Public Speaking Techniques: What Aspects Should We Take Into Account?

There are some aspects that can make it easier for us to be more successful in our exhibitions, either on a personal level in our daily lives or on occasions when our work or profession requires it. So what should we take into account to speak correctly in public?

Public speaking techniques

Some techniques that we can apply to improve our expression when speaking before the public are the following:

Naturalness

At first it is hard work. It’s about being yourself, even with our flaws. It is not about playing any role, not pretending, maintaining our own identity.

• The people we like, we analyze, are the ones who don’t pretend and show naturalness.
• You can do bad and be liked.

Brevity

It is about not introducing unnecessary phrases and using them in as little time as possible. Normally people are left wanting less. If you have to present a topic in a specific time, it is okay to invest a little less. It’s about not putting the listener’s fatigue against us. If the lecture is boring the audience, the sooner you finish the better. We should not test the public to see how much they can endure or never say that the exhibition is going to end when it is not true. Everything that is doubtful when speaking must be eliminated.

Style

Our personality is projected in everything we do and especially in the way we express ourselves orally. It is recommended:

1. Simplicity
2. Ease.
3. Clarity.

Use simple, accessible vocabulary, not using technicalities other than those strictly necessary, and even in these cases clarifying the terms that may not be understood by everyone. All this must be done without adopting didactic airs and without the listeners thinking that we consider them ignorant.

We should never assume that the public is familiar with facts and data. So use phrases like “ Surely you know these details but in case there is someone who forgets, I remember them.” Clarity means that we should not use excessive digressions or side comments, to prevent the public from losing the thread of their discussion.

Immediate auditory memory is relatively short, and if the speech does not follow a clear path, people can disconnect and not understand where it is going.

All styles are good except the boring one:

• Using metaphors, comparisons, wordplay has an interesting effect on the audience.
• Go from an interrogative to an affirmative style.
• Oral speech requires long but not overused phrases.
• Replacing commas, periods, question marks with more or less long pauses is interesting because we achieve greater expectation.

How to treat your audience?

An experienced speaker does not always speak to his entire audience. Instead, he sometimes looks around him for a friendly face. In this sense, the non-verbal behavior of the public must be taken into account. If the audience has remained still for a long time, stop for a moment and give them the opportunity to relax and compose themselves to continue listening. If the audience becomes restless at a time when it is not convenient for the speaker, you should try to regain control of the meeting.

There are different aspects that we must take into account when treat our audience such as, for example, the following:

Sensitivity and touch

The conversation, discussion or debate should be directed in the direction that interests the speaker, especially if the topic has been diverted unexpectedly.

• Invite people to participate and take advantage of this.
• Avoid jargon and technicalities.
• Try to distinguish people who want to ask something, so as not to make them feel like they are revealing their ignorance to others.
• Always use humor as a help.

Exhibition objectives

Before a public exhibition it is essential:

• Talk only about what you know.
• Be clear about the objective you are pursuing.
• Of course, good preparation of the topic.
• Study the needs, desires and characteristics of the audience.

It is important to know what objective we want to have in our exhibition because there can be different ones, from informing, persuading, entertaining, raising awareness, etc.

If we have to give a title to our meeting, conference, debate, etc. It should always be attractive using, for example, a shocking question, challenging statement, worrying forecast, etc.

Beginning and conclusion

What is most remembered in a speech are the beginning and the conclusion. The main idea must be repeated at least three times to make it resonate with the audience.

In the presentation you must:

• Announce the objectives of the talk.
• Give surprising statistical data.
• Assure the audience that at the end of the talk the points discussed will be clear.
• Start with an anecdote that makes the audience smile and link it to what you are going to say next.
• Tell a fact from the speaker’s professional life that highlights that we are prepared.
• Quote phrases from a famous person or person who is especially pleasant to the audience.
• Flatter the audience with an anecdote related to local life, their particularities as a group. It would be important to ask the contact person first in case there are any taboo topics.
• Show the points of contact between audience and speaker.
• Explain the outline of the speech, indicating, for example, the time you plan to spend.

What should be avoided?

• Ask why they have chosen us to speak in public when there are many experts.
• Make excuses for the material, organization, etc.
• Indicate how difficult the preparation and the topic have been.
• Talking excessively to the public, especially with flattery that can be interpreted as insincere.

In the conclusion, it is common that when the speaker realizes that he is short on time, he tries to hang up the speech in any way possible. To do this, you start speaking at great speed and usually sacrifice the conclusion. This is something very negative, because the conclusion supposes a closure and the harvesting of all the fruits exposed and where the public is really receptive and can absorb the objective of that speech.