While many corporate presenters do their best to follow best practices for speaking program success, some consistently believe they can make their own rules. Usually, conference managers remember speakers who worked within their process versus those who didn't. Give your company and speakers the best possible shot at getting their proposals selected by avoiding these common mistakes:
- Using a sales pitch as a proposal – vendor companies already have one strike against them when they add their submission to the mix – they have a product to sell. Don't write abstracts that contain product or company information. Keep the pitch focused on issues and specific technology topics, so the reader gets the impression they are going to be educated about something. Add learning points at the end, so the reader knows what the key takeaways will be from the presentation.
- Ignoring submission guidelines – don't submit abstracts that exceed or are less than the required word count, or that don't include all the requested information. Guidelines are written for a reason; not following them diminishes your chances for selection.
- Pitching wrong titles – don't submit your marketing or sales executives to speak. Even though some have a technical background, proposal reviewers balk at these titles because it's presumed the speaker will give a sales pitch. Companies need to expand their speaker roster to include participants from other disciplines.
- Blowing deadlines – leave enough time to develop an abstract and share it with the conference manager or program chair well before the deadline. They may be able to offer feedback that will help increase the proposal's chances for selection. Proposals submitted after the deadline are reviewed last, if at all. Proposals received before the deadline, in most cases, will be given first consideration. Once a proposal is selected, continue to meet deadlines for speaker materials.
- Ignoring requests for customers – don't submit a speaking entry without a customer if one is required. No customer? No acceptance.
- Straying from the abstract – never pull a bait-and-switch. Your final presentation should match the abstract submitted and accepted. If you stray, you will disappoint conference organizers who selected your proposal, as well as the attendees in your session. You also decrease your chances of getting invited to speak again.
- Canceling at the last minute without a replacement – avoid canceling or sending a substitute unless it's absolutely necessary. Conference managers remember speakers who don't keep their commitments; this could affect future opportunities.
- Pitching the company, rather than the person – while the abstract is important, the speaker's background has even more impact on the decision-making process. Be sure to include detail in the speaker's bio regarding past speaking experience, awards, published work and industry involvement. Does your speaker participate in any industry associations or advisory boards? If not, maybe that person should consider doing so. Relationships and involvement lead to speaking invitations.
- Under-promoting the speaking slot – don't miss a golden opportunity to promote the speaking engagement and increase attendance at the session. Post the event on your Web site, issue a news release or media alert, call or e-mail prospects or other influencers attending the event to invite them to your session, and include engagements in company newsletters.
- Going silent after the event – if you are happy with a speaking engagement or event and would like the opportunity to present again, consider contacting the moderator or conference manager with a note of "thanks" and to express interest in future opportunities. Also, let your PR firm know how the engagement went so they can use this information to evaluate the opportunity for the following year. Feedback and relationship-building are important!
– Christine LeCompte, Senior Vice President, Client Services and
Kim Orso, Director, Speakers Bureau
