5 Tips for Booking Your Next Black History Month Speaker

Happy Black History Month! Have you found your Black History Month speaker as yet? February, the shortest and coldest month of the year, is dedicated to the history of Black people in the United States. Black History Month is the definition of #booked and #busy for Black speakers. However, with Omicron reminding us we are still in a pandemic, and most in-person programming moving to virtual, it’s not too late to book your Black History Month speaker. But before you reach out, let me give you a few tips that I have learned over the years.

Tip #1: Pay Black History Month Speakers and Pay Them Fairly

The bank still doesn’t take mortgage payments in exposure. Yes, you might think that this professor or recently published author would appreciate coming to your company and speaking for free. No. No, they would not.

First, there are many companies that we get plenty of exposure from that will pay us. Second, many of us have spoken for free in the past and found it be even more burdensome than our paid engagements. And third, if you don’t have the budget for a Black History Month speaker, then you are asking someone to produce labor for no compensation which … is NOT what you want to be doing during Black. History. Month.