Talking in public will put the fear of death in most of us, but we can overcome that fear by following a few simple tips.
We can’t guarantee you’ll become a presenting or public speaking guru overnight, but those monthly presentations to the sales team will become a whole lot more bearable if you can keep these tips in mind!
FOCUS
The one thing that will cause an audience to lose interest is rambling. Before you even start writing your presentation, map out a logical journey you want your audience to follow. This will allow you to mark out the key focus points on your journey and should help keep your audience with you from start to finish. Perhaps have the journey in front of you on a notepad or even a few post-it notes so you don’t lose track.
STORYTELLING
If you can connect emotionally with your audience you have a much greater chance of them doing what you have asked. One of the best ways is to tell personal stories that illustrate your key point; think of the tone of voice you are using; making eye contact and maybe walk around the stage if you had previously been standing still. Just make sure the stories are appropriate and don’t be tempted to try and be a stand-up!
VISUAL AIDS TO HELP PRESENTING EASIER
Nervous presenters can easily fall into the trap of using Powerpoint as a substitute; having the audience focused on your slides rather than you can seem preferable but it doesn’t make for a great presentation! Use Powerpoint as a visual aid only. Use images to illustrate your key points, with maybe one or two words which you can use as a prompt for your speech. You might even like to be more physical and use a whiteboard, especially if you are asking for input from your audience.
SUMMARY
A 20min presentation contains a lot of speaking, and your audience will struggle to remember everything you have covered. Think about what the key points you would like them to take away from your presentation, then right them up in a short summary of no more than 15 words. It sounds impossible, but keep re-writing until you get there – this is the optimum number of words an audience member can remember without adding in their own version of events!
And remember there are always presenting tools out there to help you:
Kensington expert wireless presenter
A green laser pointer USB receiver with a range of 50m – Controls Keynote and PowerPoint. A green laser pointer is 10x brighter than red pointers. Low battery indicator very useful in all-day meetings! Take a look
Benq MW535 Projector 1280×800 Eco-Friendly WXGA Dual HDMI
Clear High Brightness for Small Well-Lit Meeting Rooms 3,600 lumens of high brightness enable comfortable lights-on presentations to promote discussion, collaboration, and note-taking in small well-lit meeting rooms accommodating up to 10 participants The high luminance boosts picture quality with vibrant colour for pictures and videos as well as crisp text and fine details. Check it out
Nobo Wall Widescreen Projection Screen
The brilliant matt white surface provides a sharp, detailed image that can be easily viewed by everyone in the audience. The screen can be easily retracted into its housing to protect from damage or to hide away when not in use. See more details