Last week, I had the pleasure to attend a great session with noted speaking authority Bart Queen. The session was titled, “The Power of Many” and it included 4 communication goals and tons of other great tips on how to drive your message through the use of panel discussions. Here are my favorite highlights:
When to use a panel discussion
Panel discussions are excellent for addressing topic areas that are too complex for one individual to cover, and they can provide a rich experience for the audience because each panelist brings their own perspective to the topic at hand. Ideally, the moderator can highlight those perspectives and stay focused on the agenda, enable each panelist to shine and keep it all compelling for the audience.
Panel discussions are excellent for addressing topic areas that are too complex for one individual to cover, and they can provide a rich experience for the audience because each panelist brings their own perspective to the topic at hand. Ideally, the moderator can highlight those perspectives and stay focused on the agenda, enable each panelist to shine and keep it all compelling for the audience.
Know the Audience and Plan Well
Like most things, the ability to be compelling is dependent on good planning and on knowing the audience, so be sure to think through the objective in advance and plan accordingly. Key questions to keep in mind include:
Like most things, the ability to be compelling is dependent on good planning and on knowing the audience, so be sure to think through the objective in advance and plan accordingly. Key questions to keep in mind include:
- Does your abstract give the audience enough to say 'Tell me more?'
- Will the information you share stay with the audience?
- Then, how do you get the audience to act on it?
Use The 4 Strategic Communicator Goals
- Build trust
People buy trust first. If you gain someone’s trust, they listen to you. It’s that simple. But it’s easier said than done, of course. So figure out how the moderator and the panel will earn the audience’s trust, and once gained, safeguard it because that’s the first and most important goal. - Build relationship
Also, people buy from people they like. The key here is to establish a relationship between the panel and the audience. A great way is to get the panel to share stories and personal experiences that enable the audience to start thinking “me too,” so they can relate to the panel and to the topic at hand. - Build engagement
Once there’s a relationship and there’s trust, you’ve created an environment where the audience can start getting the feeling "I need you." Aim for that feeling, and be mindful to keep the content accessible to enable the engagement. Do that by keeping it organized in 5-minute segments - that duration correlates to typical adult attention spans. (Who knew??)My thought here as a marketer is that if getting to "I need you" is too tall an order for one panel discussion, then I need to think about how I prompt them for the next action so the engagement endures and the trust and relationship become "I need you" when it's right for the customer. It's all about the follow up. - Educate / Entertain
The ideal panel strikes a balance between educating and entertaining because a purely educational session with no entertainment (in most business situations) will inhibit the relationship and engagement that creates the memorable experience you’re after.
You can learn more about this and other speaking topics by visiting Bart's Site. As always, thanks for your time and attention. Let me know what you think.
2 Comments
I revisited this blog post today, as we prepare for several leadership activities in the Fall. The panel discussions at Premier Business Leadership Series in Orlando will include CEO, CMO and CIO panels and we want to get them right! http://www.sas.com/events/pbls/americas/index.html
Thanks, Deb! I'm glad it was helpful. I am looking forward to the Premier Business Leadership Series!