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One of the most time-consuming tasks in planning a conference is sourcing content and finding the right speakers. Many organizations either select topics first and then find speakers, or they open calls for submissions where potential speakers propose their own ideas.
But what if you had a targeted group of people who were already interested in speaking at events? Imagine having a year-round call for presentations, where anyone could submit ideas at any time. With the right pool of people and timely topic ideas, your team can streamline the process of curating educational content and relieve some of the pressure from having to constantly source new speakers.
Creating a speaker repository – a contact list of individuals who are interested in speaking at your events – can help. This list allows your team to focus on reaching out to those who already want to engage with your organization. While open calls can still be included in regular email communications, a targeted approach allows you to elevate the call for speakers by reaching out directly to individuals who have expressed interest. This eliminates the reliance on speakers finding the call amidst the influx of other emails.
A simple form on your website can collect the data you need, such as names, emails, phone numbers, demographic information, areas of expertise, years of experience, and more. You can even gather photo and biography details upfront, saving you from chasing them down later. Interested individuals can add themselves at any time, and when you're ready to fill slots for an upcoming conference or webinar, you can email this group first. You can also use the data to identify niche sub-groups for specialized virtual programs or other educational opportunities.
This process allows you to declutter general communications. Instead of bombarding your members with speaker calls, you can mention the repository briefly and let the system handle all the details. There are various platforms you can use for this purpose; our team primarily relies on Smartsheet, but Google Forms, Wufoo, or your AMS form builder could work just as well.
A year-round call for presentations might sound overwhelming, but consider how often an idea for a presentation strikes you. Whether it's a new idea or a new person, having a place to submit these ideas 24/7/365 will be incredibly useful when you're ready to develop content for your next event. This system keeps all ideas and submissions in one place, so they're easily accessible when needed.
Making this information available on your website could even inspire your team to discover a topic or presentation that sparks the theme for an upcoming conference. Although the form remains open year-round, you'll still want to direct people to it at the appropriate times when seeking presentations. You can also update forms to reflect upcoming event themes and pull relevant data at any time. The key is that you won’t need to build a new form each time—you’ll have a reusable framework. If your events have specific requirements, you can collect additional information or link to a secondary form after the initial submission.
By automating and expanding this process, you can significantly simplify your speaker search. We've successfully used Smartsheet along with other event software apps and call-for-presentation programs to optimize this system.
Both of these ideas can help reduce the stress of of finding presenters and managing calls for presentations. Your staff will appreciate having quick access to the right audience, less repetitive work, and the ability to access data with ease. And your conference attendees will benefit from higher-quality content and speakers.
