6 tips to make your seminar or event emcee script sparkle

November 26, 2014

by Andy Saks

“Hey, we really need an emcee for our upcoming event. Last year we didn’t have an
emcee, and the event was so lifeless and dull. Would you do the honors?”

This is the moment many would-be emcees dread. They’re drafted into service, and take
the gig reluctantly. Does that sound like your situation?

Andy emcees
AT&T’s 2011
Solution Provider
Champion Awards
Dinner in Dallas

If I asked you why

you’re filled with
such trepidation, you
might respond, “I don’t know what to say” or “I’m afraid I’ll say the wrong thing and
bomb.”

You’ve already embraced a worst-case scenario featuring you on stage, fumbling

awkwardly for words, humiliating yourself in front of legions of people with camera
phones and YouTube access.

If that’s your vision, know this: you can have fun as an emcee. It can be done. I’ve done
it.

And when you have fun as an emcee, it really is a magical experience. You generate a
connective energy in the room that’s just intoxicating, and will leave you wanting to do it
again.

But as with any live performance, emcee work does carry a real risk of failure. If you
don’t prepare well, you won’t execute well, and that experience is exactly as excruciating
as you think it is.

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4 Key Tips to Help You Be a Good Emcee

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WHY BAD EMCEEING

HAPPENS TO GOOD PEOPLE

In my experience, the most common reason emcee gigs don’t end well is this: the emcees
don’t start their shows well. They fumble through the critical first few minutes, setting an
awkward, underwhelming tone from which it’s hard to recover.

This post, the first of a two-part set, will help you avoid that. As a professional emcee for
AT&T (read about that), Best Buy, Microsoft and others, I’ve learned over many years
and events that a great emcee performance starts with a great emcee script.

Here are six key components good emcee scripts include, and many not-so-good emcee
scripts leave out. They’ll help you connect, relax and establish yourself in the opening
minutes of your event, which will make everything else flow better.

EMCEE SCRIPT TIP 1:

USE A “VOICE OF GOD” INTRODUCTION

It’s true what they say about first impressions: you never get a second chance to make
one. Your first impression sets the tone for the whole event.

So what do you want your first impression to be? In those key opening seconds of a
special event, you no doubt want to create eager anticipation, energy, and suspense.

That won’t happen if you just walk on the stage and start talking over your audience
members (or shushing them). That approach ensures your program will start with an
awkward whimper, not a bang.
Instead, use what’s called a “Voice of God” introduction to start your proceedings.

The VoG isn’t complicated; it’s literally just someone with a deep radio announcer voice
starting your event by standing offstage somewhere and introducing you before you take
the stage. Here’s a sample:

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to [event]. And now, here’s your host, [name]!”

You can even tweak it with some fun wordplay that enhances your emcee credibility. For
example, when I emceed one of the AMD/Microsoft North American Tech Tours back in
2005, my Voice of God introduction emphasized my knowledge of blazing-fast computer
chip speed, which was the event’s theme:

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the AMD/Microsoft Tech Tour 2005. And now,
please welcome your host, the Seeker of Speed, the Sultan of Swiftness, the one, the only,
Andy Saks!”

See for yourself; here’s the video from our Seattle show on that tour. As you can see, the
VoG intro works even better when the house lights are down, the spotlights move wildly,
and there are very loud guitars playing.

Don’t have someone to do this for you live? Don’t be afraid to deliver your own. I’ve
delivered my own Voice of God introductions at events I’ve emceed, introducing myself
while hiding behind the crew table, then running on stage to start the show. Or try having
your VoG intro pre-recorded by a professional; you can find countless voice-over artists
at freelance sites who’ll do this for a song.

EMCEE SCRIPT TIP 2:

THANK EVERYONE

Successful emcees are both grand and humble. You can demonstrate the humble part by
immediately acknowledging the contributions of everyone who helped create your event,
showing your audience you know your event isn’t all about you.
Here’s a partial list of people you can thank:

1. THE EVENT PLANNERS for planning a great event. Event planners are the unsung
heroes of events, and tend to get noticed only when something goes wrong. They deserve
a BIG moment of recognition. As as the emcee, you’re perfectly positioned to deliver it
by inciting a round of applause from your audience.

