Let’s pretend for a second that it’s 8:30 a.m. and you, my friend, just settled in with a fresh-brewed cup of coffee to check your email before the day gets busy.

And there it is!

You almost can’t believe your own eyes.

The email you’d been hoping for, for so long.

Your official invite to speak at your first paid speaking gig.

The gal inviting you, an event organizer for a local women’s retreat, attended the mom’s group you shared at recently for a friend who needed a last-minute fill in.

The email lays out the details of the conference with several questions for you.

You’re excited — or better yet, elated. It’s everything you hoped for and have been preparing for. You got this!

Until you read further into the email and you’re asked for your Speaker One Sheet. They’ve searched your website and can’t seem to find it.

Oh, dear, you think out loud.

You sit for a second wondering if you’ve misread.

“What’s a speaker one sheet?!!”

You quickly turn to Google, your only trusted friend for asking those awkward questions.

By now, it’s 9:00 a.m. You usually try to respond to emails within twenty-four hours. You wonder how you’re going to buy some time and get this gal that sheet she’s asked for.

Does this sound familiar? Maybe this scenario isn’t so farfetched from the truth. Maybe it recently happened and that’s how you’ve landed yourself here, at Communicator Academy, googling “Speaker One Sheet.”

Because we want your speaking career to be a success, we’ve designed a sample sheet for you in addition to the resources and tools you’re going to need to prevent scenarios just like the one we laid out above.

What IS a Speaker One Sheet?

A Speaker One Sheet is the sheet designed specifically to help event planners and conference organizers decide if you’re their person. To sum it up, this sheet is a speaker’s professional resume. If you are a beginner just launching into your speaking career, this sheet, also called a One Sheet, is possibly the most important marketing tool you can have. This One Sheet, usually in PDF form and uploaded to your speaker page, most often includes information about, you, the speaker, in an attempt to answer the following questions:

Who are you?

Who is your target audience?

What topics do you cover?

What makes you the expert on these topics?

Who has benefited from your work in the past?

What current work do you have published and what are you doing that serves the needs of the events audience?

How to Make Sure Your Speaker One Sheet Gets You Noticed Above the Crowd

In order to get noticed and set yourself apart from other speakers you will want to deliver a solid speaker one sheet designed and tailored to your personality, and one that resonates with the event planner and her audience needs.

If you have a budget set aside, hiring a graphic designer to create a cohesive look with your brand is ideal. For those just starting out, this may not be an option. Regardless of whether you decide to design your speaker one sheet yourself or hire someone, you will still need to gather the below items we have listed. Some of the items you may need to get creative on, depending where you are at in your speaking career.

Headshots/Professional Photos

Having professional photos taken is going to add that special element to your One Sheet. A good photographer will capture your personality and tailor your photos to you and your brand. A quality photo on your Speaker One Sheet, whether you hire a professional photographer or not, will set the stage for your level of presentation and professionalism.

Bio

Your bio is a short paragraph of 75-100 words consisting of information that qualifies you to speak on your topic. This is a brief statement that may include such details as your current job, your work history, education, awards and published work.

Speaking Topics

If you already know your topics and have them lined up, then you are all set to plug them into this section of your One Sheet. The speaker topics section is the perfect place to show off your heart’s message and how you best connect to an audience.

Client List

If you have a list of clients who have benefited from your contributions and previous speaking engagements, you will want to add that information into this section. If this is something you are working on, you may choose to get creative with this area and rename it to referrals or leave it off all together.

Testimonials

For the up and coming speaker, testimonials may take some time and experience to build. Be resourceful and get creative. Testimonials can be a great way for others to share how you have impacted their life. Do you have a speaker friend, someone with published work or an owner of a local company that would love the opportunity to recommend your work?

Publications

Include in this section a list of your published work that is relevant to your audience. This work could be a book you have written, a book or magazine you have published work in, or an online article for a magazine or website.

Contact Information

Contact information should include where the event planner or organizer can find you. The information you include is up to you and how transparent you want to be. Some options, but not limited to: your website, phone number, email, social media platforms and booking information.

Personality

In order for you to stand out above the crowd, you will want your One Sheet to be true to who you are as a speaker and make a bold statement that reflects your brand and tagline. What makes you unique? What sets you apart from the rest? We are all created differently and have a unique delivery that connects us to our audience and draws them in to the message we have to share. Be sure your One Sheet is an honest reflection of you.

What programs are commonly used to create a Speaker One-Sheet?

There are a variety of programs and software options that are currently used to create a Speaker One Sheet. The one you decide on may depend on your level of expertise, how quickly you need to have your One Sheet completed and what you are comfortable using. Microsoft Word, Google docs, Canva, and Adobe Cloud are the more popular programs currently being used.

Looking for More Ideas?

Feeling a bit overwhelmed and need a visual to help you with layout and design for all the sections we’ve listed out? Our team has put together this sample Speaker One Sheet just for you! Click to download the Speaker one Sheet.

Here at Communicator Academy our goal is to equip men and women to be the communicators God has designed them to be. Our hope is that you are organized and prepared with the tools and resources to make your speaking career a success.

The last thing we want is for you to feel rushed and unprepared at the last minute. We encourage you to take the time to bring together all the listed items above to create your One Sheet. Your chances to get that first invite to speak or that next big gig significantly increase when you deliver a solid One Sheet that is a true reflection of your brand and who you are as a speaker.

Tell us in the comments: if you don’t already have a speaker One Sheet, or you need to update yours, what’s one thing you can do this week to make progress?