Branson/Tri-Lakes News: Tips from an engagement gone awry

The Internet and digital communication have pierced national and geographic barriers.

Yet amid this clamor, there exists a fundamental truth: Social and business cultures are widely different around the globe. We cannot always operate on an international basis as we do within our own country – a lesson I have recently learned.

In October, I received a request from The Times of India to speak in January at a conference in Mumbai, India. The project director explained that Indian companies needed to become more proactive in customer relationships and loyalty in order to effectively compete in the world market. Up until now, India has enjoyed the competitive edge of cheap labor. However, that is quickly changing as salaries are increasing at 18 percent to 22 percent a year.

I was honored by their request, and we proceeded through several days of negotiation as to my fee and expenses – which was where I made my cardinal error. I treated the negotiation and agreement in the same manner as with an American organization. Due to prior experience in writing articles for one of their subsidiary publications, I trusted them.

Since this was a first-time conference, their budget was limited, and I agreed to a reduced but still substantial fee. At their request, I also agreed to fly economy rather than business class to minimize travel expenses. I also agreed to purchase the tickets here in the states, which would be less expensive than purchasing them in India. The agreement was that I would be immediately reimbursed “in cash” upon my arrival and that my speaking fee would be paid upon completion of my presentation.

In the ensuing weeks, I blocked out a week of my time for the trip, conversed with the project director on the presentation topic, purchased the airline tickets and sent invoices for the tickets and speaker fee. I also provided material to be featured on the company’s Web site, promoted the event through various international media and even arranged with the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce to bring some material about Branson.

Two weeks before departure, I received an e-mail from the project director. He first noted that advance registration was a little lower than anticipated. He then explained that my invoices had never been received, which meant that the airfare reimbursement could not be processed through “accounting” until approximately 10 days after the event concluded. Finally, he wanted to renegotiate my speaker fee – and that, too, couldn’t be paid until a week or two after the event.

Before responding, I checked with several other speakers with international experience. I was regaled with horror stories of unpaid speaker fees and costly travel expenses.

Falling back on an old lesson from my father that the first loss is your best loss, I quickly decided not to present at the conference. I have sent an invoice for expenses incurred and have seen no indication that it will ever be paid.

Based on my experience and the shared experiences of others, I have developed a few simple rules for international speaking engagements that also might apply in the states. (See box below.)

Proceed cautiously when making engagements outside of familiar territory, and use trust as your guiding force. After all, trust is the cornerstone of all relationships.

Jack Burke is an author and president of Sound Marketing in Branson. He can be reached at jack@soundmarketing.com.

Maybe Next Time

Marketer Jack Burke was invited by publisher The Times of India to speak during the Customer Loyalty Summit ‘08 on Jan. 23 in Mumbai, India. The arrangement went off course, however, and he offers these tips for other professional speakers.

1. A confirming deposit must be received before securing speaker’s time.

2. All remaining fees and payments must be wired to speaker’s bank account two weeks prior to departure.

3. The hosting organization must purchase the travel tickets.