W Wouldn’t It Be Nice If. . .

Before your presentation, your Audience had specific instructions and training on how to be a Good Audience?

An audience can make or break a presentation.

A good, enthusiastic group gives the speaker responses and energy that lead to a better presentation.

Audiences with individuals who have their own agendas and don’t respect the speaker’s efforts, can disrupt an otherwise, good presentation.  This can lead to, frustration for the presenter, a less than stellar performance, and the audience not GETTING the speaker’s message.

If the speaker has developed and practiced a speech, the audience should follow certain “Guidelines” that give the presenter an opportunity to deliver their message so the audience GETS IT!  They don’t have to agree with all of it.  They don’t have to agree with any of it.  However, unless they GET IT! there can’t be a significant discussion going forward.

To help the speaker, and the audience, I’ve compiled a set of:

Audience Instructions

1. Arrive well before the scheduled event.
• Arriving after an event has started and finding a seat is disruptive to everyone.
2. If you can meet the presenter before their presentation, befriendly and say, “I’m looking forward to your presentation!”  That short sentence gives the speaker added incentive and energy for their upcoming talk.
   • Smart speakers, if possible, Meet & Greet audience participants before the presentation.  They greet people as they enter the room, and thank them for coming.  This activity “connects” the speaker to the participants.  It’s a technique that lowers the speaker’s anxiety and usually leads to a more attentive audience.
3. Sit so that your whole body faces the speaker.  This isn’t a problem if chairs are already arranged in a classroom style.  Sometimes, though, the presentation is after a meal where people are seated at round tables.  It is best for the people to turn their chairs to face the presenter.
4. Be an Active Listener.
• Lean towards the speaker.
• Be able to repeat the last statement the speaker made.
• Make eye contact with the presenter.
• If the speaker asks a question like, “Does that make sense?” Motion your head up and down if it does, side to side if it doesn’t.
• A good speaker should always be taking the temperature of the audience and nonverbal communication is important to them for letting them know if you’re
  GETTING IT!
5. If you want to ask the speaker a question, wait till the proper time.
   • An experienced speaker, in their Opening, will tell the audience how and when they will be handling questions.
   • It’s possible, the question you have, will be answered at a point further in the presentation.
   • Jot it down so you don’t forget to ask if it isn’t covered.
   • Don’t wave your hand trying to ask questions when it’s not the Q&A part of the presentation.
     • It’s distracting to the speaker and others in the audience.
6. When asking a question, be polite in your language even if you disagree with something the speaker said.
   • They should show you the same courtesy.
   • If you have more than one question, give others a chance to ask theirs before attempting to ask another.
7. Don’t talk to others, text, eat, drink, or do anything that could be distracting to the audience or speaker during the presentation.
8. Applaud!
   • It’s the courteous thing to do, even if you didn’t like what the speaker said or disagreed with them.  They have usually worked hard on their presentation and should be applauded (literally) for their effort.
9. If possible, approach the speaker afterwards and Thank Them.
   • Do this even if you disagreed with some of their points.  Most likely, they put much time, thought and effort into their speech.  That should be respected and acknowledged.
   • If there were specific things you gained from the presentation, mention those when thanking them.
   • Following up with a Thank You email or a personal note, and being specific in your appreciation, will always be appreciated

Following these guidelines will insure the audience receives the best presentation the speaker can deliver!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.

They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com
Connect/Follow me:
FaceBook
LinkedIn
Twitter
314-517-8772

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Speakers The First Thing the Audience
will Remember!

The Law of Primacy and Recency states:
The First and Last Things your audience hears
and sees, will probably be remembered more
than anything else in your presentation.

Of the two, the Closing will be better recalled.

Knowing that Law is important for several reasons.

