Speaking in front of a crowd entails the use of both words and body language to effectively deliver a message. In some cases, what a speaker says offers one message while the gestures and posture he performs convey another. However, this doesn’t change the fact that communication is more effective with the use of both words and body language.

This is the very reason why professional emcees in Dubai (and other parts of the world) learn the proper use of body language. Even without uttering a single word, they can convey a lot of information just by altering their posture, tone of voice, and hand gestures.

In fact, a well-noted study revealed that 55 percent of the overall message impact is from a speaker’s body language while 38 percent comes from his tone, and the remaining 7 percent is from the actual words he has spoken.

After reading this article, you will learn how you can become an effective emcee by understanding the proper use of body language based on different scenarios.

What Do Emcees Achieve Through Specific Body Movements?

Different ways of moving the body achieve different goals. A good emcee understands this well and uses it to his advantage, both on-stage and in front of the camera.

To explain this better, here are some goals emcees set for themselves in a presentation or event and the specific body language that can be used to achieve them.

• To Gain the Crowd’s Favor

As hired presenters of an event, an emcee is often seen as a stranger amidst a crowd of people sharing the same interest. To bridge the gap, an effective emcee must maintain eye contact with his audience. People pay closer attention to and are more inclined to like speakers who keep eye contact as it demonstrates sincerity to the receiver of the message.

• To Demonstrate Authority

In some cases, event presenters need to demonstrate authority for the audience to take the information he conveys more seriously. To achieve this, a good emcee must remain calm and use small-and-stiff gestures to lend his speech a no-nonsense kind of vibe.

• To Redirect Attention

It is not uncommon for emcees to be asked to redirect the crowd’s attention to something or someone. This can be easily achieved by pointing at the person or item. Directing his own eyes to it will also make sure that the audience does the same.

• To Persuade the Audience

Persuasion is another common goal set for emcees in an event. This can be achieved by using positive gestures such as nodding, smiling, and open movements, among others.

3 Tips to Improve Your Use of Body Language

Aside from learning about what you can achieve with body language based on how expert emcees do it, you may also need to train yourself to be more in sync with your body and movements.

To help you out, here are three tips you can try to improve your use of body language:

     1. Avoid Poses that Convey Your Nervousness

Nerves often affect a person’s manner of speaking, and this is reflected in his posture. While this is natural, effective emceeing requires overcoming these nuances.

To do so, you must be wary of certain poses that convey nervousness. This includes the “Adam” pose (clasping your hands in front of your pelvic region), the “military at ease” pose (putting both hands behind your back), and the “defensive” pose (folding your arms over your chest).

     2. Alleviate Your Stress

Even the most experienced speakers still feel nervous before speaking in front of a big crowd, and that stress can leave your body tense. Although a bit of nervous energy can help keep you energetic during the presentation, you should make sure to keep it from generating body language that may negatively affect the message you’re trying to deliver.

Prior to your time on stage, try to sit or stand up straight with your weight evenly distributed throughout the base of your body. Keep your head at chin level, direct your eyes straight ahead, and keep your throat muscles relaxed. Taking deep breaths from your belly will also help loosen up the pent-up tension before a speech.

     3. Move Around

Moving around simply means you should forgo standing behind a lectern and walk through the stage. This can help you attract your audience’s attention as humans are generally inclined to pay attention to movement. Doing this will also prevent the crowd from getting bored.

Walking towards your audience is effective in highlighting a specific part of the event while walking away can prompt a break or change in subject.

However, if your goal is to emphasize an important point, you should stay in place with your stance widened to ensure that your audience feels the gravity of the information you are about to tell them.

Let Your Body Speak

An experienced event presenter has learned a lot after hosting numerous events. To become an emcee who is as effective as seasoned hosts are, you must learn to maximize the use of body language to go with your words. Take this article as a guide to help you get started.

AUTHOR BIO

Hisham Wyne is an internationally recognized MC, broadcaster, presenter and moderator who helps the world’s best-known brands create memorable occasions. He regularly hosts conferences, panel sessions, gala dinners and award ceremonies for some of the world’s best brands. With 150+ events under his belt, Hisham is the professional speaker that brands and agencies turn to when wanting to interview, engage and entertain government VVIPs and Hollywood celebrities.