Public
When you
speak in public, the first thing you have to do is capture the audience's
interest and attention. so that the communication is effective.
Talking
to a public that doesn't show any interest is a waste of time.
If the
public attends an event it is because they are interested, because
they want to get something from it (learn, get to know other points
of view, have a good time, etc.) therefore try not to disappoint them.
Don't
see the public as an enemy.
You need
to prepare the speech according to the audience:
Talking
about topics that interest them (if the speaker has the option of
choosing).
Using
appropriate language, understandable: you should not use terms that
sound strange to the audience (it is not the same talking to univeristy
students as talking to a group of retired people).
The same
topic can be approached in different ways according to the target
audience.
A presentation
about unemployment trends in Spain will be different if it is carried
out in Parliament or if it is carried out in a political meeting
(in the first scenario it will be a more formal presentation, distant
and moderated, whilst in the second case it will be more informal
and passionate).
Although
until you actually see the audience you will not know exactly who
your audience is, you will have to talk previously to the event organizers
so that they can indicate what type of public they think will attend.
One aspect
that you should bear in mind is if it is just one group of people
(for example, students from the law department) or not (for example,
the public of the local "fiestas") given that the speech
needs to be directed at all of them.
You should
not use terms or expressions that the public does not know, nor
enter into levels of detail which one part of the audience might
not be interested in, or are simply not able to understand.
Also you
need to find out how many people are due to come:
It is
not the same speaking to 10 as to speaking to 300 people. This will
influence the capacity of interaction (ask questions, debate, etc)
if you have the need to use or not use a microphone, in the possible
means of support (blackboard, projectors, etc).
If there
are a lot of people in the audience you will need to speak louder
(even if you use a microphone) something that you should bear in
mind when you are rehearsing. With just a few attendants the style
can be more informal, closer, instead of a formal style when you
have a larger audience.
You need
to bear in mind the possible knowledge that the public has about the
topic that you are going to speak about, as this will determine the
depth of your speech, or whether you have to use more or less technical
vocabualary.
An aspect
that will also influence the speech is if the speaker already knows
the audience (if they have previously met, if they work in the same
company, live in the same town, etc) as if this is the case, the speaker
can make the speech less formal and be closer to the audience.
You need
to try and anticipate if the audience is going to agree or disagree
with the thesis that you are going to talk about, if you believe there
are going to be differences in opinion, try to work out what they
are going to be.
If you
have the opportunity to refer to other possible points of view take
the opportunity, treat them with respect, although point out that
they are not your own.
You
also need to consider the most probable questions the audience is
going to ask, so that you can prepare the answers.
