Engaging event
Digital technology has reduced our average attention span to a mere 8 seconds – that’s shorter than a goldfish.
This means you’ll need all the tricks at your disposal to keep the attention of your audience during your talk, training or presentation.
Our conference team share their top three tips to making your session interesting and keeping your audience engaged.
1. Questions
An easy way to grab your audience’s attention at the start, involve them immediately in the session by talking to them.
Addressing questions directly to individuals makes everyone sit up and listen. It makes your session more personal. It makes people feel they’re part of the session. It keeps people interested and importantly it shows you’re interested in what they have to say, showing you value them as an essential part of the session.
And nobody wants to be caught out not listening when it’s their turn.
2. Real life examples
‘When our Conference Manager Stef was asked to source a stage the night before an event, she wondered who in Cornwall she could call at such late notice…’
Using your own life stories to illustrate a point exhibits emotion. It shows you have personality, it spells transparency, and speaks authenticity. This makes you credible, believable, and trustworthy to your audience who’ll sense your integrity.
Who doesn’t find honesty refreshing? And people are generally interested in people and their personal experiences as opposed to hard, cold, faceless facts.
3. Different materials
Variety’s the spice of life. Nowhere is this mantra more relevant and essential.
During your session you’ll have loads of information to communicate to your audience. To get them to retain as much as possible use all the resources at your disposal. Printouts, video, audio, pictures, infographics…
If there’s one thing the technological age has afforded us, it’s an unending, ever-growing choice of communication tools. So use them.
Using a mix of engaging media and resources will make you and your session memorable.
We Are Open for Meetings, Training and Events
St Austell Conference Centre is now fully open with COVID-secure procedures in place. Do get in touch to book your event.