Here's how you can tailor your feedback for novice vs. experienced public speakers.

Novice Nurturing: Encouragement: Focus on positive reinforcement. Acknowledge their courage to speak in public and highlight what they did well. Simple Tips: Provide clear, actionable advice that’s easy to understand and implement. For example, “Practice speaking slowly and clearly to help your audience follow along.” Expert Enhancement: Advanced Insights: Offer nuanced feedback that can push their skills further. For example, suggest exploring advanced rhetorical techniques or varying the pacing for dramatic effect. Strategic Feedback: Discuss strategic elements like how to tailor content to different audiences or how to use storytelling more effectively.

When tailoring feedback for public speakers, it's essential to consider their experience level. For novices, focus on building confidence, mastering basic techniques, and encouraging practice. Suggest starting with small audiences and simple speeches. For experienced speakers, offer advanced tips on refining delivery, engaging diverse audiences, and using sophisticated rhetorical techniques. For example, I encourage new speakers to focus on clear articulation and experienced ones to experiment with storytelling and humor. This approach ensures personalized and effective growth.

Basic Guidance: Start with fundamental advice, such as maintaining good posture, making eye contact, and using open gestures. For example, “Try to keep your hands relaxed at your sides when you’re not using them to gesture.” Expert Enhancement: Refinement: Provide feedback on subtle improvements, such as the impact of specific gestures or how to use body language to emphasize points. For example, “Incorporate purposeful pauses and gestures to underscore key points and keep the audience engaged.”

Foundation Tips: Help them understand the basics of vocal variety, such as varying pitch, volume, and pace to avoid monotony. For example, “Try changing your tone when you make a key point to make it stand out.” Expert Enhancement: Sophisticated Techniques: Suggest more advanced vocal techniques like strategic pauses or using inflection to convey emotion and emphasis. For example, “Experiment with varying your pitch and speed to create more dynamic and engaging delivery.”

Depth and Precision: Provide feedback on the depth of content and how to convey complex ideas more effectively. For example, “Incorporate data or anecdotes to support your points and consider how to present complex information in a more accessible way.”

Novice speakers improve more dramatically than experienced. Tailor feedback 3 ways: 1. Experienced speakers usually know what they want to work on, so ask what your feedback should focus on. They're more receptive when you present suggestions as “challenge” to perfect their craft. 2. Novice speakers always benefit from better speech organization + specific examples. Don’t sugarcoat it, just balance with what you liked & end on a positive note. 3. Urge experienced speakers to record themselves; they can self-diagnose body language/vocal variety issues and experiment with your feedback. For novice, recording usually works against them because they're still developing a unique style and tend to over-scrutinize and then feeling dejected!

Interactive Techniques: Advise on advanced strategies for maintaining engagement, such as using audience feedback, incorporating interactive elements, or tailoring the message in real-time. For example, “Consider using live polls or interactive questions to gauge audience reactions and adjust your delivery accordingly.”