How to grab and hold audience attention during a presentation

One of the most important challenges for a presenter is to first capture and then hold the audience’s attention. If the presenter cannot do this, the presentation may not be successful, no matter how valuable the content. When a presenter is waiting his turn and slyly looks at the crowd before having to intervene, panic tends to overwhelm him. This is a familiar feeling to many.

Audiences can seem intimidating or too chaotic at first, but there are ways to get and keep their attention. We must remember here that grabbing their attention is not enough. We must hold your attention throughout the duration of our presentation. Many speakers try to get attention in many ways, for example by telling the latest joke or making a wacky entrance. This can get attention but doesn’t establish relevance, so after a while people may walk away or fall off.

These kinds of attention-grabbing tricks, which aren’t really relevant to the topic of the presentation, can be effective in getting the presenter’s attention momentarily, but then people see them as tricks and rarely remember the actual presentation or the message I had for them. Jumping on the table or landing on stage from a helicopter will definitely grab the audience, but if your presentation isn’t that flashy and exciting, the effect wears off quickly.

Here are some of the most commonly used methods to successfully gain and hold audience attention.

1. Ask a question.

You can ask a rhetorical question or something that gets everyone involved by getting them thinking about it.

• How many of you in this room have hated filing tax returns?
• How many of you drive a German car?
• Are our competitors driving us out of the market?

You can wait a bit after the question to get information about your audience, but don’t wait too long because audience members feel stupid if no one knows the answer. Avoid open-ended questions and ask only questions that can be answered with a simple yes or no, unless you are confident in using such questions skillfully. If you ask too general questions like “What is the purpose of life?” people may get the impression that your presentation is very general.

2. State an impressive fact.

Start with a shocking, unusual, or impressive fact related to the topic of your presentation.

• We’re going to be out of business in six months if we let our competitors outbid us like this.
• Demand in the market has doubled in the last three years and our market share has increased by only 1%.

3. Tell a story.

Telling a personal story closely related to the topic of your presentation is a great way to start. People generally like to hear stories that are personal, that are not too long or try to glorify the narrator too much.

Example:

“Dear colleagues, before we start I would like to tell you a short story about how our service got its name. Don’t worry, it’s not too long.“.

an indian tale

Three fish lived in a pond. One was called Plan Ahead, another Think Fast, and the third was called Wait and See. One day they heard a fisherman say that the next day he was going to cast the net into his pond. Plan ahead said: “I’m swimming down the river tonight! Think fast he said: “I’m sure I’ll come up with a plan.“Wait and see,” he said lazily,I can’t think about that right now!“When the fisherman cast his nets, Plan Ahead was gone. But Think Fast and Wait and See were caught! Think Fast quickly turned his belly over and pretended to be dead.”Oh, this fish is not good!“said the fisherman, and threw him safely back into the water. But, wait and see, he ended up in the fish market. That’s why they say:”In times of danger, when the net is cast, plan ahead or plan to think fast!”

4. Listed on listing.

Quotes are widely used for presentations and add a colorful touch to your personal style.

“A short saying often contains a lot of wisdom.Sophocles (496 BC – 406 BC)

“No culture can live if it tries to be exclusive.

Mahatma Gandhi

Though they may be impressive, quotes don’t have much shock value and could be quickly forgotten. Therefore, they must be complemented by other methods to capture the attention of the audience. Also remember to use quotation marks sparingly. If you use too many quotes, people will start to think that you have nothing original to say, since you are always borrowing other people’s sayings.

5. Tell a joke.

Jokes are wonderful for relaxing the audience and creating a lighthearted atmosphere. Relaxed audiences tend to be more interactive. This could make the presenters job a bit easier.

The joke must be appropriate. People have very different senses of humor and you have to be very careful with jokes. What might produce laughs in one audience might cause stunned silence in another.

Experiment with the joke first with people you know to see how it works and if poor language skills make it difficult to understand the joke. It’s very embarrassing if you’re the only one who gets the joke and no one can laugh for the right reason. Some jokes to avoid are sexual, religious, ethnic, and political issues, as people are very sensitive in these areas.

One thing to watch out for is the cultural relativity of humor. In many cultures the locals joke about many things and everyone laughs, but the moment a person from another culture or from a foreign headquarters makes the same joke, it can stop being a joke and become in a cultural affront.

6. Go among the audience.

Presenters generally stay in the front area near the laptop or overhead. This creates a comfort zone for many people in the audience. Some brave presenters disturb this audience’s comfort zone by moving closer or stepping to the side altogether. Then the primitive instincts of people in their comfort zone start to wake them up. “The presenter is so close and then he’s even going to ask me something, so you better be alert.“.

Attention-grabbing skills are important in establishing relevance to your audience. Most people in the audience are often not mentally present or with you when you start to speak. Even if they are physically present there and trying to appear interested, in reality, they are in their own worlds. They are thinking about work issues, planning the rest of their day, thinking about their own problem or just daydreaming. You have to bring them into your world and make them interested in your topic.

Attention-grabbing skills are your tool to help your audience resonate with your topic. These audience attention grabbing skills aren’t about your ego, you’re just helping them tune in. When you have something worth saying and your audience feels that you are actually guiding them and helping to focus on your topic, they will appreciate it and reward you with eager attention and active participation. Then at the end, you’ll feel elated as they clap to show their appreciation.

The best place to hold a presentation is a prison; they already have a captive audience.

Enjoy your presentations!