How does an individual prepare to give a seminar presentation?

Answer 1

The keys to any successful seminar are (1) Know your topic, (2) Know your audience, and (3) Know your venue. By "know your topic," I mean that you should speak on a subject in which you have some expertise. Your job as a public speaker is to teach the audience something new; that could mean giving them a new way of looking at the topic, or providing some new perspectives and new research about it. Make sure you do accurate and reliable research; have some talking points (the main points you plan to make during the talk); and make sure you practice the talk before leading the seminar. Avoid reading from your notes-- be conversational and informative, and avoid seeming stiff and formal.

By "know your audience," I mean adapt your presentation to the kinds of people who will listen to it. If you are leading a seminar of high school kids, you will be giving a talk that is very different in style and in tone from a seminar for college professors. In other words, if your audience is young, you will want to use examples and illustrations that they understand; if your audience is made up of older adults, you will want to make sure what you are saying is relevant to them. And by "know your venue," I mean that where the speech is being given will affect the way you deliver it: is the room large, or small? Does the venue have good acoustics-- will you need a microphone or not? Is the location in a church or synagogue, where you will need to be more subdued; or is it located at a club, or a hotel conference room, where you will have more opportunity to use a multimedia approach? The key to any good seminar is preparation. Entertain and inform the audience and they will be glad they came to your presentation.