• It’s why speakers should have a Strong Opening
  and a Strong Closing!
• The Opening should grab the attention of the audience and make them desire to hear more.
• Example:
• “Picture this!  Friday is our annual Open House and the president of the company wants each department to give a fifteen minute presentation.  I have you scheduled for 1:15 – right after lunch!”
• After your Opening grabs the attention of the audience, give them an agenda of how your presentation will proceed.  This is important because people like to know what and when things are going to happen.
• Example:
• “I’ll talk about the Fear of Public Speaking.
• Why we have it.
• Nuggets to lessen it.
• I’ll then take Questions.
• Finally, I’ll Close the Presentation.”
• The Closing should be something you want them to remember.  (Think of courtroom summations and closing statements by political candidates.)
• Examples
• A Call to Action.
• “Today, as soon as you get back to your office, start writing your Introduction!“
• A Challenge.
• “We’ll be meeting again one week from today.  I challenge each of you to have an Introduction that answers the three questions every Introduction should address
• Why this Subject?
• Why this Speaker?
• Why Now?
• A Motivational Quote.
• Remember as you leave the auditorium, ”The worst speech you’ll ever give, will be far better than the one you never give!”
• It’s an opportunity to Brand Yourself.
• Each episode of NBC’s Meet the Press, the longest-running television series in American broadcasting, ends with, “If it’s Sunday, it’s Meet the Press!”
• My good friend and internet marketing guru, Russ Henneberry, Tiny Business, Mighty Profits, does this.  He ends each of his dynamic presentations with, “Go back to your offices and start using the marketing strategies we talked about today and Your Tiny Business will have – Mighty Profits!”
• If you’re going to have a Question and Answer Session, have it before the Closing.
• Taking questions at this time is important. Here’s why: As stated above, the last things the audience sees and hears will be the first things they’ll remember.
• Example:
• Suppose I have a killer Close.  It’s a “Call to Action” that has the audience rushing thru the doors to start on that goal immediately.
• But, as most speakers do, I take questions about my presentation after my Closing. Things are going along fine and I have time for one more question.  That person says, “Fred, that stuff you said about ‘practicing in your mind’s eye.  That’s garbage.  It never works.  In fact, you’re full of garbage! ”
• Now, the presentation is over.  The last thing people heard is the first thing they’ll remember:  ”Fred is full of garbage!”
• That is not the take-away I want them leaving the event with!

Follow this advice about the last thing you say and do, and my prediction is this:
Your next presentation will be; absolutely, positively – No Sweat!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.

They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com
Connect/Follow me:
FaceBook
LinkedIn
Twitter
314-517-8772

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Read them – Study them – Don’t do them!

DON’T  If you’re a speaker there are certain things you should do, and should not do.  Here are 11 Definite Don’ts!

1. Don’t  ”Wing it.”
1. Your non-effort will show.
2. You’ll embarrass yourself and waste the time of your audience.  They came to learn something from your talk.
3. It is your responsibility they leave the room knowing more about your subject than they did when they entered.
4. Prepare and practice your presentation as if it were very important – because it is!
2. Don’t think the speech is about You.  It’s not.
1. It is, and always should be, about the Audience!
1. Being Audience Centered is one of the
   Laws of Presentation.
2. Focusing on the Audience, and not you, will raise the quality of your presentation and lower your anxiety.
3. Don’t give the same speech to all audiences.
1. Do your homework and get some intel on whom you’ll be speaking with.
2. All audiences are not the same.  Their makeup and knowledge of your subject will vary.  Adjust your speech accordingly.
4. Don’t turn your back to the audience and read text from your slides.
1. Slides are a tool to help the audience GET IT!  They especially appeal to the 65% of the population that are visual learners.
2. You shouldn’t be using much, if any, text.
1. Use high quality, universally understood images, and you supply the text with your voice.
3. Use the ‘B Blank’ button to blank the screen and take the attention of the audience from the screen to you, the presenter –  where their attention should be directed.
5. Don’t leave it up to the emcee to write your Introduction.
1. It is your responsibility, not the emcee’s, and is an integral part of your presentation.
2. It is not your bio.  The Introduction should answer three questions:
1. Why this subject?
2. Why this speaker?
3. Why now?
3. You write it because no one knows what should be on it better than you!
6. Don’t tell a joke to be telling a joke.
1. All presentations don’t need humor.  However, if done well, it can be “icing on the cake.”
2. Humor can be great because it can make an emotional connection to your audience.  But it has to be appropriate to the presentation and your audience.
1. The best humor is self-effacing, but don’t overdo it.
7. Don’t run over your allotted time.
1. There are scheduled events before and after you present.  Respect those events and the audience and contain your talk as scheduled.
2. Fill the time your are allotted with great content and delivery. Finishing a bit early is OK; too early disrupts the agenda.
8. Don’t assume the projector, computer, microphone, etc. will be in place and working as you asked.
1. It is your presentation and your responsibility that everything is in place and working.
2. You, or someone else, may have delegated those duties, but it’s your ultimate job because it’s your presentation.  That’s why. . .
9. Don’t - NOT have a Plan B!
1. Stuff Happens!  You must be prepared to carry on if the projector fails, the computer crashes, the emcee forgets to bring your Introduction, etc.
2. Practice Plan B.  It is different delivering a presentation with all your slides showing well vs. giving the same information with one sheet of paper with the light table view of all your slides.
   (I know this from personal experience.  My “No Sweat!” presentation could easily have gone into “Big Sweat!”)
10. Don’t use buzz words, acronyms, or technical jargon that your audience won’t immediately understand.
1. You won’t impress them – you’ll lose them!
1. No one wants to feel “not OK,” and they’ll quickly turn you off.
11. Don’t have Q&A after you close your presentation.
1. That’s why the Closing is called the Closing!
1. If you’re going to have a Q&A, place if before your Closing.
2. The ‘Law of Primacy and Recency’ says the last thing the audience hears is the first thing they will remember. That’s why it’s imperative to have a Strong Closing.
3. If the Q&A is after your closing, and you are challenged, or don’t know the answer, that is what the audience will remember.  It’s probably not the take-away you want them to leave with.

