I can't imagine the life of a professional speaker nowadays. They have to compete constantly for the attention of their audience. They have to be a subject-matter expert, entertaining and present their message in short, bite-sized chunks.
So, given all these demands, what can a presenter do to make certain they are memorable? Art Markman, Founding member at Maximizing Mind, LLC recently wrote a book called "Smart Thinking" where he presented "The Role of 3" — meaning individuals can only remember three distinct things about any experience.
Here are some of the highlights from the book and three key takeaways of how interactive technology tool rentals can help any meeting planner.
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PREPARE
As a speaker in today's fast-paced world, a presenter need to ask the following questions of their event services organization:
How much time do I have? Whatever the length of time, the presenter should prepare to spend two minutes per slide if they are using PowerPoint presentation equipment. For example, if they are allocated 30 minutes for their talk, they should have no more than 15 slides.
What does the audience want to know? Gathering as many facts about your attendees as possible, will help your speakers tailor their presentation to the needs of the attendees.
What is the demographic make-up of the attendees? Understanding who the attendees are and how they most effectively learn, can help your presenters shape a talk that will be the most impactful on your audience.
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REVIEW
"Tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you told them."
The first slide and last slide should be the same — highlighting the three key points of the talk. The presentation unfolds a story about those points complete with photos, graphics and videos. Slides that are complicated, wordy or off-base will just confuse and ultimately lose the focus of the audience. Keep the messaging simple and repeatable.
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PAY ATTENTION
Presenters need to look out into their audience and read the facial expressions and body positioning of the group. Are they moving in and listening to the message or are they distracted? It is important to keep the attendees engaged in the message and it is easy to do through interactive technology tool rentals such as wireless Audience Response Systems, mobile device polling or social media conversations. Encourage attendees to interact at the session and make sure your speakers are constantly reading and reacting to their body language.
AV Event Solutions, now part of SmartSource Rentals, has presentation services audio visual equipment, Audience Response rental units, iPads and much, much more to help your speakers connect with attendees.
