Michael Charles, director of Julia Charles Event Management discusses the process of working with celebrity speakers:
The process of employing a celebrity speaker is completely different to that of a ‘regular’ one. We have to start by discussing the budget available because celebrities always cost far, far more than clients expect them to. It is very common for a client to approach us with their heart set on a certain celebrity but with a budget that needs a few noughts added to it to come anywhere close to the fee that the celebrity will command.
We will only approach a celebrity’s agent if we know that the client has the budget because we also have our own reputation to consider. We have our own vetting process to go through first before we even approach a celebrity. That may sound harsh, but if I approached Adele’s agent every time we have a request for her to appear they would simply stop taking me seriously.
Unlike other speakers, celebrities don’t have a set fee. The fee they charge will go up or down, depending on the event, who else is involved, the timing and how convenient or inconvenient the gig is.
You also have to consider the brands that they are contracted to and the fit or conflict of interest with the event and the brand associated with your event. No amount of money will entice a celebrity sponsored by Coca Cola to appear at an event for Pepsi.
We have worked with many celebrity speakers over the years; many of them amazing, some maybe more challenging. But every one is different with their own way of working, their set of requirements and of course, their own rider – but that’s another story for another day.
