Researchers at Catholic University in Washington D.C. conducted a study on the attention span of conference attendees. They found that most people stopped paying attention to a speaker within 30 seconds of the speech. That means that a speaker has half a minute to capture the attention of the audience and try to hold it.
When preparing a presentation, you should give a lot of importance to the beginning of the presentation as it will then motivate the listeners to pay attention to it or not. In reality, not working on the first part of your talk may mean failure in the long run. If you don’t get people’s attention in 30 seconds, there is a strong possibility that their interest will be diverted immediately and they will not listen to the rest of your talk. If you want to attract people immediately and keep them busy, create a compelling first 30 seconds. By setting the beginning of your presentation, you will set the tone for a talk that will engage, entertain and ultimately convince your audience to believe in your ideas.
Here are some concrete tips for getting the first 30 seconds of your talk:
Prepare very carefully the first 30 seconds of your talk
First, it shows that you have worked hard and have full knowledge of the subject. To make a good impression, speakers must show confidence and be prepared from the beginning. Second, starting your presentation strong helps you overcome the initial nerves you may experience in front of a live audience.
One crucial thing to keep in mind is that you should not memorize the material, but present it in a natural way knowing what you are talking about. Your presentation will feel more like a conversation than a scripted speech.
Become familiar with your slides. Click on them as you deliver the content repeatedly to become more familiar with the narrative. Finally, rehearse several times in a slide show mode to visualize the flow of your presentation. Practice with the camera to evaluate not only your content, but also your stage presence, eye contact, facial expressions, gestures, and vocal tone.
Start by saying relevant and real things
One way to connect with the audience is to segment into categories before presenting, i.e., salespeople, or marketing people, or the medical team. Frame your opening in a way that captures the audience’s attention and they are more likely to stay on your side for the rest of the talk.
There are other ways to resonate with your audience besides segmentation. By reflecting on a shared experience with the audience in real-time, the audience will become more engaged in the conversation.
Create a link with your audience
To get your audience on board, interact with them from the beginning. Tell something funny and make them laugh. Or ask a “raise your hand if. Use a call and response technique between you and the audience. It is important that in your first 30 seconds, you establish a connection, we are all on the same team. We’re in this together. If you involve your audience from the beginning, you can keep them until the end.
Summary
You may have the most interesting content in the world to deliver, but you won’t have the opportunity to do so unless you capture the attention of your listeners in the first 30 seconds. Try one of the above methods to engage your audience early on. Not only will they be ready to listen when you offer them those life-changing ideas, but they will also find you enjoyable, engaging and trustworthy.
At 3DforScience we make sure that your content can be presented most attractively and innovatively, through our various digital services that adjust according to your needs. Do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or assistance.
3DforScience
3DforScience is a scientific communication company specialized in digital content for the pharma and biotech industries. Our passionate creative team works alongside an in-house scientific team to provide cutting-edge medical animations, scientific illustrations, virtual reality, etc.
Our extensive experience within the field ensures all the content we produce is scientifically accurate, innovative, engaging, and pitched at the right level for the target audience. Would you like to bring your scientific messaging to life? Contact us. We would love to help you create something unique
