How can you adapt your message to different environments?

If you have been invited to share your expertise, you must have something the audience is interested in. Focus on why. Try, if you can, to speak to some of them one-on-one to better assess their questions, situation, and needs. Then tailor your speech to be of service (ie value) to them-

Try to put yourself in your audience's shoes. SHARED KNOWLEDGE: What does your audience know already and what DON'T they know? Don't assume they are familiar with your industry's buzzwords/lingo. When in doubt, explain a term and use it only after you've defined it. Otherwise people will feel left out--and tune you out in return. Ex. In talking about IPA in linguistics, I'd suggest: "I use the International Phonetic Alphabet, or 'the IPA,' a blueprint to the sounds of human language." RELATABLE EXAMPLES: Infuse examples or stories that are familiar to your audience. Ex. I watched an executive coach present to a non-profit. His examples referenced golf courses and country clubs. That audience largely disconnected right then and there.

Simply reading what is on a presentation will not be an engaging experience for the audience and less rewarding for the presenter. Collaborating with Melanie on my presentations proved invaluable; her expertise helped bridge the gap between my technical knowledge and effective communication for broader audiences. She refined my vocabulary, enhanced visual impact, and encouraged spontaneity, ensuring seamless engagement beyond my industry peers.

1. Know Your Audience: Research and understand their demographics, interests, and expectations. Adjust your language, examples, and tone to resonate with the specific group you are addressing. 2. Adapt to Cultural Differences: Avoid language or references that may be misunderstood or offensive in a particular cultural context. 3. Interactive Engagement: Encourage audience participation through questions, polls, or discussions. Read the room and be adaptable to changes in the level of audience engagement. 4. Use Relevant Examples: Incorporate examples and anecdotes that resonate with the specific interests and experiences of your audience.

Let your audience know: 1) Who you are 2) Why you're here (What are you setting out to accomplish)? 3) When/how you'll accomplish this (agenda) 4) What you expect of them 5) What's in it for them Adults learn differently than children (look up #andragogy), and they need to BUY IN. Clarify your presentation's value up front to make sure the audience members know they're in the right place and should actively listen to your presentation to reap useful benefits. Using visuals, large clear font (if relevant), and catch(y) phrases or memory hooks for major points. Asking the audience to participate can help engagement if there's a practical or workshopable component. Closing with a resonable call to action will help cement the learning!

When your purpose is defined and shared in advance, it will: * GENERATE INTEREST: You get to set expectations, and your audience knows what to look forward to. * IMPROVE YOUR AUDIENCE: Your presentation may not be for everybody. It is better if they opt out before your presentation instead of checking out during it. * IMPROVE SATISFACTION: An aligned audience that is excited about the topic and has expectations set in advance will be more satisfied. "The best persuaders become the best through pre-suasion - the process of arranging for recipients to be receptive to a message before they encounter it...what we present first changes the way people experience what we present to them next.” - Dr. Robert B. Cialdini

As your family or teachers may have shouted at you at some point in your younger life, "use your words!" Optimizing your language can make a presentation, while neglecting to make intentional choices can break it. Considerations to make include: - Pace (if you're too fast, will the info land?) - Intonation/Stress (are you highlighting key or operative words so the audience knows what you're emphasizing) - Clear Pronunciation -- whether you are a native speaker of the language or not, taking your time to enunciate is key. Nerves can make a speaker speed up and interfere with diction... if it's not audible, the audience can miss your content! - Word Choice: Be clear, concise, and set your tone. Formal<>casual? Inspirational? Academic?

Many of my clients worry about making mistakes during their presentation. My perspective is that a presentation is not a test -- you don't get graded on missteps. But you do get evaluated based on other factors--engagement, connection, value-add content, clarity of delivery, etc. Speakers who fear making mistakes often make "safer choices" in performing, speak quickly and/or quietly, and read from a deck or script. This attempt to avoid mistakes often is a mistake in itself -- because it limits the spontaneity, connection with the audience, and overall impact. So if you think of racking up points for personality, perspective, poise, passion -- and creating real connection or engagement with your audience, this will be a winning strategy.

Practice. Practice does help a lot. The more you present to different audiences, using different styles and formats, in person and virtually, the more comfortable you will end up feeling and the more naturally you will be engaging your audience. Remember, a certain level of participation or engagement is usually expected and appreciated.

Here's a tip to improve presentation scores for education sessions: I often do education sessions where Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are offered. These usually require you to define "Learning Objectives" in advance (define your purpose). I quickly discovered that one of the main evaluation criteria in post-session surveys is how well presentation met the learning objectives. To ensure you ace this: 1. Establish thoughtful learning objectives in advance. 2. Review a slide with the learning objectives at the start of your presentation. 3. Indicate when you've achieved a learning objective during the presentation. 4. Review a slide with the learning objectives at the end of the presentation. Five stars for achieving objectives!