Creating a Speaking Agreement by Meggin McIntosh, PhD

By meggin@meggin.com
Mar 8th, 2013
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sign hereOver the years, I have created hundreds of speaking agreements.  They aren’t anything fancy, but they have helped to define the parameters I have so that I can conduct the workshop or other speaking event for which the client is hiring me.  Here are ten tips for what to include in your speaking agreement so that you can be productive before and after your speaking event.

  1. Client/Sponsor’s name and mailing address.  You will want to have this so that you can acknowledge the client &/or sponsor(s) in your presentation materials.

  2. Contact name(s).  I recommend having more than one person’s contact name.  You do not want to be in an unknown city with only one person’s name to call regarding the arrangements for your speaking/consulting engagement.

  3. Contact name(s)’ email address(es) and phone number(s).  I recommend having office, home, and cell numbers for the people you need to be in contact with.  One never knows which number is going to be the best one.

  4. Date(s) and times(s) covered by the agreement.

  5. Subject/title of workshop, speech, or seminar.  Note:  It is wise if your event is going to be advertised to ask to see the webpage, email, or flyer that will be used.  You don’t want any surprises!

  6. Number of participants.  Generally, you will want to specify a range (e.g., 25 – 35; up to 500; 10 senior-level managers).

  7. Location of speaking event.  If you don’t already have the name of the building and the room (with address), ask the client to fill this in.

  8. Fee, specifying whether it is an all-inclusive fee or fee + expenses.  If expenses are paid separately, be sure to delineate exactly what expenses are expected to be reimbursed.  Also include the information about how the fee should be paid (electronic transfer, check made out to your company, etc.)

  9. Equipment.  Include the specifics about what equipment you need.  If you are bringing any equipment with you, note that here (e.g., your own laptop).

  10. Room set up.  If you have particular requirements for room set-up, specify them here.  It’s best to have discussed this on the phone with your client already, but get it in your agreement, as well.

One additional note, when you send your agreement, indicate the date by which you will need to have received the signed agreement back from the client in order to keep holding that date.  You don’t want to have an agreement that is just hanging out there.  You want to close the loop and this is one way of doing so.

© Meggin McIntosh, PhD (also known as “The PhD of Productivity®) was a university professor for over 15 years and spent five of those years working with faculty at the University of Nevada, Reno.  Since leaving the full-time academic life for the full-time entrepreneurial life, Meggin writes, consults, and does workshops for smart people who want to be more productive, thereby being able to consistently keep their emphasis on excellence.  Thus, the name of her company is Emphasis on Excellence, Inc.

gap_guide_deliberately_designing_your_professional_presence_perspective_newFor more suggestions related to designing your professional presence for success, you will want to access the Get a Plan! Guide® to Deliberately Designing Your Professional Presence, which is part of the Get a Plan! Guides® series. The Get a Plan! Guide® series will give you the ideas and inspiration to do your work easier, faster, and in a more focused fashion – so that you can accomplish your goals more smoothly, i.e., peacefully, productively, and predictably.

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