In this series of posts, we’re looking at ways to capture attention<\/a> and keep it.<\/p>\n

I make a distinction between “neck up” attention and “neck down” attention. \u00a0The former is when\u00a0the listener has to make an effort to pay attention. The latter is the kind we’re going for here: \u00a0when the listener is riveted to the speaker.<\/p>\n

Keep it moving.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Not just in terms of pace, but in terms of development. Make sure that every new bit of information you provide builds on what came before. We lose interest in movies when nothing is happening, or novels that stop while the author describes a bucolic setting for two pages. Our brains are saying, “I want action! Drama. Suspense.” The same holds true for your listeners. They are time-pressed, content-driven, and results oriented.<\/p>\n

Think of the difference between a river and a canal. A canal is plodding while a river is dynamic and constantly changing. To please your listeners’ insatiable desire for variety, make your presentations<\/a> like rivers, not canals. Make sure there’s always something happening, most especially when delivering webinars, where your audience is likely to be highly distracted.<\/p>\n

[ctt tweet=”To please your listeners’ insatiable desire for variety, make your presentations like rivers, not canals.” coverup=”R0zTH”]<\/p>\n

Get to the point.<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of the great pleasures the audience has is quickly grasping what you’re getting at. They resent you when you rob them of this pleasure.<\/p>\n

I once saw an ad for a Seth Godin speech on why marketing technical products was too important to leave to marketing. When I saw the video, the first words out of his mouth were, “Marketing technical products is too important to leave to marketing.” It was a no-nonsense speech that moved like a bullet train, straight down the track of that single point. Give them only one point, make it early and often, and they’ll carry you out on their shoulders.<\/p>\n

Arouse emotion.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Humor is inherently persuasive. It gives the speaker an unfair advantage because it literally changes the chemistry in the room, and in the brain of everyone present. But don’t try to tell jokes if you’re not a comedian. Simply allow your natural sense of humor<\/a>\u00a0to be present in the moment, and when something comes to mind, allow your humor to reveal itself.<\/p>\n

Confessing something personal about yourself can also make the audience feel connected with you. I had a client recently–a senior person in her company–who confessed to her colleagues at a major company meeting that she had been a bar tender, a taxi driver, and short-order cook in order to pay her college tuition. The audience was amazed and thrilled as she drove home her point that we can all do more than we realize if we have the will to do whatever it takes. One definition of courage, she said, is\u00a0acting out of character.<\/p>\n

Next: Keep it interactive, Write clear headlines, Keep it short, and Let there be you<\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In this series of posts, we’re looking at ways to capture attention and keep it. I make a distinction between “neck up” attention and “neck down” attention. \u00a0The former is when\u00a0the listener has to make an effort to pay attention. The latter is the kind we’re going for here: \u00a0when the listener is riveted to… Read More »More Ways to Capture Attention<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8917,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","_ti_tpc_template_sync":false,"_ti_tpc_template_id":""},"categories":[960,336,24],"tags":[107,36,88,618,327,300],"yoast_head":"\n