of the reasons we have been in business for 30 years is because we have kept focused on our clients’ needs — and have avoided “selling” speakers, especially the “speaker du jour.”
Speakers come and go; we want to work with those who are compelling, proven, professional, and most importantly who are the right fit for each event or meeting.
To us, those are the “flavors” that will endure and that keep our clients coming back.
