When we talk about presentations, it can be said that they aren’t just a simple speech that you might give to a gathering. It is also not about selling what you propose to your colleagues. What comes as a turning point is that, an array of presenters either take a too formal approach or an absolute non-formal one. Results won’t appear in a pompous manner when we talk about generating leads from your content. We can say that a presentation needs to be simple, unique and it should be bidden closely to topic alone.
Regardless of the reason what might be for giving a presentation, as a presenter, your prime goal is to convey your message in a most understandable, crisp and of course, in a thought-provoking manner. People out there are connoisseurs when it comes to presentations, but, not everyone is naturally gifted. In this article, we will explore the aspects related to delivering seamless presentations that will help you’re both, personal & corporate goals boosted to the sky.
1. Keeping it Simple: A Win-Win
Keeping your presentation straightforward is your out of the box pick. As an audience, we all would appreciate if we are subjected to facts which are to the point in nature. Therefore, depicting lesser crucial facts & figures can help in the binding interest of your audience. Plus, the same would be easier for you to present to masses. If you take a different approach and overstuff your presentation with ordinary statistical data, remember, you’d be definitely seeing people going to sleep. Keep it simple, let your audience grasp every bit of it.
2. Equipment Location & Whereabouts:
Let’s say you are on the stage, you are facing your audience and as you’re about to speak you observe that the mic is not working. That would be a turn-off for both, you and your audience. When you use your own equipment, it is obvious that you’re familiar with that tech and you can easily grasp it.
Now, when you’re presenting out over there at some place, you must try to get acquainted with the equipment present there. Also, don’t forget to observe the measurements of the stage, you certainly don’t want to stand at in corner for your whole presentation. Learn about stage movements and impress your audience. Double check the batteries, remotes etc.
3. Visuals derive Engagement:
You hear & you forget. You see and you remember. You do and you finally understand. Now, in simpler terms, making a flat presentation about the topic and presenting ordinary facts out of nowhere is not at all, an effective method. When you’re speaking all the time, your audience might feel left out in just a matter of time.
When it comes to engaging your audience, you should try to include images, infographics, maps, videos etc. in your presentations. You might also consider including real-life objects in your presentation. This would help you state your point in a lucid manner. Keep a reality check on the magnitude of bullet points, use few high-quality images backed by above-mentioned resource & you’re good to go. You can create outstanding visuals with already made presentation templates.
For example if you are a fan of Google Slides, you can check FreeGoogleSlidesTemplates , a free site of google themes. If you are more oriented to business or corporate presentations, probably you should check SlideModel, a paid service for professional powerpoint templates. Click here to know about their offering.
4. Move Around – Cover the Stage:
Looking forward to providing vibrancy to your presentation? Well, do you know if you’re spontaneous and when you move around the stage, you tend to grasp the attention of your audience? You shouldn’t be afraid to walk into the audience’s area. Don’t be afraid to look your audience in their eyes.
Use gestures, movements, facial expressions in such as way that they literally connect with you. Always remember that you have a big stage, take it as a one-time opportunity, utilize every bit of the space provided to you. Larger the audience more should be the gestures.
5. Stay on Track- Use Speaker Notes:
What would be the best way to recall the difficult to memorise statistics, ideas as well as facts? Speaker notes can be your state of the art pick for the purpose of staying on track during the presentations. They can help you retrieve facts and information easily.
They can also help your presentation endeavours by making it flexible for you to answer the asked queries with relevant facts. Therefore, you can unlock the power of having small discussions in between your presentations. So, having an in-hand reference in the form of speaker notes will not only help you answer questions in a splendid manner, but they would also back your proposed claims.
6. The 10-20-30 Rule:
People around the world who are fond of giving presentations follow the 10-20-30 rule in most of the cases. What this rule means is that your presentation must not contain more than 10 slides, it should not be longer than 20 minutes, and at last, it should feature a font equal to or bigger than 30 points.
Reducing the sales pitch, facts, stats as well as your ideas into a 10-slide presentation is cumbersome but highly effective. Obviously, you can always bend this rule as per your convenience. Just keep in mind that making relevant presentations while keeping a reality check on the interest of the audience is our priority.
7. Practise Leads To Perfection:
It doesn’t matter if you’re an amateur or an expert in the world of presenting great presentations. You can’t just practise too much. You should know that even the most seasoned speakers tend to rehearse before going to stage. Rehearsing the content a few times before the actual presentation can help you significantly.
Keeping your calm and knowing how exactly you want to deliver your message can move mountains for your goals. In other words, try to get acquainted with your content in such a way that you can maintain an eye contact with your listeners rather than reading from the slides.
In the end, it is all about perception. Apart from the great content, everything from your body language, vocabulary, eye contact, gestures to speaking & answering ability, articulation does matter. Presenting your message should be given more time than working on the slides. Your audience might neglect few mistakes, though they expect perfection, you must provide them backed by a never-seen-before presentation.
Nicola Holder 