Public speaking is something we intentionally or unintentionally do on a daily basis. Every day you either persuade others to your point of view or they persuade you to theirs. As years have gone by, persuasion has changed and we must change our persuasion skills in order to adapt ourselves to the 21st century. For every human being that presents there is always a first time; a first time speaking from a platform, a first time standing behind a podium etc. After these “first” persuasive presentations, presenters feel like they could have done better. I will introduce to you the key concepts and theories that a professional presenter should acknowledge and learn to improve their persuasive presentation skills. In order to become a skilled and self-assured presenter, one should entail personal preparation, professional development and practice. Take in consideration that a person does not become a presenter solely by reading a presentation, but by personal preparation. Practicing is

the essential in all presentations and it boosts up the presenters confidence. Presenting a persuasive presentation is seen as achieving a goal, therefore this engages in a step to step process which enables the presenter to gain insight and experience on the subject. One of the most essential key concepts for a successful persuasive presentation is practice. The ability to present effectively is developed by practice, practice produced proficiency and without practice a speaker does not become a great presenter; just like a football player does not become a great quarter back. If a persuasive speaker does not take the time to prepare their persuasion power weakens. The good outcomes of practicing your speech and doing your “homework” by doing extra research on your topic, is that you will make your audience feel that you are a trustful person and sound less skeptical ( not saying that you are not). If you know little about what you are going to persuade how can your audience take you seriously if you aren’t taking them seriously? You are going to come across as unprofessional and too laid back. In order to be persuasive you should know your product or service inside and out, you should also know your audience and what their needs are. Last but not least, you should also have several other alternatives and options so that when your audience asks you a debatable or controversial questions you can take distinct ways of answering those to get them to be at your side. If you are a speaker that gets extremely nervous before presenting; humor is your solution. Humor is not the ability to tell a joke; rather it is the ability to see in situations something comic. A persuasive speaker should have a little sense of humor in them. The use of

humour is essential in persuasive speech; it should be relevant and sensitive. The aim is to relax the audience and “break the ice.” Jokes aimed at people’s personal lives or at religious and ethnic groups are invariably offensive, regardless of the speaker’s motives. Avoid them. Humour is an effective tool when it comes to persuasive speeches. In order to be effective, a presentation must be believable. If audience does not believe the presenter, it is unlikely that they will accept or act affirmatively on the message. There are three factors that determine the believability of a persuasive presentation. The first one is who is presenting, the second factor is how the message is presented; in terms of style, presence and platform behaviour, and the third factor is what is presented; the content. The speakers aim should be that the audience should perceive their points as valid. Evidence is essential in a persuasive presentation. With no evidence there is no proof that validates the speakers point nor clarification that illuminates the message. To be more persuasive and believable, remember to follow all claims with examples, facts and charts. Statistics should be used with care and moderation. A speech filled with statistics becomes a statistical abstract, not a speech. Evidence serves to convince the audience that what is being presented is factual and substantive. One of the last theories that I would like to address to you is that the speaker should capture the audience’s attention at the very beginning of his or her presentation. A persuasive presentation can be introduced with an anecdote, a quotation, declaration, and even a rhetorical question! Form the moment the speaker voices the first few words, the audience perceives they will receive value because they expect the presenter to have a purpose in mind. A good way to start a persuasive speech is by initiating it with an anecdote; describing an incident that draws the audience into the message, it may be dramatic or amusing.