Talking Isn’t Speaking: Why Stage Presence Matters More Than a Microphone To Make An Event Speaker

There’s a big difference between someone who can talk and someone who can truly speak.

Over the last few months, I’ve attended numerous events where the person with the mic stood up in front of a group and simply talked at the crowd. Not with them. Not to them. At them. And within five to 10 minutes, the audience’s attention was completely lost.

Phones out, side conversations (and not the good kind), checking emails…anything but paying attention to the person with the microphone.

That’s because talking ≠ speaking.

Where Speakers Lose the Audience

I’ve seen it happen again and again, and the reasons are almost always the same:

• • Text-heavy slides
  • Monotone delivery
  • Jargon-filled content

Giving someone knowledgeable in their field a microphone and a stage does NOT make them a good event speaker. It makes them a person on a stage with a mic. If you have ever sat through a presentation that made your eyes roll back in your head, and I know you have, then this surely hitting home, right?

What Makes a Great Event Speaker

What makes a good SPEAKER is someone who can:

✔️Structure a session to engage AND educate

✔️Read the room

✔️Entertain!

All too often I am seeing speakers who want to throw as much info as possible at the audience that they forget how much a brain can actually absorb in a given time. This makes them talkers, not event speakers.

No matter the topic, a speaker needs to have stage presence and be able to entertain the audience while they educate them on a topic.

So how’s planner to find a speaker not a talker? It’s simple actually:

Watch videos of their speaking style

Most speakers will likely have at least a few people who can say nice things about them so testimonials should be a given. What will separate a true speaker though is the videos so you can see their delivery style, emphasis and stage presence.

Lucky for you, you’re on the website of someone with four proven sessions and plenty of videos to watch. Which one is the best fit for you? Explore my Signature Sessions to read each abstract and let’s chat about bringing one to your next event.