Question: How can I look and sound more natural when using a teleprompter?


Answer: I’m sure you’ve all seen reporters and politicians reading from teleprompters. If they’re not pros at this, you can almost see their eyes moving across the screen. Sometimes they appear to speak in monotone with an expressionless face. 😐

You can do better! I’ve used a teleprompter many times to film videos for my business and brand clients. Here’s what I can tell you! 💪

Practice, practice, practice reading your script ahead of time. Read it aloud so you can hear the natural pauses and intonations in your voice. You don’t want to be reading the script for the first time on the teleprompter. (Btw, practicing is essential even if you’re not reading from a teleprompter!)

Find the right speed. You can set the teleprompter to different speeds to best match your normal pace of speaking.

Vary the pace and rhythm of your words. If you’re familiar with your script, you can totally do this. Just think – when you’re speaking to someone, you probably naturally vary the pace of your speech rather than speaking one-word-at-a-time.

Keep your eyes on the teleprompter. Avoid turning your head side to side as you read the words.

Smile. Look into the teleprompter as if you’re talking to a good friend. You’ll exude energy, warmth and confidence.

Do you have a question about media training or communications? Leave me a comment and I’ll answer it in a future post!