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The Handbook of Public Speaking and Presentation Skills for PR Professionals

Two of the most important skills you need as a Public Relations Professional, are public speaking and presentation. It goes down to being able to articulate your thoughts and facts clearly and confidently for a better understanding of all parties involved. A good first impression as you start presenting your message, convinces the public to continue listening to you, which in turn boosts your confidence throughout the entire speech.

This blog will cover:

  1. What is public speaking and presentation?
  2. What skills are required for public speaking?
  3. Developing a professional voice for effective public speaking skills for PR/Mitigating anxiety
  4. Engaging and interacting with your audience
  5. What is a spokesperson in PR?
  6. Media training techniques for spokespersons
  7. Crafting and delivering compelling presentation structure
  8. Tips for handling difficult questions and situations
  9. Don’ts of public speaking

What is public speaking and presentation?

Generally, public speaking is an oral presentation by a person or team to a live audience with an aim to either inform, educate, raise awareness or entertain the listeners sometimes with an aim to increase brand awareness. This can take place either in a formal or unformal environment or manner.

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What is Public Relations?

In the realm of public relations however, public speaking and presentations are crucial tools as PR professionals always need to share messages on behalf of their clients or organizations to various stakeholders, including the media, customers, employees and the general public. This communication can take the form of press conferences, a product launch or crisis response briefings.

Public speaking in PR focuses on shaping and maintaining the desired public image of the organization or individual. This involves strategic storytelling to ensure the message aligns with the overall PR campaign and organizational goals.

A well-created presentation in PR can build credibility, manage the reputation of a brand and effectively influence public perception positively. PR professionals must be very skilled at creating engaging content while using persuasive techniques to successfully deliver their message to achieve these objectives.

What skills are required for public speaking?

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Communication fundamentals

  • Fluency: Fluency in public speaking is the ability to speak smoothly and without unnecessary pauses. It allows a speaker to maintain a steady flow of ideas and keep the audience engaged. This skill involves speaking at a natural pace, avoiding fluffy words like “um”, “uh,”, or “aaand” and being able to think on your feet if an unexpected question comes.
  • Vocabulary: Having a precise vocabulary in public speaking enables the speaker to choose the most appropriate words to share their message clearly and effectively. A rich vocabulary is needed to helps explain complex ideas simply to avoid repetition and misunderstanding.
  • Grammar: Proper grammar is needed for clarity and credibility of the spokesperson and the brand they are representing. The use of correct grammar helps avoid misunderstandings and ensures that the audience receives the intended message. It also reflects well on the speaker’s competence and attention to detail, which can influence how the audience perceives the speaker’s overall authority on the subject.
  • Articulation: Articulation is about pronouncing words clearly and in an understandable manner to make sure everyone of the listeners understands, this can apply in a situation where public speaking is taking place in a room full of non-native language speakers. You must pay attention to the consonants, vowels and how hard or soft you stress a certain word at the end, middle or beginning.
  • Pronunciation: Correct pronunciation is important because mispronouncing key terms can distract the audience and undermine the speaker’s authority. It is important to practice the pronunciation of difficult or unfamiliar words before to avoid errors during the speech.

Preparation and structure

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  • Objective and agenda: Every speech should have a clear objective and a defined agenda. This means the speaker must know the purpose of the speech, whether it is to inform, persuade, entertain, or motivate and outline the main points that will be covered. A clear objective and agenda help in structuring the speech logically and ensuring that all key points are covered.
  • Research preparation: In-depth research and preparation are the foundations of effective public speaking. This includes gathering relevant facts, statistics, and other supporting materials to add relevance to the main points. A prepared content not only increases the speaker’s confidence but it also ensures that the information presented is accurate and credible, safe for people to take into consideration.
  • Rehearsal/storytelling structure: Rehearsal is key to delivering a polished and confident speech. The most well-known method is practicing multiple times in front of the mirror to help to refine the delivery, timing and pacing you will be using. A storytelling structure can make the speech more engaging for the listeners and memorable for you because you will be able to remember it as a story you have once read. You can practice by creating a narrative with a clear beginning, middle and end, and using stories or examples to illustrate key points.

Engagement and delivery

  •  Eye Contact/connection: Maintaining eye contact with your audience helps build a relationship, connection and show confidence and show sincere you are. This tells that the speaker is engaged with the audience and values their attention. Good eye contact means you are looking at different sections of the audience rather than focusing on one spot as if looking at someone whose telling you what to say.
  • Positivity: A positive attitude goes a long way and it helps to keep the audience engaged. For example, you can smile and apply an enthusiastic tone. In this case, the research you have done will give you more points to say and show genuine show genuine interest in the topic to make it enjoyable for your audience. This way you won’t look like a programmed robot that’s saying what is has been programmed to say.

Personal attributes

  •  Authenticity: Authenticity in public speaking means being genuine and true to oneself. Audiences appreciate speakers who are honest, open and relatable. For example, you can start breaking the ice by sharing how nervous you are and you know that’s how everyone feels when in your position. It will warm the room up by making people laugh. Authentic speakers build trust and credibility by sharing personal experiences, admitting mistakes and speaking from the heart.
  • Passion: Passion is a powerful tool in public speaking. When a speaker is passionate about their topic, it shows in their delivery and can be incredibly motivating and inspiring for the audience.

