Perhaps the only aspect of public speaking more important than the ‘speaking’ part is the ‘public’ part. Knowing and understanding who your audience is, what they want and expect, and why they are there to hear you speak, should all contribute to the angle you take on your speech topic and the tone you assume.

Knowing your audience helps you define your greater purpose:

• Are you presenting an informative speech?
• Are you speaking to be persuasive?
• Or are you entertainment, or giving a toast?

Speeches inform, persuade, entertain, or perform some combination of these functions.

Presenting an award might require facets from all three: Informing the audience about the award and the awardee, giving them persuasive reasons justifying the awardee, and infusing your comments with non-essential moments, like anecdotes about the awardee or an introductory joke.

In short: The more succinctly you are able to address the fundamental questions of who, why, how, when, and even where of your speech or presentation, the more successful you will be.

In what category might a famous speech such as the Gettysburg Address fall? Taken at its most stripped-down form, it was a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a newly-created public space. It wasn’t really informative, and some historical accounts suggest it wasn’t terribly entertaining (in fact some were disappointed by President Lincoln’s brevity), but even though the occasion was nothing more than a dedication ceremony, it was absolutely meant to persuade:

Who: Critics of the ongoing war, the bereaving loved ones of dead soldiers.

Why: The battle of Gettysburg was especially bloody: The cemetery to be dedicated was home to the bodies of over 7500 soldiers—three times as many people as the population of Gettysburg.

How: Lincoln stressed that the dead did not die “in vain” but in defense of a just cause, and that their deaths was “unfinished work” for the living, to “take increased devotion” to the cause of freedom.

In these and many other regards, Lincoln, as the speechwriter, analyzed the environment and culture in which he would be speaking, and focused accordingly.

More tips--

If giving a work presentation, you will likely have a very good idea of who your audience is, down to the last person. However, can you identify a person or persons among them who you most want to absorb your presentation? For instance, a number of your co-workers may be there, along with one or two members of the senior management team. If you’re trying to make an impression on a higher-up, tailor your presentation accordingly.

Be wary of talking over the heads of your audience. The language of your speech, and the level at which you apply technical or cultural intelligence has the potential to insult your audience if too simple, or lose them if too complicated.

Finally, take into consideration the potential mood of your audience. How attentive and interested can you reasonably expect people to be at work late on a Friday afternoon?

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