Page 97 - Today’s Business Communication; A How-to Guide for the Modern Professional

86 TODAY’S BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

The second mistake she made was she didn’t know her audience.
Before creating an outline, writing a word, or creating a slide template,
presenters must conduct research to find out the following:

• Who is the audience for the presentation?
• What position do the audience members hold on the subject
of the presentation?
• What do the audience members want to know about the
presenter’s topic?
• What will be the demographic composition of the audience?
• Where will the presentation be held and what are the loca-
tion’s capabilities?
• Why is the presentation needed?
• How do the audience members want to be engaged (for
example, formally or facilitation format)?

These seven bullet points are the absolute minimum amount of audi-
ence research that a presenter must do before ever starting to plan for the
presentation.
The third mistake our friend from Toyota made was that she hadn’t
learned her material. She easily could have recovered from the disastrous
technology problem if she had bothered to learn her material. But, alas for
her and her audience, she had intended to present from the slides, proba-
bly doing little more than reading them to her audience. Clearly nervous,
with darting eyes, enlarged pupils, and trembling hands, she approached
the microphone behind which she was supposed to enlighten her audience
of approximately 200 automotive industry executives about the intricacies
of starting an automotive manufacturing plant in Alabama and dealing
with the state’s government entities. The excruciating pain she felt was wit-
nessed by every audience member, and every audience member felt pain
for the presenter. Though she shed no tears, her quivering voice, stammer-
ing delivery, and shaking limbs told a story of shame beyond belief.
Young professionals aren’t the only ones who make
terrible presentations. Judith Wagner Weir, the PR
professional from Chapter 4, shares a story about a
high-profile public figure who missed the mark during
a presentation. “Governor Malloy attended one of our
events. It was clear that he hadn’t done his research