The best advice is to be brief or you will lose the audiences’ interest if you go into too much detail. Think through, and write down in as much detail as you can, all that you want to cover. Convert your notes onto guide cards, but only into key words and phrases to help ‘jog’ your memory. Brief notes will stop you reading from the card which doesn’t look good in a presentation (trust me!).
Before you do the actual presentation, practice as much as possible. This is important so that you can perfect your performance and to get the timing right. Make any changes if necessary. Don’t be too critical of your content after reading it many times: it’s natural to self doubt.
The PresentationThe perfect start is to ‘win’ the audiences’ interest by using a dramatic statement, humour or a prop (model, poster, etc): humour is always risky – clever humour is deadly. You can keep their interest during the presentation by involving them, like asking questions or a simple vote (vote: much under used to gain involvement).
You may feel that visual aids like an over-head projector (transparent slides) or a flip chart is appropriate. If you do, then make sure that you plan how you will use them. For example, when will you use it and what will you show. Preparing the key flip charts in advance is vital to the understanding and clarity of the diagram: freehand drawing and talking don’t go together unless you are Rolf Harris. Make your aids interesting by keeping them simple and by using graphics. Never produce scripts or long sentences on the visuals or you will find yourself reading from them (which is pointless) and the audience won’t be listening to you.
End your presentation with something that the audience will remember. Even if it is something simple like a visual or a closing statement. Always allow them to ask questions. Giving out notes at the end of the presentation is better, in my opinion, than giving them out during the presentation (as the audience will be reading when you talk, and they will probably rush ahead of your presentation if they have full notes of your content).
Useful Tips
Be prepared: don’t forget pens (if using visuals), or anything else that you have prepared to use in your presentation (especially your guide cards!). Keep your visuals in order to save time.
Speak clearly and project your voice to the back of the room. If using visual aids, make sure that they are visible to the whole audience. Avoid turning your back on the audience when writing on the visual aids. If this isn’t possible, be sure that you don’t continue speaking when doing so.
There may be information/diagrams/charts on the visual that you don’t want the audience to see until later. If so, cover that part with a piece of paper and remove when appropriate. This will stop the audience from reading ahead while you are talking about the current part.
Keep an eye on the time. Time management is important if you have a time limit. When presenting, address the audience individually. Make eye contact with different people for about 2-3 seconds as if you are talking to them personally. This will keep them all involved.
Finally, everyone gets nervous when doing a presentation, so you’re not alone. Don’t let this get to you and do whatever you feel necessary to make you more at ease. This, again, can be done by involving the audience.
Relevant Articles
Introduction
