Episode #263: The “Impress Your Audience” Speech

Every time we speak, we are representing our professional and personal brands. People judge us and then they project that same judgment on to our organization. If we are very professional, then they see everyone in our organisation in a positive light. If we are bumbling and disorganised, then they see our whole organisation the same way. If we want the audience to believe our message, then they have to believe in us first. This is why having credibility is so important when speaking.

If we overstate our organisation’s capabilities, it arouses suspicion and damages our credibility. Remember this is the Era of Cynicism and fake news. Any time we make a statement, then we need to back it up with evidence. The evidence has to resonate by being vivid, interesting and memorable. We have to show the benefits of what we are suggesting because facts by themselves cannot be enough. In particular, we need to show how they can apply these benefits in their own organisations.

We want to present a positive image of our organisation but how do we do this without it being rejected as corporate propaganda? Being confident when we deliver the key messages makes a tremendous difference. Uncertain speech, hesitation, struggling for words, using filler words like um and ah, all conspire to defeat our efforts to appear confident in what we are saying. Fluency in delivery is what we need and that takes practice. We don’t have to memorise great chunks of content. We can use the slide deck for navigation purposes to guide us through the flow of the talk. We just talk to the point of the slide, because we have designed this talk, so obviously we know what we want to say.

We must project tremendous enthusiasm. I am thinking of two speakers who surprised me with their total lack of enthusiasm for their own amazing companies. One was a luxury marque car brand and the other a resource captain of industry. Both had phenomenal sagas of defeat and triumph, of business breakthroughs and of spectacular R&D success. It would have been much more interesting if they had included these in their talks. They managed to replace these exciting stories with the bland and boring. If they had spoken as if possessed with total belief in the righteousness of their company’s contribution to the world, they would have had much greater impact with their audiences. They would have attracted fans for themselves and their companies.

The structure for a talk to impress an audience about our organisation looks like this:

Opening. The opening has only one purpose. That objective is to create a positive impression so powerful, it breaks through all of the distractions occupying the minds of the listeners. The first sentence out of the speaker’s mouth has to command our attention and interest. Pithy quotes, grabber statistics, total killer stories, will all do the trick.

Message. We need to clearly state the key messages. Within the first five minutes of the talk are the audience clear on where we are going with this speech? Have we honed our key messages down to the bone, to eliminate psychobabble, pap and make sure we have eliminated our data dump proclivities. We need to reiterate the most important message in the speech close, before we bridge to the Q&A and again, during the final close at the end, after the Q&A.

Evidence. We must establish credibility and inspire trust, respect and confidence in what we are saying by using powerful evidence. So often speakers make sweeping statements and audiences are left to ponder whether that statement about their company is true or are we listening to a re-incarnation of Joseph Goebbels, one of the most evil and notorious propagandists in history? Carefully inspect every utterance where you are making a broad statement and then check to see if there is sufficient evidence accompanying it. You will surprise yourself with how often we make statements and offer no proof whatsoever.

Closing. As mentioned there are two closes. Close number one, prior to Q&A is designed to capture the essence of your message, in order to reinforce its potency for the audience. The second close for after the Q&A is designed to leave the audience with a favourable, memorable impression of you, your organisation and your message.

The impress talk structure is not complex, but the delivery requires a lot of rehearsal. Practicing on your audience is self delusion in the making. So many speakers give their speech once – when they are in front of the assembled mass of sceptics, doubters, critics and cynics. Anytime you are talking up your own organisation, then you are really asking for trouble. Get the required fluency in the delivery, so that you are radiating confidence and credibility. If you do that your message will be bought by the audience. If you don’t, your personal and professional brands will take a big hit. The choice is embarrassingly clear.