How to find the best keynote speaker for your event
Our keynote speaker influence rankings page helps to identify those keynote speakers whose web and social media activity has the most impact. Usually social media activity is not specifically included in a keynote speaker’s fee, however good keynote speakers will be willing to engage in some social media activity within their standard fee, as well as record short videos to help promote the event. Social media engagement and promotionĮvent organizers will prefer keynote speakers who are active and visible on social media channels, as they can not only help promote the event beforehand, but also increase audience engagement during the event through their social media activity. In other cases the value and relevance of the topic addressed by the keynote speaker, supported by their credibility, makes people compelled to attend. Sometimes the name value of the keynote speaker is sufficient, though in that case their fees are usually commensurately high, and they may simply give a canned speech. Attracting and engaging audiencesĪnother critical role for any keynote speaker is to attract attendees and make people feel they cannot miss the event: they should be a strong drawcard. A highly positive view of the future of the industry or community represented at the conference is often an excellent way to close the event. As such the messages of the closing keynote speaker need to be inspiring and optimistic. They are also responsible for setting a “key note” for the event, in the same way as the opening keynote speaker, however as a closing keynote speaker they need to set the tone for how people remember the event and how they take the messages back to their everyday lives. The role of a closing keynote speaker is often to make sure people stay to the end rather than leave early, so the speaker and their topic must be compelling to the audience.
Keynotes should almost always be inspiring and give audiences a sense of possibility, however they should also be grounded in the specific context of the event and its participants. Motivational speakers often tell engaging stories of overcoming adversity, which if done well can get a strong audience response, but they don’t usually set a specific tone or theme for the event. Setting a positive but relevant toneĪ keynote speaker is not necessarily a ‘motivational’ or ‘inspirational’ speaker. In this case the keynote speaker is responsible not just for fitting with the overall theme of the conference, but also the topic and ideas that will be covered on that day. Making the keynote a perfect match Different keynote rolesĪ multi-day conference will usually have keynote speakers on each day, which encourages attendees to get to the event on time. Read on to learn the different keynote roles, how to find the best keynote speaker for your event, and how to make sure your choice for keynote speaker is the perfect match. The role of other speakers is to add overtones and themes that are complementary to those of the keynote, together making the content and messages of the conference a harmonious whole. They are responsible for the establishing the basic tone and tenor of the gathering that resonates through the event. The role of a keynote speaker is literally to set the “key note” for the conference or event. What is a keynote speaker? …and how to find the best speaker for your event! Developing Knowledge-Based Client Relationships.Living Networks 20th Anniversary Edition.Innovation strategy for boards of directors.