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LARRY GOINS AND SHAUN MCCLOSKEY<br />

Booking a well-known speaker with a track record will make every<br />

other step easier. Because they are already recognizable, promoting<br />

the event will be much easier than it would be if booking a speaker<br />

that has little <strong>to</strong> no experience speaking or promoting. This person<br />

will have a large base of their own fans and cus<strong>to</strong>mers which they<br />

can leverage <strong>to</strong> increase attendance at the event. When they promote<br />

the event, they are essentially endorsing your group <strong>to</strong> this huge<br />

audience, which can lead <strong>to</strong> new members and an increased interest<br />

in the group itself. Of course, you never want <strong>to</strong> base your<br />

attendance of your event solely on whether or not the speaker can<br />

draw his own crowd, but it certainly helps <strong>to</strong> have this as a starting<br />

point.<br />

When choosing a speaker for your event, a great way <strong>to</strong> gain some<br />

insight about his past performances is <strong>to</strong> ask him what he liked best<br />

about the last three events in which he spoke. If you want <strong>to</strong> hear<br />

how easy or difficult a speaker is <strong>to</strong> work with, ask him what the <strong>to</strong>p<br />

three things were that he did not like about the last few events in<br />

which he spoke. If it opens up an hour-long complaint session by the<br />

speaker, he may be someone you choose not <strong>to</strong> work with. The<br />

answers <strong>to</strong> these simple questions will tell you a lot very quickly.<br />

One of the most common misconceptions about speaking events is<br />

that anyone can simply stand in front of a group and talk. The truth<br />

is, public speaking is an acquired skill which can take years <strong>to</strong><br />

master. There is a lot <strong>to</strong> consider when speaking <strong>to</strong> an audience, and<br />

you will want <strong>to</strong> book someone who can keep people engaged,<br />

interested, and excited about the information being presented.<br />

More importantly, you need <strong>to</strong> find someone who understands the<br />

purpose of <strong>REIA</strong> events. While people may attend the event for<br />

educational reasons, your group is hosting it <strong>to</strong> help promote the<br />

group, increase membership, and make some money at the same<br />

time. An experienced speaker will know exactly how <strong>to</strong> structure<br />

their presentation <strong>to</strong> achieve this goal. This is a person who has done<br />

precisely the same thing countless times in the past.<br />

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