Guidelines to Effective Presentations

“A survey of top executives who earned more than $250,000 per year was conducted by a

large executive search firm. The survey found that these executives believed their

communication skills were the number one factor that carried them to the top”.

From Wake em Up , by Tom Antion

Before you start1. Objective a. Where am I making this presentation? In a

small hotel meeting-room or a large conference

hall? What facilities and equipment are available?

What are the seating arrangements?

2. Audience b. When am I making this presentation and how

long will it be?" Will it be 5 minutes or 1 hour?

Just before lunch, when your audience will be

hungry, or just after lunch, when your audience

will be sleepy?

3. Venue c. Why am I making this presentation? Do I need

to inform, to persuade, to train or to sell?

4. Time and Length d. How should I make this presentation? What

approach should you use? Formal or informal?

Lots of visual aids or only a few? Will you

include some anecdotes and humour for variety?

5. Method e. Who am I making this presentation to? How

many people? Who are they? Business people?

Professional people? Political people? Experts or

non-experts? Will it be a small, intimate group of

4 colleagues or a large gathering of 400

competitors? How much do they know already

and what will they expect from you?

A noted speaker was asked his secret of success. “First,” he said, “you write an exciting opening that will draw the attention of everyone in the room. Then you compose a dramatic summary and closing words that will leave the audience spellbound. Then,” he advised, “You put them as close together as possible.”

Speech Organization

One very useful tool to help you organise your thinking is an outline. An outline works a little like a road map. It shows you where to start (the Opening), where you are going (the Conclusion), and how to get there (the Body).

Introduction

Body

Conclusion

The Outline

Depending on what you want to talk about, describe, or explain, and depending on who you are talking to, you should choose a good way to put your main points in order. Here is an example:

I. The importance of being a good presenter (Introduction).

II. There are many skills to learn: A. Planning your speech B. Writing your speech C. Delivering your speech III. Everyone should work hard on his or her presentation

skills (Conclusion).

The Outline

The Outline

I. _____________________________ (Introduction)

II. _____________________________

A. _________________________

1. _______________________

2. _______________________

B. _________________________

1. _______________________

2. _______________________

C. _________________________

1. _______________________

2. _______________________

III. ____________________________ (Conclusion)

B

o

d

y

1. A reference or greeting tothe event and the sponsor(or guests)

a. e.g. "Goody Startman said that, “Practice is the motherof success.”

2. A reference to the speaker(say something aboutyourself)

b. e.g. "On my trip up here to Minsk, I encountered aninteresting young man on the bus. After introducingourselves, we began to talk about ...."

3. A question to the audience c. e.g. "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I am happyto be here today."

4. A quotation d. e.g. "Recent studies have shown that one out of every 5listeners falls asleep during the first 10 minutes of thepresentation. Others though do it within the next 30minutes."

5. A shocking statement e. e.g. "While I am not an expert on the topic, I feel that Ispeak for many people in business."

6. Statistics f. e.g. "At this very moment, as we sit here in this veryroom, someone is being fired because he failed hiscompany presentation."

7. An anecdote (a shortaccount of something thathappened)

g. e.g. "Has Joe Bridely always been an excellentpresenter?"

The Introduction

Prepare the introduction to a presentation about one of the subjects in the list. Present your introduction to the class. Each introduction should take no more than two or three minutes. Vote for the best introduction.

your dream job; your university; your last holiday; dealing with difficult people; the Internet in your life; your studies so far; the importance of a good introduction to a presentation.

The Introduction

1. A summary of key ideas a. e.g. "As Thoreau once said, ‘Simplify,simplify, simplify.’"

1. A prediction. a. e.g. "I'd like to close with a true story abouthow my daughter taught me how to be aninteresting speaker."

1. A quotation, eitheremotional or factual,from literature or anauthority.

a. e.g. "In conclusion, I feel sure that if we allcan do these five simple things,communication skills will improve greatly."

1. An anecdote a. e.g. "Isn't it time that you and I stoppedtalking theory and started practicing?”

1. A question a. e.g. "In conclusion, I wish I could offer morehope for the future. I'm afraid, however,that unless you practice harder no successawaits you."

The Conclusion

1. Good afternoon (morning, evening), ladies and gentleman. My name’s …

2. To start with ... 3. Then I'll mention … 4. After that I'll consider the possibilities for … 5. Finally, I'll summarise my presentation. 6. If you look at this chart … 7. So, first of all … 8. Thirdly, … 9. I am going to talk today about ... 10. Finally, let’s turn to … 11. In conclusion, ... 12. To illustrate this point... 13. Many thanks for your attention. 14. Let’s move on to … 15. Now I'll try to answer any questions you may have. 16. The purpose of my presentation is to introduce our new range of... 17. Secondly, … 18. So let me summarise/recap what I've said. 19. Moving on to my next point … 20. May I thank you all for being such an attentive audience.

1. Body Language

2. Facial Expressions

3. Eye Contact

4. Vocal Variety

a. be aware of your facial expressions to be sure they are notexaggerated or easily misinterpreted.

b. never use a flat, unchanging voice like the one in yourelectronic dictionary

c. find someone to listen to you practice your speech and giveyou some help

d. use a tape recorder and be your own audience

e. make the gestures large enough for everyone to see themclearly, but not so large that you look silly.

f. practice it when you use it as a public speaking technique anduse it to your advantage

g. practice in front of a mirror, or, if you have a video camera,tape yourself in action!

h. move your eyes around the room and make eye contact withmembers of the audience as you speak

Delivery

Yes, I love you.

Yes, I love you.

Yes, I love you.

Yes, I love you.

Yes, I love you.

Delivery

“Hello”

to a friend

to a friend you haven’t seen for 3 years

to a neighbour you don’t like

to a 6 month old baby

to someone you have just found doing something they shouldn’t

to someone on the phone when you are not sure if they are still on the other end

SWOT Analysis

Before the Presentation

Organisation- +

Overall structureMain points made clearClear relationship between pointsContents match introductionConclusion matches introduction

DeliveryEye contactNatural gestures/postureClear and deliberate speechAppropriate speed

LanguagePronunciationGrammarWord choice

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