Why You Should Check IN To Keep Your Audience From Checking OUT

Imagine you’re sitting in an auditorium with 150 other people. You’re listening to a speaker who’s talking about one of your favorite topics. The presentation is enlightening and energetic, but, something’s missing.

After the presentation, you have a revelation:

You felt like the speaker was talking at you, and not with you.

When we feel talked at, it seems like we’re listening to a lecture from a disengaged presenter. It’s not a two-way conversation.

You may remember the talk, but chances are you won’t.

How To The Deepen Connection With Your Audience, And Keep Their Attention

What can you do to capture and keep audience attention?

Check-ins.

It’s important to check-in with your audience to ensure they’re still alert and engaged. How do you do this?

There are a variety of methods:

• Ask questions
• Conduct polls
• Pause to gauge their reactions.

These check-ins serve three purposes:

1. You engage listeners’ emotions and your stories become shared experiences.
2. You ensure the audience is still following along and understanding your material.
3. You can adapt your delivery to better suit audience needs. You may notice they’re struggling to keep up or they seem disengaged. You can adjust your pace or delivery style to better suit their needs.

Additionally, if you notice audience interest in a specific aspect of your talk, you can focus more time discussing it to keep them engaged.

Gain A Better Understanding And Create An Experience

Check-ins can confirm the audience understands the message or point of your speech.

When I tell a story about sitting in my bosses office, I ask,

“Have you ever been in a meeting, expecting it to go one way… and it goes in a completely different direction?”

I’ve tapped into listeners’ experience because everyone has been in that situation. I’ve also foreshadowed that something unexpected is about to happen. They lean because they want to hear what happens next.

Checking in also makes listeners feel like they’re in your story. This creates a shared experience.

In another story, I talk about a rainy afternoon when I was in first grade.

During indoor recess, I decided to jump on top of my desk.

I ask the audience, “What do you see? What can you hear?”

These questions trigger memories from their own early school experiences. My story becomes their story, thus a shared experience.

Asking questions. Conducting polls. Pausing for reflection.

These let you know if your audience is getting the message. They help you adjust your presentation and create a deeper bond with them.

These let you know if your audience is getting the message. They help you adjust your presentation and create a deeper bond with them.

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