Tag Archives: audience

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Be A Rock Star Panelist

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Being invited to speak on a panel is a golden opportunity, a wonderful way to demonstrate your expertise and ability to think on your feet. Being on a panel is an excellent marketing technique and it can also be fun. There is an art to it though and if you want to be invited to participate a second time, make sure that you look good the first time.

1.   Know the subject

You’ve been invited to join the panel to share your deep knowledge and experience and/or your intriguing and compelling perspectives regarding the subject matter. You are there to inform and enlighten the audience. Do not disappoint. If you do not possess the expertise, then you must decline the invitation, regardless of how wonderful the opportunity is.

2.   Control your introduction

One week before your appearance, confirm details with the program organizer and send a three sentence bio that should be forwarded to the panel moderator. As a precaution, print out a copy and hand it to the moderator before taking your seat.

3.   Speak up and speak clearly

Veteran speakers say that the optimal distance between your lips and the microphone is one inch. Lean in (but don’t hunch over) and speak clearly.

4.   Entertain and inform

As with a program keynote speaker, a panelist is there not only to inform, but also entertain. A bored audience tunes out. Witty sound-bytes work wonders. Sprinkling in a few makes you look smart and you will be remembered by those in the audience.

5.   Tell the outrageous truth

Prepare yourself for a tough, possibly embarrassing, question form the moderator. Fear not, because this is a good thing. You will then have the opportunity to be gutsy and funny, and show the audience that you are a straight shooter. Tell the outrageous truth, especially when it’s obvious. If the question is that scary, plead the fifth amendment and let the audience laugh with you.

6.   KISS—Keep it short and simple

Real experts know how to boil complex issues down to their essence and give answers and explanations that can be readily understood by non-experts. Avoid tossing around technical jargon and you’ll look like the smartest person in the room and win the admiration of the audience.

7.   Answer the question that you want to answer

Unless you feel that you must take the fifth, answer the question that was asked, but do not hesitate to take the discussion in a direction that lets you express your unique perspective, or demonstrate your expertise and experience. Give your answer and segue with “… but the real issue is…”

8.   Face the audience and not the moderator

It is tempting to face the person who asks the questions, but be mindful that s/he is not the audience, but the vehicle for posing questions that tease out information that audience members are presumed to want.

9.   Never look bored.

Active listening will help with this one. Looking engaged while another panelist is droning on, or resisting the reflexive action of making a face if someone says something that you find inaccurate or ridiculous, is perhaps the hardest part of being a panelist.

10. Listen to the other panelists

Being able to refer to something said by another panelist adds to the value of the information shared. If you want to politely refute a previous panelist, or add more information to a point that has been made (“…I think the real issue is…”), you’ll need to listen carefully. Jotting down a couple of notes is a good idea as well, to help you remember what was said and/or formulate your rebuttal.

11. Never agree with the other panelists (much)

Moderators frequently put the same question to every panelist, so that different perspectives on the question can be brought forth. The last speaker often will have nothing to add. Rather than stating that you agree with the previous panelists, with a smile, say “I believe the question has been answered…”

12. Know the other panelists

The organizer should tell you who else is on the panel. Internet search and find out their area of expertise and what they may have written or said about the subject. You do not want any surprises and honestly, you want information that will help you look smarter.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Presentation Checklist: Audience Matters

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Next week, I will make two 15 minute presentations and in four weeks, I will make a 30 minute presentation and also preside at a big meeting. The latter engagement is an annual event and I knew well in advance of my obligation, but requests for the first two talks came up unexpectedly. Fortunately, I have time to prepare for all. Here’s how I’ll get ready to stand and deliver:

Who’s in the house and what do they want to know?

All presentations are ruled by the audience and the information that is desired. That information is the purpose of your talk and it determines what you’ll present. Find out also if any stakeholders whom you must persuade will be unable to attend and arrange to follow-up with them personally, if possible.

