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Good public speaking begins with the content of the speech itself. The first thing you should consider is the topic, or subject, of the speech. Choosing a topic that is relevant to your audience's interests will help you keep them engaged.
Once a topic is chosen, narrowing down the focus of the topic will allow you to cover more detailed information, and your audience should find the speech easier to follow as a result. When writing the speech, keep the purpose of your words in mind. Do you want to inform your audience of something, or do you want to persuade them to your side of an argument?
Sometimes the idea of speaking publicly can be overwhelming. Practicing your speech and mentally preparing yourself beforehand can lessen anxiety and build confidence for later when you're in front of a crowd.
Rehearsing the speech out loud after writing it can assist you in nailing down good timing and refining your intonation. Rehearsing will also help you memorize what you've written, thereby allowing you more freedom with your delivery.
Envisioning the speech going well can also give you a feeling of empowerment. Whatever strategy you choose, planning days or weeks in advance will make the experience of public speaking more manageable.
Even if you're confident in your speech's quality beforehand, speaking in front of an audience provides many opportunities to enhance your message.
As the focus of attention, you can use both vocal and visual elements to your advantage. Effective vocal delivery involves changing elements such as pitch, volume, and speaking rate to emphasize parts of your speech that are integral to its theme.
In terms of visual elements, maintaining eye contact and keeping an open posture can help you build a relationship with the audience. On the other hand, inappropriate dress and unnecessary gestures can distract your audience.
The audience is the target of your speech, and effectively communicating your theme to them is the goal of good public speaking. As such, you should always keep the audience in mind both before and during your time on stage.
Knowing details about your audience in advance, such as age, religion, and educational background, can help you tailor your message to make it more relevant to them.
While talking, pay attention to both verbal and nonverbal feedback from crowd members to determine if they are engaged or distracted. If you sense they are distracted, changing the pace of the speech with an inquiry or story can reengage them.
When you are speaking, you want listeners to understand and respond favorably to what you are saying. An audience is one or more people who come together to listen to the speaker.
Audience members may be face-to-face with the speaker or connected by communication technology such as computers or other media. The audience may be small and private, or it may be large and public.
A key characteristic of public speaking situations is the unequal distribution of speaking time between the speaker and the audience. For example, the speaker usually talks more while the audience listens, often without asking questions or responding with any feedback. In some situations, the audience may ask questions or respond overtly by clapping or commenting.
Since there is usually limited communication between the speaker and the audience, there is limited opportunity to explain your meaning either during the speech or afterward.
When planning a speech, it is important to know about the audience and to adapt the message to the audience. You want to prepare an audience-centered speech, or a speech focusing on the audience.
In public speaking, you are speaking to and for your audience; thus, understanding the audience is a major part of the speech-making process. In audience-centered speaking, getting to know your target audience is one of your most important tasks. You want to learn about the major demographics of the audience, such as general age, gender, education, religion, and culture, and to what groups the audience members belong.
Additionally, learning about the values and attitudes of your audience members will allow you to anticipate and plan your message.
You want to analyze your audience before your speech so that you can create a link between you, the speaker, and the audience. You want to be able to figuratively step inside the minds of audience members to understand the world from their perspectives.
Through this process, you can find common ground with your audience, which allows you to align your message with what the audience already knows or believes.
Audience analysis involves gathering and interpreting information about the recipients of oral, written, or visual communication. There are very simple methods for conducting an audience analysis, such as interviewing a small group about its knowledge or attitudes or using more involved methods of analyzing demographic studies of relevant segments of the population.
You may also find it useful to look at sociological studies of different age groups or cultural groups. You might also use a questionnaire or rating scale to collect data about the basic demographic information and opinions of your target audience. After considering all the known factors, a profile of the intended audience can be created, allowing you to speak in a manner that is understood by the intended audience.
These examples do not form an all-inclusive list of methods to analyze your audience, but they can help you obtain a general understanding of how you can learn about your audience. Audience analysis will be covered in more detail in subsequent lessons.
Understanding who makes up your target audience will allow you to carefully plan your message and adapt what you say to the level of understanding and background of the listeners. Your speech will be more successful if you can create a message that informs and engages your audience.
Two practical benefits of conducting an audience analysis are:
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