Booking a speaker with or without a speaker agency: the differences

As an event chair I have seen both sides. Sometimes booked through an agency, sometimes directly. Both can work well. It depends on what you are looking for and how much time you have yourself.

What a speaker agency does

An agency knows many speakers, makes a proposal, handles the contract and steps in if a speaker falls ill. You pay for that, usually through a mark-up or commission on the speaker's fee. How much varies per agency. Just ask.

An agency is a good fit if you are short on time, want a well-known name or have to arrange many speakers at once.

What booking directly changes

• Direct contact. You talk to the speaker straight away. You hear how they think and whether it clicks.
• No mark-up. What you pay goes to the speaker.
• More to do yourself. You arrange the agreements and the briefing.

The hard part is finding them. Strong speakers who are not yet well known are often not with an agency. They have no marketing department and do not show up at the top of Google.

The comparison

| | Through an agency | Directly | | --- | --- | --- | | Contact | Through an intermediary | Directly with the speaker | | Cost | Fee plus mark-up | Only the fee | | Choice | What the agency offers | Whoever you find | | Cover if someone drops out | Often arranged | Agree it yourself |

How this platform works

Onbekende Sprekers sits in between. You search yourself, by role, topic, region and budget. You send a request without an account and the speaker contacts you directly. We charge no fee and no commission. Afterwards the organiser and speaker decide for themselves whether to give a voluntary contribution.

Want a few names without reading everything yourself? Describe your event at Help me choose for my event. Within a minute you have three speakers who are really on the platform.