Three Tips to Keep Your Audience Engaged

It is difficult to keep an audience engaged.

You might have the most charismatic personality, the best slide deck, and the greatest passion for your topic of anyone on earth. However, if your audience of 12 people or 1200 people disengages, you will find yourself speaking to a room of people who are fiddling on their phones. So what can you, when delivering a lesson, speech, sermon, or talk do to keep an audience engaged?

Today I have three tips to offer in a desire to help you as you craft your next presentation.

TIP #1: FOCUS ON THE FIRST THREE MINUTES

One of the fundamental questions presenters need to know is, “How long do I have?” The preparation for a ten-minute presentation is likely to look quite different than for a 45-minute presentation. One of the best steps you can take as a presenter is to focus on those first three minutes.

In those first minutes, your audience is sizing up (consciously or unconsciously) what they think about you. More importantly, they are making an early decision about whether they should give the time and effort to listen.

Yet, despite this, many presenters spend a majority of their first three minutes thanking the organization, remarking about the facilities, or listing their own accomplishments. Sure, you can do those things, but weave them into parts later in your talk. Focus on, even memorize, those first three minutes for the opportunity to make the greatest impact.

TIP #2: FIGURE OUT WHY THEY SHOULD CARE

One mistake many presenters make is assuming the audience cares about what they have to say.

Clergy tend to be particularly guilty of this. We assume that because our messages stem from our sacred texts everyone in the seats is anxious to hear us speak. Yes, personal relationship or a celebrity reputation may push some audience members to listen anyway, but assuming your audience is clamoring for you to speak is a mistake.

Instead, do the hard work of identifying, or developing a beginning to help your audience immediately connect why a talk will matter to them. Here are some examples:

A politician may begin a speech identifying the struggles and pain points of their community in order to confirm a common understanding.A history teacher may stoke curiosity by asking, “Why do you think the capital of the US is in Washington DC rather than the middle of the country (e.g. St. Louis) or the largest city (e.g. New York)?”A pastor may start a message on Jesus feeding the 5000 from John 6 by asking, “Have you ever felt like you had very little to offer?” Then, connect how a little boy gave five loaves and two fish to Jesus.

 

TIP #3: FIND WAYS TO ENGAGE THE AUDIENCE

Many presentations could happen in an empty room. Why? Because the presenter never engages the audience.

While not mandatory, engaging the audience helps remind them that you know they are there. Your audience, then, knows that you’re not just speaking to an empty room, but aiming to communicate with them. Here are some simple ways to do this:

Ask questions. Simple questions asking for audience response help keep your audience from tuning out. For example, “Ok…how many of you grew up calling these bugs fireflies? How many of you called them lightning bugs?”Call and response:  Have the audience repeat after you. Use a phrase multiple times throughout your talk and begin to have them fill in the blanks. Even something as simple as having them complete a well-known nursery rhyme or song can work.Tell a story: More on this some other time, but a story, especially a personal one, is a great way to provide breathing room in a presentation. This helps your talk be more enjoyable and helps re-engage any who have disconnected in the past few minutes.

 

There are many more ways, but those are the top three I want to offer. What tips do you have for keeping an audience engaged?