Improve your presentation skills

When you stand up and speak your listeners will be forming an opinion of you, your product or service and your company, so it is key that you create the right impression. We have all seen others who make a great job of speaking in public and those who give a less than memorable impression. The latter can end up doing more harm, than good, to their company and their brand.

Here are 10 tips that just might help you to be a more engaging and enthusiastic speaker the next time you have to deliver a presentation.

1. What about them?

The most important element in any presentation is “them”, your listeners. Before you put finger to keyboard you need to find out all you can about them. Their age, sex, positions, background, knowledge of your topic, of you and your industry and so on. A crucial part or your research is trying to uncover what will drive them to the action you are looking for after the presentation. If you can get into their minds you have a much better chance of achieving success.

2. What about you?

You will obviously have your own key purpose for the presentation. This should be crystal clear and you should be able to express it in a single sentence. As you think of the reaction or action you want your listeners to take, you need to think of a major benefit (or benefits) to them of taking this action. By being mindful of where they are coming from, while getting your own message across, makes for an overlap in purposes.

3. Now the how?

How can you best achieve your purpose while keeping “them” in mind? As you build the main body of your presentation think about what facts, features, benefits, statistics, stories or visual aids will help to drive the message home. Again, your research of your audience will help you to choose the right content to stimulate them.

4. Slice and dice.

How many presentations do you go to that have too much information? Don’t be guilty of overloading your listeners. Look carefully at every piece of information. Think about whether it is absolutely necessary. If not, consider removing it. It’s better to have a 20 minute impactful presentation with fully focussed information, rather than 40 minutes with superfluous material.

5. Begin with the end in mind

Once you have assembled the main body of your presentation, you need to top and tail it with an opening and closing. Openings can range from a question, to a quote, a story or a startling statistic. Closings should generally include a call to action. A technique that can work well is to open with a question. Then, if you close with a call to action relating to the question you asked as an opening, it gives your listeners a sense of having gone on a well-planned journey.

6. The question is …?

Allow for a questions and answers session that is of a sufficient length – this is an opportunity for the listeners to drive matters in the direction that most interests them. The great thing about the Q&A is that it will probably give you an opportunity to introduce some of the material you removed in the slice and dice operation. Make a list of possible questions ranging from the one you really hope they ask, right through to the one you would dread most. When you have done this, practise answering all of them, especially the dreaded one.

7. Practice till it hurts

Practice your presentation as much as you can so that the content becomes familiar. No need to memorise it, at best it could sound robotic and at worst you could forget a word or phrase and end up stuck in a sentence. A better option is to know it so well that it flows like a conversation. Ask your work colleagues, family or even friends to watch you presenting. Invite them to tell you one or two things you did well along with one or two you could improve on.

8. Pause, pause and pause some more

Virtually every single presenter I work with has the same issue – not enough pausing. You don’t need me to tell you that pausing has huge benefits to the listeners and to you. To the listener it allows them an opportunity to digest your points. To you, the speaker, it allows you to gather your thoughts and think about exactly what you are going to say next. Pausing allows you a moment to take a nice breath which can also help with any nerves you might be experiencing.

9. Stop calling them nerves

The adrenalin running through you before or during a presentation is your body’s way of getting ready for the big event. I prefer to call it excitement rather than nerves. In the 2011 World Championships Usain Bolt attributed his false start in the 100m final to anxiety (another word for nerves), yet he went on to win three gold medals in the Olympics. He used the adrenalin to spur him on and the good news is, you can too.

10. Act enthusiastic and you will be enthusiastic

Dale Carnegie’s words are as true today as when he first said them 100 years ago. Most people talk about how much they dread speaking in public, but is this kind of self-talk helpful? Why not act enthusiastic the next time you have to give a presentation? You might just be an enthusiastic and engaging presenter.

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