[tab name=’Guidelines’]

Guidelines : Confirming Speaker

Confirming Speakers at Meetings

Guidelines and Alternate Phrases

• Thank the reader for agreeing to speak at your meeting.
• We are delighted you have agreed to speak on “Communication Trends” at our upcoming national conference, October 1-4, in Anaheim, California.
• On behalf of the NACE program committee, I am so pleased you have agreed to speak to our group on August 9 about ….
• Thank you for so promptly accepting our invitation to speak to us on August 9.
• We are thrilled you have agreed to be with us on August 9 to share your ideas on ….
• Repeat all pertinent details about the program: overall theme; other speakers’ topics; the reader’s specific topic, length, and date; audience description and expectations; and any necessary equipment, printing, or publicity needs.
• You are scheduled to speak on Tuesday, May 6, at 10:00 a.m. Your presentation will be preceded by Dr. Max Apple and Barry Goldman, both from Neiman Associates.
• We will appreciate it if you can make your own hotel and flight arrangements.
• Confirm the logistics of the meeting–escorts, meeting site, address, room numbers, hotel accommodations, meals, transportation to and from the site.
• As you stated in your letter, you will not need reimbursement for overnight lodging, but we will be happy to rent any necessary audio or visual equipment.
• All meals will be included in your complimentary registration to the conference.
• Please fill out the enclosed forms telling us of your lodging and travel preferences, and we will do our best to handle the details to make your travel headache-free.
• We will have a limo driver meet you at the gate.
• You will be guest of honor at the luncheon to precede your afternoon workshop.
• Of course, you are also invited to join us for cocktails before the evening’s program and your speech.
• Please keep in mind the lighting will be poor for any audio-visuals you might normally use.
• With such a large group, you’ll probably be unable to provide an opportunity for questions from the audience.
• Please allow the last 10 minutes of your presentation time to answer questions from the group.
• We have reserved a room for you (guaranteed for late arrival) at the convention hotel on the night before your presentation.
• We will have two assistants on hand to help you set up the demonstration.
• Enclosed is a map of the area, showing where you may park your car and where the actual meeting rooms are located.
• Explain how to handle the expenses: Are expenses to be direct billed to you, or will the speaker be reimbursed? How does he or she submit expenses and fees?
• We will be happy to provide a $200 advance against your expenses. If you prefer to bill us afterward for your expenses, we can reimburse you within five days.
• We will arrange to have the hotel bill us directly for your room and meals.
• Close by expressing confidence in the success of your speaker.
• We are eager to hear you.
• We know you will be a big success with our audience.
• Our members have expressed great excitement in having you come.
• We’re expecting many excellent management tips from your vast experience.
• We know we can count on you for a quality program.
• You are sure to be a smashing success.
• Your remarks will be the highlight of the evening.
• Your comments will be just the motivation we need at this critical time.
• Your words will be welcome indeed.
• Your words, I’m sure, will be appropriate and well grounded in years of experience.
• Our audience will be most interactive and supportive.
• Our audiences always rave about such practical help as you plan to give.
• Your speech outline looks intriguing. We can hardly wait.
• If the speaker is coming without fee in hopes of referrals or publicity for his or her own later business, express your intention to help or your best wishes for those possibilities.
• As we have discussed, our members should be quite eager to make purchases of your audio for further self-study.
• We hope you will agree the time spent in your preparation for our program will be a great investment in future business.
• Most of our attendees will be small-business owners and, therefore, primary prospective buyers of your accounting services. We plan to point out in our pre-meeting publicity that you are, in fact, accepting new clients.

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[tab name=’Example 1′]

Example 1: Confirmation letter for speaker

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Al,

We are so pleased you have agreed to speak to our Houston Credit Association membership on July 8. Your topic is one that has been bounced around for months as a “wish” until someone gave us your name as a true expert on the subject of collections.

The setting of our meeting is very informal. After cocktails at 6:30 and dinner at 7:30, you will be introduced at 8:30. After your 30-minute presentation, we will allow about 15 minutes for questions and answers. We expect about 120 people to attend, and we hope this question-answer time will allow our members to ask what’s on their minds. You should undoubtedly be prepared for questions on how the normal collection letters and schedules can be handled in such a sour economy and with bankruptcies at a peak.

We will have an overhead projector and lapel microphone ready for you and understand you will be bringing your own handouts. Also, as we discussed, you are free to bring copies of your book for sale; we can furnish a volunteer to sit at the book table to make sales if that would be helpful to you.

Janet Jones, who will be wearing a name badge, will meet you in the United Belasco Tower, first-floor foyer, and lead you through the “maze” to our banquet room. If you need to make any other last-minute requests or arrangements, please phone her at 123-4444.

The program committee is genuinely excited about the information you can provide our credit people; we hope you too are looking forward to meeting potential clients. We plan to publicize your speaking date widely and feel certain you will attract those most interested in your own professional services.

