[tab name=’Guidelines’]

Guidelines : For Speaking

Thank You for Speaking

Guidelines and Alternate Phrases

• Express your appreciation for the presentation in a general summary statement.
• It’s really encouraging to have individuals come forward who are willing to contribute their knowledge and experiences toward the professional development of others. Your presentation was no exception; we so much appreciate your expertise.
• Thank you for taking the time last Friday to share your insights on new trends in the electronics field.
• We appreciate your speaking to us last week about investment trends among the top corporations in the nation.
• You did an excellent job last Thursday when you addressed our group on the pitfalls of drug testing in the workplace.
• Your presentation was, in a word, outstanding.
• Our group was so pleased to have you speak last week on the drilling rigs of the future.
• What an impression you made on our group members last week as you talked about the need for personal career planning within the large organization.
• What an impact your presentation will have for years to come on our group of trainers as they “go out into the world” to revitalize our organization with new ideas.
• You did an exceptionally fine job last week in stirring our members to action.
• Elaborate by adding several specific details about the presentation that were particularly beneficial, memorable, or personally useful to you.
• Your information and examples are certain to make an impact on the organizations represented at the meeting.
• You made the difference in my attitude about the value of the entire convention. I came to realize that …
• Your multimedia presentation certainly added the pizzazz our audience needed after four days of convention.
• Your story about … really made your point about quality memorable and real.
• Your case studies gave us the necessary hands-on practice in applying the theory. Application is what’s usually most necessary and most often missing from other presentations of this nature.
• Your statistics should wake up all of us to the need for some immediate changes.
• Your stories about Princeton, Inc., were all too real.
• Your anecdotes about customer service touched a nerve with our group. We’re all painfully aware of the improvements we need to make in this regard.
• We certainly appreciated your humor–a delightful surprise on such a serious topic.
• You took what could have been a dry subject and made it so entertaining, as well as informative.
• The assistants you brought along to help with the demonstrations were an excellent idea; they left you free to mingle with the audience before and after the presentation.
• You amazed us with the manner in which you responded to such high-pressure questions with such charm and graciousness.
• Your energy level was contagious. You had people who have been sitting on the sidelines for years participating in your activities.
• Your answers to the questions asked were straightforward and honest; we couldn’t have asked for more.
• Your true expertise was certainly apparent as you fielded the audience’s questions with such ease and simplicity.
• Your explanations were easily understood, even for the layperson in the audience.
• You cut through the usual jargon, buzzwords, and weasel words, and spoke to the real issues with accuracy and honesty.
• Your smile and your entire demeanor disarmed the audience and gave them opportunity and encouragement to ask the questions that were really on their minds.
• You were honest and direct–qualities we always appreciate in organizational spokespersons.
• The pace was exactly appropriate for our group–fast enough to keep even the most knowledgeable interested, but slow enough so as not to lose the average user. Your extensive knowledge of the subject was even more apparent during the question-answer time.
• You put the group at ease from the very beginning, and they loved you for making them feel special and understood.
• I heard several audience members rehashing your points at the break–always an excellent sign that the speaker has made his ideas memorable and useful.
• The feedback we received from the audience was wonderful; they felt your presentation was exactly on target for their needs.
• Several audience members commented you obviously knew their organization and their team members well, and that says to us meeting planners you took the time to customize for our group.
• You presented a picture of our work here that was alarming in its urgency but not offensive to us personally.
• You included just the right mix of theory with how-to’s and practice.
• Mention any intentions you have to pass on a referral or to publicize his or her excellent job. For professional speakers, publicity and referrals mean added business. To colleagues, the praise may mean career recognition internally.
• I assume you won’t mind if I tell everyone I see to sign up for your next session.
• I’ve passed your name and address on to our home office staff, along with my recommendation they contact you about presenting the ideas at a national meeting.
• Your name will be on the tip of my tongue every time the subject of quality control comes up around here.
• I plan to include a feature story highlighting your work in our next in-house newsletter.
• We’ve decided to run a short excerpt on your presentation in our convention paper.
• I’m personally planning to call several managers in the eastern region to let them know of your availability and expertise on this subject.
• I’ve written your manager a note about the presentation, because I think she should be aware of the service you’re doing for our branches by providing this information.
• I’m placing your card in my card file so I can have it handy whenever I hear of a colleague facing these same problems.
• My professional organization certainly could use a program of this nature. I’ll give your name to our program chairman at our next meeting.

