Vince Stevenson is one of England's greatest speaking enthusiasts, having competed for and won many prestigious competitions. Vince is involved with speaking at many levels and has just finished his year as District President of the South-Eastern District of the Association of Speakers Clubs having been involved in its educational development for many years. Vince is a founder and lead trainer at the College of Public Speaking, a business dedicated to improving effective communication skills in industry. He is also an in demand after-dinner speaker.
Copyright © 2007 The College Of Public Speaking
Time is money and when speaking in public having a clear objective is even more important with business talks.
The key question is - what is the purpose of your presentation? What do you want to achieve?
Do you want to inform, persuade, inspire, entertain?
Make the context crystal clear. Spend a long time considering your subject and gathering appropriate material that will punch your key messages home. How long will you be speaking for? What is your place on the speaking programme? Do you have to tie in with someone else's contribution? Consider the number of people in the audience and the auditorium itself - who'll be there - and who they are? Could they have an impact on your speaking career?
What visual aids equipment will be there? (or do you want to be there)? Know how to use it properly - and carry spares! Liaise with the organizers and make sure that there are no loose ends on the day.
Get the sequence of your talk right. Would an agenda help? You will need a logical and 'signposted' structure with a definite conclusion (do not leave it in the air!). Have a strong opening with impact, something that the audience will remember long after. Similarly, the ending should be memorable. Research shows that your audience will probably remember the beginning and the ending if they are delivered convincingly.
Establish your audience's level of knowledge by research before the event. The army has an interesting saying: ‘Good reconnaissance is never wasted.' Ensure you adapt your presentation to their level of knowledge and interest.
Involve your audience right at the start - including getting their agreement to your key messages early. Win them over. Smile, talk of 'we/us', and never talk down or patronize your audience.
Keep them awake. It's better without a written script (unless you have to). Aim for variety of voice - word pictures can be highlighted within a long talk - visual aids, maybe (with pie charts rather than tables) or break it up with a 2-man act.
Circulate handouts before the event, not during. Or tell them at the start if they'll get notes at the end. Be prepared for questions. Note and remember who asked the question. Remember to repeat the question before answering in case somebody in the audience didn't catch the question.
If you don't know the answer - never flannel – it will show!
There are three keys to success: preparation - preparation - preparation.
Explore all three in great detail and you will probably succeed in your assignment.
http://www.collegeofpublicspeaking.co.uk
- Related Videos
- Related Articles
- Ask / Related Q&A
- Effective Public Speaking - Five Ways to Captivate your Listeners
- Art Of Public Speaking.
- Critical Public Speaking Pre-preparation
- A Hidden Secret to Growing your Public Speaking Business!
- Emotional Freedom Techniques For Public Speaking
- Public Speaking - How To Present An Effective Speech
- Public Speaking and Panic Attacks
- Top 10 Public Speaking Skills
The Importance of Safety Checklists on the Job
By: Rice General | 07/01/2010How important is safety to your company? How would you like to be among the leaders in job safety? Let us show you how.
You Can Improve Your Memory & Learning Skills, And It's Baby Easy
By: H. Bernard Wechsler | 06/01/2010If you want to improve your personal skills to have a competitive advantage over your peers, start reading now. New neuroscience with proven research.
Time Management
By: Richard D | 05/01/2010Time is the most intriguing factor in every sphere of life and even more so in managerial world. Time management is the way that solves your anxious hankering for second and minutes in a rush and that actually helps you to make the most of your available time.
Do You Focus on Your Still Small Voice?
By: H. Bernard Wechsler | 04/01/2010New neuroscientific research indicates how to influence, persuade and convince others. Learn to communicate better. Start now. Know how our brain works.
BRILLIANT! I've Made $3,267.75 in just 24 hours.. A TRUE Plug-and-Play, in-a-BOX System Literally Anybody—No Matter what your Skill level!
By: Martinact420 | 04/01/2010Dear Internet Entrepreneur & Networking friends, "What Are You Doing?" Get ready... switch off your cellphone, grab a seat, and hold tight. -->> This page is about to alter your life... ... You're about to have your eyes wrenched open. In fact, I'll be bolder than that... ... You're about to have your entire life changed - Permanently.
Creating a Killer Sales Page to Move People to Action
By: Christine Comaford | 04/01/2010Having a killer sales page is an absolute must to creating results now and CEO Freedom, because you can do all the hard work to drive them there, but if you’re sales page isn’t top notch, you’ll never make your sale. So first you need to really know your target market and speak to their pain. Each component of a sales page is key. Here are the 10 components that my friend Jane Deuber recommends.
inabia project management training
By: azfar | 04/01/2010Inabia Software & Consulting is a professional Recruiting Company, which provides Consultants who are highly educated, well trained and experienced to support specific needs in Design, Development and Implementation Environments. Year after year, Inabia Software & Consulting has increased the Productivity of many Fortune 500 Companies. We develop Multi-Dimensional technologies that provide solution to meet your business objectives.
5 Major Mistakes Made by Speakers
By: Vince Stevenson | 18/05/2007 | PresentationThis article is designed for people who need help when making a speech or presentation to friends, family or peers - and do not know where to begin.