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- Use the speaker meeting to recruit new members
- Make sure speakers know what’s expected of them
Swansea University P&P invited a Fairtrade Cotton Farmer to speak during Fairtrade Fortnight 2007
Speakers Brief
Include:
- Date and time; venue and directions; title of session or event.
- The format of the session: how much time for the speaker and Q&A?
- Areas the speaker should cover.
- Ask them to end on a call for action - that’s what we’re about!
- Number of people you expect, and their background.
Speaker meetings can inspire your group, attract new members, and equip you with more campaigning knowledge. There are plenty of willing speakers around, so here are our tips for a good speaker meeting.
Before the meeting
- Find a speaker!
- Most speakers will expect travel expenses, and some may charge a fee for their talk. Check your budget and find out how much your group is willing to pay.
- Try to book the speaker well in advance. Good speakers often have a whole range of future commitments so it is important to approach them early.
- If you plan to invite an individual, send them a letter of invitation broadly outlining what you would like them to talk about. If you plan to invite a speaker from an organisation, ring up well beforehand and explain what you are looking for. Ask for the name of a specialist in the organisation and then send a letter of invitation.
- A follow-up phone call a few days after posting the invitation is always a good idea. In many cases, speakers will be pleased if they don’t have to write a letter of acceptance back. A phone call will also help clarify any questions the speaker may have.
- Once the speaker has accepted, send a speaker’s brief (see right).
- Try inviting them for dinner - quite often they’ll say yes, you’ll get an interesting chat, and they might even stay in touch afterwards.
- Advertise the meeting to your members and the general public. Good speaker meetings are a very effective way of involving new people!
During the meeting
- Make sure someone from your group has prepared to facilitate the meeting and introduce and welcome the speaker. It always looks good if you have some background information about your speaker.
- A glass of fresh water or tea/coffee will be appreciated by any speaker.
- Thank the speaker and the audience for coming, then plug your group: announce the date and topic of the next activity/event, and the next meeting.
- Refreshments after the meeting will help create a sociable atmosphere after a meeting, and also creates time to talk to the speaker and potential members about the group.
- Display some publicity materials on a table and have a mailing list ready. Ask those attending for the first time to leave their contact details.
After the meeting
- Make sure the speaker will be able to get back home okay.
- Send a letter of thanks to the speaker.
- Review the meeting.
