How to Hire a Christian Youth Speaker

As a Michigan Christian Youth Speaker, I know first hand how important it is to hire the right Youth Speaker. It is absolutely essential to the success of your special event and to the momentum of your youth ministry. Christian Youth Speakers specialize at connecting with teens, so hiring the right one is worth the investment. Here are some tips for how to hire a Christian Youth Speaker who fits with your budget, your schedule, and your ministry culture.

Search Google: One of the best ways to find a Youth Speaker for a Christian event is to search online. In seconds, you have a list of the top ranking speakers. The key is narrowing it down, right? So if I’m looking to hire a Christian Youth Speaker for an special event in Michigan, I would search “Michigan Christian Youth Speaker,” and so on. Plus if you go with a local speaker, you will save on travel costs.

Watch Videos: Good Youth Speakers will want you to view their material. This is the only way to really get a feel for what their presentation will be like. So watch the videos on their website or search Youtube for videos of Christian Youth Speakers in your area.

Price Range: If you have Youth Speaker budget of $1,000 to $2,000, you don’t want to find out at the last minute that your preferred Christian Youth Speaker costs $10,000. That’s a deal breaker. So here’s how to find out: most Christian Speakers have a contact form on their website. Fill out the form, and ask them straight out about their fees. They normally have a fee range based on your event needs, size, budget, etc.

Discounts: The fact is, most Christian Speakers give discounts, so ask them about it. Do they give discounts for nonprofits and churches? Are they willing to stay in a host home? Do they have a multiple-presentation rate? Do they have day-rate? What if you partner with another local group and have the speaker come to town for two separate events on the same day – can you split the fee?

Check References: Ask the Christian Youth Speaker to provide some references you can call. Ask the references about their overall experience with the speaker. Would they hire the speaker again? Was the speaker on time and on message? Did they resonate with the audience? What was the audiences’ response?

Call Them: Once you find a few Christian Speakers in your price range, you need to make sure they’re a good fit for you. Even if they’re references check out, you still need to have a personal conversation with them to ask more specific questions and get a feel for their personality. Do a gut check. Is this the right speaker for your event?

Hire Them: The point is: don’t procrastinate. Professional speakers have “busy seasons” where their speaking schedule fills up quickly. Once you’ve found a Christian Youth Speaker who fits your budget, fits your culture, and fits your schedule, hire them and pay the deposit right away to secure the date.

Customize Your Plan: Youth Speakers typically have a range of topics they typically speak on. Do you want to go with a presentation they’ve polished and refined, or do you need them to prepare something fresh. Once you agree on the event’s mission and direction, plan everything around that. The Christian Youth Speaker is typically the climax of the event, so make sure everything leads up to that moment. The old cliché’ is true: if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

Promote the Event: Here’s where you can get some traction. Ask the Christian Youth Speaker to provide you with free digital assets for promoting the event. Any Youth Speaker worth they’re weight in salt will have professional photos, posters, and a press pack ready to go. You can often get an idea about the quality of the Christian Speaker by the quality of their promotional material. And never neglect the importance of having teens promote the event themselves on facebook.

Host the Christian Speaker: When the event comes, remember that you are the host for the Christian Speaker. Find ways to make their experience smooth and enjoyable (take them out to dinner, give them a tour of your town, provide them with their own backstage room at the event – especially if they have a family). If you give them a great experience, they’re likely to do the same for you.

The bottom line is: hiring the right Christian Youth Speaker who fits with your budget, your schedule, and your ministry culture will make the difference between an average event and an awesome event. And I don’t know about you, but I’d shoot for awesome. Haha!