5 BEST PRACTICES FOR ENGAGING MEETING PARTICIPANTS
e ’ ve all left a meeting that made us think , “ That could have been an email .” Whether you ’ re hosting in-person or virtual meetings , keeping your audience engaged can be a challenge . Let ’ s face it , budget reports and annual plans aren ’ t always the most fascinating topics , but with a few simple practices , you can keep meeting participants engaged in any setting .
CREATE AN AGENDA AND STICK TO IT
If you struggle to create an agenda for an upcoming meeting , then it ’ s probably a really good indicator that you are disorganized . Not only does a good agenda capture the attention of your audience before the meeting starts but it will also help them get in the right frame of mind to participate in the discussion , engage with other audience members , and prepare questions in advance . Agendas are an effective tool — use them ! Once you ’ re in the meeting , the agenda can help keep discussions on track and remind people when it ’ s time to move on to the next topic .
INCORPORATE NATURAL PARTICIPATION OPPORTUNITIES
When audience participation is like pulling teeth , it creates a major disconnect between the host and the meeting attendees . Instead of waiting for questions at the end , you can encourage questions throughout , ask questions that can be answered by a raise of hands , or even call on specific participants to share an anecdote or related experience with the rest of the meeting . If you ’ re concerned about meeting participation lacking , ask a peer or your boss to help kickstart the discussion if needed .
STAY RELEVANT
Tailoring meetings to the audience isn ’ t always easy but staying relevant as a presenter is one of the most effective ways to capture audience attention and boost engagement . Switching out pop
culture references that are understood by the age range you ’ re speaking to is a great way to do this . A quick quip at the beginning of the meeting or an occasional joke that makes sense to the meeting participants will keep energy levels high and make people more comfortable . Do some extra due diligence to make sure any jokes are work-appropriate though !
WORK WITH THE VISUALS
So many presenters seem to be fighting with their visuals during a meeting . Sometimes it ’ s clear they haven ’ t looked at the slides , and other times , the talking points are disconnected from what is up on the screen . For a meeting ’ s message to stick with your audience , they should be able to understand the points you ’ re trying to get across from what you say and from the visuals you share . Both should be able to be understood separately and together . If this isn ’ t the case , rework your approach .
CONVERSATIONAL COMFORT
Keeping meetings and presentations as conversational as possible will help keep the audience engaged but it will also help your message stick . If too much business jargon is in your presentation , people ’ s brains may struggle to sift through your words and pick out what the main message is . When you keep presentations more on the conversational side , they are easier to connect with and understand .
Before putting a meeting on someone ’ s calendar , you should be able to identify the ways in which your meeting will add value to the professional life of that person . As audiences grow , it becomes more difficult to cater meetings to individuals , but there are many other ways to boost engagement and leave an impact as the meeting host . +
Credit :
• range . co / blog / how-to-make-virtual-meetings-more-interactive
• endurancelearning . com / blog / 12-strategies-to-engage-meetingattendees /
• blog . lucidmeetings . com / blog / 5-steps-to-improving-engagementin-meetings /
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