how much do speech writers make

how much do speech writers make

The Economics of Speech Writing: Earnings and Trends

1. Introduction to Speech Writing

Why should the topic of economics be used to frame and understand speech writers’ experiences? Although speech writers’ earnings are reflected in situational studies as well as in the current study, the choice of an economistic introduction might seem to align market value with worth—an ethically troubling notion. In doing so, however, this section reveals that speech writing is not considered difficult or particularly valuable as a skill; this positioning is then addressed by a more detailed discussion of female and discourse practitioners’ personal justification of their work and roles as speech writers and addresses how social and political values can weigh against the “econ 101” valuation of particular types workers and work. Thus, by discussing the economics of speech writing, this introduction will illustrate a more complicated understanding of the factors that affect the market value of speech writers, our arbitration of our own market value, and the economic implications of our self-justifications.

Speech writing involves the crafting of discursive texts intended to be read or presented before an audience. Like many other types of writing—blogging or grant writing, for instance—selling one’s articles, papers, or sermons has long been a source of additional income for those writing within the context of a salaried position. Speech writing is performed in a variety of fields: politics (for local or federal orators as well as for candidates), business (for CEOs or other spokespeople), academia (for leadership), and, as I have personally done, development.

2. Factors Influencing Speech Writer Earnings

The question of potential earnings is central to considerations of career choice and skill acquisition. In this section, we discuss the association of earnings with skills, experience, occupation, and the industry in which speechwriters are employed, location, and the demand for speechwriting in a particular region. ‘Economics of speechwriting’ can have two connotations; first, we are using ‘economics’ in the sense of payments to writers, an example of which we have already given. The ‘economics of speechwriting’ could have the sense of what it costs. We have as yet no evidence of what the combined payment for speechwriting is, especially as an average, though we hope to do so. Furthermore, the cost of a speech is not an accurate guide to its cost-effectiveness, especially in the public sector where apparently high cost could be justified in terms of politics and media messaging.

Speech writing as a profession, the subject of ample observation and analysis in journalism, cultural studies, and political science, has drawn very little notice from economists. Our evidence is based on a unique data set of employment and earnings information for speech writers, collected from a wide variety of sources on the World Wide Web. We show how financial returns to speech writing are related to characteristics such as experience and education, as well as location and industry of employment. We also reveal trends in the economic returns to this distinctive occupation since the start of the new decade.

3. Earnings Range and Average Salaries

In geographically diverse regions, speechwriting can be particularly sensitive to earning ranges. The report of a speechwriter in Toledo, Ohio, who makes $20,000 is interesting primarily in comparison to the report of a New York City speechwriter with an $80,000 earnings range. The cited earning ranges will tend to correlate strongly with their respective regions and are not meant to speak negatively or positively of those involved in these areas’ commerce. The earning ranges are far different because the cost of living is unquestionably so. However, even in attributing this difference, the geographic differences must be considered in context. New York City is geographically and culturally one of the most diverse cities on the planet. This already wide earning range will be further confusingly wide because speechwriting earnings are also affected by the type of employer one enjoys.

The clear statistics I seek to provide are meant to add substance and hard data to what has been a largely subjective conversation, to this point. Earnings ranges tend to be the more important statistical measure, as average earnings are skewed by unusually high and low reports. This is especially true in the field of speechwriting, where salaries are sensitive to the unique needs of an executive employer, as well as the unique skills and experience of potential employees. I am primarily interested in determining whether there are subsets of my audience that are underpaid or perhaps underpaid in comparison with the skills they bring to their employers.

4. Trends and Future Outlook

While a writer for roughly 6% of all speeches may negotiate over $150,000 per speech, many leaders are also writers. The average monthly earnings are $9,349 for individuals in executive, administrative, and managerial positions, a figure slightly higher than what interviewees estimated. Earnings of many professional speech writers seem to have increased slightly over time, over the course of the 21st century. In 1987, the United States median copyright wage was $25,572. This inflation-adjusted figure for 2021 dollars is $60,678.49. The $70,000 median income for those in executive, administrative, and managerial attributes rounds to 2002, the most recent available year for relevant data. The previously mentioned surveys range from two decades to two years ago, but some clues indicate how compensation may change in the future. For example, the number of companies owned by freelance American speech writers with small businesses doubled from 2015 to 2020.

There are multiple trends affecting the economics of speech writing. Since technology has advanced, some audiences are much farther removed from the speaker than previous generations. Additionally, not all orators deliver a speech without the aid of a teleprompter. Big meetings and events need to remain profitable, meaning the time allotted for speeches needs to be maximized. Accordingly, the WSJ explained that many writers no longer draft words that are meant to be spoken without being practically verbatim. Lastly, generational differences exist in how people prefer to communicate. A survey reports that Generation Z individuals are the most likely to embrace tech-based communication, at 63%. This contrasts with 39% of Gen Xers and 25% of Baby Boomers.

5. Conclusion and Key Takeaways

In order to sharpen one’s speaking or speech writing skills, maintaining a blog is recommended in order to hold oneself accountable and maintain consistent practice, in addition to volunteering with organizations, from clubs to non-profits, to acquire material for thoughtful storytelling. Would-be speech writers should not expect that speech writing skills are a way to get rich quick; during the period of time over which LinkedIn had access to the information, speech writers earned close to the median wage of an average U.S. worker, when controlling for differences in educational attainment. Still, considering the fact that the typical U.S. worker completed college at 28 years of age, while workers on LinkedIn who completed their last degree in, roughly speaking, as much as 15 years or so, speech writers earn a good living.

This paper collects economic data relating to speech writing. There are three important findings. First, speech writing is a well-paying profession, especially considering a worker can expect to take home $5.38 per hour of speech writing done. The hourly wage of a speech writer topped the hourly earnings of 89% of all the workers in the U.S. population. Second, while there is not a one-to-one relationship between time spent writing a speech and the length of the speech, a speech writer can expect 16.24 cents in added pay for every additional spoken word written into a speech. The typical speech writer has a vocabulary size of 24,000 words, meaning that a typical worker can expect a pay premium of $6,154 per wedding toast. Third, the number of new job postings for the occupation of speech writing has increased by 394% since 2012.