Was Your Presentation Really Effective?

After a presentation, most audience members will applaud you when you finish and perhaps some will say to you after the presentation, "Nice job," or, "I really enjoyed your speech." But these responses are often perfunctory rather than genuine compliments. In our culture it is just the accepted thing to do.

How can you really tell that an audience was influenced by your presentation? Here are some thoughts from one who has delivered more than 2,000 speeches.

There are a couple of no-brainer audience responses! When the decision-maker is in the audience and you get that person to sign on the bottom line for whatever you are selling, you are obviously effective. In addition, when a group asks you to come back and speak the second time, you realize that what you said was so valuable that they want to hear more.

But there are also subtle ways you can tell that your speech was well-received. Sometimes, as you look at the people in your audience, you can tell by their eyes that you have captured their attention and they can’t resist listening. Certainly a polite audience will look at you and even smile and nod their heads appropriately, but the eyes of a responsive audience have a piercing look that encourages you as a speaker. In fact, under these circumstances you will sometimes surprise yourself at how effective you can be with the delivery and the content of your message. In essence, when you are getting through to an audience, you may be better at speaking than you think you are capable of being because of their rapt attention.

In addition, when a person makes a specific positive comment afterward about something you said—maybe even a few days later—it usually means you connected with him or her. The "good job" comment is being nice and polite; a reference to a particular part of your speech means you made him or her to think and possibly to reconsider an idea.

Finally, you are effective when you sense the audience responding as one. This is called social facilitation and simply means audience members can affect one another. Applause and laughter are often a result of one person starting and others joining in. As a speaker, you can feel the moment when the audience quits being individuals in a group and instead becomes a unit with a common interest in what you are saying. The individuals feel oneness because they all are caught up in your presentation. This symbiotically encourages you to lose yourself in your message and to concentrate on the benefits to the audience.

You can stop wondering if your speech is effective; look for any of these elements either during or following your presentation and you will know. Beware! A speech well-received can be addictive to the speaker!

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Listen First; Talk Second

Voltaire said, "When you listen, you have power. When you talk, you give it away." How can we increase our power or influence by making sure we listen more than we talk? Here are some ideas on encouraging the other person to talk so you will listen.

Begin by asking the person’s name. Not only will this make you a listener first, but it will also set up a pattern for listening more and talking less. When people give you their names, often you will get added information, such as where they are from or what they do. Make sure you get the name. Ask the person to repeat the name if you are unclear about it, or make some comment about the name that allows you to repeat it in order to keep it firmly in mind.

Follow any short comment you make after getting the name by asking an open question. Usually these questions begin with "What," "How," or "Why." If you are uncertain about what question to ask, you can connect the question to why both of you are at the same gathering. You could say, "What programs have you found most useful at the conference?" or "How do you like the convention/hotel/town/movie/performance?" Make a short comment when he or she finishes answering the question to avoid sounding like you are conducting an interrogation.

Another way to encourage the other person to talk is to make an assertion and then pause. This will encourage the person to comment on your statement. You might say, "The meeting gave me new ideas about our program." Often, he or she will then add a comment to yours.

You can encourage the other person to talk by your nonverbal reaction. Nod your head, smile, keep an open posture, and look as though you anticipate that the other person will add more information. When you make a comment such as "Oh," or "I see," say the words with an upward inflection to sound encouraging and positive, rather than a downward inflection which would imply finality.

Keep your own spoken contributions short when possible. Avoid telling a five-minute story or giving a three-minute opinion. Talk in 30-second—not three-minute— segments. When it seems natural, end your comment by asking a question. Thus the other person will stay engaged and continue to provide you with information.

When Lyndon Johnson was a Senator, he had a plaque on his office wall that read, "You ain’t learning nothing when you’re talking." Both Voltaire and former President Johnson made the same point: listen first and talk second, and you will possess a knowledge advantage.