Effective Presentation Techniques

Effective Presentation Techniques
Making a presentation or public speaking of any kind can be made a bit easier if you follow the
following simple tips as outlined by Marjorie Brody, CSP, CMC. They may not immediately eliminate
the knots you may feel in your stomach but once practiced will ensure a smooth and professional
presentation every time.
1. Know your P-A-L. Your Purpose, Audience and Logistics. Purpose: Whether you are talking to your
boss about getting a raise or updating an entire department on a project, know what your purpose is
in giving your presentation. Is it to inform, persuade and/or entertain? Tailor your presentation to your
purpose.
Audience: Who is your audience? What age group are they in, where do they live, what attitude do
they have?
Logistics: These are the things that have to be organized. You should know how much time you have
to speak, what time of day it will be and how the room will be set up.
2. Pay Attention to Timing Plan, prepare and practice for 75 percent of the allotted time you are given
to speak. If you end early, no one complains, but ending late is poor planning. If you expect audience
involvement, plan on speaking for 50 percent of the time and using 25 percent for the audience
participation.
3. All Presentation Material is Not Created Equal When preparing your speech, consider the must
know, should know and could know. Limit material based on time or audience interest.
4. Hit Emotional Buttons. Include stories, analogies and metaphors to reinforce the key points of your
presentation. That creates more impact and action than pure data.
5. Create User Friendly Notes. Use bulleted points instead of sentences. Make the type easy to read
(use a felt tip pen or at least 18 point type, bold face, if printed), only use the top 2/3 of the page to
avoid looking down, and use highlight pens to indicate the must, should and could know information.
6. Practice Out Loud and Say it Differently Each Time. "Spontaneity is an infinite number of rehearsed
possibilities". Doesn't Tiger Woods still practice?
7. Channel Your Adrenaline into Enthusiasm Stage fright is a negative term for excitement. No coach
tells the team to be calm. Instead, control the physical symptoms of stage fright by breathing from
your diaphragm and using positive visualization. Being prepared will also boost our confidence.
8. Deliver with Passion It is amazing how catchy enthusiasm is. If your voice is expressive and your
gestures animated, you will appear to be confident and passionate.
9. Think ahead to all Possible Questions That May be Asked The question and answer part of the
presentation may be more important than the actual presentation - particularly the questions that
might throw you. Remember to paraphrase the questions before answering them and take into
account the motivation of the questioner. When answering the questions, look at all audience
members - they may have had the same questions. Treat all questions and questioners with respect.
10. Remember that Speaking Is an Audience Centered Sport Avoid speaking out of ego, appearing
too cocky or unprepared. As long as you stay focused on the audience, in preparation and delivery
and during the A& A, you should be successful as a presenter.
Source: http://www.itplacements.com/ITP/EffectivePresentationTechniques.html
Presentation Tips for Public Speaking

Know the needs of your audience and match your contents to their needs. Know your
material thoroughly. Put what you have to say in a logical sequence. Ensure your speech will
be captivating to your audience as well as worth their time and attention. Practice and
rehearse your speech at home or where you can be at ease and comfortable, in front of a
mirror, your family, friends or colleagues. Use a tape-recorder and listen to yourself.
Videotape your presentation and analyze it. Know what your strong and weak points are.
Emphasize your strong points during your presentation.
When you are presenting in front of an audience, you are performing as an actor is on stage.
How you are being perceived is very important. Dress appropriately for the occasion. Be
solemn if your topic is serious. Present the desired image to your audience. Look pleasant,
enthusiastic, confident, proud, but not arrogant. Remain calm. Appear relaxed, even if you
feel nervous. Speak slowly, enunciate clearly, and show appropriate emotion and feeling
relating to your topic. Establish rapport with your audience. Speak to the person farthest away
from you to ensure your voice is loud enough to project to the back of the room. Vary the
tone of your voice and dramatize if necessary. If a microphone is available, adjust and adapt
your voice accordingly.
Body language is important. Standing, walking or moving about with appropriate hand
gesture or facial expression is preferred to sitting down or standing still with head down and
reading from a prepared speech. Use audio-visual aids or props for enhancement if
appropriate and necessary. Master the use of presentation software such as PowerPoint well
before your presentation. Do not over-dazzle your audience with excessive use of animation,
sound clips, or gaudy colors which are inappropriate for your topic. Do not torture your
audience by putting a lengthy document in tiny print on an overhead and reading it out to
them.
Speak with conviction as if you really believe in what you are saying. Persuade your audience
effectively. The material you present orally should have the same ingredients as that which
are required for a written research paper, i.e. a logical progression from INTRODUCTION
(Thesis statement) to BODY (strong supporting arguments, accurate and up-to-date
information) to CONCLUSION (re-state thesis, summary, and logical conclusion).
Do not read from notes for any extended length of time although it is quite acceptable to
glance at your notes infrequently. Speak loudly and clearly. Sound confident. Do not mumble.
If you made an error, correct it, and continue. No need to make excuses or apologize
profusely.
Maintain sincere eye contact with your audience. Use the 3-second method, e.g. look straight
into the eyes of a person in the audience for 3 seconds at a time. Have direct eye contact with
a number of people in the audience, and every now and then glance at the whole audience
while speaking. Use your eye contact to make everyone in your audience feel involved.
Speak to your audience, listen to their questions, respond to their reactions, adjust and adapt.
If what you have prepared is obviously not getting across to your audience, change your
strategy mid-stream if you are well prepared to do so. Remember that communication is the
key to a successful presentation. If you are short of time, know what can be safely left out. If
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you have extra time, know what could be effectively added. Always be prepared for the
unexpected.
Pause. Allow yourself and your audience a little time to reflect and think. Don't race through
your presentation and leave your audience, as well as yourself, feeling out of breath.
Add humor whenever appropriate and possible. Keep audience interested throughout your
entire presentation. Remember that an interesting speech makes time fly, but a boring speech
is always too long to endure even if the presentation time is the same.
When using audio-visual aids to enhance your presentation, be sure all necessary equipment
is set up and in good working order prior to the presentation. If possible, have an emergency
backup system readily available. Check out the location ahead of time to ensure seating
arrangements for audience, whiteboard, blackboard, lighting, location of projection screen,
sound system, etc. are suitable for your presentation.
Have handouts ready and give them out at the appropriate time. Tell audience ahead of time
that you will be giving out an outline of your presentation so that they will not waste time
taking unnecessary notes during your presentation.
Know when to STOP talking. Use a timer or the microwave oven clock to time your
presentation when preparing it at home. Just as you don't use unnecessary words in your
written paper, you don't bore your audience with repetitious or unnecessary words in your
oral presentation. To end your presentation, summarize your main points in the same way as
you normally do in the CONCLUSION of a written paper. Remember, however, that there is
a difference between spoken words appropriate for the ear and formally written words
intended for reading. Terminate your presentation with an interesting remark or an
appropriate punch line. Leave your listeners with a positive impression and a sense of
completion. Do not belabor your closing remarks. Thank your audience and sit down.
Source: http://www.aresearchguide.com/3tips.html

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Presentation Tips for Public Speaking

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