Developing a professional voice for effective public speaking skills for PR professionals

Developing and mastering a professional voice is what public speaking needs. Of-course you would want to try speak like the most influential public speaker there is but question is, are you being authentic in how you deliver. We suppose this would require a lot of self-mental reminder during your presentation to adjust your voice to maintain person X, Y and Z’s voice throughout.

No need to worry further, because we will give you realistic tips you can use to develop your own professional voice.

  1. Write more often

When you write a lot, you are hearing your voice inside your head. The more you practice writing, the more you get used to your voice and how you express your thoughts. To be able to write more and increase your vocabulary, you need to empower yourself with knowledge, this means research, reading, listening must new best hobby if we may put it like that.

    2. Record yourself to listen to your voice to evaluate.

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The next step is recording what you have been writing so that you can evaluate the quality of your voice compared to ow it sounds in your head. To practice better, you can find different scripts from different levels of talking, it can either be a children’s book, high school text book, a college handbook or a well-known publication to see how different contexts and emotions influence your voice.

Upon hearing your voice playing on an audio recorded, you should be able to notice your pitch, voice quality, pronunciation, speed/pace, and breathing. This will allow you to make necessary adjustments through practice.

3. Improve your breathing

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Being able to control your breathing is one of the most important techniques to master, it helps maintain a steady and clear voice. Always try to practice with deep breathing exercises to enhance your lung capacity and reduce anxiety. It helps avoid sounding breathless and speaking too fast to finish a sentence.

4. Adjust your body language

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For a better connection with your audience maintain good posture, make eye contact and use hand gestures to emphasize points. Your body language significantly impacts how your voice is perceived and a confident stance can enhance your vocal delivery and help you connect better with your audience.

5. Listen to other good speakers

Listening to skilled speakers provides valuable insights and gives you a good chance to improve your speaking techniques. Pay attention to their tone, pacing and how they engage their audience.

Take notes on what resonates with you and incorporate those elements into your style while staying true to your voice. Remember, the goal is not to sound like someone else but to refine and project your unique voice with confidence and clarity.

 

What is a spokesperson in PR

A spokesperson in public relations is an individual designated to speak on behalf of a company, organization, or brand in communications with the media and the public. The key responsibility of a spokesperson is to build and maintain relationships with journalists and media outlets as the face of the company or brand they are representing. This involves understanding the media landscape, anticipating potential questions and preparing statements that align with the organization’s communication strategy.

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A good spokesperson can navigate challenging questions and situations with ease, making sure that the organization’s viewpoint is effectively communicated. This role is good for managing the organization’s reputation and can significantly impact public perception during both routine announcements and unexpected crises.

Media training techniques for spokespersons

Media training for spokespersons is about teaching them how to effectively handle interactions with the media. A key part of this training is developing clear and straightforward messages that match the organization’s goals and values. Spokespersons learn to keep their comments focused on these main points, even when faced with tough or unexpected questions.

Media training is mastering body language and vocal delivery. Spokespersons are trained to appear confident and credible through their posture, eye contact and facial expressions. They also learn to speak clearly and at a good pace to ensure they are understood and trusted by the audience.

Lastly, media training includes practice sessions, such as mock interviews and role-playing exercises. These sessions allow spokespersons to practice their responses and receive feedback in a controlled setting. This preparation helps them handle real interviews confidently and maintain a positive public image for their organization.

Crafting and delivering compelling presentation structure

  1. Introduction and greetings: A simple “Good morning/afternoon/evening” can set a positive tone and thank those who invited you to speak to show respect and gratitude.
  2. Introduce yourself: Mention your name, your role and expertise related to the topic plus the reason why you are there.
  3. Main points: Get into the main points of your presentation. This means you will structure the body of your presentation into logical sections which will be supported by visuals, slides and short clips that emphasize your facts in a pleasant and logical manner. Make sure to have a smooth transition between different sections of your presentation to keep your audience engaged.
  4. Conclusion: Summarize the main points to remind your audience of what they might have forgotten from the beginning of your presentation, thank the audience for their time and ears and open the floor for questions.

Tips for handling difficult questions and situations

Handling difficult questions and situations during a presentation requires staying calm and being strategic.

  • First, it is important to remain composed by taking a deep breath before responding to help you stay confident and in control.
  • Listen carefully to the question to ensure you fully understand it, which prevents miscommunication and shows respect.
  • Acknowledge the question respectfully, even if it’s tough, this is to help diffuse any tension. If you don’t know the answer, it is better to admit it honestly and offer to follow up later instead of giving incorrect responses.
  • Keep your answers relevant to the presentation. For example, if a question takes you off-topic, use a phrase to steer the conversation back, like, “That’s an interesting point and it relates to what we were discussing about, so in this case.
Don’ts of public speaking

When speaking in public, there are some common mistakes to avoid. Here are mistakes you want to avoid: 

  • Don’t overload your presentation with too much information, as it can overwhelm the audience and weaken your key messages.
  • Avoid reading directly from your slides which can bore the audience rather, use them as reminders instead.
  • Engage with your audience by making eye contact, asking questions and encouraging interaction. Ignoring them can make your presentation feel like a one-sided talk which is just dumping information on them.
  • Speak at a moderate pace, almost conversational to make sure your audience can follow along easily and avoid using complicated words or jargon that might confuse them.
  • Lastly, don’t forget to practice because rehearsing your presentation multiple times gives you confident for a smooth delivery.

Did you enjoy this blog and its insights, jump on to read more of our blogs to find expert insights you can use to build and grow your business or brand.

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