Today it's exactly 2 years ago we launched Speakersbase 2.0. What a fantastic ride it has been! And as we are in the business of inspiring, so our customers can learn and grow, we would like to share the 5 most important insights of the last 2 years with you.
1. Everything changes
Back in 2017 our founders had an idea: let's build a platform that's going to be the linkedin of keynote speakers. And so they had a website developed and soon gathered a database of thousands of speakers. But then the pandemic struck… The huge investment had become obsolete as there were no events and companies had gone in lockdown.
But we knew a thing or two about agility, resilience and innovation. Florence Pérès, keynote speaker herself, had seen all her gigs being cancelled, so she went back to the drawing board.
2. Relevance is key
At Speakersbase we strongly believe in the power of customer intimacy, so she started off listening to the needs of organizations. Moreover, she knew full well the pandemic wouldn't disappear overnight, so she focused on an offering of virtual events and curated programs of lectures that could make all the difference in a world that was completely gripped by COVID-19.
She carefully selected speakers who could not only make the change to an online format, but who also addressed topics that were relevant in a world that had changed so drastically. It was an instant hit. Especially HR departments knew they had to support their employees and appreciated our "working from home" series.
3. Quality over quantity
We can only be relevant and customer intimate if we also have a good relationship with and understanding of our team. We need to fully grasp their storylines and strong points to be able to make that perfect match. That's the only way to meet our customers' objectives and turn every project into a success.
Even though our team is growing to have an appropriate speaker for new upcoming topics, it explains why we prefer a smaller team. It guarantees its quality, makes it balanced - did you know we have no less than 40% female speakers? - and gives us the time to screen the market for new emerging talent. Remember, you heard them first booked through Speakersbase!
4. Walk the talk
Our baseline speaks for itself: get inspired, learn and grow. But Speakersbase is not just another speaker agency. We believe in the power of inspiration, but we don't stop there. We also offer additional services in order to truly effect change. Hosting and moderation is obvious, but recently we also added team building, training, workshops, consultancy and coaching to our service offering. It's another way of being relevant: we bring added value to your organization.
5. The best is yet to come
It is clear that an awful lot has happened in the last two years and we are now reaping the benefits. This week we had no less than 8 bookings and gave lectures in four countries. We also held our first team building.
In the coming months we want to continue to focus on diversification and internationalization. Last month, already 1 out of 2 of our quotation requests came from abroad.
The future looks bright!