Delete "Good Afternoon" (and Other Gems) from Your Webinar Script

1. When you get on a webinar, stop saying “Good afternoon!” — even if it’s 12pm or?after.

If your attendees are joining from different time zones — and in this day and age, they probably are — then just because it’s 12pm in New York where you are, keep in mind that folks in other parts of the country are still brewing their morning coffee.?

And don’t try to correct yourself, realizing it’s only 9am in California, and say “Oh! Or ‘good morning,’ depending on where you are.”?

What’s wrong with that?

Folks are tired of it.?

It’s no longer funny or cute.

What do you say instead?

“Good day, everyone!”

“It’s great to see you!”

“Thanks for joining!”

“Welcome to the session!”

“Let’s get started!”

I could go on and on. There is a ton of options for greeting your webinar attendees, and in doing so, do not assume everyone is in the same time zone as you.

What’s the point? It’s about being polished and not doing what you keep hearing and seeing other presenters do over and over again. Show you've thought of everything including the fact it's not the same time of day for everyone who's joining your webinar.

2. Never say “I’m not going to go over everything.”

What if you went into a department store to buy a double-breasted blazer and the salesperson told you, “All the blazers are missing at least two buttons, and we’re not providing you with replacement buttons"?

Or what if you went to the deli for a pound of sliced white Vermont cheddar and were told “I’m giving you only 8 ounces but charging you for 16"?

Or what if you go to the movies, but the first frame indicates the 2-hour movie will run for only an hour and 45 minutes, that the film is wrapping up 15 minutes early, and you’ll have to figure out the ending on your own?

You’d have some issues with all of that.

For your presentations, that’s great if you have a lot of content and a lot of intel, but avoid giving your audience the impression they will miss out on anything. FOMO — fear of missing out — is a real thing.

Avoid telling people “I’m not going to cover everything,” which translates into “I’m holding onto all the goods and only giving you what I feel like giving you."

Got a lot to cover? Feel pressed for time? Is it impossible to cover everything?

I get it.

First, realize you can cover only 3 to 5 big ideas per hour. Next, organize your presentation so you don’t feel like you’re in a time crunch. Finally, practice like mad so you have your timing down pat. (I have a 5-minute Ignite Talk I’m delivering at a conference, and I have been chopping and slicing and dicing the script like I’m working the dinner hour on a hibachi grill at a local restaurant; and I’ve been practicing like it's going out of style because I know all I have are those 5 minutes to crush it!)

3. Give the goals and objectives BEFORE you give the?agenda.

It boils down to giving everyone a reason to listen to you.

Some may see the objectives and the agenda as one and the same. They’re not. Goals and objectives are pretty synonymous with each other—they are what you want to accomplish, what everyone will know or be able to do by the end of your presentation. Your agenda, though, is how you will get there; it’s how everyone’s time will be spent—the topics you will cover that will lead to the anticipated result/goals/objectives.

Check this out.

If I start a presentation with?…

“We are going to cover the best way to start a presentation, how to engage your audience in meaningful ways, and strategies for closing your presentations with power.”

That sounds pretty okay.

But if I start a presentation with?…

“By the time we’re done, you will know how to get everyone to lean in and listen to you no matter your presentation topic, how to never again get crickets when you ask a question, and how to end your presentation in a way that sets up your audience for success!”

You would take notice. You would then say, “That sounds amazing! how are we going to do that?!”

And only after I’ve given you the objectives, only after I’ve given you a reason to listen, do I then give you the agenda?…

“We will accomplish this by covering the best way to start a presentation, how to engage your audience in meaningful ways, and strategies for closing your presentations with power.”

You see, when I start with the goals of the session—what you will be able to do by the end—I get you excited. I get you to the edge of your seat. You’re wanting to get this party started!

But when I start with the agenda, it’s just a bowl of vanilla ice cream. Nothing exciting. Nothing special. Nothing to get crunk about.

Start with the goals and objectives, then give the agenda.

4. Give everyone a heads up very early on that they will be able (and expected) to?engage.

Say in your opening message “Please stop me at any time with your questions” or “Please post your questions to the chat; I will monitor it and get answers to you during the course of the session” or anything along those lines.

Avoid starting your session, presenting some content, then asking “What questions do you have?” First, you should never ask that or “Are there any questions?” because both are very difficult to answer. Next, even if you forget in your opening words to let people know you want to hear from them, start your segment/first agenda item with “I’m about to cover X. Make sure you jot down your questions as they come to you.”

If your content is new for your listeners, they are trying to process what they’ve heard, figuring out what the information means for them and what’s unclear. So blindly asking your audience "Are there any questions?" will take time for you to get any responses. Speakers may grow impatient because they get silence when they ask that question. There's silence because folks are trying to think! Instead, set them up for success or better yet, ask better questions.

You have to tell people your performance expectations early on. You have to get them ready. When you do that, you reduce the likelihood of folks looking like deer caught in headlights when you ask for questions. And when you ask great questions, you are even more of a rockstar presenter. See this article to see what I mean.

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