A Few of the Many Testimonials to a

Top Professional, Motivational Speaker

John Bell's ability to design and deliver an entertaining talk, or motivating conference speech to the differing needs of an audience is evident from what his many clients say:

Business meeting speech

"Thank you for a superb presentation. Delegates appeared spell-bound as you disclosed amazing and useful negotiating tips one after another. It is easy to see why you constantly achieve excellent evaluation scores and I look forward to working with you again in the not too distant future".

Sunny Khan, European Projects Director WorldWide Business Research

International professional speaker

"I want to sincerely thank you for your outstanding performance on the SAP NL sales kick off meeting. The feedback I got afterwards from the team regarding your presentation was extremely positive and people really felt that you had energized the team and that you gave them quite a few important messages to think about. I felt that there was a great fit with the overall agenda for the day and especially your HABIT presentation was spot on."

Marinus ter Laak, National Sales Manager SAP, Holland

Top motivating speaker once again

"Many thanks for your contribution to the successful year TTA has had in organising clients' events. Last year was another exceptional year and guess who topped the scores in our delegate evaluation questionnaires? - Yes, Mr. J Bell. Well done John this is the fourth year running and not once did your scores fall below 4.7 out of 5 for content or 4.8 for presentation. One would expect an expert in communication to present well but you go one step further, you also ENTERTAIN. As important to us is the fact that our clients ask for more - long may it last.

Paul Turner, M.D, TTA International. (Conference Organisers)

Motivating speech - entertaining talk

"John fulfilled the brief exactly and provided a very thought provoking, motivational and entertaining talk. The fact that he arrived the night before and mixed with the delegates to get their views and then adapted his talk speaks volumes in itself. Two months after the meeting they were still talking about him."

Neil Kearney, Senior Medical Representative, AstraZeneca

Flexibility and commitment - exemplary

"Your flexibility & commitment to ensuring we get the best from sessions is exemplary. As I am responsible for the organisation of these meetings I have to depend on the right person to do the right job and you have always been spot on!"

Carolyn O'Neil, GlaxoSmithKline

Repeated quality - very good - excellent

"Once again we would like to thank you for lively contribution to the Edinburgh meeting. We are absolutely delighted at the success. Again feedback from the diabetes specialist nurses has been extremely positive. The statistics show 100% of the delegates rated John Bell's presentation as Very Good or Excellent."

Nicola Brett, Professional Relations Manager, Novo Nordisk Limited

Learning whilst having fun - entertaining talk

"John Bell has delivered our highly successful communication skills program for a number of years. He is both an educator and entertainer, and as a result ensures that our delegates learn whilst having a fun experience. For me, there can be no better way to learn."

"John is a true professional that has special something which constantly attracts high delegate evaluation scores and comments such as Brilliant. More of the same please."

Keith A. Haynes, MPS Risk Consulting Ltd

Conference speech - professional speaker

"I was able to meet John beforehand and have input to the structure of the day and the content of his presentation. The feedback from the staff attending the course was extremely good, and they very much appreciated the lengths that both parties had gone to, to ensure a fun and helpful session."

Rod Mason, General Manager, BUPA Hospital, Washington

Searing insights - entertaining talk

"John Bell comes from outside the health service to offer us searing insights. He is entertaining, interesting, challenging and genuinely informative. General practitioners, especially those in leadership roles, cannot fail to benefit from a session with John."

Professor Mike Pringle, then Chairman of Council, Royal College of General Practitioners, UK.

Conference speech - always excellent evaluations

"As Project Officer responsible for delivering the 'Continuing Professional Development' (CPD) programme for primary care staff ...including General Practitioners, Nurse Practitioners, Practice Nurses, Community Nurses and Health Visitors, General Practice Managers, Admin and Clerical staff from general practice and within the PCT.. I organise a monthly event, which attracts on average between 80-100 delegates. John Bell has spoken on several occasions, giving talks on 'why people don't listen', 'zero tolerance', 'time management' and is due to talk to our GPs and nurses in November."

"His presentations have always received excellent evaluations and his presentations have been effective motivators for staff."

"The Chief Executive remarked that he had never laughed so much whilst learning from an interesting, informative and entertaining speaker - which of course was John Bell. I have no hesitation in recommending John as a Conference Speaker."

Jan Dennis Projects Officer, Ashfield Primary Care Trust

Many occasions - large PR events - highest scores

"I have used John on many occasions when organising large PR events. He regularly obtains the highest feedback scores of all the speakers, and is a superb complement to what is generally a large clinical programme. My customers now ask for John by name! Although I sometimes ask John to repeat a topic he has previously covered, he always manages to repackage it freshly, so people who have attended the lectures before, still get something new. John always figures in my thinking when planning future events."