2. THE PRODUCTION CREW for building the set, lighting, audio, video, slides,
decorations, etc. The production crews I’ve worked with toil tirelessly, hauling massive
cases from the loading dock, assembling scaffolding, seating, video wiring and drapery
for hours, then running the whole show from the crew table. They too deserve your public
acknowledgement. (Plus, it never hurts to throw some love toward the folks who control
your lighting and sound).

3. THE AUDIENCE for showing up. Without them, you’re just a crazy person talking to
an empty room, right? Thank your audience members sincerely for their time, their
attention, and (if it applies) their passion and efforts for your organization and its mission.
You’ll win them over and give credit where it’s due all at once!

Here’s a sample video of me thanking the audience when I served as auctioneer at the
Boston Jewish Film Festival’s 2012 Gala, held at Theatre 1 in Boston. Starting around the
0:45 mark (and leading up to that) you’ll see me thanking the audience and telling them
what their contributions mean to the BJFF:

EMCEE SCRIPT TIP 3:

TELL THEM WHO YOU ARE

Sounds obvious, right? You’d be amazed at how many emcees I’ve seen who forget to
identify themselves.

This lapse leaves a nagging hole in your audience’s understanding of the proceedings.
They see you, but don’t know who you are or why you’ve been chosen for this central
role in the event. So while you’re off pontificating about other topics, they’re still
ruminating on why you’re up there to begin with.

Ah, but maybe you’re confident that everyone in your audience already knows you?
Introduce yourself anyway. There may be friends, colleagues, special guests, and spouses
in your audience who don’t know you. And those who know who you are may not really
understand what you do, or how and why you got tapped for the emcee role.

I’d suggest mentioning:

— Your first and last name (yes, both)

— Your official title in the organization sponsoring the event

— Your role within that organization (summed up in one casual phrase or sentence)

— Some sense of why you were tapped as the emcee

* BONUS: Express to your audience that you’re honored and humbled to serve in the
emcee role. Reassure them you know how special it is, and you’re happy to do it.

EMCEE SCRIPT TIP 4:

TURN YOUR MONOLOGUE INTO A CHAT

Emcees can get overwhelmed with performance anxiety before taking the stage,
wondering how they’ll do all that talking when their hearts are pounding and their limbs
are shaking.

If that’s you, share your speaking burden with your audience by engaging them in
something of a conversation. The most common approach is to ask three questions on a
relevant topic, such as who’s attended previous events, or who’s traveled the farthest to
attend this year. The first question sets the terms, the second ups the ante, and the third
plays off the first two as a joke.

Here’s a sample script:

“Show of hands: who traveled at least two hours to be here?” [Audience members raise
hands.]
“Who traveled at least four hours to be here?” [Some audience members keep hands up,
others lower hands.]

“Who never left last year’s event?” [Audience laughs; all hands go down.]

Here’s a video sample for you: In 2012, I emceed an IT seminar for Spark client Atrion
called AlwaysOn Symposium, held at the Putnam Club at Gillette Stadium (home of the
New England Patriots football team). I snuck in TWO of these three-question sets:

— At the 2:03 mark, I asked audience members about their association with the stadium
(the Wes Welker reference related to a photo on the screen of an Atrion employee wearing
a painted face and Welker jersey).

— At the 2:40 mark, I polled audience members about their attendance at past AlwaysOn
Symposia, and saved the biggest “ginormous” round of applause for first-time attendees.

In the 15-20 seconds it takes to ask questions, you’ve not only lessened your own
performance anxiety with a few key seconds to breathe and collect your thoughts. You’ve
connected directly with your audience members, assessed their collective mood,
discovered the extroverts (who respond to every question) and introverts (who always
stay silent), and shown everyone you care about their contributions to the proceedings, all
of which helps you relax on stage.

