How Can I Engage My Audience?
by Melony Brown
Many of us have sat through a mind-numbing presentation, checking our watch every few minutes to determine how much longer we must endure the torturous experience. Likely, we would not recommend the speaker to any of our friends or co-workers. Nor are we likely to remember what the presenter said after we walk out the door. Overall, it was a waste of our time.
So, how can you as a speaker engage your audiences, deliver a memorable message, and effectively communicate your thoughts? Incorporate the following suggestions into your presentations:
- It is imperative to connect with your audience. You have less than a minute to make that valuable first impression. Start with a background experience related to your topic, allowing the audience the opportunity to get to know you and why your message is important. Even if your message has a serious tone, your audience doesn’t want to be lectured to. Find a way to interject a funny example or anecdote to illustrate your point, even if it is at your expense.
- Find a way to incorporate visual demonstrations into your message. A simple, colorful prop used to illustrate your point will stick in the minds of your audience longer than your words will. Sometimes your message won’t lend itself to a visual demonstration, so think outside the box of your topic. For example, a lesson about the importance of serving others can be illustrated by having the audience write “Serve Others” on socks as they make the commitment to serve others. Mention that you will be donating them to a homeless shelter.
- Audiences demand meaningful presentations with a high ‘take away value.’ A person’s time is an extremely important commodity. In general, people are pulled in so many directions. If they are choosing to spend their time with you, then you must add to their knowledge, their skills, or their prospects for the future. As the speaker, you must deliver all that you promise.
- Pregnant pauses are very effective. Especially after you ask a rhetorical question. Audiences need time to breathe, or more specifically, time to think. If you present a large amount of information without giving the audience time to process it, then the chances are high they will not retain much of what you said. Try asking a rhetorical question and then simply wait fifteen seconds to let them think about their answer. Audiences will generally think through the information you are presenting if you allow them time to connect your new information to their previously learned information. Once the connection is made, the audience will retain it.
- Eye contact during a conversation helps deliver your message, your intent, and your interest in communicating with the other person. It has the same value during your presentation. Spend little time looking at your notes and more time making eye contact with each member of your audience.
- Close with a strong appeal. If you skip over or water down the ‘call to action,’ your audience will likely leave and do nothing with the information you gave them. Instead, encourage your audience to apply the points of your message to their lives. Ask a well-thought out rhetorical question as you leave the platform, causing them to continue to think about your message.
As a speaker, you have the opportunity to speak into the lives of each person who sits in your audience. If you believe your message will add value to your audience, then you must constantly seek to improve your public speaking abilities. Incorporate the suggestions above, and you are on your way to becoming a memorable speaker who makes a difference to many.