Hecklers and haters

While researching your talk, ask the organizer if anyone in the audience might have a reason to undermine your objective and why that would be so. To neutralize expected opposition, acknowledge somewhere in the solutions section of your talk that some in the audience may have considered another recipe for resolution and state how your approach will likely be more effective, sustainable over the long term, easier or less expensive to implement, or whatever. Handle the matter like a sales objection, because that’s what it is.

Audience size

The size of the audience guides your method of presentation. An audience of five is intimate and calls for a different approach —most likely more relaxed and personal— than an audience of 50. A larger audience often requires that the speaker use visuals, along with a speaking style and pacing that engages a bigger room.

Does the audience know you?

Friends in the house will make your job easier because you will feel more comfortable standing in front of them. If you are mostly an unknown quantity, it’s important to establish rapport with the audience early in the talk. A statement about how you understand or empathize with a priority or concern is a good ice-breaker and gives you credibility, since you agree with them.

What do you want audience members to do post-presentation?

Design your presentation to frame your call to action as logical, effective, beneficial and inevitable. Describe what you would like audience members, in particular the thought-leaders and decision-makers, to do on your behalf. Do you want them to donate money or time? Approve your proposal? Vote in a certain way? If you are able to make fulfilling your call to action easier for them, then do so.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Present With Pizzazz

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In this column I have often urged those who want to establish themselves as experts in their chosen field to find speaking and teaching opportunities.  Getting out in front of an audience is a time-tested way to identify and impress potential clients and referral sources,  a good way to drum up business.  So maybe it’s time to review a few useful presentation techniques that will make you feel more confident and therefore more likely to pursue this strategy.

Keep it simple and tell a story

The best speakers know that the more complex the topic,  the more important to make it easy for the audience to understand.  Distill a complicated message into fewer words.  Include a personal anecdote or story that illustrates a key point you’re trying to make.  A story makes your presentation more compelling by placing the message into a context that is relevant to the audience.  A story paints a picture and helps the audience make sense of the topic.

You are the star

You are the speaker and the stage belongs to you.  Do not allow slides to upstage your talk.  How do you do that?  By not using your slides as a crutch.  By not posting your entire talk onto slides.  Avoid presenting a boat load of text-heavy slides that you read from,  instead of speaking to and connecting with those who came out for you.  

On your slides include important charts and graphs,  key statistics,  major talking points and relevant visuals that support and advance your message.  Practice your presentation often and get to know your material,  so you won’t be overly dependent on slides.

Engage and involve your audience

Most of all,  give the right talk.  Know what the audience expects you to address.  The person who schedules your talk can help you choose a topic and give you the heads-up re: big questions that audience members may want answered.  To keep your audience engaged,  pose a question or two at some point in your presentation.  Also,  be willing to answer questions as you go along and make your presentation more of a conversation with the audience.

We deliver

While good content is essential,  that alone will not win over an audience.  Body language and delivery also matter.  Audiences size up and judge a speaker within the first three minutes of a presentation.  Be sure to project confidence,  expertise,  good humor and approachability.  Smile,  make eye contact and use a pleasant,  yet authoritative,  tone of voice.  Show appropriate enthusiasm and passion for your subject matter.  Let the audience know that you like being up there speaking.  

How to get to Carnegie Hall

Practice and practice some more.  It takes a lot of work to make a presentation look effortless.  Skilled presenters give the impression that their clever ad libs and convincing responses to questions are all ex tempore,  but nothing could be further from the truth.  The fact is,  successful presentations are built on lots of preparation and rehearsal time: wordsmithing what may sound too complex or unclear,  deciding what text and visuals to include on slides,  how to integrate the slides with the talk,  anticipating questions and formulating good answers.  Read your talk out loud and record your voice,  to make sure that you pace your delivery appropriately.

An effective presentation should inform, educate and entertain.  Make that happen when you simplify your message and de-clutter your slides,  interact with the audience by asking and answering questions throughout your talk and practice a lot.  Hit your mark and the audience will regard you as an expert.  Mission accomplished.

Thanks for reading,

Kim