letter+to+invite+a+speaker

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** Writing the Letter of Invitation **   1. PLAN AHEAD! It may take you a few weeks to get a response to an invitation so invite the potential speakers well ahead of the date of your event. In most cases, unless you know the speaker very well, you should send a letter to her office first and then do a follow up call to her office.  2. BE SPECIFIC AND GIVE THE LOGISTICS Your first paragraph should contain the essential information - the invitation, date, time and location. Don't force your potential speaker to go searching through the letter. These are busy women who need the specifics right away. 3. BACKGROUND INFORMATION Who is doing the asking? If it's an organization, give some history on it - its mission, how long its been in existence, how many members - anything pertinent you think will help make a case as to why she fits with the event. Why are you doing the event? What is the goal/mission of the event?  4. WHY HER? Make your case for why you are asking her -- what will she bring to the event that some one else can't bring. If you have a personal tie, or if the potential speaker has been recommended by someone she knows, you should include that information. Be sure to get their permission to use their name in the letter. This should help persuade the speaker into saying yes to your invitation. Remember these are very busy women with major time constraints so making a strong argument for why they should say yes to you will help them make their decision. 5. MORE SPECIFICS What do you want her to do? If you would like her to give a speech, what specifically would you like her to talk about? For how long? (Remember, people's attention spans are short - no matter how spectacular a speaker she may be. Also, it's important to allow the audience to interact with the speaker, so allow for a question and answer period, if possible.) What is the speaking arrangement - is she on a panel, is she the keynote speaker, how large of an audience, who is her audience? (If there is an honorarium involved and if you are covering any other expenses, such as travel and/or lodging, include that information here as well.)  6. ABOUT MONEY What to offer a potential speaker will vary depending on who you are asking. Oftentimes women representing local women's organizations and public officials won't require an honorarium. (Public officials usually enjoy the opportunity to get their name and face out to the community!) Nationally recognized scholars, writers, political analysts, etc. may require thousands of dollars. If you have a small budget, be realistic about who to invite. Remember, less well-known speakers don't necessarily mean lower quality programs. It's the personality and character of the speaker that matters most. Also, more well known speakers may seem less approachable/accessible and thus, your audience may get less out of the event. If you think the speaker will require an honorarium that you can't quite afford, you may be able to talk them into a reduced fee. Make the point in your letter that you are a student organization/publicly funded organization, etc. with a limited budget and tell her what you can afford. Plant the idea that is important for women leaders to invest in the next generation of women leaders and so you hope she can make an exception. Example: <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">We are offering an honorarium of $750 as well as covering your food, lodging and travel. We realize this is far below your normal fee and hope you will consider this invitation because of the importance of this program's work. If today's women leaders don't encourage young woman, who will? <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;"> 7. WHAT'S NEXT? <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">Tell her she should expect a follow up call from you (or some one from your organization) soon, but also provide a phone number in case she has questions and would like to call you. Tell her you look forward to speaking with her soon and sign off! <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">** Sample Invitation Letter ** <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;"> // <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">Dear Ms. Sanchez: // <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">//I am writing to invite you to participate in a panel discussion on Young Women and Political Organizations, Friday, September 25, 3:30 - 5:00 p.m. at Miller University in Glendale, Pennsylvania. This event is part of a political education program for Pennsylvania college women, called Women's Political Growth, offered by the Pennsylvania Women's Organization.// <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">//In June, 30 young women from throughout Pennsylvania participated in a week-long residential institute, learning about the impact of women in politics and gaining political skills from a faculty of practitioners and scholars working in the field of politics. This September, we will reconvene with this group for a retreat to learn more about women in politics.// <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">//The Young Women and Political Organizations panel will feature women who are currently working around politics and/or mobilizing college students. The goal of this session is to illustrate what mobilization involves and to show students that public leadership roles exist beyond elected office. Some students may come to our program believing the only way to "make a difference" on policy issues is to be a politician in the traditional sense. We want to send a clear message that activism is public leadership as well.// <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">//We would like each panelist to speak for approximately 8-10 minutes, describing the work your organization does and issues of activism -- why is activism important, why is an interest in the political world important, how do you mobilize students? Also, the students will want to know more about your personal background -- how did you get involved in public leadership, what advice would you give to students to get involved? This will then leave plenty of time for the students to ask questions and discussion.// <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">//We can cover your travel costs to and from Pennsylvania. I will call you shortly to answer any questions you might have and see if you will be able to join us. I hope your answer is yes!// <span style="font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,san-serif;">//Sincerely,//