To communicate clearly, incisively, and charismatically to an audience—whether through video public speaking or at a live event—what you need to remember, to avoid risking a flop, is to create emotions in your audience by bringing into play your ability to persuade and engage.
How much does first impression matter?
When we meet someone for the first time, whether online or offline, it takes the blink of an eye to form an idea about who we’re dealing with, assigning our counterpart a positive or negative judgment that we’ll rarely change over time. This mechanism is influenced by subjective factors such as mental frameworks, memories, expectations, emotions, experiences, or prejudices, but also through a well-known cognitive process, the primacy effect—the conditioning of our evaluation of individuals based on the temporal order in which we obtain information.
Naturally, the challenge is greater if the encounter happens filtered through a camera, and since people are almost never willing to grant a second chance, it’s clear that without a precise communication strategy, you risk failing in no time.
To become a communication professional, first and foremost, you must free yourself from limiting beliefs (such as: “I know my subject well and I know how to present it,” “I’ve been speaking in public for years and I consider myself capable,” “I don’t have time to improve, let alone for video public speaking”…) and acquire an effective method for preparing speeches.
The use of vocal tone, word pacing, speed, and posture are as important as good content preparation.
To help us prepare our speech effectively, we can use the Elevator Pitch tool, a model used to professionaly introduce oneself to another person or organization in 30-60 seconds. Imagine responding effectively to the question: “What do you do?”. In short, it is a brief speech formulated to capture the attention of various interlocutors regarding one of our projects or business ideas, which is explored further in the guide at the end of the article.
The term “elevator” refers not to the location of the conversation but rather to its duration, as it must be quick and concise, as if the time available were equivalent to a normal elevator ride. This concept of brevity must be applied both in asynchronous contexts, such as when writing an email or in video public speaking, and during face-to-face meetings like sessions or conferences.
By adopting the Parthenon Structure, you will be able to create any type of speech. Inspired by the building’s design:
- The opening of the speech corresponds to the foundation;
- The content to the columns;
- The conclusion to the roof.
The opening of the speech
All speeches must be effective, original, and, above all, structured to go all-in during the very first seconds to attract the audience.
For example, opening a speech by asking a question, telling a story, introducing a quote, or mentioning the keyword of the video you are making can be the key to attracting attention. We create the right impact, arouse curiosity and expectations, leading our audience to want to discover the conclusion of what we will say. We can say hello and introduce our name later.
Let’s look at some examples:
If a physiotherapist were to open the speech, they might start like this: “Do you suffer from neck pain? Are you tired of the usual remedies that don’t solve the situation? Hi, I’m Ivan, a physiotherapist, and I want to show you how to eliminate neck pain through just one simple exercise.”
Or you could start your speech in media res, that is, getting straight to the heart of the matter without preambles or introductions: “Hello, this is Mario Rossi, I’ve been stuck with annoying neck pain for a few days. Can I schedule an appointment? – Good morning Mario, I’ll see you today at 5:00 PM in my office, does that work?
…Hi, I’m Ivan, a physiotherapist, and I want to tell you how I solved Mario Rossi’s problem.”
Dedicating 20% of the time to the opening of our speech will be more than enough to delve into the topics later.
The body of the speech
As we know, it takes very little to lose attention, and after working so hard to capture interest in ourselves, it would be a huge mistake to confusedly list all the ideas—the many, many ideas—we’d like to share.
It’s inadvisable to cover too many topics at once in a video or conference; you’d risk tiring the audience and causing their interest to wane. We suggest not exceeding three points because studies in the field have confirmed that audiences can’t memorize more.
In the case of videos lasting about fifteen minutes, you can consider going up to 5 points, but it’s still preferable not to risk it.
A personal trainer, for example, could give 3 practical tips on how to have a flat stomach before summer.
We dedicate 60% of the time to “telling the story” of ourselves or our product or service, engaging with the right communication. This is the time to say why we chose to do what we do, thereby elevating our ethos—the moral ethics that distinguish us—and to speak in simple terms, without using technicalities or abstract terms, about the problems we solve. If we are just starting out and have no idea which topics are most strategic to prepare, it would be appropriate to be assisted by marketing and video marketing experts to discover search trends and professionally counter online competition.
Another useful strategy for identifying and presenting topics is to know the audience we are addressing and their potential objections very well, so as to anticipate them by already providing the desired answers.
The conclusion of the speech
The final 20% of the time is occupied by the closing. This is the crucial moment for building audience loyalty. Along with the opening, it’s what will be most remembered from our speech.
To conclude, you can summarize the key points of what you’ve covered, always in a circular manner, reconnecting to the question, story, or opening quote. In the case of a question, for example, you need to pay attention to the tone you use, which should always go from high to low to make it clear that you’ve reached the end of the speech.
For example, if you are a personal trainer, you could close the video by saying: “And are you still convinced that to be in shape this summer it’s enough just to eat lots of vegetables and drink plenty of plain water?”
If you decide to close the speech with a story, one idea could be to reconnect to the one told at the beginning, while still keeping it engaging.
If you conclude with a quote, it would be useful to cite a universally known figure.
However you decide to end your speech, you must clearly reference some element from the opening.
The final call to action must then be clearly stated. The audience needs to know how to follow us, contact us, find us. For example, inviting them to subscribe to our YouTube Channel can be a good opportunity to stay in our audience’s mind.
You can say goodbye to the audience with a smile, avoiding unempathetic farewells.
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We have therefore understood that impressing our interlocutors in the first moments of conversation, whether in networking meetings or for video public speaking, is of primary importance for our personal branding. It is a calling card capable of conveying enthusiasm and professionalism, while arousing curiosity and a desire to “know more.”
By following the Elevator Pitch method, you can brilliantly structure your communication.
Do you need to communicate on camera?
The Elevator Pitch is a public speaking model particularly useful for launching your startup, presenting your idea to request funding, or turning a chance encounter into a business opportunity.
There are several online tools that allow you to automatically create an Elevator Pitch. We’ve gathered a few links to use for setting up the initial phase of your Elevator Pitch, in English:
– https://elevatorpitchgenerator.com/
– https://copywritingcourse.com/elevator-pitch/
Are you ready to present yourself on video effectively and persuasively?
If you need help creating your pitch, feel free to write to us.
