6 Tips to Train Your Industry Speakers to Present Like Pros
Did you know that teenagers can focus and retain information for up to an hour? I was surprised to learn that attention span decreases with age. The average attention span of an adult is only 15-20 minutes.
So why is this important for events? With most conferences, symposiums, and summits running sessions that last 45 to 90 minutes or more, keeping your audience engaged can be a challenge. This nugget of information is critical for event planners when designing a program and prepping industry speakers.
Professional speakers are talented in capturing the attention of the audience and keeping that attention throughout. They showcase skills learned from professional training and time spent in the spotlight. Regional industry conferences might budget for a keynote speaker, but breakout sessions are often selected from within the industry. While these experts are knowledgeable, their presentations can be disorganized, text-heavy, and lacking polish. As a result, you may start to lose the audience only minutes into the presentation. As event planners, we have an unspoken oath to ensure the attendees are drawn in and stay engaged for the duration of each session.
Ten years ago, I helped a local company kick off an annual conference that quickly became a sold out event. This week, we executed the 10th annual conference that calls on local experts to educate a regional, captive audience. How has this event become so popular? It’s all about delivering engaging content to keep attendees coming back, year after year. How can you, as an event planner, train your industry speakers to become magnetic connectors who effectively engage the audience with their presentation? Here are some tips that worked well for us over the years.
Tips for Working with Industry Speakers
Recognize Their Expertise: Remember, your speakers are experts in their field, but they may not be seasoned or trained speakers. Sometimes they need encouragement.
Focus on Three Key Messages: Encourage speakers to build their content around three key takeaways that they want attendees to remember. This helps them design a presentation with focus and can offer more meaningful results.
Ditch the Text: Visual presentations should be just that—visual. Large amounts of text on the slides force attendees to choose between reading or listening. Using pictures to illustrate the message helps with memory retention. (Extra tip: Make sure those images are credited if they are not owned by the speakers or their business).
Move with Purpose: Encourage speakers to use the stage or floor, making deliberate moves and gestures to capture attention and emphasize points.
Encourage Audience Participation: Use live polling through an event app (or one of the several online polling options), facilitate small group work, live Q&A sessions, or simple “show of hands” questions to keep the audience involved.
Host a Virtual Training Session: Make this mandatory and develop a presentation that highlights the first five tips. But, make sure to use pictures, not text!
Keeping your audience engaged is paramount to the success of your conference. As a planner, you have the unique opportunity to shape not only how the content is delivered but also how it is received. Now, go forth and engage your audience!