You can be sure of one trait shared by your audiences, no matter who they are or how many--they have great talent for sniffing out fakes. We learn from birth to read body language and it's nearly impossible to adjust your body language to cover up when you're faking it.
You do not have to fake it ever if you follow these 3 guidelines:
1) Speak only about topics or perspectives you really have expertise and passion about. You will exude confidence and authenticity through your body language which will attract the audience and help your message stick.
2) Practice and rehearse a lot. Professional performers (speakers, musicians, athletes, actors and others) often are guided by this ratio: one hour of practice and rehearsal for each minute of performance. If a business speaker even practices/rehearses half this amount it will make a huge difference in how your audiences perceive you.
3) Know what your audiences care about. This goes way beyond demographics. You must ask questions such as "what do the audience members talk about among themselves?" Or "If you could change one thing about your company, your work, your product/service/industry what would it be?" Or "What have you always wondered about when thinking about (topic)?"
Speak to these questions. Nothing else is more important.
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