Now that you’ve read these Don’ts – Study them and Don’t do them!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com
314-517-8772

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When was Your Presentation
last updated?You

If it’s been awhile - Keep reading!

Doing a Presentation Makeover
makes sense if:
The Information You Want to Convey is Important.
It should be Important!
     Important to the audience and
     Important to you!
If it’s not important, Why are you doing it?

“The presentation you and/or your team deliver:
directly reflects upon the presenters and those developing the presentation.”

You might need a
Presentation Makeover if you. . .

• Use cheap clipart.
• Use lots of fancy fonts.
• Put your brand on all the slides.
• Use lots of text in your slideshow.
• Use fonts that are less than 32 pt.
• Don’t customize your presentation.
• Don’t Practice – Practice – Practice.
• Think your Introduction is your Bio.
• “Wing it” at any of your presentations.
• Have many bullet points on your slides.
• Read those bullet points to the audience.
• Take questions after closing the presentation.
• Deliver your presentation from behind a lectern.
• Don’t research information about your audience.
• Give all the attendees handouts before presenting.
• Don’t have a Strong Opening and a Strong Closing.
• Aren’t continually updating your knowledge of your subject.
• Leave it up to the Master of Ceremonies to write your Introduction.
• Use low-rez images in your slides and enlarge them to fill the screen.
• Don’t use the “B” Button (Blank Screen) when delivering presentations.
• Are using someone’s stories in your presentation that are not your own.
• Don’t continually research information on the subject you’re presenting.
• Take questions throughout your presentation and always run out of time.
• Use lots of different slide transitions with an equal amount of build-ins
  and build-outs.
• Dress inappropriately or wear flashy jewelry and accessories when presenting.
• Are delivering Nonverbal Communication that is not in sync with your Verbal Communication.
• Keep a prop in view of the audience after using it and moving on to another part of your presentation.
• Don’t have a few questions in your hip pocket to “prime the pump” during the
  Q & A.
• Are not using personal stories to reinforce the points you’re making in the body of your speech.
• Don’t scope out the venue you’ll be speaking in several days before your presentation.
• Don’t have a “Master Slide Deck” you can easily pick and choose slides from for specific audiences and events.
• “Grab” images off internet sites rather than purchase or use ones with Creative Commons license.
• Are not using the Presentation Mode that PowerPoint and Keynote Offer.
• Are not using a remote control device that controls the slide, sound, has a “B” Button, has a laser pointer and is long range RF (radio frequency, not being directional.)

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book, “No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know: Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
He shows them how to Develop, Practice and Deliver Knock Your Socks Off Presentations! with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

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The audio, and a bit of commentary.
My Keynote Presentation, “No Sweat Public Speaking!”

Here’s a Sample from the Beginning of the Talk: Keynote Presentation Sampler

This Keynote Presentation covers the:

• Components, Parts and Elements of a presentation.
• Things to do that will lessen the “Fear of Public Speaking.”
• Bonus Tips – Subtle little differences will make all the difference in your presentation.

