Get Your Audience’s Attention!

Delivery

  • First, the way you present yourself and your speech makes or breaks your presentation. Enthusiasm and confidence are two characteristics you want to portray. Speak clearly and give emphasis to points you want the audience to take with them. Being energetic maintains the attention of the audience. Have an interest in what you are saying, and the listeners will follow with you. Practice your speech. Smile and make eye contact. Even if you are nervous, present yourself professionally, really know your topic and create a positive and energetic atmosphere. That is the best way to get and hold on to your audience’s attention!

Connect with the Audience

  • Make the topic of your speech relevant to your audience. If any of the strategies below can be employed while acknowledging how your audience connects to the topic, they will be engaged by its importance in their own lives and listen more readily as a result.

Focus

  • Regardless of which of the following attention getting strategies you employ, remember that preparing your audience for your topic is the primary goal. Stay focused!

Types of Attention Getters

Anecdote

  • Telling a story is one of the most common ways of beginning a speech. As long as the topic of the story is relevant to your presentation, you can choose any story. Stories that are too long or dense do not work because you will probably have to use too much time before you reach your point. You can use a personal story, which can make you more likable to the audience, or you can use imagery to bring the audience into the story. Much like you would do when writing a paper, transition from the story to your thesis or main point.

Question

  • Asking a question is another common way of starting a presentation. When you ask a question, it should be one that is thought-provoking and you should give time after asking the question to allow the audience to process their thoughts. You can ask a rhetorical question so that the audience can keep their answers to themselves, but they will be interested in what you have to say and how you would answer the question.

Joke

  • Humor relaxes the atmosphere during a presentation, so telling a joke can be a way to begin a speech. Humor can be difficult to use because, if you are telling too many jokes, your audience might not take you seriously. Humor can set the tone and mood of your presentation and make you seem more personable. Be careful with this strategy, jokes must be funny and appropriate. Sometimes they can diminish your credibility as a speaker. Quite often, this approach is best saved for special occasion speeches.

Quote

  • Using a famous or related quote helps you transition to bringing your point across to an audience. People might recognize the quote or who first said it, or if they do not, the audience will be interested to hear more. You should not pad your speech with quotes, but utilizing a few in key places gains the attention of an audience.

Comparison

  • Using similes, metaphors and other methods of comparing one thing to another can be a useful attention-getter. Especially when your topic is something that not any average listener will understand, putting the topic in other words and comparing it to something more commercial gains the attention of the audience and helps them understand what you are saying. Using figurative language brings the audience to your level.

Reference to Current Events

  • Referring to a current news event that relates to your topic is often an effective way to capture attention, as it immediately makes the audience aware of how relevant the topic is in today’s world.

Historical Reference

  • You may also capture your listeners’ attention by referring to a historical event related to your topic. Obviously, this strategy is closely related to the previous one, except that instead of a recent news event you are reaching further back in history to find a relevant reference. For example, if you are giving a speech on the Iraq War that began in 2003, you could refer back to the Vietnam War as way of making a comparison:

Startling Statement or Statistic

  • A great way to get your audience engaged is to surprise them with startling information about your topic. Often, startling statements come in the form of statistics and strange facts. The goal of a good startling statistic is that it surprises the audience and gets them engaged in your topic. For example, if you’re giving a speech about oil conservation, you could start by saying, “A Boeing 747 airliner holds 57,285 gallons of fuel.” You could start a speech on the psychology of dreams by noting, “The average person has over 1,460 dreams a year.” A strange fact, on the other hand, is a statement that does not involve numbers but is equally surprising to most audiences. For example, you could start a speech on the gambling industry by saying, “There are no clocks in any casinos in Las Vegas.” You could start a speech on the Harlem Globetrotters by saying, “In 2000, Pope John Paul II became the most famous honorary member of the Harlem Globetrotters.” All four of these examples came from a great website for strange facts
  • Although startling statements are fun, it is important to use them ethically. First, make sure that your startling statement is factual. The Internet is full of startling statements and claims that are simply not factual, so when you find a statement you’d like to use, you have an ethical duty to ascertain its truth before you use it. Second, make sure that your startling statement is relevant to your speech and not just thrown in for shock value. We’ve all heard startling claims made in the media that are clearly made for purposes of shock or fear mongering. As speakers, we have an ethical obligation to avoid playing on people’s emotions in this way.