I truly believe that great storytelling is an art, and when I have an opportunity to be in the presence of a great speaker who is masterful at delivering a message, it is indeed a thrill. Especially in this “social media age,” I really enjoy attending live events that feature an inspiring, captivating speaker. There’s still hope for the rest of us, by the way. As my friend Saskia Shakin, a very talented public speaking coach, often reminds me, great speakers are not born; they are made. When it comes to public speaking, practice may not necessarily make “perfect,” but it can certainly lead to impressive growth. And once you’ve dedicated yourself to becoming a great speaker, I can assure you that media exposure will come your way, and on a frequent basis.
With all this in mind, I have three tips to share with you that I believe will help make your next presentation more engaging and successful. These are principles that I’ve found – through my many years in the media, first as a network television news producer, and now in the public relations field – make a huge difference when the goal is to connect with an audience in a powerful and engaging way.
Tell Vivid Stories & Paint a Picture
During the years that my friend Vicki Escarra served as CEO of Feeding America, the nation’s largest non-profit network of food banks, I enjoyed coaching the organization’s top management team on how to achieve maximum benefits from television interviews and live events. In this case, results were measured in terms of contributions to the work of this great organization, so that it could provide millions of meals for those in need.
When speaking about life-and-death conditions that affect millions of people, it’s natural to speak in terms of the disturbing statistics – but I reminded the Feeding America team that people are really moved to action not by statistics but by stories about individuals that touch our emotions. When Vicki told me about the large number of children she found standing in line for food at the centers she visited throughout the US, I asked her if there was any incident in particular that really moved her in an especially powerful way. She told me about meeting a five-year-old girl in a food pantry in Minnesota one day, who ate half of the sandwich she was given by the volunteers, and then put the other half in her pocket. “What’s the matter?” Vicki asked the little girl. “Aren’t you hungry?” “Oh, I am very hungry,” the girl replied, “but my little sister, who is back at home, hasn’t eaten in two days, and I want to take half of my sandwich back to her.”
I love this kind of storytelling and its emotional impact, and I encouraged Vicki and the organization’s other leaders to include stories like this one in their interviews. I’m confident that many television viewers who heard these stories were moved to take out their checkbook to support the work of Feeding America. Your ability to tell vivid, engaging stories will not only help you forge the strongest possible connection with those who see or hear you in an interview situation, but news producers will also take note of your skill in this area – and it will lead to increased media coverage.
Be Confident, But Not Arrogant
As I note in my most recent newsletter (which focuses on some observations regarding the recent presidential debates and lessons we can learn from the candidates’ public speaking styles) people like to align themselves with a winner – someone who is not only strong and capable, but also someone with an empowering vision. There’s a fine line, of course, between an individual who fits this description and an individual who might be seen by others as arrogant and self-absorbed. (I won’t “name any names” … but I will offer the initials, D.T.) As a journalist who started his career covering politics in Washington, I’m curious to see if people’s distaste for arrogance will ultimately surface on Election Day 2016.
If your goal is simply to “move people to action,” however, and you’d be happy just to capture a percentage of the people who hear your message (not necessarily a majority) this “rule” becomes a bit more flexible. A few years ago, I attended a presentation by Donny Deutsch, one of the nation’s top advertising moguls. The event happened to be held just a few days after the Super Bowl that year, and Deutsch was asked what he thought of the various big-budget commercials that had recently been broadcast during the big game. Perhaps appropriately, given his brash personality, Deutsch said that if a client asked his firm to put together a attention-grabbing commercial for the Super Bowl, he would want to evoke a strong emotional response from viewers – even if the ad was a bit “polarizing.” The reason that was his preference, Deutsch said, is that this kind of commercial would no doubt move some of the viewers to take action, as opposed to a message that 51 percent of the audience found “mildly likeable,” but not compelling enough to generate a response. This certainly makes sense to me, and I encourage you to keep this in mind when addressing an audience. Most of us enjoy being challenged by a speaker who provokes new thoughts and ideas, rather than one who is simply complacent.
Celebrate & Reinforce Your Community
Also, when you’re speaking to an audience, it can never hurt to make your audience feel good about the choice they’ve made to spend time with you. If you make them feel good about that decision, and reinforce it by letting them know that you’re dedicated to providing them with real value, they’re likely to want to be part of your community going forward.
In his outstanding book “Predictably Irrational,” author Dan Ariely, professor of Psychology and Economics at Duke University, explains how this principle works. You may recall a time when the world lacked a Starbucks coffee shop on every block. (Prior to 1987, there were only six Starbucks shops in existence!) Chances are, the first time you walked into a Starbucks coffee shop and considered purchasing a coffee or latte, you were probably somewhat shocked by the high prices — compared to those at Dunkin Donuts or other places where you could buy a hot beverage. The day after that first visit, however, when you passed by that same Starbucks coffee shop, you may have thought to yourself, as I did, “I’m a smart person, one who makes good decisions. Yesterday, I entered this attractive coffee shop and bought a latte, and it was great. Yes, it was somewhat expensive, but I made a good decision – because that’s just the kind of person I am. I think I’ll go in again today for another latte.” Ariely says that this kind of “anchoring” and self-reinforcing behavior is the way that habits are formed (such as “an addiction to Starbucks coffee!”) and is also how value is assigned to a product or experience, rather than by the pure laws of “supply and demand” that we learned about in Economics 101. With this principle in mind, I encourage you to make your audience feel great about giving you their time, and be sure to let them know that you appreciate them. Let them know how they can “visit with you” again – at another live event, through a webinar, by checking our your Facebook page, or perhaps by downloading a free article or e-book from your website. With each “visit” – just like your “Starbucks experience” – these individuals become “anchored” to your community. (Did I mention that I appreciate the fact that you’re reading this right now, and I hope that you’re finding value in this blog post and in my weekly newsletter? I really do!)
For more thoughts on how you can share your message most effectively, connect with those in the news media, and generate maximum media exposure, I invite you to subscribe to my weekly newsletter. Here’s a link to follow, to add your name to my mailing list: http://eepurl.com/buSz19