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Funny how a new calendar year feels like a fresh start, even when it doesn’t line up with the fiscal year.
New years feel full of possibilities.
Yet, there’s something about a new year and the twelve fresh months that stretch ahead of New Year’s Day that inspires us to want to improve things. It only makes sense that businesses big and small want to make the most of 2019, and one way they might do that is to consider occasions when a keynote speaker would be appropriate.
Nothing kicks off or concludes an event quite the way a charismatic live speaker does. Sure, there are thousands – maybe millions – of inspirational talks available through online video, but none will have the immediacy and captivate the audience the way a live event does. Here are just a few of the reasons you may choose to hire keynote speakers in the coming year.
Major Company Milestones
Is 2019 the year your company will have been in business for 10, 20, 30 or more years? Those decade-based anniversaries are big milestones, helping you look back and see how far you have come. If you plan on celebrating a major work milestone, check keynote speakers for their availability during your celebration. The best keynote speakers are willing to work with you to craft the perfect presentation for your milestone, and you can be sure that with an outstanding speaker, the celebration will be remembered for many years.
Capturing a Big Contract or a Plum Client
When everyone puts in their best efforts and the result is landing a major new contract or a dream client, it’s worthy of celebration and of marking the beginning of something important. It’s not uncommon for companies to host a picnic, a dinner, or some other celebratory occasion to mark a major accomplishment like a big new contract. Keynote speakers who specialize in inspirational and motivational presentations are ideal for such an occasion, and they help give the kick-off of your new responsibilities the attention it deserves.
Kicking Off a New Training Initiative
Suppose everyone in your company (or in your department, or on your team) will be completing a new training program in the coming year. Maybe it’s to get up to speed on a major new software system, or perhaps it’s a more general training initiative to improve people’s communication skills or organizational skills.
A strong source of motivation and inspiration can make training sessions more effective.
There’s no reason not to start or end the training initiative on a high note, by bringing in a keynote speaker – perhaps one who is known for presentations emphasizing what it takes to tackle new challenges and emerge triumphantly.
A Small Annual Event You Want to Upsize
In another vein, suppose your company has always hosted a small technical conference for people in your industry. The event may have grown and started to gain a reputation as an important event for professionals in your industry to attend. Maybe it’s been run rather informally in the past, but this year you want to take things up a level. In addition to perhaps inviting more people or including more plenary or breakout sessions, consider hiring a keynote speaker for the event. Few things mark a technical conference or meeting as “not to be missed” like the presence of a respected keynote speaker.
Keynote speakers, when chosen and vetted properly, add something to an event that simply can’t be duplicated. The immediacy of live audience interaction with someone trained in the art of public speaking may be relived through video, but it can’t be replaced. Similarly to how seeing a live theater production of a play is an entirely different experience to seeing a movie adaptation of the same play, being in the audience in the presence of an accomplished keynote speaker is a unique experience.
It’s also the perfect experience for marking major business occasions, because of the lasting impression keynote speakers have on their audiences. If you have major business milestones or events coming up, consider bringing in a keynote speaker to add to the sense of importance and to engage the people affected by the milestone or event.
The memories and sense of “being there” will last long after the speaker has left and work gets back to normal.