Andy Smith, Senior Area Sales Manager, GlaxoSmithKline

Testimonials from important, named people who have a reputation to maintain are an essential way to ensure you hire a top professional speaker with proven ability when it comes to motivating and inspiring. Speaking successfully at conferences requires a great deal of skill including an ability to be entertaining.

If you have been given the task of sourcing a motivating or inspiring speaker for your next meeting, conference, convention or seminar it is a daunting responsibility.

Getting it wrong can cost both you and your company dearly. Here top motivating and inspirating professioanl conference speaker John Bell offers some useful tips to help you in your quest for a professional speaker.

1. Why a Top Professional Speaker who is Motivating and Inspiring is Necessary

Find a quality top speaker with the special ability to motivate and you can be assured your meeting, seminar, convention or conference will have the success all of your hard work, no-doubt, rightly deserves.

Motivating, inspiring and entertaining conference speakers turn 'average' event evaluation scores into superlatives such as, brilliant, fantastic and superb.

Check out some of the testimonials above to see how scores allocated to a professional speaker giving a quality business meeting speech can make so much difference.

Correctly motivate your conference delegates and you receive credit for helping to install in them an internal energy that determines all aspects of their future behaviour. This is why motivating and inspiring speakers are hired and your final choice is so important.

2. Watch out for Pretenders

It is essential you understand that any Tom, Dick or Harry can legally call themselves a conference motivating or inspirating speaker. So simply finding someone listed as such on a website, or in a business directory, is no guarantee as to his or her ability to motivate and entertain an audience. Giving a motivational, conference speech requires special skills.

Would-be professional speakers are inventing themselves on a daily basis. They see the perceived success, and other associated privileges that a top international, professional, conference motivating and inspiring speaker appears to have, and think along the lines 'I could do that - easy money, travel to exotic places, fast cars, top hotels etc'. ? Ask a top entertaining professional speaker if that is fair reflection of their lifestyle and he or she is likely to reply ' If only' . So what do you need to look out for?

3. Sourcing a Motivating Conference Speaker

Type motivating conference speaker into a search engine and you can expect well over three million hits. This, of course, only partially helps you in your quest for the perfect conference speaker for your event! How many days have you set aside for this task? If you are thinking in hours, rather than years, then you are advised to read on:

Choosing a short list of potential candidates from the first two or three pages of a search engine listing seems, and is to some extent, a logical way to proceed. Look for terms such as professional speaker, conference speech, entertaining talk, business meeting speech and you are heading in the right direction. However, there are further issues that are worthy of your consideration:

4. Agents, Bureaus or Direct to a Conference Speaker?

Speaker agents and bureaus represent the majority of the best professional speakers who offer motivating speeches. Many of the top speakers who regularly provide a business meeting speech are also a business in their own right and, as such, will additionally represent their own best interests.

Agents are only interested in the very top conference speakers and proactively promote them, putting a professional speaker's name forward to conference organisers and the like. They charge a fee to the professional speaker for this service, usually based on a percentage of the conference speaker's fee for the occasion. For effective 'numbers' management reasons, the choice of motivating and inspiring conference speakers found through an agent, can be limiting.

Bureaus tend to be dedicated to providing conference organisers, corporations, associations, and educational institutions with a large selection of professional, inspiring and entertaining, conference speakers from which to choose. Most can offer suggestions is to who can be relied on to give an entertaining talk. Too much choice can be their biggest disadvantage. Conference speakers, good and bad, experienced and amateurs, also often represent their own interests, and so it may be useful if I now provide a few tips on how to identify an established, professional conference speaker of quality from a large pool of the Johnny-come-lately brigade who are likely to be inexperienced in giving a business meeting speech.

5. Quality Shines Through

Type motivating speaker into a search engine and you can be overwhelmed by the choice that is presented for your consideration. Top position for a professional speaker who offers a motivating speech for a business meeting or conference usually fluctuates from one day to the next, so compose a short-list from the first two or three pages, and you are ready to begin.

It is worth of bearing in mind that sponsored links are there because someone is prepared to pay, sometimes-large amounts, to jump to the front of the queue of those offering a business meeting speech.

Whereas this is an admirable indication that they are prepared to invest in advertising, it does not necessarily follow that you will receive the best value for your money. Here is any easy way to narrow down your short list:

6. Establish Experience

Let's assume you are looking for someone to provide an entertaining talk or motivating speech. Retype that which you originally searched for, into the search engine, and add one of the names you have recorded in your short list e.g. Motivating Speaker + His or Her Name.

Now you can determine whether that particular professional speaker has any expertise associated with the topic you are researching. By way of example - someone consider an expert in providing a motivating conference speech will likely be well published on the subject. You will also have an indication as whether or not an agent or bureau represents them.

