Gaining your audience’s attention at the beginning of your presentation is crucial for two reasons: your audience will remember the first things you say (primacy effect), and they will decide to stay engaged with you. Here are 4 ways to start your presentation on the right path for engagement. Show 1. Pause There is immense power in a pause, and the beginning of your presentation is the only time when you will have your audience’s undivided attention. Take advantage of this the opportunity and don’t rush to make your first remarks. Pause for couple of seconds before uttering your first words. This will make your opening statement even more impactful. 2. Tell a Story We are all hard-wired for stories. Stories engage audiences on an emotional level as stories create meaning and a shared experience for your listeners. Open with a story that relates to the premise or main point in your presentation. 3. Use a Provocative Statistic or Quote John Medina, author of Brain Rules writes, “… novel stimuli – the unusual, unpredictable, or distinctive – are powerful ways to harness attention… “Find a little known statistic or quote to start the wheels turning in the minds of your audience. They will stay tuned out of curiosity to hear the “how” or “why” that relates to your unique initial remarks. 4. Engage in an Activity Techniques like body polls are a quick and easy way to engage your audience, suggests Bill Hoogterp, speaking coach and CEO of Blue Planet Training. What’s a body poll? With a body poll, you ask your audience to use parts of their body (hands, fingers) to give an answer to a question. For example, if a speaker asks, “On a scale of 1 – 10, how would you rate your eating habits?” The audience would raise their fingers to rate themselves on this scale. You can then use this data to interact with your audience. Don’t waste the beginning of your speech with powerless platitudes. Start strong, because attention spans are short, and second chances at first impressions are rare. How to engage your audience and keep their attention? I have analysed speeches by most successful public speakers, such as Boris Johnson, ex American President John Kennedy and my own speeches. In this blog post, I will reveal and explain to you my findings. 1. Be passionate about what you say and know your subject 2. "Think like a wise man, but speak as simple people do", Aristotle 3. Deliver high-level positive messages. Don't go into small boring details 4. Use sentence stress and pauses 5. Create anticipation & use rhetoric devices such as digressio. 6. Ask questions effectively 7. Connect with your audience from the start Unite with your audience by saying "we.." instead of "I.." We live longer..", "We all want it...", "We cannot wait..." True masters of public speaking like Boris Johnson use it all the time. With this simple technique "we.." you will immediately persuade your audience that you want the same thing and you are one team. Appeal to people's emotions Be giving To summarise: connect with your audience, inspire them with your passion and have a giving attitude. Speak in a simple way, ask questions effectively, stress important messages and use pauses generously. What is an effective method for grabbing the audience's attention during a presentation?Combining a hook with a visual is one of the most engaging speech attention grabbers. There is power in asking the audience to conjure up their imagination, to play along. You can easily adapt this tactic to any topic where you want the audience to imagine a positive outcome or a vision of a better tomorrow.
What is the most effective attention grabber strategy?Referring to a current news event that relates to your topic is often an effective way to capture attention, as it immediately makes the audience aware of how relevant the topic is in today's world.
What are 5 attention grabbing strategies?There are lots of ways to capture the attention of an audience, but here are a few of the most common:. Relay an anecdote. Start by telling us a story that directly relates to your speech. ... . Cite a startling fact or opinion. ... . Ask a question. ... . Use a quotation. ... . Build suspense through narrative.. What are good attention getters for presentations?18 attention getters for effective public speaking. Jokes. Speechwriters often use humor to stimulate an audience's interest. ... . Funny true stories. A funny true story can be an easy way to endear yourself to your audience. ... . Quotations. ... . Statistics. ... . Bold statements. ... . Questions. ... . Analogies. ... . Visualizations.. |
