The procedure for contacting, working with, and hiring a member of the Speakers Bureau
Disclaimer: Members of the WHC Speakers Bureau have been selected for inclusion based on their interest in and experience with the public humanities. The Wisconsin Humanities Council has not screened other aspects of their backgrounds.
The procedure for contacting, working with, and hiring a member of the Speakers Bureau:
Make initial contact as far in advance as possible to determine mutual interest and availability.
1. Make contact with the humanities expert directly via email, phone, or mail using the contact information listed.
• Discuss project, event, and/or program details. Be clear about your goals and explain your purpose for contacting the person.
• Explain the specifics of your community, audience, and location.
• Negotiate time commitment, costs, and travel logistics. (Click here for general cost parameters). If you are going to develop an extended program with help from the Speakers Bureau member, then offer to pay an honorarium for planning time.
• Provide as much detail as possible about the venue, audience composition, equipment constraints, and any other special needs.
2. Complete the contract form to make sure details are clear and explicit. Mail a copy to the Speakers Bureau member. Keep a copy for your records. Send one copy to the WHC for our records:
Wisconsin Humanities Council
222 South Bedford Street
Madison, WI 53703
Attn: Speakers Bureau
3. Publicize your program as widely as possible using newspapers, newsletters, brochures, posters, and word of mouth in order to draw a large audience.
• Sample Press Release (link)
4. Check in and reconfirm arrangements often. Be sure to tell everyone involved if details change.
5. Consider how you will evaluate the success of the project in terms of:
• How did the audience receive the program/event? (sample audience evaluation form)
• How successful was the program/event/project according to your organization/community?
• How successful was the program/event/project according to the member of the Speakers Bureau? (sample member evaluation form)
• How successful was the relationship with/involvement of the member of the Speakers Bureau? We’d love to hear from you! Thank you for taking a moment to send us your feedback (WHC feedback form)
