TED Talk Takeaways: 8 Ways to Hook

Your Audience
By Gavin McMahon on July 30, 2014 | 7 Comments
You will live 7.5 minutes longer than
you would have otherwise, just because you watched this talk.
This was the claim that video game designer Jane McGonigal presented to
the crowd during her June 2012 TED talk. s the camera panned over the
mem!ers o" the audience# their "aces showed universal skepticism$ %as
this lad& serious'
There was something else interesting a!out that crowd. Despite their
dou!t"ul visages# ever&one in the audience was drawn in !& McGonigal(s
words. )o one was checking their email# talking to their neigh!or or
looking at the camera circling in "ront o" them* all e&es were +,ated on the
-potentiall& cra.&/ speaker.
Great hooks# like McGonigal(s provocative opening statement# get
audiences on the edge o" their seats and give them a sense o" what(s
coming. The& allow &ou to win a crowd(s attention right awa& and give &ou
a legitimate chance to have a lasting impact.
0onsider the alternative$ 1ave &ou ever witnessed a presentation where a
colleague starts !& sa&ing something like# 234# so we(re going to run
through a "ew ma5or takeawa&s "rom last 6uarter and hope"ull& !e out o"
here within the hour' 7noo.e8 ll that has &ou thinking a!out is whether
&ou should go to the !athroom now or in 20 minutes.
7tarting &our presentation in an unorthodo, wa& provides &our audience
with a much9needed !reath o" "resh air. McGonigal used aprovocative
statement to start her presentation# !ut there are plent& o" other wa&s to
!e 5ust as e:ective. %hich one works !est "or &ou# o" course# will depend
on &our presenter type# which &ou can determine using our help"ul
surve&. ;et(s take a look at the eight most popular presentation hooks#
drawn "rom the top 100 most9viewed TED talks.
1. Story: The most popular t&pe o" hook comes naturall& to the ma5orit&
o" people. Telling a stor& or sharing an e,perience is something we do
ever& da& without <ower<oint# so !ringing it into &our presentation should
!e a !ree.e. stor& reminds &our audience that &ou are a human !eing =
a !it o" "raming that can go a long wa&. >ou !ecome more relata!le to the
audience# which allows &our message to get through uno!structed.
2. Video!raphics: 7ome topics are !est introduced without words.
?nstead o" telling the audience how a new product works# show them*
humans have e,cellent imaginations# !ut sometimes it(s easier to do the
work for &our audience. Graphics that are compelling and that can
complement &our talk track are especiall& use"ul "or presenters who ma&
not have a wa& with words. ;et multimedia lend &ou a hand.
@. "elie# Statement: %e all have our opinions# and hearing someone
who agrees or disagrees with them will alwa&s gra! our attention. ?" &ou
have a controversial opinion tied to &our presentation# use it as &our hook8
There will !e detractors# !ut even the& will want to hear &our reasoning.
A. $ntri%uin% Structure: Mapping out where &our presentation is
headed provides &our audience with a path and adds a sense o" drama. s
&ou move "rom section to section# &our audience will e,citedl& anticipate
each topic that &ou(ve previewed# especiall& i" it(s a su!5ect that the& are
particularl& interested in. )o one will wonder what(s ne,t or when the ne,t
!reak is* with ever&one on the same page# all "ocus will !e on the task at
hand.
B. Humor: )ot an eas& task# !ut i" &ou(ve got a good 5oke in &our arsenal
-that(s relevant/# use it. ?" &ou can get people laughing# the& will "eel more
com"orta!le and &ou will "eel more con+dent. Tr& out &our 5oke on a "riend
+rst# though# !ecause "ew people handle CcricketsC well.
D. &hetorical 'uestion: ?" &ou want &our audience to participate# ask
them to. ?t seems simple# !ut i" &ou pose a 6uestion to the audience# even
i" &ou don(t e,pect an answer# &ou(ll have people participating mentall&.
Ehetorical 6uestions also are great "or e:ect* sometimes# a "ew moments
o" silence can !e the !est hook.
F. (rovocative Statement: Eemem!er our "riend Jane McGonigal' G&
starting her presentation with words she knew she would prickle her
audience# she easil& drew them in. provocative statement is like a !elie"
statement on steroids* &ou(re stating how &ou "eel and inciting a ma5or
reaction.
H. ShockSurprise: This hook t&pe isn(t appropriate "or all presentations
-&ou shouldn(t !e sa&ing# 2? will !e in charge in B &ears# with &our !oss in
the room./ Gut# used appropriatel&# a surprising comment can pi6ue an
audience(s interest !&# "rankl&# making them uncom"orta!le. lwa&s
consider it# !ut use with caution.
Ge logical a!out which hook &ou choose and# perhaps most importantl&# !e
honest with &oursel". re people going to laugh at &our 5oke' Does that
stor& reall& have an& relevance' The audience is the onl& true 5udge o"
&our hook# so make sure &ou don(t overlook how the& will react.
s &ou plan &our ne,t presentation# swap out &our !oring opener and
insert one o" the eight alternatives a!ove. Goth &ou# and &our audience#
will !e grate"ul.
READ MORE: How to Make a Presentation Stick