If you pay close attention to your own voice when giving a presentation, you will be sure to notice yourself using a host of filler words such as, “like,” or “um.” While this is not uncommon, it can take away from what you’re trying to say and sound unprofessional. When asked, many Pascack Hills students expressed interest in a tool that would help better improve presentation skills and their overall speech. Picking up on this revelation, Say It Media Inc., has developed their new application, “LikeSo.”
This $0.99 app was developed to help eliminate the use of these phrases, bettering one’s presentation and public speaking skills. This app is also said to help improve the pace of habitually slow or quick speakers. These are skills that most students wish to have. As reviews testify, users are pleased. Pascack Hills students have been utilizing the application as well and it seems they, too, are happy with the help this app provides.
When opening the app, users find two sections: “TalkAbout” and “Freestyle.” In “Freestyle,” the app tracks the pace of the speaker’s voice as they speak about any topic. The app also counts the number filler words used. At the end of the designated time, users are able to view the words they used, how many times they used them, and their overall pace. A score of articulately is also presented. Based on that, users will know which areas to improve upon and can make it a goal to increase their articulation score. The second category, “TalkAbout,” is similar—but instead, users are given a specific topic of their choice to speak about for their chosen amount of time.
Freshman student Zainah Alizade said, “I do admit that I use the word ‘like’ a lot.” She was bashful when she first tried out the app, like others when they tried it out the app for the first time. She often stopped and pointed out when she used a filler word, such as “like.” Upon continuing, these slip-ups occurred less and less. After the two sessions she completed, she said, “When you first told me about it, I was wondering why you would have an app like that and then as I thought about it, I saw it would be useful in any situation, like business interviews or presentations.”
The only complaint that was noted was the omission of “um.” LikeSo creator, Audrey Mann Cronin, has mentioned the technology’s inability to recognize “um” as a trigger because it is a sound as opposed to a word. She is working on fixing this in future updates.
Senior Leighanne Virosco said, “When I present for classes, I do use a lot of filler words because I feel that we were all brought up to say, ‘like,’ and ‘um,’ ‘literally,’ and stuff like that.” Leighanne, like Zainah, started out using fillers. After using the app a couple of times, her articulation score was raised to “99 percent coherent.” When asked if Virosco thought this app was a useful tool that she would consider purchasing, she said, “I feel like if I were giving a presentation, this app would help me.”
As final presentation season rapidly descends on students, it seems that the LikeSo app is a cool tool that could prove useful for students. Eliminating words, such as “like” and “um” is a positive step towards perfecting the valuable skill of giving great presentations. Later in life, it will help with speaking on an even larger scale, helping to perfect interview etiquette or prepare for an audition. Speaking is something that people do every day and LikeSo intends train speaking habits to make conversations as effective as possible. If you find yourself in need of a personal speech coach, look no further than the app store and download LikeSo to start improving your speech today.
