Speaker 1: My next speaker needs no introduction. Unless you are David Letterman, yes, your guest needs that introduction. More often than not, guest speaker introductions miss the mark as they are riddled with basic bio points, lack emotional intensity, and sometimes people just say the speaker's name and fail to create any momentum whatsoever. In this video, we look at a proven four-step formula to deliver a memorable speaker introduction that will captivate your audience. Hey, I'm Riaz Meggi, founder of the Every Conversation Counts platform. This is the channel that helps you present with confidence, maximize your impact, and connect authentically with your audience on camera and on stage. If you're new here, subscribe to the channel and hit the bell so you are the first to know when new content is released every week. If you are the emcee, host, or facilitator of any in-person or virtual event, you have a vital role. The emcee's job is to keep the audience engaged, intrigued, and constantly connected to the speakers and the ideas coming their way. Yes, the speaker is important, but the audience is an even higher priority, especially given the desire for human connection in a virtual setting. They need to have a reason to listen. What are they going to get out of the experience? They need to understand why the next speaker is the authority and why it's important to hear this message now. For years, I've tested different ways to set speakers up for success as the host and emcee on television shows, leadership conferences, and for several years as the host of TEDx Vancouver. The next time you are asked to introduce a guest speaker, consider this proven four-step formula. As host, you want to efficiently establish credibility. This builds trust with the audience that the speaker they are about to listen to is the authority on the topic being covered. Here's where you can briefly infuse bio points to accomplish this while still captivating your audience with some type of story. Once again, this was an example at a previous TEDx Vancouver showcase and the intro was for a popular doctor. Our next speaker is a neuroscientist and physical therapist that studies how human behavior has the power to change lives. What makes her feel relevant? It was a defining experience when she started her work as a physical therapist. She worked with a young man with a severe brain injury and despite her best efforts, she could not help him recover. Realizing she didn't know enough about the brain, she then quit her job to return to school for her PhD in neuroscience. This led her to her current journey. Here to discuss how everything you do changes your brain, please welcome Dr. Laura Boyd. The audience applauded, and now they're connected to the human moment that she experienced. They still recognized she had the PhD, that drove the credibility, and she was set up for success. By the way, her TED talk, Your Brain Will Not Be The Same, is awesome and it's popular. It's got 27 million views. If you as the emcee want to captivate your audience with the introduction, start here. Minimize the use of the speaker's basic bio points. The audience can find that information on a website or event program. Your goal is to humanize the speaker by finding the story that connects the event's theme to the audience's needs. How do you find the right story? Well, reach out to the speaker or speakers beforehand. If there are multiple speakers, you can ask them all the same question and then create a constant thread with your introductions that delivers a fun narrative. Now, directly connecting with the speaker ensures two things. One, you're telling a story that is impactful, but two, you don't take away from the content that speaker might be delivering in their presentation. Now, here's an example of an introduction that was used during a previous TEDx Vancouver Showcase. The theme of the showcase? Identity. And I reached out to all of the speakers and asked them one question. What makes you feel relevant? Then I asked them to tell me the story of the conversation when they realized their true identity. Now, this was a fun example for all of the speakers, but one in particular was speaker Scott Jones, who is a friend from the TV industry, and his intro went like this. Our next speaker is a TV host and digital media thought leader, whose mission is to be a distinguished voice for geeks and gamers around the world. When Return of the Jedi came out in 1983, Scott remembered a neighbor, a grown man who had a family, a man who was an engineer in the military, a man that took him and his brother to go see that movie along with his younger son. On the drive, they discussed many things, including their hopes for the movie. It was the first time he felt the things he was saying had relevance, and it was okay to love whatever it is you love. Here to share his take on the conventional bucket list, please welcome Scott Jones. Now, this was a fun intro. It was personal. It was delivered with urgency to connect with the audience on a human level. Great applause from the audience, and Scott, a great guy, crushed his talk that day. Next point, be concise. Less is more. As host, efficiently build that speaker up, and then let the speaker hit the ground running. You want to try and land your intro time around 30 to 45 seconds, so you can create anticipation and leave the audience wanting more. Remember, brevity is your audience's best friend. Finally, end with their full name. As soon as the audience hears the speaker's full name, it's almost instinctual they will begin their welcoming applause. This is a common trap in introductions where hosts say the speaker's full name and they still have about three or four more lines to read. Make the speaker's full name the last thing you read in the introduction. It's as easy as working through the personalized intro and then having your last line be, please welcome, and then say their first and last name. These details go a long way with your audience, especially when they are being asked to pay attention for several hours. Humanizing your speakers with a great story, especially in the virtual setting, is important given the digital medium makes human connection that much harder. This four-step formula will allow you to break away from a straightforward forgettable speaker setup and instead get creative and have fun customizing each introduction. Most importantly, your audience will be engaged with the content and love you for the effort you put in to enhance their experience. What are some of the best speaker introductions you've ever seen? Share your best ideas and tips in the comments below. For more ideas on building human connection, you can download the free guide, The 5 Secrets to Making Every Conversation Count. That link can be found in the description. Thanks for watching this video. For more ideas on how you can project confidence when presenting and tips on minimizing those filler words, check out these videos. If you like this one, hit the like button, subscribe to the channel, and let me know which tips you found most useful. We'll see you in the next video.