The #1 way to find a speaker is by word-of-mouth. However, when that pool runs dry, consider visiting www.WomenSpeakers.com. As the webhostess of this amazing ministry, I work with over 700 Christian Women Speakers who are available and eager to speak at women's events.

The Christian Women's Speakers Directory includes contact information for hundreds of Christian Women Speakers from every state, denomination and experience level. Most of these women are available for Weekend Retreats, Mother-Daughter Events, for MOPS or Stonecroft meetings, and many are even available to small churches with very small speaker's budgets.

At the Christian Women's Speakers Directory, you will find a speaker, in your fee range, for your next event! You can search using a U.S. map, a site-specific search engine for topic words, denominations, and more, or by browsing the Gallery of Speakers featuring over 150 qualified speakers. Click here to go there now.

To reduce confusion, select one person, and one person only, to interact with potential speakers. During the first contact with a potential speaker, the Speaker Coordinator should:

If all is o.k., request more information from the speaker, including her statement of faith and any written materials, or a recording of a talk she's given, for your team to review.

Let her know if she is the only speaker you are considering, or one of several.

Close the conversation by providing her with the exact date you anticipate to call her again, plus your name, telephone number and email address. Ask if she would be willing to please call you before accepting an engagement with someone else for the same date.

When the committee has chosen a speaker, the Speaker Coordinator should call and then follow-up the call with written details. Things to include are:

• Dates and Times
• Number and Duration of Talks
• Location
• Event Purpose/Goals
• Event Theme
• Key verse or quote, etc.
• Anticipated audience size and ages
• Appropriate attire
• Transportation details (if applicable)
• A copy of your doctrinal statement

Assign a Speaker's Hostess who will take the ball from the Speaker Coordinator about one week before the event. She should call the speaker 7-10 days ahead of the event, introduce herself and confirm that everything is set. She should tell the speaker that it will be her meeting the speaker at the airport or event location and caring for her needs until she leaves.

Do you need a Speaker's Hostess? No, however, I was speaking at a large facility recently and needed a Kleenex. It was a simple thing, but I didn't know my way around, didn't see anyone in charge, and found the lines at the bathrooms too long for my time constraint. I ended up using a piece of notebook paper - which was fine, but you get the point. A hostess simply helps in whatever way is needed. She introduces the speaker to the event coordinators, sound people, and others; she sees that there is water at the podium, and in similar ways cares for the speaker so the speaker can focus on the needs of the women.

Encourage the Hostess to use balance: don't "hound" the speaker, but rather make yourself available via a cell phone number and frequent check-ins - especially between closely-scheduled sessions. Ask about her food needs: many speakers prefer to speak on an empty stomach and may appreciate a light snack following a dinner presentation. Finally, do not disturb the speaker once she has gone to her room. By retiring, she indicates that her needs have been met.

A good speaker spends a lot of time - at least the equivalent of one full day, preparing for a single engagement. That means, if she provides you with four talks for a retreat, she has invested over 30 hours into your group before she even arrives at the retreat location.

While few speakers expect to be paid an hourly wage for this, it is important to consider what you are able to provide in way of financial help:

• Be sure to cover her travel expenses. Most husbands put their foot down early-on if speaking engagements drain both his wife's energy and the family resources. This is a legitimate concern and can be avoided by treating your speakers well.



• At minimum, cover any other expenses she may incur. In my earlier years of speaking, I often had to pay a babysitter for the hours I was gone from home. I was often "paid" with a plant, a book or a thank you note. While appreciated, it missed the need. Let us be careful to cover the expenses our speakers incur on our behalf.



• If at all possible, pay her a nice honorarium. By adding just $1 to the single-event per-person ticket price, or $3-5 to the per-person weekend-event price, you can provide a nice fee for your speaker without anyone feeling stretched.

Within 10-14 days of the event, send the speaker a thank you note. If you haven't paid her yet, include a check. In your letter, mention any comments you heard regarding her part of the program. Even better, if you collected feedback forms at your event, be sure to forward to the speaker the quotations, good or bad, that related to her ministry. She will appreciate it, but even more importantly, it will help her be a better speaker in the future, as she attempts to submit every detail of her life and ministry to God's direction.