7. Research Testimonials

Any inspiring or motivating conference speaker, worthy of consideration, will have a selection of testimonials from previous clients available for you to view on his or her website. Ensure companies and individuals are named. Descriptions such as 'A senior manager at a large well-known company said....', are of little to no value, and should start alarm bells ringing. Look for named sources from quality companies. Such individuals are usually very selective about whom they are to prepared recommend as giving a quality business meeting speech as their own reputation can be on the line.

8. Are they Motivating, Inspiring and Entertaining?

It may sound obvious, but the most important trait required by giving someone giving a motivating speech is ability to motive. Tragically, some meetings organisers have previously discovered, to their considerable cost, that it does not necessarily follow that a professional speaker can provide an entertaining, motivating speech.

Nor can it be assumed that someone described as a 'celebrity' professional speaker can be expected to somehow inspire your audience by simply turning up on the day to provide a business meeting speech.

A conference speech or entertaining talk designed to motivate delegates is a very carefully structured product that is based upon a science that is studied by few and practised by even fewer. Ensure your choice of professional speaker has proven credentials, and don't assume that members of a related, professional body, are somehow qualified and suitable.

Minimal experience and the price of a membership fee are all that are often required to becoming members of some such organisations. Academic qualifications on a topic related to the skills you require are a much safer method of establishing expertise and knowledge.

Being published on the subject of interest, through a reputable source, is a good indication of expertise on a particular topic. Use the method described in Tip 6 above to obtain a quick and easy result to your search.

Ideally, watch videos of the professional speaker performing, and listen to the audience reaction to determine whether he or she can give an entertaining talk and has a rapport with the audience. Rapport and humour are essential ingredients in the motivational cake.

9. Cost Issues

Ideally you should have some idea of a professional speaker fee budget before commencing your search. The costs in hiring a motivating speaker can vary dramatically and are dependent on the location of venue, numbers of delegates attending, the duration of the required speech and the quality and popularity of the speaker.

My advice is this - if your meeting is worth holding it is worth investing in an experienced, proven, professional speaker with the ability to give a motivating speech or entertaining talk. Paying the little bit more for your important business meeting speech often produces an immensely worthwhile investment.

Whether you deal with the professional speaker direct, or through an agent or bureau, should purely be a matter of choice. In theory fees, quoted from an agent, bureau or speaker, should be the same.

If you are interested in a celebrity speaker you are unlikely to find direct contact details for that person, and your only line of enquiry will be through an agent or bureau.

Agents that actively promote a motivating, inspiring and entertaining professional speaker have a good idea of the fee normally required to secure the speaker's services and will share that figure with you when you make your initial enquiry. It is wise to obtain an all-in-fee from an agent.

A bureau's commission is obtained from the professional speaker. This commission can vary but normally falls between 15% and 30% of the fee for the appearance. If they do not have a particular speaker on their books they are usually happy to trace them and make any arrangements on your behalf.

Few professional speakers work with only one agent or bureau. If there is no mention of exclusivity on promotional material you can assume there is not. This, in effect means, that if you come across a speaker of your choice, and he or she supplies contact details, this is an implied permission for you to contact him or her direct and independently negotiate a speaker fee. Your aim should be to obtain value for money using the advice I have provided above.

10. Information Required by a Motivating Speaker.

If you are contacting a professional speaker direct, and you have researched him or her as advised, you will be confident in knowing you are speaking with the right person for the job.

Should you decide on taking the agent or bureau route, the first thing you need to make perfectly clear, for the reasons described in Tip 8 above, is that you are seeking someone capable of giving a conference speech to a large audience, or providing a humorous, motivating speech at a staff conference, or an entertaining talk to important clients, etc.

Next supply the date of the event. Top professional speakers are very popular and you can save yourself a lot of time, and disappointment, by establishing their availability early in the proceedings. It is perfectly acceptable to ask if you can provisionally hold a particular speaker until a final decision is made.

Good meetings organisers will usually provide a description of the objectives and purpose of a conference, venue, size and type of audience and the duration of the talk required. The objectives are the desired outcomes of the event.

The best professional speakers provide their clients with tried and tested business meeting speech skilfully adapted to fit in with the theme of your meeting and will usually meet your requirements fully. For your own peace-of-mind obtain a written agreement of the terms agreed and, were possible, a guarantee of total satisfaction.

To Summarise

Use a search engine to source a motivating, inspiring or entertaining speaker.

Produce a short list of potential speakers.

Establish credibility by including their name and area of expertise in a further search of the web.

Where possible watch videos of the speakers in action to determine whether they establish a rapport with the audience and their overall style of delivery is as required for your conference speech.

Check for quality, named testimonials provided by previous clients. A professional speaker will have many.

Contact the speaker, agent or bureau and establish availability, cost etc.

Supply the necessary information.

Obtain some form of contract with a guarantee of satisfaction were possible.

So there you have it; ten top tips on acquiring a motivating, inspiring and entertaining speaker. I wish you every success in your search for a professional speaker.