25 Best Public Speaking Tips from 300+ Public Speaking Experts

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Dear Readers:

Recently, I sent out an email asking you,

What’s the most important public speaking tip you’ve learned?

I received over 300 responses via email, on this blog, on LinkedIn and on Facebook.

I’ve combined the best of these 300 responses into 25 great public tips for creating and delivering powerful presentations.

Thank you for your contributions! If your contribution has been included here and you would like to have a link directing readers back to your website, then you can send me your website URL (Send me an email: akash.speaker@gmail.com)

Here are the 25 best public speaking tips:

 

1. Be Audience Centered

Make your presentation about the audience, not the speaker. Let them walk away with the benefits they came for. Too many speakers let their ego get in their way
Posted by Stephen

Serve The Audience – help them get ahead in their world.
Posted by Jon

Listen to your audience before, during, and after your presentation. Clues for improvement are there!
Posted by Karen L.

 

2. Know Your Audience

Do your homework about the event and the audience well beforehand!
Posted by Diane

Know your audience well. This means doing your homework. It’s only when we know our audience well that we are able to connect with them. And being able to do this is half the battle won.
Posted by Abdulrazak

Be sure you know who your audience is: what their experience is and what would add value to them today. I have walked into a speaking engagement where I thought I understood what they knew and wanted, and I ended up delivering something that did not add value because they needed the 400 version and I delivered the 101 version. By the time I figured it out, it was too late and I had lost a chance to make a bigger impact.
Posted by Juliet

 

3. Prepare & Rehearse Your Presentation

Preparation is NOT over-rated.
Posted by Deanna A.

Prepare! Practice! Prepare! Practice! In that order….
Posted by Dewoun

We must know what to speak, when to speak, whom to speak and how to speak. Knowing about the target audience is very important.A Survey can help.
Posted by Ajay

Prepare, rehearse, and record yourself if necessary. It’s important to get your timing down. It is good to hear if you say things like “um” a lot.
Posted by Sean

Prepare, prepare, prepare and when you step on stage let it just flow through you
Posted by Sharon

Never walk into a presentation for which you have not properly prepared. By prepared I mean 3 things: you need to know your topic, you need to have written a presentation catered to your audience and you need to have practiced it. These 3 things work together and if you can truly say you have done them you will have the confidence you need for success.
Posted by Adam

 

4. Know Your Stuff

Know your stuff. Know who you are stuffing. Know when they are Stuffed!
Posted by Giovanni

Know your content to the best of your ability. You won’t/can’t know 100% of everything, but make sure that you can talk successfully about what you do know!
Posted by Donna

 

5. What’s the Core Message of Your Speech?

In my opinion, the most important thing for a speaker is to know what message you want to deliver. What is your point? Be able to sum up what you want your audience to remember in a 10 to 12 word statement. Define what you want your audience to do, think or feel differently because of your speech. If you don’t know why you are speaking should you be giving the speech?
Posted by Iris

 

6. Customize Your Presentation

It’s all about them. Every time I’ve personalized my talk about them, they remember me. I always want and prepare in a way that my audience feels like she knows us and our unique situation.
Posted by Laurie Ann

First of all get as much info on your audience at least 2 weeks prior to your presentation.
Customize as much as possible & engage your audience by making your presentation interactive. Throw in a bit of humour & you will get them switched on!
Posted by Fabrizio

 

7. Check Your Equipment before the Presentation

I can’t stress enough the need to check any equipment you use, make sure you have a standby laptop with the presentation loaded, new batteries in remotes and Mic packs etc, a copy of the presentation on a stick just in case, make sure you have water to drink (still not fizzy, and not iced as it can play havoc with your voice) and check your dress – no zips or burrons undone. Lastly enjoy it, because if you do the chances are the audience will.
Posted by Chris

 

8. Meet the People in Your Audience

There’s much I could say here. For today, my answer is to try to meet people in the audience before you go on platform–ask their names, what they’re looking to learn or what problems they’re facing. Then I try to work some of that into the talk, or at least call them by name duringthe Q&A.
Posted by Shel

 

9. Open Your Presentation with a Bang!

Immediately open with a compelling statement (fact, question, challenge); never open with “Good morning, how are you? My name is…”
Posted by Kevin

 

10. Your Speech Should Provide Practical, Useful Tips

Give your audience a great “take away” they can use in life down the road.
Posted by Mark

 

11. Public Speaking is about having a Conversation with Your Audience

The best advice I ever got was to forget you’re talking to a group. Speak to individuals and imagine having a series of individual conversations. It keeps you casual and relaxed. Otherwise we run the risk of sounding like we’re pontificating.
Posted by Ron

