Presentation Tip: First Impressions Matter

According to bestselling author, Malcolm Gladwell, in Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, "Snap judgments are...enormously quick: they rely on the thinnest slices of experience."

In our personal worlds, decisions are made in the blink of an eye: when house hunting, the assessment we make as soon as we walk through the door; the assumptions we make when we see someone dressed radically different from the norm; the impression we have as someone arrives for an interview.

If snap judgments are part of our modus operandi, what implications does this have for presenters?

It means that in the first few moments the audience sees you, you are being judged, assessed, evaluated. Long before you open your mouth. Long before you get to the main message of your presentation.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO CREATE A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION?

• Be prepared, with AV equipment checked, handouts sorted and slides ready. If you seem disorganized and rattled over logistics, your audience may assume that your presentation will be equally disorganized.

• Look your best. One of the most common snap judgments is making assumptions based on how someone is dressed or groomed. Be sure your appearance is suitable for the particular audience. The mad scientist look may be acceptable at a conference of peers but not work so well in the venture capitalist's boardroom.

• Be friendly. Don't bury you head in your notes for that one last review as the audience is coming into the room. Go greet them at the door, as if you were welcoming them to your home. Interact with individuals prior to commencing your presentation. This can help greatly to create an impression that you're personable and worth listening to.

• Smile. Establish a connection on a human level and let people know you're glad they've come to hear you speak.

You have a fleeting opportunity at the outset of your presentation to shape the lens through which the audience initially sees you...before you speak, before they start to experience your message. Do your utmost to make this "thinnest slice of experience" as positive as you can.

Photo Credit:
flickr/LadyDragonfly  C.C. 2.0

 

Comments

[Kathy Reiffenstein]

Hi Frederic,

Thanks for stopping by and for your insightful comments. I completely agree!

Best,
Kathy

[Frederic Coia]

You're right Kathy! Although first impressions can be wrong, speakers should know how to always create a good one. The audience can easily get bored. They may be impressed by a well-dressed and groomed individual. But if that individual doesn't know how to connect with the audience, the whole presentation could end on a sour note.

The first thing that a speaker should do is be on the venue earlier and check the size of the room so that he could adjust easily with the environment. And a funny or interesting opening spiel can easily catch the audience's attention and draws a positive first impression.

[Kathy Reiffenstein]

Hi Chris,

Thanks for your comment!

You are so right about first impressions frequently being wrong. I think, as speakers, this presents our biggest challenge -- making sure that the first impression we create is the correct one AND then making sure that we don't do anything subsequently to compromise that impression.

Audiences (and people generally) are quick to form the first impression but not so quick to change it, even in the face of additional data.

Best,
Kathy

[Chris Witt]

You're absolutely right about first impressions. And I agree with all of your suggestions, especially with greeting people at the door.

The problem with first impressions, unfortunately, is that they can be wrong. The house we instantly fall in love with may have rusted out pipes, a bad foundation, and a leaky roof.

The first impressions we make have to be confirmed by everything else we say and do throughout our speech.