How to Get B2B Conference Speaking Opportunities

Step 1: Find the right conferences

Most people target conferences they've heard of. The better approach: target conferences where your exact peer set is already speaking.

Pull the speaker roster for any conference in your space. Look for:

Companies at similar stage and profile to yours
Speakers with similar titles to your executive
Topics that are adjacent to (not identical to) your product category

If the conference has speakers like yours, the program committee already understands that profile. Your pitch is familiar, not foreign.

KeynoteData shows you the full speaker roster for 13 B2B conferences with seniority tags and company data. Start with the conferences where your profile already fits — it's a much shorter path to a yes.

Step 2: Find the gap in the program

Conference program committees are looking for what they're missing, not more of what they already have. Review the session topics and speaker companies for each conference you're targeting.

Ask yourself:

What topic category is underrepresented in the speaker list?
What point of view does your executive have that isn't already covered?
What's changing in the market that none of the existing speakers are addressing?

Your pitch should fill a gap, not compete with speakers they've already confirmed.

Step 3: Write a data-backed pitch

The best speaking pitches reference the event specifically:

Name two or three sessions from their most recent program that were in the right neighborhood (but not the same topic as your proposal)
Reference the audience profile — "I saw you featured three CMOs from enterprise SaaS last year; I'm speaking to VP-level demand gen leaders who run $5M+ event budgets"
Lead with the audience benefit, not your credentials — "Here's what your attendees will walk out knowing" beats "Here's why I'm qualified"

This level of specificity requires research. Most pitches don't have it. That's the edge.

Sample Data

A preview of what's in the database.

Name	Title	Company	Level	Conference(s)	LinkedIn
Dario Amodei	Co-Founder & CEO	Anthropic	C-Level	INBOUND,Dreamforce	LinkedIn ↗
Mati Staniszewski	Co-Founder & CEO	ElevenLabs	C-Level	INBOUND,Dreamforce	LinkedIn ↗
Yamini Rangan	CEO	HubSpot	C-Level	INBOUND,SaaStr Annual	LinkedIn ↗
Kerry Cunningham	Head of Research & Thought Leadership	6sense	Head of	INBOUND,6sense Breakthrough	LinkedIn ↗
Olivier Godement	Head of Platform	OpenAI	Head of	INBOUND,Dreamforce	LinkedIn ↗
Aaron Levie	CEO	Box	C-Level	SaaStr Annual	LinkedIn ↗

Showing 6 of 887 speakers. Get full access to filter and export.

Questions

When should I submit a speaking application?

Most major B2B conferences open their CFP (Call for Proposals) 4-6 months before the event. INBOUND typically opens in December for their September event. Check the conference website for specific deadlines.

Is it better to pitch original research or tactical how-to content?

Depends on the conference. Research-heavy conferences (MozCon, INBOUND) value proprietary data. Sales and practitioner conferences (OutBound, Sandler Summit) value tactical, actionable content. Review the session titles from past years — they tell you exactly what the program committee selects.

How many conferences should I target at once?

Start with 3-5 conferences where your profile fits. It's better to pitch 3 conferences with highly tailored pitches than 15 with a generic one. Each pitch should reference the specific conference and show you've done your research.