 

12. Involve Your Audience in Your Speech

Involve the audience whenever possible; that is if you want them to take anything away.
Posted by Tracey

The most important tip I learned and have used successfully is to engage my audience in some type of interactive exercise. It really stirs things up!
Posted by Chloe

 

13. Smile

Smile. It relaxes the audience.
Posted by Vic 

14. Don’t Forget to Breathe

Breathe!
Posted by Niki

 

15. Keep Your Presentation Fun and Humorous

Fun. No matter what the topic, there is always room for a little bit of fun (and humor). No need to get crazy; it is easy to keep your presentation professional, informative and actionable while adding some fun.
Posted by Catherine Byers

The most important tip is to have fun with you are doing and you have to beleive in what you are saying.
Posted by Jonathan

 

16. Be Yourself. Be Original.

Be yourself! Don’t try to be someone you’ve seen or heard before. Be authentic, original and approachable to your audience.
Posted by Alex

 

17. Your Presentation Doesn’t Have to Be Perfect

Give yourself permission to be less than perfect, never less than professional!
Posted by Bryan

My audience is more forgiving than I am!
Posted by Bryan

My audience does not demand perfection, my audiece demands effective!!!
Posted by Bryan

Speeches, like other things in life, rarely go perfectly. If you make a mistake just
“keep on goin”– don’t let it fluster you
Posted by Larry

 

18. Learn How to Roll with the Punches

Understand that things will go wrong from time to time. The electricity will stop working, your PowerPoint wont be be compatible with the event managers PC (even though your confirmed with them it would work a week before) etc. Prepare, Prepare and Prepare again, then learn how to roll with the punches and STAY Professional! A sense of humour is also very important.
Posted by Tom

Things go wrong – be prepared! Know what you’ll do if the projector isn’t working, the audience is sleepy, there’s a time squeeze… and so on and so on.
Posted by Meta

 

19. Don’t Use Powerpoint as a Crutch

Lose the Powerpoint! It’s a crutch which leaves the audience yawning and looking at the clock! Instead, engage your audience without the boring props. Ask thought provoking questions to get a good discussion flowing. Also, use compelling stories to keep ‘em listening and they’ll remember more of what you said.
Posted by Vernon

Any presentation tool such as PowerPoint is only as good as the presenter using it. I am sure we have all had that heart-sinking moment when the presenter presses the button and horrid walls of text appeared while we starred at back of the presenters head while they read from the screen. I have seen amazing presentations with and without technology and I have seen presenters who think they can be outstanding without aid but in reality the audience would have welcomed visual content to help points hit home. With or without PowerPoint is not an issue, simply, whichever direction you favour, strive to be the best presenter the audience has ever seen.
Posted by Rick

 

20. Do Not End Your Presentation the Question & Answer Session

If you are going to take questions leave your closing line or inspiration statement for after theQ&A (you don’t want to end with, “I guess there are no more questions…”) So take the questions and then say, “I’d just like to leave everyone with one more thought…”
Posted by Kevin 

One of the Best Tips I have learned is to have the Q & A BEFORE the closing.
The Closing is the Closing – Period!
The last thing the audience hears is the first thing they will remember. That’s why a speaker should have a Strong Closing.
Posted by Fred E.

 

21. Keep Your Presentation Short

Be funny. Be brief. (Wait — that’s two.)
Posted by Mark

 

22. Learn from other Public Speakers

You can learn a lot by watching other speakers in action from your seat in the audience – what works for you (speaking style, supporting material, audience engagement) – and almost more importantly, what doesn’t work.

Listen not only to what they have to say, but how they say it.
Posted by Scott

 

23. Video-tape Your Presentations

Where possible video every speech to learn where you can improve from the past.
Posted by Peter

 

24. Always Be Adding to Your Expertise

Always be adding to your expertise.
Posted by Lois

 

And now, my personal favorite:

25. Great Storytelling is the Key to Great Public Speaking

Weave stories through your talk. They work as examples to shore up your points and also can engage your audience if you do as two of commenters here note: Get to know your audience, make a connection, get an example to share (with their approval).
Posted by Stacie

Be intellectually stimulating, use stories and metaphors and always end on hope.
Posted by Stephen

Stories, stories, relevant stories…
Posted by Tom

I love telling true stories, at least one.
Posted by Tine

Use a story to better explain a concept or something that wouldn’t be absorbed quickly. But when you tell a story, or parable, it resounds clearly to them. Then they get it.
Posted by Linda

P.S.

What other public speaking tips would you add to this list?