Within the last few years, we’ve seen a huge shift in the digital business education world. Many entrepreneurs spend a great deal of time behind their screens working with clients, networking, learning, and educating. Online business summits have emerged as powerful platforms for education and networking. These virtual summits bring together experts, thought leaders, and like-minded individuals from around the world to share insights, inspire audiences, and foster collaboration. One of the key elements that can make or break the success of an online summit is the selection of guest speakers. Finding the right speakers who can captivate your audience and deliver valuable content is crucial. In this blog post, we’ll explore how to effectively find guest speakers for online summits.
Define Your Summit’s Theme and Audience:
Before you start reaching out to potential speakers, it’s important to have a clear understanding of your summit’s theme and target audience. Who is your ideal audience, and what are their needs?
Market research is an important step that will strongly determine the success of your summit. Taking the time to ask your ideal audience what they’re currently struggling with or where they need help will help you determine what type of speakers and topics will influence your audience to attend. Defining these needs and pain points will help you narrow down your search for speakers who are relevant and aligned with your summit’s objectives.
Tap Into Your Network:
Start by leveraging your existing network to identify potential speakers. Reach out to colleagues, industry contacts, and mentors who might have connections to relevant experts. Attend virtual events, webinars, and conferences within your niche to network with potential speakers. Personal recommendations often lead to high-quality speakers who are enthusiastic about participating in your summit.
Utilize Social Media and Online Communities:
Social media platforms like LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and Facebook can be valuable resources for finding guest speakers. Join industry-specific groups and communities where experts actively engage in discussions. Look for individuals who regularly share insightful content and have a strong online presence.
Direct messaging and networking can help build a relationship and provide you insight on your compatibility. Oftentimes, potential speakers have great credentials; however, they might not share your same values or work ethic and it may not be a compatible collaboration.
Attend Virtual Summits and Webinars:
Keep an eye on upcoming virtual summits, conferences, and webinars within your industry. Pay attention to the speakers who are invited to speak at these events, as they may be potential candidates for your summit as well. After attending their sessions, reach out to them with a personalized invitation highlighting why you believe they would be a great fit for your summit based on their expertise and presentation style.
Craft a Compelling Invitation:
When reaching out to potential speakers, it’s important to craft a personalized and compelling invitation that clearly articulates the benefits of participating in your summit. Highlight the opportunity for them to showcase their expertise to a targeted audience, expand their reach, and connect with industry peers. Include specific details about the summit agenda, expected audience size, promotional efforts, and any perks, such as networking opportunities or exposure on your platform.
Offer Value Exchange:
In addition to showcasing their expertise, consider offering speakers some form of value exchange in return for their participation. This could include complimentary access to premium features of your platform, promotion of their brand or current offer, a speaking fee, or access to the emails of all who register. Demonstrating that you recognize and appreciate their contributions can significantly increase the likelihood of getting some really great speakers for your summit.
Provide Clear Expectations and Support:
Once you’ve successfully secured speakers for your summit, provide them with clear expectations regarding their role, presentation format, and any technical requirements. Offer support, email copy, graphics, reminders, and anything else that might help with a successful event. Ensure that speakers feel prepared and supported from the marketing all the way to helping them deliver their best performance on the day of the summit.
Follow Up and Express Gratitude:
After the summit concludes, be sure to follow up with each speaker to express your gratitude for their participation and valuable contributions. Share feedback from attendees, highlight any positive outcomes resulting from their presentations, and thank them for helping make the event a success. Building and nurturing relationships with speakers can lead to future collaborations and referrals for your upcoming summits.
Evaluate and Assess:
Finally, take the time to evaluate the effectiveness of your speakers. Assess if it was a good collaboration. Take into consideration their dependability, marketing efforts, presentation, and overall success at your summit. Solicit feedback from attendees, speakers, and your organizing team to identify strengths, areas for improvement, and lessons learned. Use this feedback to refine your approach for future summits, continuously striving to enhance the quality of speakers and content delivered to your audience.
Collaborating with others in your industry can be tricky and can make or break your event. Take the time to properly vet each speaker. Set clear and concise expectations up front, and ensure that each speaker is committed to what’s required. It’s highly recommended to have each speaker sign a contract that clearly states what’s required of them. Finding guest speakers for online summits requires a strategic approach that involves defining your summit’s theme and audience, tapping into your network, leveraging social media and online communities, attending virtual events, crafting compelling invitations, offering value exchange, providing support, expressing gratitude, and evaluating and assessing. By following these effective strategies, you can curate a lineup of dynamic speakers who will engage, educate, and inspire your audience, making your online summit a huge success.
