Understanding your audience

“Giving a presentation is like being on stage - it’s a performance. And to perform well, you must know something about your audience”  - Fran Bayliss


The chances are that you can find out quite a bit about your audience before the presentation. Always try to do as much research on them as possible.

•      Who will be there?
•      Do they want to see you or were they forced to attend?
•      What responsibilities do they have?
•      What level in the organisation are they?
•      Are they decision makers or will they have to persuade someone else?
•      What will they expect from you?
•      What do they already know?
•      Will they all understand me - how technical can I, should I, be?
•      Are they likely to ask questions?

The more you know about your audience in advance, the more persuasive your presentation can be. 

Here are some definite things to avoid:

•      Talking down to an audience - people hate to be patronised
•      Showing that you know little or nothing about them (at least know something about who they are)
  
•      Being totally unprepared for questions
•      Knowing nothing about their current mood or concerns

The most common problem with audiences is misjudging them. It is all too easy to talk down to an audience that may know more than you do. They may also have totally different expectations to you.

How often have you been to a presentation where the speaker clearly knew nothing about your needs, wishes or expectations?

The secret here is to try and see things from the audience’s viewpoint. What do they need to know? What language or level of complexity should you offer? Will they all have technical and other essential knowledge?

The audience should also know something about you.

• Prepare some background material about you and try to let the audience have this before the presentation.
• Ask the organiser to send you, if possible, an attendance list and discuss with him/her the likely make up of the audience - their interests, backgrounds, expectations
• Be prepared to adapt to an audience that wants you to: speak up, slow down, use fewer technical terms, speak more clearly
• If it’s your first time, rehearse the presentation in front of an unbiased friend or relative. What do they think? Can they understand you? Is it interesting?

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