Mastering the Art of Public Speaking: 5 Essential Tips for Success – Part 1

Let’s face it. The person leading the team, heading the team project, presenting the findings or prototypes, publicizing products at the launch event – he or she is up there on the stage because of one skill – public speaking.

The ability to captivate audience, hype up the presentation/ speech, and persuade with panache and charisma (i.e. audience to buy in to the idea/ product).

Public Speaking is a skill that can lead to a variety of opportunities in both the personal and professional spheres. Augmenting your presenting abilities is pivotal for success, regardless of the size of the audience you’re speaking to or the small group you’re addressing. Need some help to start your public speaking journey? Here’s the beginning part of a FIVE-part series that will help you become a competent public speaker and enhance your presentation abilities in general.

In this article, we delve into the first strategy (part 1 of 5):

Strategy #1: Know Thy (Your) Audience

It is essential to comprehend your audience in order to communicate effectively. Spend some time learning about the expectations, interests, and demographics of your audience before you start preparing your speech or presentation. Whether your audience is made up of novices looking for basic information or seasoned professionals in your industry, adapt your content and delivery manner to suit their needs.

*IMPORTANT side note* – there is no one size fits all presentation. Steve Job’s product launch to the masses/ public is going to be different from the presentation he gave to the internal company’s board of directors.

To conduct audience research for a speech or presentation, think about taking the following actions:

How to know your audience for a speech or presentation:

Ascertain your audience’s age, gender, level of education, cultural background, and occupation.
Determine the audience’s requirements, concerns, and areas of interest that relate to the speech’s topic. Find out from the company’s human resources manager or event planners how to accomplish this via surveys, interviews, online research, or any other method!
Analyze the speech’s context, taking into account the location, the time of day (before or after lunch – take into account the possibility of a “food coma”), and the speech’s goals.
Consider any special requirements or hopes the audience or event planners may have for the speech (e.g., does it need to fit within a certain event theme).

Determine the demands of your target audience and work to provide the necessary bridge to get them there. This is referred to as the relevance bridge method. This serves as a link to demonstrate to your audience how the main idea or substance of your presentation is directly pertinent to their daily lives. They are more likely to pay attention and absorb the information you are giving if they can relate it to their everyday lives.

Start with the ultimate result you want your audience to achieve in order to create the relevant bridge. Determine the issue or gap that your presentation is attempting to fill, for instance, if you are trying to sell a good or service. Incorporate compassionate expressions to demonstrate to your readers that you recognize and comprehend the particular difficulty they are facing. When pitching a new learning management system, for instance, begin with the statement, “Many of us will find it a struggle to manually keep track of the student records every single day.” Use this bridge to communicate with your audience!

Stay tuned for Part 2 in which we share tips with regard to the second strategy on the right way to practice your speech!