Raising a fee is one of the harder conversations in a speaking career. It can feel like pushing your luck, or hoping nobody asks too many questions. We wanted to understand what actually happens on the other side of that conversation, so we asked Nick Gold, Managing Director at Speakers Corner, what separates a fee rise that lands from one that stalls.

His starting point was a reassuring one. “The core for me is demonstrating value,” he told us. Not confidence. Not timing. Not bravado. Something a client can actually see.

The market is steadier than it feels

Before getting into what works, Nick pushed back on an assumption a lot of speakers make: a nervous economy means fees should stay put.

“The speaking industry can be seen to be fairly resistant to market conditions,” he said. “Even companies in troubled times are still looking for help, guidance, answers, inspiration, education. It’s easy to do that for a whole workforce in one place at one time, rather than individually.”

He went further. “As a community, we should be bold, and we should believe this industry is going to get bigger. I talk about abundance, and I think the abundance is only going to get bigger.”

That matters. Many speakers hold back on fees because the economy feels shaky, not because of anything in their own career. Nick’s view is that the worry is bigger than the reality.

What actually moves the number

Nick was clear about what does and doesn’t justify an increase.

“Never raise your fees because it’s been a year, because of inflation, because of the cost of living,” he said. “Raise them because you’ve done something that tangibly means the client is going to get extra value from you.”

A year passing is true for everyone. It tells a client nothing about why you’re worth more than last year. A new book, new research or a rising profile does. “My fees are increasing around September because I’m releasing a new book, whatever it might be,” was the kind of line Nick said he wants to hear.

Saying it early changes what it means

There’s a second part to this, and it’s about timing. Nick described what happens when a speaker tells a bureau about a rise well before it takes effect. “I love it when a speaker tells me, I’ve got this coming out, I plan to raise my fees in six or twelve months, because my profile is rising,” he said. “What does that mean for me as a booker? It means I can go to a client and say, lock them in now, because this is what’s coming.”

Said early, a fee rise is useful information for a bureau. Said only when someone asks why the price has gone up, it sounds like a demand. “You’ve justified it,” Nick said of speakers who get this right. “Nothing is worse than someone just raising fees with no justification, whatever the economic climate is doing.”

That runs through everything else he said. It isn’t really about fees. It’s about having a reason before anyone has to ask for one.

Trusting the process more than the number

Nick’s last point was a simple one. “Have your strategy, stick to your strategy, focus on that, and don’t worry about the wider picture,” Nick said. “Businesses, if they have the right person who can help push them forward, the budget is always there. It’s always flexible.”

The number itself is never really the obstacle. What determines whether it lands is whether a reason is sitting behind it, and whether that reason has already been shared.

A higher fee on its own leaves the client guessing, and they rarely guess kindly. Give them the reason and the same fee makes sense. The speaker hasn’t changed. The only difference is what the client knows.

Nick’s advice is straightforward.

Worrying about the economy won’t justify a higher fee, and neither will another year going by. What does is something real that a client can see, shared early enough that it doesn’t come as a surprise. A fee rise tends to land when something has genuinely changed and the people who book you hear about it first.

The encouraging part is that all of this is within a speaker’s control. So, the next time a fee increase feels overdue, the gentler question isn’t whether it’s fair. It’s whether the people booking you know the reason yet.