20 Ways to Recover When You
Start to Lose Your Audience

by

David W. Richardson, CSP

You're delivering a presentation to a group of people seated around a conference room table.  You've prepared for this presentation thoroughly; it's a bit long, but you feel confident that you can take your listeners through it step by step.  Then suddenly you begin to notice people casually whispering among themselves.  It starts to become a little unnerving, and you feel that you are beginning to "lose it".

On occasion, people in your audience may begin to talk among themselves.  Not only is this distracting to other participants, it is often very unnerving to the presenter.  When attention is waning, and other conversations commence, you should be prepared to take action.

Here are 20 tips for regaining control of a presentation that appears to be "going south": 

  1. Pick up or slow down the pace of your delivery.  Perhaps it is your monotone voice that has interrupted the focus of your audience.

  1. Change your voice volume.  Be sure to use the three conversational levels of your voice.  The first is your natural speaking voice volume, which you are probably using at this point in your presentation.  Second is one that is raised ever so slightly but delivers a point with impact.  And third is a voice level that almost deteriorates into a whisper.   Try this one . . . make your point by dropping your volume to just above a whisper.  Watch your listeners.   No one will be moving; everyone will be listening.

  1. Turn down the heat.  There's nothing worse than sitting in a hot, stuffy room over a period of time trying to listen to someone deliver a presentation.  In preparation for my keynote addresses, I always suggest that the meeting planner set the room temperature at 68 degrees.  Normal body heat will warm the temperature up to 70 degrees and everyone will be comfortable.

  1. Add more light to the room.  Older conference rooms and hotel meeting rooms have insufficient lighting.  By adding more light to the room, you will increase everyone's awareness level.

  1. Move closer to the group.  If you're standing at a lectern move from behind it and closer to the group.

  1. Make a noise.  Try making a sharp, unexpected noise.  People's attention will be immediately drawn back to you.

  1. Stand up if seated.  This will change the atmosphere in the room, gaining the attention of the impolite whisperers.  This will also give you greater energy and vitality which will get your audience back on track very quickly.

  1. Use an "aid".  I always carry an erasable black magic marker in my briefcase.  I look for an opportunity to get up from the conference table, move to a flip chart or whiteboard to make some key notations.  My main purpose for doing this, however, is to add greater emphasis to drive home the point I am trying to make.

  1. Move closer to the person not paying attention.  This is very effective if you are speaking to a group of listeners sitting around a U-shaped table.  Merely walk into the "U", briefly stop in front of the whispering culprits, turn around to the rest of the group, complete your point, and then walk back to the front of the room.

  1. Mention the person's name in the context of your presentation.  There are no words sweeter to anybody's ears than their own name.  Be sure to use it in a positive as opposed to a derogatory fashion.

  1. Ask a rhetorical question.  Think back to the time when you were in the second grade, you were talking with your neighbor across the aisle, the teacher called on you, and you were embarrassed that you not only did not know the answer, but more importantly hadn't heard the question.  As you inevitably repeated that scenario several times again, you became acutely aware that when words were being framed in the form of a question it would be in your best interest to listen. 

    People listen to rhetorical questions if you ask them correctly. Ask the question, pause for the count of two, and then present your answer.   

  1. Ask a question.  Mention the person's name to get their attention and then ask an opinion-based question.

  1. Sandwich the offender's name between two others in an example.  Develop a little role play where the offender and one or two others play a non-speaking role.  Example:  "So, let's say Joe, you're getting ready to make a sales presentation to Bill and Mary."  You just regained the offender's attention.

  1. Get the group to do something.  Get them to do some type of activity, either verbal or non-verbal, that will give everyone a greater feeling of participation in your presentation.

  1. Use a dramatic pause.  There's nothing like silence to make the offending whisperers stand out in the group.

  1. Define the words and concepts you've been using.  This is best done by using a non-business example, an analogy, or a story that relates to the essence of your   presentation.  No one can resist a good story.

  1. State the obvious.  When the whispering happens, and in a long, all-day seminar, it is almost inevitable, sometimes I'll say directly to the offenders, "Do you have a question or have I perhaps been unclear about something . . . sometimes I have a tendency to not explain some of the points I've been making in enough detail."  They'll always reply in the negative and whisper no more.

  1. Call a break.  Most people are not used to sitting in one place for a sustained period of time.  In an all day meeting, be sure to give people frequent breaks in order to get more coffee, recycle some of that coffee, or just get up and stretch.

  1. Use humor.  This is usually not a joke but a one-liner that may or may not come from you.  In fact, some of the best one-liners are those that are shot out by someone in the audience.  Capitalize on the situation; be loose and flexible.

  1. Do nothing.

I guarantee every one of you will experience this type of situation during the course of an upcoming presentation.  Keep these attention getting ideas in mind.  Keep your presentation on track.   

If you would like Dave Richardson's "12 Ways to Avoid a Speaking Disaster", fax a copy of your business card with the word "disaster" written on to it to 480-451-9372 or send us an e-mail, subject line "disaster" and including your name, telephone number and company information, at speaking@richspeaking.com.

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