Cognitive scientists have a reasonably good idea of when audiences will stop listening to a presentation. It occurs at the 10-minute mark. According to molecular biologist, John Medina, people seem to get bored after approximately ten minutes—and it occurs in a class lecture or a business presentation.
It’s safe to assume that your content requires longer than ten minutes to deliver. Fortunately, there are several easy-to-implement tips that will re-engage your audience and hold their attention.
The common theme that connects each of the following five tips is change. Neuroscientists have found that the best way to re-engage a person’s attention when it begins to wane is to change up the format of the content.
Here are five ways to reset your audience’s attention every ten minutes.
1. Introduce Characters
There aren’t too many commercially successful one-person plays. Few people can pull it off. Even when Bruce Springsteen played Broadway he brought a piano, guitar, and another singer to accompany some of his songs, Patti Scialfa. Change it up. For business presentations—especially for new pitches—include members of the team. Hand off a portion of the presentation to an engineer or product expert. Don’t feel as though you have to go it alone.
2. Show Videos
If you can’t bring someone else along, do the next big thing and show a video. You can easily insert a short video into a slide deck. Apple does this with nearly every keynote when they show a video of chief designer, Jony Ive, describing the features of a particular product. Showing a video of a team member, partner or customer is an excellent way of changing things up and adding a multimedia component to keep your audience’s attention.
3. Use Props
Steve Jobs was a master at using props. In 1984, Jobs didn’t have to pull the first Macintosh out of a black bag like a magician. But he did. In 2001, Jobs didn’t have to pull the first iPod out of the pocket of his jeans. But he did. In 2008, Jobs didn’t have to pull the first MacBook Air from a manila envelope. But he did. Props are unexpected. They get attention.
4. Give Demos
Former Apple evangelist and venture capitalist, Guy Kawasaki, says demonstrations should start with “shock and awe.” In other words, don’t build up to a crescendo. Show off the coolest thing about your product in the first sixty seconds. Product demonstrations often work best with one person, but I’ve seen engaging demos with teams of two. The secret is to rehearse the demo and the banter that will take place between the two speakers.
5. Invite Questions
A presentation shouldn’t be about you. It’s about your audience and how your product or service will improve their lives. Bring them into the conversation. Don’t drone on and on, flipping through slide after slide until you lose everyone’s attention. Change it up by pausing and inviting questions before you move on to the next section.
If you use at least one of these tactics every ten minutes, you will keep your audience engaged long after their natural attention span has peaked.