Tailor the Presentation to Your Target Audience

By James A. Baker
Author, The Anger Busting Workbook,
Finalist, Book of the Year, Foreword Magazine
Founder and CEO,
Baker Communications

How do you begin preparing for a presentation? Do you outline your content or pursue supplementary research? Do you start designing graphics for your slides? These are all typical early steps in the preparation process. However, how much thought do you give to the target audience for this presentation, i.e., the key people in that audience that you most want to influence? Do you know who they are? Do you have any idea how to structure your presentation so that it will appeal directly to their needs and interests?

Most of the time, even though a wide variety of people may be IN the audience for our presentation, there is a much smaller group of people -- maybe only one (in the case of some business or board presentations) – that make up our TARGET audience because they are the ones we most want or need to influence. Do you understand how to prepare a preparation that will gain and hold the attention of this audience in a way that will give you the opportunity to have the maximum impact?

Different types of people have different types of listening and decision making styles. We can break these styles down into a few basic categories, each with its own set of characteristic needs and attitudes.

Some people are hard-driving, CEO types who project an image that is decisive independent, confident, assertive and a little blunt and impatient at times. They are usually bottom-line driven and they don’t like to waste time. During a presentation, this person prefers something:

• Business-like and to the point
• With no time-consuming details
• Containing strong support for any ideas, objectives, and conclusions
• That points out options and their potential benefits
• With well documented evidence and data

Others are enthusiastic, creative, friendly, and communicative; they are people oriented and enjoy group activities. During a presentation, people in this group respond well to:

• A relaxed, personal approach
• Enthusiasm
• Personal interaction
• Positive ideas and responses
• Testimonials and opinions from people he or she respects as being important or successful
• The big picture only– they will let you work out the details later

Then there are folks who are concerned about details in the extreme. They are generally serious, reserved, accurate, systematic, organized, and cautious. During a presentation, these folks want:

• A more formal presentation
• A slower-paced but steady progression
• A written analysis with documented evidence supporting principles or logic involved
• Details, details, details
• Factual, logical explanations
• Punctuality, precision, and accuracy
• Evidence of expertise
• Unemotional appeals
• Tangibles like charts, graphs, figures
• Clear description of pros and cons

Finally, there are those who are simply supportive, consistent in performance, dependable, folksy, and loyal. They prefer a presentation that:

• Is patient and free of conflict
• Is based on a consensus of opinion
• Is clear about guarantees of outcome and rightness of decision
• Requires a minimum of change
• Provides assurances and guarantees
• Feels personal and which nurtures relationships
• Is low or no pressure
• Is delivered in a relaxed, non-judgmental style

Can you imagine what would happen if you delivered a heavily detailed presentation to a hard-driving CEO type? No matter how thorough, accurate and professional you are, your target audience will stop listening after less than five minutes. What a disaster that would be! Don’t just collect the facts; tailor the facts to fit your audience and you will be more persuasive and effective.

 

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December Presentation Quick Tip of the Month – Give Your Audience At Least One Piece of Paper

You may have a great opening, powerful content and killer animated graphics, but you will be more effective with your audience if you also give them at least one piece of paper to take home with them. One reason for this is that some people will find it easier to learn and recall what you are saying if they have something in their hands that is connected to your message. (Some people are kinesthetic learners who just learn better when their hands are busy.) In addition, having a take home sheet will provide a frame of reference days later when they want to recall what you said, and if what you said was worth saying, they will appreciate this little memory trigger.