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Want to
improve
your
speaking
to
persuade?
…
Consider
your
audience
In this
Tip
Number
12 of
the
30
Speaking
Tips,
we will
look at
persuasion
and how
important
it is to
consider
your
audience
if you
want to
be
successful.
You need
to
connect
with
your
audience.
They
have to
feel
that you
have
their
best
interests
in mind,
not just
your own
agenda.
While
you are
speaking
to them,
it has
to be
apparent
that you
care
about
them and
what
they
want and
need.
Otherwise
you lose
their
trust.
Use your
speaking
skills
to
create
the
connection
with
your
audience
and
engage
them.
Use
stories
and
humour.
Interact
with
them.
Call
back to
incidents
or
people
they
know.
You have
to have
engagement
in order
to begin
the
process
of
persuasion.
You also
need to
know
your
audience
if you
are to
have
their
own
interests
in
mind.
This
means
you will
have
researched
them
before
you
speak so
that you
can
tailor
your
presentation
to
them.
You need
to have
some
idea of
who they
are, and
what
needs
they
have
that you
can
meet.
In many
ways
there
will be
similarities
among
these.
You can
find
those
and
speak to
them.
There
will
also be
differences,
particularly
in terms
of what
works to
persuade
them.
Some
people
are
motivated
by work
and what
they can
do to
improve
their
lives
and the
way they
do
things.
Others
are
motivated
by
emotion.
Still
others
need
data.
While
they
will be
moved
emotionally,
they
need the
solid
proof
before
they
will
commit.
So try
to use
as many
different
styles
of
persuasion
as you
can so
that you
appeal
to all
the
different
types of
people
in your
audience.
You will
also
find
that
there
are
certain
people
who are
responding
positively
to your
presentation.
You can
tell by
their
body
language,
maybe
they
smile
and nod
or have
their
heads on
one side
responding
to what
you
say.
Maybe
they are
just
natural
encouragers,
or maybe
they are
really
carried
along
with
you.
Either
way they
have a
positive
effect
on those
around
them.
Concentrate
on these
people.
Those
who are
negative
may
respond
to your
methods
of
persuasion,
and that
is fine,
but it
you
focus on
them,
you
become
frustrated
for a
start,
but you
also
draw
attention
to them
and
their
negativity
may rub
off on
those
around
them
more
than it
would
have.
So work
the
little
circles
of
positivity
so that
support
for your
argument
spreads.
So get
to
understand
your
audience.
Research
them,
watch
them and
work
with
them, in
order to
persuade
them
©Bronwyn Ritchie
If you want to include this article in your publication, please do,
but please include the following information with it:
Bronwyn Ritchie is a professional librarian, writer, award-winning
speaker and trainer. She is a certified corporate trainer and speech
contest judge with POWERtalk, a certified World Class Speaking
coach, and has had 30 years experience speaking to audiences and
training in public speaking. Get her 30 speaking tips
FREE and boost your public speaking mastery over 30 weeks. Join now or go to
http://www.30speakingtips.com
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