It’s a bit over 95 minutes in length.  You’ll want to play it over and over!

For a Limited Time, I’m offering it for only $9.95, with my No BS Guarantee.
If for any reason you are not 100% satisfied, I’ll refund your purchase in full.  MP3 file will be sent by the next business day.

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FAQ with Me Ask Me

Question: If you had one piece of advice to give to improve my speaking, what would it be?

Answer: SPEAK! – SPEAK! – SPEAK!  If you want to be a great Baker – Bake! If you want to be a great Swimmer – Swim!  If you want to be a great Speaker – SPEAK!  You can do all the intellectualizing about the subject you want, read books, listen to CDs, watch videos and go to speaking events.  The Learning is in the Doing! Each time you speak, if you practice beforehand, you will become better.  Get a good friend to critique your speeches, then work on what needs improvement, then - SPEAK! – SPEAK! – SPEAK!

Question: What about Toastmasters?  Worth my time?

Answer:  ABSOLUTELY!  I was in Toastmasters for many years and learned most of what I now know about speaking from that great organization.  One piece of advice: Each club has their own “flavor.”  Some are very regimented, and others are pretty loose.  Visit three or four to see how they “fit” you before deciding on a club to join.

Question: How do you develop your presentations?

Answer: Mind Mapping!  Mind Mapping is a non-linear, visual brain storming tool and is perfect for not only developing a speech, but also practicing and delivering presentations.  It was developed in England in the ’70s by Tony Buzan.  The premise is that it works the way our brain works by bringing together the left, linear side, with the right, creative side.  See more at MasterMindMapper.com.

Question: How about some advice on the use of props?

Answer: I like using props!  They cue me about what I’m to talk about next and can take the place of notes or a Mind Map.  People have three styles of learning: Watching, Listening, and Doing.  If a speaker can use more than one of these, it increases the odds the audience will GET IT! Seeing a prop and hearing your words, that are in sync with the prop, will work!  A few rules:

• The prop must be appropriate to your message.
• When you’ve finished the message appropriate to the prop, put it away else it becomes a distraction.  (This is the same concept for using the “B” – Blank Screen Button – in a slide presentation.  It takes the attention of the audience off the screen or prop and puts it on you, the presenter, and where the focus should be.
• Sometimes the best prop is none.  Paint a Word Picture in the mind of each audience member and you’ll personalize your message.
  • Example: Rather than use a coffee cup and talk about coffee (which would be a good physical prop) say, “Picture your Favorite Coffee Cup! It might be the one your son or daughter made in kindergarten or it might be the one you bought on that special vacation.”
    • Now, you’ve personalized that coffee cup.  Nothing can replace that!

Question: What’s your advice on handling Questions and Answers?

Answer: Set aside time, before your Closing, for questions.  Tell attendees, in your Opening, that you’ll be taking questions at that time.  Here are some reasons to handle questions like this:

• The Closing is the Closing! – Period!  The last thing you say will be the first thing they will remember.  (That’s why you want a Strong Closing.)
  • If you have a great ‘Call to Action” Closing, then take questions, the impact of the Closing will be lessened.
  • Sometimes the Q&A can go south with someone questioning your expertise or parts of your presentation.  The time for the event comes to an end, and the difference of opinions is the last thing they heard – and the first thing they remember.
• Taking questions throughout a presentation requires exceptional time management.
  • Think of how many presentations you’ve attended where half the slides and presentation had to be rushed into the final few minutes because the presenter took questions throughout their talk.
• Often, it’s a good idea for you, the presenter, to Repeat the Question.
  • Repeat the Question if there’s a chance the audience didn’t hear it well.
    • Many venues require a mic and amp for all to hear and some people, even in a small room, are soft spoken.
    • Repeat the question for clarification, to be sure you and the audience have the same understanding.
      • Phrase it in your own words, and get confirmation, before answering.
• Don’t say, “Good question!”
  • What will you say to the next person and the person after them?
  • Better to say, “Thanks for asking!” or “Let me answer that like. . .”
• Sometimes, when asking for questions, no one raises their hand.
  • Be prepared to “prime the pump,” and say, “One of the questions I typically asked is. . . “
  • “Plant” a question with an audience member.  Be certain they don’t say, “I was asked to ask. . .”
• When answering a question, look directly at the person who asked, finish a thought and move on to give eye contact to a different individual and finish the next thought.
  • Continuing to look at the same person leaves out others and could “invite” a followup question, which could lead to a conversation with one person.  You don’t want that.

