Questions to ask an emcee before you book

When you do not need an emcee

For an internal meeting of an hour or two with a few speakers, your CEO or a manager who speaks well is usually enough. Give them a clear running order and someone to watch the clock.

You need a professional when the event is long, has many speakers or awards, has clients or press in the audience, or has guests who speak different languages. Then someone has to hold the programme together full time.

Who will be on stage?

Ask for the name. If you book through an agency, confirm that the host you watched on video is the host who comes.

Who writes the running order?

Ask whether the host writes it with your producer or expects a finished script. A host who writes it knows your event in detail before the day. A host who receives it reads it for the first time at rehearsal.

Which languages can you improvise in?

Ask which languages the host can improvise in on stage, for example when a speaker is late. Reading a prepared line in a language is much easier than improvising in it. Ask for a video.

How do you work on the day?

Ask if they will rehearse with the technical crew. On a stage with screens and video, the answer should be yes. A host who has not rehearsed waits for the slide, and the audience waits too.

Ask who they take instructions from during the event. The right answer is your producer or stage manager. A host who takes instructions from several people gets conflicting ones.

My answers

I have hosted more than 350 events on microphone, and I am the person on stage. I write the running order with your producer. I rehearse with your technical crew. I host live in English, French and Spanish, and deliver prepared lines in Italian. During the event, I take instructions from your producer.

Questions

Should the emcee be a famous name?

Only if the name itself helps the event, for example to bring in press. Fame does not keep a programme on time. Some events book both: a known guest, and a host who runs the programme.

Can our DJ do the announcements?

For music cues, yes. For speaker introductions, awards and timing, the DJ is doing a second job at the same time, and it shows when the announcements matter.

How many events should a host have done?

There is no magic number. Ask how many they have done in your format, and watch a video of one.

Should the host meet our speakers before they go on?

Yes, for the key speakers. A short conversation lets the host introduce them accurately and agree the cue for their walk-on.