Are you a Likeable Presenter? Which characteristics apply to you?
We all like to be liked most of the time and when presenting we want to be liked by the audience however big or small that may be because then we tend to feel more at ease.
Great speakers and presenters are liked by their audiences and being likeable doesn’t only help with presenting but will help you in your job, business, relationships, and life.
What makes great speakers so likeable and so successful? And how can we do it?
Here are ten of the most important characteristics and principles to integrate to become a likeable presenter.
See which apply to you……
1. Do you listen ?
“When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen.” – Ernest Hemingway
Listening is the foundation of any good presentation. Great speakers listen to what their audience wants and need, and they listen to the challenges they face. They find out about their audience by listening before the event as well as to their comments and questions during the presentation.
2. Do you tell stories?
“Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world today.” -Robert McAfee Brown
We all like listening to stories. Great presenters tell great stories that captivate and enthrall. Storytelling is what persuades and influences people to take action. Whether you’re telling a story to one prospect over lunch, a boardroom full of people, or thousands of people through an online video, storytelling wins.
3. Are you authentic?
“I had no idea that being your authentic self could make me as rich as I’ve become. If I had, I’d have done it a lot earlier.” -Oprah Winfrey
Great speakers are who they say they are, and they have integrity beyond compare. Vulnerability and humility are hallmarks of the authentic presenter and create a positive, attractive energy. There used to be a divide between one’s public self and private self, but the social internet has blurred that line. Be genuine to yourself and your audience.
4. Do you show transparency?
“As a small businessperson, you have no greater leverage than the truth.” -John Whittier
There is nowhere to hide anymore, and business people who attempt to bluster or oversell or keep secrets will eventually be exposed. Openness and honesty lead to happier audiences. More important, transparency makes it a lot easier to sleep at night – unworried about what you said to whom, or whether or not you will be found out.
5. Are you responsive?
“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” -Charles Swindoll
The best speakers interact and respond to their audience. They show respect and value their audience’s participation. It shows you care and gives your audience the chance to respond back building a deeper and more meaningful relationship.
6. Are you adaptable?
“When you’re finished changing, you’re finished.” -Ben Franklin
Great presenters are flexible in managing their presentation and changing it as and when the circumstances arise. They don’t drive on to the bitter end even when it’s not being well received because they are great at reading the audience so that they can give them what they need.
7. Are you passionate?
“The only way to do great work is to love the work you do.” -Steve Jobs
Those who love what they do don’t have to work a day in their lives. People who are able to bring passion to their presentations have a remarkable advantage, as that passion is contagious to the audience. Finding and increasing your passion will absolutely increase your success as a presenter.
8. Do you surprise and delight?
“A great presenter always keeps an element of surprise up his sleeve, which others cannot grasp but which keeps his public excited and breathless.” – ( adapted from a quotation by Charles de Gaulle)
Most people like surprises in their day-to-day lives. Likeable presenters under-promise and over-deliver, assuring that the audience is surprised in a positive way. If you leave your audience with a smile on their face they will talk about you to others.
9. Do you keep it simple?
“Less isn’t more; just enough is more.” -Milton Glaser
The world is more complex than ever before, and yet what audiences respond to best is simplicity — in presentation design, form, and function. When you take complex ideas and projects and break them down into their simplest components you allow your audience to gain a better understanding of what you are offering and buy into your vision. Great presenters are focussed and provide clarity.
10. Are you appreciative?
“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” -Gilbert Chesterton
Likeable presenters are ever grateful for the people who listen to them- their audience. Being appreciative and saying thank you to your audience means that you will be appreciated and well received. It also makes you feel great!
The key to being liked as a speaker : treat your audience as you’d like to be treated if you were listening to you!
Holding your audience in high regard demonstrates your likeability and motivates others to work with you. This seems so simple, as do so many of these principles — and yet many people, too concerned with making money or getting by, fail to truly adopt these key concepts.
How many did you score?
What makes you a likeable presenter?
Until next time,
Kind regards,
Cath
If you like this post please share! Thanks.
For free tips and techniques to develop your communication and presentation skills sign up now for the Winning Presentations 7 Part Mini-course.
You can find lots more advanced techniques and additional tools in Winning Presentations.