Memorandum of Understanding for Public Speaking Partnerships

What a good one includes

• A detailed breakdown of each partner's speaking time, facilitation duties, and administrative responsibilities before, during, and after the event.
• A clear financial roadmap detailing how ticket sales, sponsorship revenue, and event expenses are shared and paid out.
• Explicit terms defining who owns the newly co-created presentation slides, workbooks, and workshop concepts, as well as how pre-existing materials are protected.
• Specific agreements on how many times each partner will promote the event to their email lists and social media channels.
• Guidelines on who can record the live event and how those audio or video recordings can be sold, packaged, or repurposed in the future.
• A compassionate yet clear protocol for what happens if one speaker falls ill, faces an emergency, or if the event must be postponed.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Assuming a informal handshake agreement is enough because you are close friends or share similar personal growth values.
• Failing to clarify who owns the email list of attendees or how lead data collected during the workshop can be used for future marketing.
• Neglecting to set a clear deadline for expense reconciliation, which can lead to awkward financial conversations weeks after a successful event.
• Overlooking the policy for individual upsells, leaving partners frustrated when one pitches their private coaching package during a joint session without prior consent.

Frequently asked questions