Here are five things you can do to help your presentation make a positive impact…
1. Be prepared
It may be the motto of the Scouts and Guides but it could equally be for presenters. There are very few individuals who can deliver high impact presentations by ‘winging-it’, yet surprisingly on
my training courses, those most nervous about presenting often don’t prepare in advance. Preparation is not just ‘putting together some slides the night before’ but giving thought to what you want to achieve. Consider what your objective is for the talk; what do you want your audience to think or do as a result of the presentation. What is the one thing you want them to go away with?
2. Understand your audience
Think of your audience as the stars of your presentation, everything needs to be designed around them. Consider what they value, what their understanding of your subject matter is, what they are going to be most/least interested in. What are the key questions they will want answered? In fact what are their expectations of your talk? If you focus on them rather than you, then you are much more likely to connect.
3. Less is more
It is very tempting when planning your content to tell the audience everything you know about a topic. As a result we can often bombard our audience with information which they are not interested in.
Beware too of using business jargon, language that not everyone in your audience will understand.
A good tip is to write out your presentation then go through it and really think about whether or not all the information you have included is necessary to make the point. If not take it out. No one ever complains about a presentation being too short.
4. Engage the audience
To really make a presentation come to life you need to involve the audience, make them feel part of your talk, not bystanders. How can you do this?
Techniques such as rhetorical and pre-emptive questions, analogies, stories, examples all bring our presentations to life and make them more memorable for the audience.
5. Deliver with passion
Everyone loves people who are passionate about what they do. Use your voice, body language and words to demonstrate your enthusiasm and love for your topic.
Be confident, don’t hold back, let your passion for your subject shine through.