Last week I blogged about the ABCs of the Q & A.
As I said, handling the question-and-answer session is a critical component of successful presentations. But, you can’t master this aspect of public speaking if you can hear a pin drop when you or the moderator ask if there are any questions.
Just yesterday, I was asked by a presenter I was coaching, “How can I get people to ask questions? No one ever seems to want to ask me any after my presentations.”
It wasn’t hard to understand why. This person had his arms crossed during most of his presentation, didn’t make eye contact, had a scowl on his face, and he spoke at warp speed.
Here are my top 8 strategies for ensuring that you receive questions from audience members:
· Early on in your presentation, let the audience know that you will be taking questions and when – it could be throughout, at breaking points, or at the end. You decide.
· When you do open for questions, watch your visual presentation – do you look receptive and interested? Be sure to look at your audience members and not at your notes or slides. Open up your gestures. Walk towards people. Have a pleasant expression, and avoid rolling your eyes or sighing as if to say, “That was a stupid question.”
· When asking for questions, be assumptive. Say, “Who wants to open with the first question?” Or, “What questions do you have?” Note, I didn’t say, “Do you have any questions?”
· Once you’ve asked for questions, be comfortable with silence. Give people time to think about what types of questions they may want to ask. You may feel like they’re staring at you. But the reality is that most people are deciding what to ask, or whether to ask a question. So, give them time.
· If no one asks a question, then you need to revert to your previously prepared sample questions. You can introduce these by saying, “When I first learned this, I wondered…” Or, “A question I’m frequently asked is …”
· Avoid grading or judging any question. In other words, don’t say, “That’s a good question.” If you compliment some questions and not others, it comes across as judgmental. If you compliment all, it sounds perfunctory.
· Never embarrass the questioner. When you say things like, “I covered that in my presentation,” or, “As I said before …,” not only will it discourage the person who asked, but most likely the rest of the group as well. Just answer the question, or take it off line if it doesn’t relate.
· When answering any questions, make your reply brief. Long answers discourage more questions.
Since having questions asked is an essential part of any effective business presentation – giving presenters a chance to clarify and expand on their ideas – successful speakers need effective techniques to encourage them.
I’d love to hear from presenters if they have any other techniques that have worked well for them. I’ll share best practices.