Thanks for visiting my Post!
For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book, “No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know: Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
He shows them how to Develop, Practice and Deliver Knock Your Socks Off Presentations! with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

Photo Credit: www.planetofsuccess.com/blog/

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The P-A-U-S-E
A Major Element of Verbal Communication

How long could you read it and what would you understand?

Answer: Not Long and Not Much!

The same applies to your audience if you Talk, Talk, Talk and don’t PAUSE.

The people watching and listening to your presentation will never GET IT! if you don’t give them the opportunity to ingest and digest your material.  We think by associations and our brains need to take in and process what information we’re bringing in and determine what “files” in our brains they belong in.  That’s pretty hard to do if you don’t PAUSE every once in a while.

Claude Debussy, the famous French composer, said, “Music is the silence between the notes.”That analogy can also be applied to speaking.

Pausing lets the audience know you are in control, better keeps their attention, and increases the odds they’ll GET IT!

PAUSE:

• Before you Open your presentation.
  • PAUSE almost so long that people are starting to say, “He’s lost it!”
    • When you do speak, you will have their total attention.
• After stating something you want to sink in.
  • The silence forces this.
• Before repeating something for emphasis.
  • The PAUSE gives the repetition more emphasis.
• To separate thoughts and allow the audience to absorb it before moving on.
• If you want to build anticipation.
  • It will get the audience wondering, “What’s next?”
• Before answering a question.
  • You’re showing the audience:
    • It’s not a canned response.
    • You’ve thought about your reply before answering.
    • You’ll better have their attention.
• After asking the audience a question.
  • It makes them think and get more involved with your presentation.
• In delivering a Parenthetical Statement.
  • A Parenthetical Statement is a temporary departure from the main theme.  It is a statement that, if you were reading it, would be in parentheses.  In delivering your talk, you speak that thought to your audience.  It can add a new dimension to your presentation.
  • It can be an extremely effective way to step out of your speech, make a specific point, and reinforce your connection with your audience.
  • For instance, I might be talking about hard work, then PAUSE, and state, as if in parentheses: “Speaking of hard work, tonight’s program would have never happened had it not been for Jackson Smith’s untiring efforts and attention to detail.”

Consider using the Spontaneous Pause.
(It will seem spontaneous to the audience because you’ve rehearsed it so well!)
If you stop yourself part way into a statement, pause, then go in another direction, that next set of statements can be powerful.

Example: In the closing of one of my talks, I say, “The next time someone gives you the opportunity to speak, (Pause) Check that statement! Don’t wait for the opportunity – Seek it out! Look for it at your . . .”

PAUSING is not easy for most of us.

We’re often nervous, talk quicker than normal, and “want to get it over with!”   It’s also natural to want to fill “blank” air with something.  If it’s not continuing to talk, it’s speaking “fillers”:  um, ah, and like.  Those “fillers” can be very distracting, and if you drop them, you’ve picked up your PAUSE!

Practice PAUSING just like you practice all the other elements of verbal and nonverbal delivery.

OK?  Ready – Set - P-A-U-S-E!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, an author and a coach.
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know: Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities.Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
He shows them how to Develop, Practice and Deliver Knock Your Socks Off Presentations! with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

Photo credit: Nick Hiebert

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The Ultimate Book & Audio Guides to Delivering
‘Knock Your Socks Off!’ Presentations with – No Sweat!

Read Reviews on Amazon HERE!

Paperback and Electronic Version

Paperback – $15.00
Click below to add to cart.
Quantities can be adjusted in
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Electronic Edition (PDF) – $9.00
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Here’s the audio, and a bit of commentary.
My Keynote Presentation, “No Sweat Public Speaking!”

Here’s a Sample from the Beginning of the Talk: Keynote

This Keynote Presentation covers the:

• Components, Parts and Elements of a presentation.
• Things to do that will lessen the “Fear of Public Speaking.”
• Bonus Tips – Subtle little differences will make all the difference in your presentation.

It’s a bit over 95 minutes in length.  You’ll want to play it over and over!

