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Start with what your audience needs to learn, discuss, or do differently. On Short List Speakers, review speakers by subject, format, and budget, then look at their experience and available organizer feedback. When you find a potential fit, send an inquiry with your event details.

Look for experience with your audience and a format that supports your goals. A leadership offsite may call for discussion and practical exercises, while a peer-group session may benefit from facilitation and candid conversation. Ask how the speaker adapts the session to your group, how much participation is involved, and what participants can take away.

A keynote or talk centers on the speaker’s ideas, often for a larger audience. A workshop gives participants time to practice or apply ideas. A small group session is an intimate session, more conversation than keynote, common in forums, peer groups, and leadership offsites. A retreat or experience is a longer program, often off-site, that can mix sessions with time together. Speakers may combine these, so check the specific session rather than its title alone.

Yes. A speaker may offer a keynote, workshop, or other session with different lengths and fees. Review the specific offering that fits your event. A price for one format does not automatically apply to another.

Check each speaker’s delivery options and travel information. Virtual and in-person sessions can differ in format, length, and price. Include your preferred delivery method in your inquiry so the discussion starts with the right offering.

Tell us about your audience, goals, and budget using Help me find a speaker. We search our directory and beyond, then send you at least three speakers to consider within five business days. Short List requests are free during our launch, and we help with introductions. Include your event date if you know it, or let us know if you’re flexible.

We focus on speaking engagements with speaker fees from $0 to $15,000+ (USD). That is the speaking fee alone. Travel and other costs are separate, so check what each offering includes.

There is no single fee for a business speaker. Pricing depends on the speaker and the specific offering, including its format, length, and scope. Review published fees where available. If an offering requires a custom quote, explain your event requirements to get a price for that session.

Check what the published fee includes for the specific offering. Confirm whether customization, travel, or other requirements change the total before agreeing to a booking.

Custom quote means the speaker provides pricing based on your requirements instead of publishing a fixed amount for that offering. Include the format, audience size, date, location or virtual setup, and any customization you need. A custom quote does not mean that the session is free.

The speaker does not charge a speaking fee for that session. People speak without a fee for many reasons: to share what they have learned, to contribute to a professional community, or to build visibility for a book or business. A $0 fee does not mean the engagement has no costs or conditions, so check what the offering says about travel, purchases, or other requirements. Any purchase or condition appears beside the fee on the speaker’s profile.

Yes, when you and the speaker agree on it before the engagement. Ask what the speaker would introduce, what they would say or do, and how much time it takes. Agreeing to an introduction during the session does not include sharing attendee contact details. Each session on a speaker’s profile shows what the speaker proposes. Books and other items at a nominal price do not count as promotion.

Not on its own. Owning a book or business does not mean a session includes promotion, and charging a fee does not mean it is promotion-free. Promotion needs your agreement in advance, whether the session has a fee or not.

Only when the offering says so. Do not assume travel, books, or materials are included. Speakers should disclose required purchases and other conditions with the offering. Required purchases appear beside each session’s fee. Confirm transportation, accommodation, and any other expenses before you agree to a booking. For virtual sessions, confirm any production or technical requirements that could affect the total.

No. Searching the directory is free, with no signup. Short List requests are also free during our launch. You confirm the date, fee, and terms before anything is booked.

Yes. Say so clearly and explain the audience, purpose, format, and time commitment. Whether a speaker accepts is their decision. Do not assume that a session with a published fee is also available without one.

Listed profiles contain information supplied by the speaker. Verified requires an active Verified plan and at least 3 completed reviews from organizers at separate past speaking engagements, collected directly by Short List Speakers. Shortlisted requires 10 or more of those reviews. The labels reflect completed reviews; they are not a rating, so compare each speaker’s fit for your event too.

We contact organizers who have booked the speaker, through Short List Speakers or elsewhere, and collect their ratings and reviews directly. Their feedback helps you understand what it’s like to work with the speaker. Look for reviews from events similar to yours.

Not every profile has organizer feedback. If a speaker’s Verified plan ends, their profile remains in the directory as Listed. Reviews we collected are removed from public display until the speaker returns to a Verified plan.

No. Verified describes the review process, not a promise about the outcome of every engagement. Review the speaker’s expertise, format, and available feedback against your audience and goals, then discuss the specific session before making a booking.

It means availability information has not been supplied. It does not mean the speaker is unavailable. Include your date or possible dates in an inquiry and confirm availability before making plans. An inquiry does not reserve a date.

No. Availability information helps you assess a possible fit, but it does not hold a date. Confirm the date and engagement terms with the speaker before treating the booking as agreed.

No. An inquiry expresses interest and starts a discussion. It does not confirm a booking, reserve a date, or create an agreement with the speaker. A booking requires agreement on the engagement details and terms.

Include your audience, the subject or outcome you have in mind, preferred format, approximate audience size, date or flexibility, location or virtual setup, and budget. If you are interested in a specific offering, name it. A useful brief makes it easier to assess the fit and discuss next steps.

Your inquiry goes to Short List Speakers. Our team reviews the request and coordinates next steps. We use an anonymous event summary when sourcing possible matches, and share your name, organization, or contact details only with your permission. Sending an inquiry does not confirm a booking.

Confirm the session’s goals, format, duration, date, delivery method, total fee, and what is included. Also discuss customization, technical needs, recording permissions, payment and cancellation terms. Put the agreed details in writing with the speaker.

Start with the speaker signup form, then complete your profile information. Describe your expertise, who your sessions serve, and what you offer. A clear profile helps organizers understand whether you fit their audience and goals.

Yes. Listed is the free profile on Short List Speakers. Organizers can find your profile and send us an inquiry about you, and we send you their brief the same day. If you say yes, we introduce you and the organizer by email. Verified speakers are introduced directly to any organizer who requests them, see every inquiry and its status in their account, and are recommended first when organizers ask us to curate a short list. Earning the Verified badge takes an active plan and at least 3 completed reviews from separate speaking engagements.

No. You do not need celebrity status to create a listing. Explain the expertise you bring, the audience you serve, and the sessions you offer. Specific information helps organizers assess your fit, even if they have not heard of you before.

No. Short List Speakers takes no booking commission on your speaking fees. The optional Verified plan is a flat $99 a month or $999 a year; it is not a percentage of your engagements.

Shortlisted requires 10 or more completed organizer reviews from separate past speaking engagements. Shortlisted speakers still need an active paid Verified plan, or an eligible complimentary plan period, to receive inquiry details.

No. Payment alone does not grant Verified status. Verified also requires at least 3 completed reviews from organizers at separate past speaking engagements. A reference counts only once the organizer’s feedback is received, and several reviews of the same engagement count once. Until the third review arrives, the label reads Verified Pending. See the For speakers page for plan details.

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