EMCEE SCRIPT TIP 5:

SHARE KEY EVENT INFORMATION

When an event starts, audience members will inevitably be harboring nagging logistical
questions about it:

Will I get home in time to relieve the babysitter? Who validates my parking? Should I pee
now, or wait for a break?

If you don’t answer these questions, they tend to become distractions that prevent your
audience members from giving you their full attention.
In your first few minutes on stage, put them at ease and set their expectations by giving
them the full agenda for your event. Here are some details worth including:

— The general order of proceedings in your event (what happens first, second, third, etc.)

— When you’ll take a break for a meal, networking time, etc., and how long the break
will last

— Where key elements of the venue are located, like restrooms, prize tables, and
autograph sessions

— Explicit instructions for anything in which audience members are directly involved
(“In ten minutes, we’ll ask each of you to vote for your favorite item using cards we’ll
distribute when the vote starts, so start thinking now about who gets your vote!”)

EMCEE SCRIPT TIP 6:

TELL THEM WHY YOUR EVENT IS SPECIAL

Special events should be just that: special. Part of giving your event that extra shine is
helping audience members understand the deeper contextual meaning of your event.

For example, let’s say you’re serving as master of ceremonies for an awards banquet.
Most audience members probably assume you’ve all gathered to merely facilitate the
award distribution. But that could be done privately (and far more cheaply). So why the
pomp and circumstance?

It’s your job to answer that question, to inject more meaning to that procedure by framing
the awards, the nominees, the winners, the cause, the occasion and the organization in a
larger, more meaningful context.

Start by answering questions like these:

— Why are your honorees worth honoring?

— If your event has a theme, why did you pick it?

— Why are you holding your event at this specific venue or room? Why is it special?
What does it symbolize?

— How does your event relate to your organization, industry, location, cause, the greater
world around you?

Connect your event to something greater than itself–and connected to your audience–and
you’ll instantly make it more profound and memorable.

Start with these six steps and you’ll be well on your way to an emcee script and
performance that’s fun, inspiring, and memorable for all the right reasons!

Here’s one more unofficial emcee tip: HAVE FUN. Really! Relax. Enjoy yourself. Smile.
Find ways to let loose (a little). The more you embrace your master of ceremonies role
with joy and excitement, the more fun you’ll have, the more fun your audience will have,
and the more likely you are to look forward to doing it all over again next year.

RELATED POSTS:

4 Key Tips to Help You Be a Good Emcee

10 PowerPoint Alternatives That Make Your Presentation Memorable

Got a question or a tip of your own to add? Need more details or an example? Wondering
if your emcee idea will work? Share your thoughts in the Comments field below, or
contact Andy directly anytime!

ABOUT SPARK
PRESENTATIONS

Spark owner and

professional emcee Andy
Saks
Andy Saks owns and runs Spark Presentations, a private company founded in 1998 that
provides presentation skills training and speech coaching for executives, salespeople,
marketers and other businesspeople, plus booth staff training for trade show exhibitors.

Spark also books professional presenters and public speakers to represent its clients at
high-profile events, in roles like keynote speaker, trade show booth presenter, master of
ceremonies (emcee) and auctioneer, as well as on camera talent and voice talent.

Spark’s client list includes large corporations like AT&T, Best Buy, FedEx, Hyundai,
Intel, Kimberly-Clark, Olympus, Owens-Corning, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony, and Volvo;
high-tech industry players like AMD, Atrion, Citrix, Gigamon, and Symantec; service
organizations like Vistage, 1nService and NERCOMP; and New England institutions like
the Boston Jewish Film Festival.

Andy is also the author of The Presentation Playbook Series, a three-volume set of books
that help businesspeople master common presentation situations by building and running
speaking “plays” like a coach or player calls a key play in a game.

For more information on Spark services, please contact Andy Saks via email or
Spark’sContact page.