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[tab name=’Example 1′]

Example 1: Speaker thank you letter

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Ms. Nixon:

Thank you for taking the time to fly to Sheraton County to share your research work with the educators in our school system. Your ideas on “active learning,” creativity, and multimedia interaction fascinated our group. Several members were particularly pleased to hear the positive effects these teaching methods had on the attitudes of the children involved in your research groups. We had no idea business and industry organizations were so heavily involved in research fields so closely related to ours.

Several members of the audience have expressed interest in hearing more about your work and will be recommending to their individual schools that you speak at other locations during their in-service training. You may be receiving calls from the various directors of curriculum throughout the year, and we hope you can speak to us again as your schedule permits.

Should there ever be an occasion for us to return the favor by actively participating in some of your research projects, we would be more than willing to do so. Again, thank you for taking the time to share your work with us in such an enlightening way.

Sincerely,
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[tab name=’Example 2′]

Example 2: Praise letter to speaker

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Senator Talley:

Your keynote speech at last night’s convention banquet was absolutely inspiring. It was the perfect conclusion to the topics that had been discussed over the weekend.

After the banquet was over, I heard many people express the same sentiments. Indeed, people talked of little else as we waited for the airport shuttle to arrive. Your ability to cover all the pertinent topics presented so succinctly and then to expand upon these ideas with the thought-provoking questions you posed, truly caused us to pause and reflect. It is not often we in the business world have time to consider the philosophical implications of our work, but last night we did.

While at a business luncheon today, I mentioned the speech you gave to several colleagues who were unable to attend the conference. I provided them with your card, and several expressed an interest in having you speak at various upcoming meetings. I told them they would definitely gain new insights from listening to you speak.

Sincerely,
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[tab name=’Example 3′]

Example 3: Appreciation letter to speaker

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Pamela:

I told the conference committee that they would not regret having an “unknown” such as yourself for the featured speaker at last week’s telemarketing conference. And the committee was, quite honestly, blown away.

The impassioned presentation you made about the benefits of telemarketing and of ways to persevere in such a challenging field made a tremendous impression upon both the committee and the audience. However, your inspiring words, which were combined so wonderfully with practical advice on how to handle difficult situations, made all of us realize the job is worth its difficulties.

The committee has requested I ask if you would be available to speak at future conferences. Congratulations on your resounding success Pamela—I knew you would be a hit!

Regards,
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[tab name=’Example 4′]

Example 4: Sample thank you letter speaker,

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Mrs. Bend:

It was a true pleasure to hear your informative speech on conducting performance evaluation meetings. Such meetings can be difficult, but the suggestions you gave for approaching the subject, as well as for choices of phrasing you explained, suddenly made the situations seem much more manageable.

I especially enjoyed the role-playing portion of the lecture. It was helpful to try out your advice on “employees” who you could start over with if you made a mistake. The generous comments and suggestions you offered as you watched these scenarios were exceptionally helpful.

I would be interested in retaining your services for an upcoming management meeting but am unsure if you speak to groups that small. Please call me at 322-5687 to discuss the matter. I feel my entire management team could benefit from your advice.

Yours Truly,
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[tab name=’Example 5′]

Example 5: Letter for presenter

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Ms. Magnon:

You gave one of the most entertaining, lively presentations I have ever had the pleasure to attend during a conference.

You made “Effective Management Styles” more than the usual stuffy listing of currently popular methods. I was amazed to see men and women who normally sit silently through a lecture openly discuss the various methods they have seen come and go. The hilarious stories you told of situations that occurred when using this or that method, as well as ones the various audience members related of their own experiences, clearly made serious points despite their ruefully funny nature.

We will be hosting an upcoming Management Techniques Conference next March, and I feel you would be a perfect addition to our roster of speakers. We would love to have such an animated presenter included in our program.

Regards,
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