Moderation, a key element of your event: how to improve it? 

Choosing the right profile:

Not all events are the same, and not all moderator personalities are suitable for every event. While some are expert attention grabbers, others focus their expertise on controversial topics like political debate. There is a segmentation we must understand to know who the right person is.

Moderators are categorized according to various factors, including social skills (if participation needs to be encouraged), analytical skills or ability to work under pressure (if the debate is announced to be lively), ability to improvise (if flexibility is desired), and ability to synthesize (if conclusions need to be drawn) or simply humor and freshness (if pleasing the audience is essential). Once these characteristics of the moderator are identified, they are classified according to their skills.

• Moderator of Live Events and Conferences: This type of moderator specializes in conducting and facilitating real-time events, such as conferences, panel discussions, and live interviews. They have skills to maintain audience attention, manage event flow, and adapt to any unexpected situations.
• Debate and Thematic Roundtable Moderator: These moderators are experts in facilitating structured discussions among multiple participants on specific topics. They are responsible for maintaining balance between different viewpoints, maintaining order, and fostering constructive and respectful debate.
• Media Moderator: Know how to engage a remote audience and who are comfortable in front of a camera.
• Focus Group and Brainstorming Session Moderator: These moderators facilitate group discussions to obtain insights and feedback on products, services, or ideas. They will guide the conversation, stimulate creativity, maintain focus on group objectives, and extract relevant information from participants.
• Training Moderator: They focus on facilitating face-to-face or virtual training sessions. They have skills to explain complex concepts clearly, encourage participation, conduct practical activities, clarify doubts, and evaluate learning progress.
• Media and Interview Moderator: This type of moderator hosts radio, television, or podcast programs, as well as interviews and debates in the media. They effectively communicate, ask relevant questions, manage program time, and maintain audience attention.

Now that we know what types of moderators exist and the importance of distinguishing who will be the right person, we must take into account the responsibilities to be covered: 

• Content management: a moderator filters and manages content, ensuring compliance with rules.
• Conflict prevention: moderators resolve disputes before they escalate, maintaining a respectful environment.
• Promotion of participation: moderators stimulate free expression and participation from everyone.
• Time management: The moderator ensures participation times and prevents a speaker from dominating the agenda or questions from dragging on.
  
  Moderator Tasks during the Event:
  
• Gathering participants and providing guidance.
• Introducing presenters.
• Moderating plenary discussions.
• Guiding procedures for simultaneous translation.
• Suggesting topics for conclusions.
• Time management.
• Promoting an open and participatory environment.
• Promoting diverse representation.
• Intervening to maintain focus.
• Requesting specific examples if necessary.
  
  First Mantra for success according to Jan-Jaap: everyone needs to be seen, heard, and loved.
  
  Understanding the importance of striking a balance between the audience and speakers, where each is given the space they deserve. What you need to consider for this mantra to happen:
  
• The moderator must have the program at hand (make sure to have copies or a tablet) so they can control the time and understand the program structure.
• They must not lose sight of the objective. Transitioning from one point to another without a common thread does not ultimately contribute value to the main objective; grounding them without abruptly interrupting can seem like a simple task, but it requires a lot of insight.
• Identifying personalities (protagonist characters, the most extroverted or introverted) makes it easier to set the tone and shape you are looking for. Asking the right questions to the right people is key to building rapport.
  
  Second mantra for success: build a ‘temporary tribe’ 
• Few things are as strong as human connections. The goal is to make the audience feel part of something and create a community. Jan-Jaap calls it a ‘magic moment’, that moment when a bond is created between forum participants, triggered by a comment, a common interest, agreement on a key point, etc. Patience, inclusivity, and commitment are three words in the moderation process, necessary to create that magic moment.
• Becoming a professional MC requires a deep understanding of human dynamics. From responding to diverse situations to facilitating meaningful interactions, becoming an MC involves keen observation and a genuine connection with the audience.
  
  
  

The importance of a good introduction

A good introduction strengthens the connection between the audience and the stage, ensures the overall narrative, and sets the tone for the rest of the event. Therefore, it must be given sufficient weight in the event’s pre-planning.

And it must comply with the following characteristics:

• Excite participants, pique interest in what is to come, revealing just enough to illustrate what the topic is about.
• Energize the atmosphere, ensuring that the audience enters a receptive mood.
• Bridge the gap between the stage and the audience, breaking down barriers and fostering a tribe, as our expert mentioned.
• The presentation must answer the following questions to be considered effective: What is the key message of the session? What are the key learning points or calls to action? What should the audience understand in advance? What question will this session answer?

The anatomy of the event and its 3 fundamental parts:

• The advance: the opening must instantly capture attention. Different techniques can be used such as a rhetorical question, an intriguing observation, a surprising fact, an anecdote, or even a joke to break the ice. Creativity is key.
• The presentation: present the program, explaining why this topic is timely and highlighting why the speakers are the right people to discuss this topic.
• The closure: a well-structured conclusion naturally leads to applause without prompting. Conclude with a memorable comment, repeat the keywords mentioned during the event, and announce the conclusions reached.

Tip: avoid writing the introduction completely; taking note of key points will give it a more natural feel.

Remember:

• Never the same moderation style will be the same for two events. The audience, like fingerprints, will always be different.
• It is a mistake to want to improvise, and lack of preparation can be just as dangerous as over-preparation and lack of naturalness. So, prior to the event, we need to know the moderator and prepare ideas together, making sure they have everything mentioned, so that things go well.
• It’s not about the moderator: The moderator must focus on the audience and speakers, not on themselves. Having a more inclusive language and remaining neutral.
  

“Despite the diversity of tasks, the goal remains the same: to stimulate conversation and create an enriching experience. The ability to adapt to different situations and maintain a focus on this central objective is fundamental to the success of any moderator”

Jaap in der Maur

Moderation has many faces, and at eventoplus we believe it’s a fundamental issue click to learn more about this topic. If you want to read more articles with our expert, click here.