Cordially,
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[tab name=’Example 2′]

Example 2 : Invitation letter to speaker

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Mr. Sprinter:

I am so pleased to confirm your participation in our upcoming November 12-14 conference at the Marriott Waverly, Fullerton, California (23499 Hosea Boulevard, 303-449-2897). We expect 300 to 350 registrants to attend your session.

The complete program brochure should be available for me to forward to you in late August. But in the meantime, let me give you a few preliminary details: You will be one of 10 speakers over the three-day period, all focusing on the theme of “Quality Investments for Long-Term Growth.”

You will be responsible for preparing camera-ready materials for the participant manuals. We will be responsible for reproducing, binding, and shipping the manuals to the workshop site. You will need to send me your camera-ready materials to arrive no later than February 1.

For your presentation, we will provide an honorarium of $500, plus reimburse you for travel, meals, and lodging expenses associated with your presentation. Upon completion of the workshop, simply send us your invoice for expenses, along with your receipts. You should receive a check within two weeks.

I’ll be calling you later to discuss your A/V equipment needs and the room setup, along with any promotional materials we need such as biographical data and a press kit.

Our members are eagerly looking forward to hearing your suggestions and advice on how to ensure a sound financial future in this depressed economy! We think you’ll also profit from the exposure to our member firms, and we encourage you to follow up with them about their individual needs at the various locations around the nation.

Sincerely,
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[tab name=’Example 3′]

Example 3: Guest speaker confirmation letter

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Mr. Gates:

We are honored to have you as our guest speaker at the College of Business’ Student-Faculty dinner. As a graduate of our program, your success has been an inspiration to many of our students. Your speech is slated to begin at 7:30 p.m. and it is up to you how long you would like your presentation to be. Please be sure to allow time for questions, as our students are sure to have many.

For years our students have been hearing about the legendary Mr. Gates from those on the faculty who worked with you while you pursued your Masters. We cannot tell you how overwhelmed the students are to be meeting “The Legend” at last.

Dr. Gerrera, Dean of the College of Business, and I will be at the airport to meet your 1:00 p.m. flight. We thought perhaps you would enjoy meeting with the faculty for an informal wine and cheese reception in the department. We have also arranged for accommodations for you at the Riverside Hilton, where the dinner is to take place. I will be happy to take you to the Hilton around 3:00 p.m. so that you have ample time to relax before the dinner.

Thank you for your generous offer to pay for your own accommodations and travel expenses. Please allow us to at least take you to breakfast before your return flight home.

Sincerely,
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[tab name=’Example 4′]

Example 4: Speaker invitation letters

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Dr. Phelps:

We are pleased to include you in our roster of speakers at the October 29 “Business Law & the Small Business” Conference at the Sea Side Kingsway Hotel.

You will be giving four 30-minute presentations, each having an additional 10 minutes included for a Q&A session. We ask that you choose one aspect of small business law to address and mail us your outline as soon as possible. We will notify you if your topic overlaps another presentation. Please include any visual aide equipment you may require in the same mailing, as well as any handouts you may need copied. We will provide you with a lapel microphone.

As you will see from the enclosed conference schedule, you are slated to speak at 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. Your conference room number is 102. It features theater style seating and will comfortably accommodate up to 215 persons.

We have arranged your flight on Trans South Airlines flight 908, which will arrive on October 28 at 4:00 p.m. The Kingsway will have a car and driver waiting to transport you to the hotel. The airline tickets and hotel confirmation will be mailed to your secretary from our travel department.

We are also happy to pay for any meals you may wish to have at the hotel on either the evening before the conference, or the morning after. Simply have the meals billed to your room number. We will provide a buffet service throughout the conference day for your convenience.

Your return flight is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Trans South flight 583. Please inform the front desk of the time you wish to be taken to the airport.

We appreciate you volunteering to speak at no fee and are more than happy to include your business brochure in each information packet we mail to our conference participants.

Your wealth of expertise makes you a welcome addition to our list of speakers.

Yours Truly,
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[tab name=’Example 5′]

Example 5: Letter of confirmation

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Ms. Keller:

We are delighted that you have agreed to be a panel participant in our “Women In Business” Conference to be held at the downtown Excelsior Hotel November 5-7 in Jackson. Each panel participant will be asked to give a brief description of their background in their field. You will be seated on the Business Ownership panel. I know that there are many conference members who are interested in the successful software company you have. Please refer to the enclosed schedule for panel time and room location.

After the conference is concluded, please be sure to mail or fax all travel, lodging and meal receipts to Terry Ledbetter in our accounting department. She will mail you a reimbursement check for the expenses, as well as your $600.00 speaker’s fee. You should receive these checks approximately one week after the conference.

As a successful business owner, you are a welcome addition to our panel. We look forward to you sharing your expertise and advice with us.

Sincerely,
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