######################################################## Simply Speaking...Selling Yourself & Your Ideas E-Zine Volume 5, No 2, February, 2002 Published by Lenny Laskowski Copyright LJL Seminars(tm), 2002 All RIghts Reserved ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ LJL Seminars (tm) 106 School House Road Newington, CT. 06111-4002 United States Of America (860) 666-4855 or Toll Free 1-800-606-4855 Fax: (305) 489-6481 Web page: ######################################################## Simply Speaking E-Zine Subscription links Sending mail to these addresses will automatically add or remove the sender's e-mail address from your list(s): Subscribe Address: Unsubscribe Address: You may also send subscription requests to: and we will help you. ######################################################## In this issue: 1. Relating to Your Audience - Part II 2. Our NEW Simply Speaking Discussion Board 3. How to subscribe / unsubscribe ######################################################## 1. Audience Analysis - It's Your Key to Success - Part II from, "10 Days to More Confident Public Speaking" (Chapter 3 - pages 51 - 54) Copyright, 2001 Philip Lief Group Inc & Lenny Laskowski -------------------------------------------------------- Last month's issue of Simply Speaking I addresses the use of the preprogram survey. I offered you 18 ideas for questions you could ask to obtain general information about the group you would be speaking to. In this month's issue I will focus on the customized survey and provide you examples of the types of questions I ask to better customize my presentation. I will then explain to you how I used this customized information and tailored my keynote speech to my client's needs. Customized Program Survey The customized survey is more in-depth, asking specific questions about the members of the organization and letting you know any information to avoid speaking about. Begin your customized program survey when you have chosen your topic and completed the nitty-gritty of your outline. At this point, it's appropriate to recontact your liaison for the presentation survey. Some of the customized program survey questions are similar to the preprogram survey; that's intentional. 1. What is the theme of the meeting? 2. What are the top challenges or problems faced by members of the group? 3. What, approximately, are the characteristics of your average member? Age: _________ Annual Income: ____________ Educational Background: ___________________ Sex: ________ Occupation: ________________ 4. Will there be any other special guests? 5. How many people will be in the audience? 6. Why is this group attending this meeting? 7. How will they be notified? 8. What is the audience's overall opinion regarding this subject? (favorable, hostile, etc.) 9. What three facts should I know about the group before addressing them? 10. What speakers have you used in the past, and what did they discuss? 11. What speakers/programs have been most enthusiastically received? 12. Please list the names and positions of three people in your organization who are well known and well liked within the group who will be present during my speech. 13. Whom can I call on or joke with if the need arises? 14. What are the three most significant events that have occurred in your industry, or within your group, during the past year? 15. Please share any local "color" you can think of that relates to the location where my speech will be held. 16. Specifically, what are you trying to accomplish at this meeting? 17. What are your specific objectives for my part of the meeting? 18. Are there any issues/topics in particular that you think I should discuss during the program? 19. Are there any issues/topics in particular that you think I should avoid during the program. 20. Do you have any suggestions to help me make this presentation the best your audience has ever heard? Again the responses help you tailor your presentation to the audience. It is up to you to develop your own list of specific questions to use for preparing your program. Take the list I have just provided and adapt them to your own needs. Remember, the more you know about your audience the better. Here is an actual example of how I used responses from both surveys to help me prepare a better presentation. The MacDermid Corporation, a firm in Waterbury, Connecticut, was conducting a four-day training program for their international sales force and engineers, and I was asked to be the closing keynote speaker. My job as keynote speaker was to motivate the sales force and company engineers to apply the skills they learned over the course of the training. The training program was being held at Mt. Snow, a ski resort in New England. I called Mt. Snow and found out the name of their most challenging black diamond ski slope, was Jaws of Death. I also made plans to arrive the evening before to get to know the names of as many participants as possible. During my keynote, I compared the challenges of skiing down a mountain-how sometimes you fall, but you force yourself to get back up and try again. I incorporated into my presentation the name of their CEO, who was sitting in the front row and had a great sense of humor. I used a comical and very visual ending that involved the use of a ski hat, gloves, and goggles. This illustrated that you can take risks and entertain at the same time if you use a story to drive your message home. By tying in to my speech the message and location of their meeting, relating the challenges of the ski slope, and personalizing my presentation with humor and audience names, I was able to customize my speech and more forcefully drive my message home. It was a success. Remember, it is crucial to use both surveys when preparing for any presentation. Here's why: * The preprogram survey (see January, 2002 issue of Simply Speaking by taking this link ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ In next month's issue I will continue on this topic of audience analysis but will look at the types of information you might need for a customized program survey. Until next month... ######################################################## 2. Our NEW Simply Speaking Discussion Board !!! ######################################################## Do you have some public speaking questions you need answers for? Ask me directly and I will provide you with some sound advice and some immediate solutions. My website has added an on-line discussion board where you can participate and ask me or any of the other participants questions related to presentation skills, speaking, communication skills & related topics. You do this by "posting" your questions on discussion board and I or someone else will provide a response. You can, of course, e-mail me directly for any private questions. Below is the direct link to our new discussion board. ######################################################## 3. How to subscribe / unsubscribe ######################################################## To subscribe to Simply Speaking visit http://www.ljlseminars.com or use the following links below: Subscribe Address: Unsubscribe Address: You may also send subscription requests to: and we will help you. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ LJL Seminars (tm) 106 School House Road Newington, CT. 06111-4002 1-860-606-4855 In Continental US call Toll Free: 1-800-606-4855 Until next issue! - Lenny Laskowski :-)