Being An Event Host – Tip No 17 – Watch The Clock

London, UK

You know, it’s not only speakers run over time, occasionally a compere or MC will make the same mistake. Whether it’s nerves, feeling slightly unwell or poor preparation there really is  no excuse for forgetting one of the golden rules of live presentations – brevity. So here’s three tips which may help you from “rambling on”…

A) Always wear a watch – and like top football referees, I have two and a smartphone just in case. At some events there will be a digital clock in front of you and/or a member of the AV production team will communicate with you by television studio-style talkback.

B) When you are preparing (always many days ahead of the actual event) rehearse your opening and closing remarks and what you’ll be saying about each speaker. This can vary depending on the event and the type of audience.

C) If you find that you’re running over time then simply adopt a “Plan B”. If appropriate to do so, shorten your speaker introductions. The best way to do this is to write and rehearse two versions. The standard intro. may last 25-30 seconds and believe me that’s quite long enough! In general you should aim for around 15 seconds or less.  (Of course, you will have spoken to each speaker beforehand even if they are coming in from abroad!)

Tags: events

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