Effective Presentations

Do you ever feel like you are talking to a blank wall? Do you feel like your message isn’t getting through to your audience, e.g., staff, public meeting, council meeting, press conference, or user group meeting? If you do, you may want to try something different. Here are a few tips that I suggest that are taken from my journey toward becoming a Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) of which there are only 3,500 in the entire world.

1. Practice on the content and delivery of your message. Aaron Beverly, the 2019 winner of the best speaker in the world contest, practiced for 20 HOURS, prior to giving his first speech of 4 to 6 minutes.
2. Remember to be aware of the extreme importance of connecting with your audience. Connecting techniques always include movement with purpose, use of vocal variety to deliver your message with the acronym – APPTV (articulate, pace, pitch, tone and volume), and word choices that your audience will recognize and be attracted to – for example, opportunity rather than doom and gloom.
3. Do not ramble! The attention span of all audiences is limited. Very few presenters in the world can hold an audience’s attention for more than a few minutes.
4. Always use imagery to deliver your message. At best, your audience will remember less than 10% of what you say. Up the odds for what your audience to 85% by using imagery.
5. Work hard to include your audience by calling on them for responses, using their name when you can, and use stories or humorous comments when they are appropriate for the group.
6. Video your presentations from time to time to critique yourself.