Know your Audience, Public Speaking ~ Paul M Johnstone

Whenever I get a booking to speak, I always ask the following questions of the meeting organiser.  This is because the more I about the audience, the better I can tailor my speech.  Once you know their profile you are half way there.  This is a great way of preparing for your presentation and helps overcome the fear of public speaking that is those who are still a little nervous.

Here are the questions I currently ask: You may of course have your own parameters that are important for you.

The first set are about the venue and will give you a much better idea of what to expect.

• Where is the venue?
• Is there parking?
• Do I have preparation time at the venue? (changing space etcetera)
• IS the venue lager enough to require the use of a microphone? 
• Can you visit the venue beforehand?
• Are there any known issues with the venue? (poor sight lines, iffy acoustics, uncomfortable seating)

The next questions relate to the event itself.

• What sort of event is it? (Seminar, exhibition, Training day, Networking event, After Dinner, discovery day, team building etcetera)
• What topic do you want?
• How many people are expected?
• What are their responsibilities?
• Why Are they coming?
• Are their partners invited?
• How much of the event is business and how much social?
• What is the average age?
• And what are the age ranges?
• Are there any non English speakers attending?
• If so what's the percentage?
• What is the male/female ratio?

Here are a couple of questions are about where in the programme you will be.  You will be surprised that the position and timing of your slot can make a huge difference on your audiences reaction to your presentation. If you get the graveyard slot, that's the one straight after lunch, you will need to prepare for your audience who are still digesting their food and may not have the highest levels of concentration!

• What slot do I have?(if you get the graveyard slot you need to know in advance)

•  And who am I following and what is their topic?

• Who is on after I speak, and what is their topic? (You might get a great audience profile, but be doomed to failure because of the program schedule)

I started to formulate these questions when I was in the corporate world, where missing anything in your presentation could be a lot more damaging to your career than just about anything else.

On accepting the engagement, these questions are repeated on the pre-program questionnaire. This may seem like overkill but you are being rewarded for your efforts, you want to be remembered as a quality speaker who delivers professionally and does what it says on the tin.  That way you are more likely to get repeat work and recommendations from your audience for other jobs.

You will want as many levels of verification as you can get, so that
I know what I am getting into. Some people use a scoring chat which may well help you.  I prefer to listen to the answers and where appropriate ask supplementary questions in order to form my opinion. However I always have a set of criteria I look for which is event dependant. 

You’ll discover over time which events and topics that work for you.  Assessing possible work is not a science it’s an art.  You will quickly get used to what to listen out for and which events work for you. 

I would love to hear from you and I am interested in your comments.  So please leave your remarks once you have read this blog, Thank You

About the Author

Paul M Johnstone is a Professional Communicator, Speaker, Executive Mentor and PowerPoint Guru! He works with companies, charities and individuals, helping them improve their communication skills and deliver successful presentations. 

Paul can be reached at +44 (0)7711 324362or through his website at http://www.pmjohnstone.co.uk/ he can also be reached at http://www.paradigmshakers.co.uk