Question 1
What is the purpose of your event: is it a dinner, conference or awards night?

Question 2
What is the desired message or response you want to generate from your event?

Question 3
Do you want the audience to walk with some key message, outcome or just have fun?

Question 4
Have you determined your budget? There are generally suitable speakers to suit most budgets; however it helps in the decision-making process if you can identify this early on.

Question 5
What is the venue like and will it be suitable for a speaker you are interested in? Is the venue indoors/outdoors and suitable for the speaker to present their message in the best possible environment?

Question 6
What are the demographics of the audience? Age, gender ratio, senior management, workers … ?

Question 7
What are their audio-visual or production requirements? Do these fit within your budget?

Question 8
Who have speakers worked for in the past?

Question 9
Can they tailor their talk, act or activity to your brief?

Source: Carson White