I’m offering it for only $9.95, with my
No BS Guarantee.
If for any reason you are not 100% satisfied, I’ll refund your purchase in full.  MP3 file will be sent by the next business day.

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GoToMeeting.com, WebEx.com and similar products, feature the ability to hold meetings, webinars, and training over the internet.

These tools have amazing benefits for participants and the presenter(s).  They allow many people, from different locations, to come together for the on-line event.  But like most tools, there are some tradeoffs.  The biggest one is the inability, in most cases and the one this Post addresses, to use all your nonverbal presentation skills and “take the temperature” of the audience as you can in a live, on-site venue.

Nonverbal communication reinforces, or not, the words
we say.

Nonverbal communication trumps verbal communication.  Not seeing facial expressions, gestures, and body movements can be a huge hurdle.  It’s important, throughout a presentation, to constantly “take the temperature” of the audience to “see” if they are GETTING IT!, i.e. understanding your message.  The nonverbal messages we look for when doing in-person talks are not as available, if at all, over the web. I was once present at an online presentation where the presenter asked about something specific on slide
# 22. The response was, “What slide?”  The individual giving the presentation had gone through 30 minutes and 19 slides before realizing the participants had a blank screen!

That situation can be avoided by having a checklist and going over it before proceeding with a conference.  Online conferencing products will indicate who is on-line, but they usually can’t tell how attentive they are.  Think about most presentations where the audience is asked to turn off their cell phones and blackberries so they, and audience members are not distracted.  This can’t be enforced when presenting on-line and can be challenging.

Exercises like taking polls and calling on individuals to answer questions are two strategies that can help.  Also, the ability to communicate with individuals via built-in chat, gives the presenter options for sending and receiving questions and other information pertinent to
the event.

An important tool in presentations on line is the use of a high quality microphone.  People will watch poor video, but won’t listen to poor audio.  This holds true for online seminars and meetings, too.  Also, keep noise, other than your voice and relavent sounds, out of the presentation.

Since your Nonverbal Communications may not be viewable by participants, all the elements of Verbal Communication take on added importance.  They must be top-of-mind and fine-tuned when these on-line events take place.

Verbal Communication Elements are:

• Pronunciation and Enunciation
  • You can’t gesture what you mean, so speaking clearly and distinctly, using that high quality microphone, is imperative.
• Projection
  • Speak at a consistent volume.  If recipients have to keep adjusting the volume of their speakers up or down, they’ll turn them off!
• Inflection
  • Give emphasis to specific words in your sentences when you want to make a point.
  • Do not speak in a monotone, RTD2, style.  (You’ll put the audience asleep!)
• Cadence
  • Vary the speed of your delivery.  Do not talk too quickly, nor too slowly.  Both extremes will lose the attention of the audience.
• Pause
  • Pausing gives the audience an opportunity to absorb your message. It’s a necessary part of delivery, and often tough to do because nervousness can cause us to fill the dead air with our voice.  Pause!

Visuals take on added importance in on-line training if they can’t see YOU!

Here are some suggestions for using them:

• Use high quality graphics that are the correct resolution.
  • Not much is worse than looking at a thumbnail image that has been stretched to fill a screen.
• Use graphics that are universally interpreted the same by all.
  • If they are saying, “What is this?” you aren’t communicating.
  • If participants see something “in” the image that others don’t, you’re not delivering the same message to everyone.
• Use one or two graphics per slide, and make them large
• As with PowerPoint, don’t use lots of bullet points.
  • Bullet Points do not reinforce!
    • They confuse, compete and complicate the message.
      • People read at differing speeds.
      • There is evidence that text on a screen has the same effect on the mind as graphics.  Too many = confusion.
  • You supply the text!
    • After the presentation, you can email a PDF with all the text and relevant pictures.

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, an author and a coach.
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
He shows them how to Develop, Practice and Deliver Knock Your Socks Off Presentations! with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com
photo credit: pfinette

Related posts:

1. Nonverbal Communication Trumps. . . Nonverbal Communication trumps Verbal Communication. Having your total presentation in...
2. The Important Rule of Three for Speakers -
   More Examples “The mojo of three offers a greater sense of completeness...
3. Speaking Opportunities are
   Business and Career Opportunities! Really good speakers are perceived as Experts. Perception is reality...

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