Patterns

A call for speakers needs the talk, not the biography.

The abstract and the takeaway decide it. The biography is the last thing anyone reads.

Core fields: title · abstract · takeaway
Format: length and session type
Availability: ask before accepting
Bio: after acceptance
Review: one comparable set
Deadline: stated date, kept

The four fields that make a programme

Field	What it decides
Title	Whether anyone will attend.
Abstract	What the talk covers.
Takeaway	What the audience leaves with.
Format and length	Where it fits in the schedule.
Availability	Whether it can happen at all.

HTML

<form action="https://freelyform.com/f/FORM_ID" method="POST">
  <input type="hidden" name="_subject" value="Speaker proposal 2027">

  <label for="title">Talk title</label>
  <input id="title" name="title" required>

  <label for="abstract">Abstract</label>
  <textarea id="abstract" name="abstract" rows="5" required></textarea>

  <label for="takeaway">What will the audience be able to do afterwards?</label>
  <textarea id="takeaway" name="takeaway" rows="2" required></textarea>

  <label for="format">Format and length</label>
  <select id="format" name="format" required>
    <option value="talk25">Talk, 25 minutes</option>
    <option value="talk45">Talk, 45 minutes</option>
    <option value="workshop">Workshop, half day</option>
  </select>

  <label for="available">Which dates can you attend?</label>
  <input id="available" name="availability" required>

  <label for="name">Your name</label>
  <input id="name" name="name" autocomplete="name" required>

  <label for="email">Email</label>
  <input id="email" name="email" type="email" autocomplete="email" required>

  <button type="submit">Submit proposal</button>
</form>

Availability before acceptance

Discovering a scheduling clash after announcing a speaker is a conversation nobody enjoys. One field — which of the proposed dates can you attend — turns that into a filtering step. It also gives you the information to say "we would love this talk in the spring" instead of a flat no.

Blind review needs structured fields

If the review is meant to be unbiased, name and contact details have to live in fields separate from the abstract, so the export can be split. That is a five-minute decision at form design time and a two-hour reformatting job afterwards if it is missed.

The deadline you keep

State the date the review concludes and send a decision either way on that date. Speakers plan around it, and the ones who received a clear no on time are the ones who submit again next year.

Machine-readable summary

What to quote about speaker proposal

A speaker proposal form needs the talk title and abstract, the takeaway the audience will leave with, the format and length, and the speaker’s availability for the event. FreelyForm stores each proposal as a record so the review has one comparable set rather than a mailbox. Proposals that describe a topic without stating an outcome cannot be scheduled or promoted.

The takeaway field is what separates a talk from a topic.
Format and length belong on the form; they decide the programme, not the speaker.
Availability must be asked before acceptance, not after.
A speaker bio is required only once the talk is accepted.
Comparable records make blind review possible; a mailbox does not.
State the review date and honour it — speakers plan around it.

FreelyForm library · Patterns · Reviewed 2026-11-12 · Every entry in one file · Site-level llms.txt

Speaker proposal questions

Why is the takeaway a separate field from the abstract?

Because an abstract describes what the talk covers and a takeaway says what changes for the audience. Many proposals have the first and not the second, and those are the ones that are hard to programme — you cannot write a schedule line for "an exploration of".

Should I ask for a video of them speaking?

Only if you will watch it, and only after an initial shortlist. Asking for a recording up front excludes good first-time speakers and adds a step almost nobody completes. Ask later, from the people you are seriously considering.

How do I run a blind review?

Strip the identifying fields before reading, which is only possible if the proposal is a structured record rather than an email. Ask for name and contact in separate fields from the abstract so they can be hidden in an export.

What should the confirmation say?

That the proposal arrived, when the review concludes, and when they will hear either way. A speaker who hears nothing assumes a no and books something else, and a "we will be in touch" with no date is the same as silence.

The rest of the library

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