The question-and-answer portion of your presentation can be the deciding factor when public speaking on whether you have succeeded to persuade the audience to accept your call to action or convinced them of your main point.
Handled properly, you will be seen as a confident subject matter expert by the audience as you answer any concerns they have and expand your presentation in various ways.
Handled poorly and you may end up turning off the listeners who were all but ready to buy in to what you were saying.
In the last post we discussed how to prepare for questions ahead of the presentation or speech. See here. Now let’s discuss how to handle them during the presentation.
When invited to give a presentation, you should find out how questions are normally handled. If it is a company presentation, you probably would have sat in other presentations so you know whether questions are held until the end or if they are asked throughout.
If you have never attended a presentation at the company, or you are speaking to a group you are unfamiliar with outside work, ask the person who has invited you what the usual process is. Prepare for that.
If it is an unfamiliar group or venue, ask the person who has invited you how questions are asked—whether in person, via microphone or not, submitted in writing, or some other method. Find out so you are not thrown by the format being something you weren’t expecting.
I had that one time when I spoke to a journalism class at the School of Communication Studies at Singapore’s Nanyang Technology University. During the Q&A, the students were told to raise their hands, the professor would call someone, and that person could ask a question.
What I was not told was that the student would not be asking me the question. Instead, the student only talked to the professor, who then turned and asked me the question.
The first two times I began to answer directly and the professor and I ended up talking over each other. That awkwardness could have been avoided if I had asked exactly how the questions would be handled.
If you have a choice and are fairly new at public speaking, it may be better to hold off taking questions until after you have finished your prepared portion.
Set Expectations
Either way, though, you should set expectations right up front. If the person introducing you doesn’t tell the audience how questions will be answered, you should do so right up front, before you begin the actual presentation.
Say something along the lines of “We’ll have time for Q&A at the end, or feel free to ask questions at any point.”
But note: If this is a company presentation and higher-ups are present, be aware that they may jump in whenever they want no matter what expectations you have tried to set. Answer their questions calmly and completely, even if they take you away from your prepared text. After all, they are the bosses.
Q&A Intro
Make sure you announce the start of the Q&A session in a way that encourages questions.
Do not ask, “Are they are any questions?” or “Do you have any questions?” The danger is that the answer would be no, and that would hurt your presentation, and your confidence, of course.
Instead, ask, “What questions do you have?” or “What do you want to discuss further?” That makes the assumption that there are questions, which may encourage someone to speak up first.
It probably won’t happen with a company presentation, but in other venues and occasions sometimes the audience is filled with people who don’t want to go first. That can lead to an awkward silence that leaves you standing alone on the stage looking foolish.
The best way to avoid that is to plant a question to get the ball rolling. There are many people who don’t want to ask the first question but have no hesitation in asking the second, or third, so you need to create the opportunity.
I know that sounds kind of under-handed, but it really is for the best. If you know someone in the audience, give them a question to ask if no one else raises their hand. If you don’t know anyone, enlist your presenter beforehand. Most presenters would understand and even appreciate your planning ahead.
In the next post we will discuss how to navigate through the Q&A successfully.
Comentarios