Transcript Presentations: The good, the bad and the ugly

Presentations: The good, the
bad and the ugly
Prepared by D. Fitch
Presented by S.F. Stiemer
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Outline of presentation:
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Why is a good presentation important?
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Preparing for a presentation

Tips for making a good presentation
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Example thesis presentation evaluation form
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Concluding comments
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Questions
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Why does a good presentation really
matter?
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Consequences of a bad presentation:
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No one understands or cares what you just talked about
–
Bad grade in a course
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Decreased standing among peers and superiors
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Passed over for promotions
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Don’t get the funding/client/project/etc…
–
Miscommunication / misunderstanding leading to serious
errors in technical fields
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Preparing for a presentation
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Make sure you understand the content
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Know your audience
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Try to anticipate questions
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Only present interesting and essential information
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Practice giving the presentation on your own
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Arrive early, check equipment
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Start presentation on time
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Presentation Tips to be Covered
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Outlines
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Slide Structure
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Fonts
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Colour
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Background
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Graphs
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Spelling and Grammar
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Conclusions
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Questions
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Outline
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Make your 1st or 2nd slide an outline of your
presentation
–
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Follow the order of your outline for the rest of the
presentation
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Only place main points on the outline slide
–
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Ex: previous slide
Example: Use the titles of each slide as main points
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Slide Structure – Good
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Use 1-2 slides per minute of your presentation
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Write in point form, not complete sentences
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Include 4-5 points per slide
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Avoid wordiness: use key words and phrases only
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Slide Structure - Bad
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This page contains too many words for a presentation slide. It
is not written in point form, making it difficult both for your
audience to read and for you to present each point. Although
there are exactly the same number of points on this slide as the
previous slide, it looks much more complicated. In short, your
audience will spend too much time trying to read this paragraph
instead of listening to you.
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Slide Structure – Good
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Show one point at a time:
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Will help audience concentrate on what you are saying
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Will prevent audience from reading ahead
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Will help you keep your presentation focused
List the slide number and total number of slides at
the footer
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Slide Structure - Ugly
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
Do not use distracting animation
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Do not go overboard with the animation
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Be consistent with the animation that you use
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Fonts - Good
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Use at least an 18-point font
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Use different size fonts for main points and
secondary points
–
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this font is 24-point, the main point font is 28-point, and the
title font is 36-point
Use a standard font like Times New Roman or Arial
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Fonts - Bad
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If you use a small font, your audience won’t be able to read what you have written
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CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. IT IS
DIFFICULT TO READ
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Don’t use a complicated font
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Colour - Good
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Use a colour of font that contrasts sharply with the
background
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Use colour to reinforce the logic of your structure
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Example: light blue title and dark blue text
Use colour to emphasize a point
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Example: blue font on white background
But only use this occasionally
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Colour - Bad
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Using a font colour that does not contrast with the
background colour is hard to read
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Using colour for decoration is distracting and
annoying.
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Using a different colour for each point is
unnecessary
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Trying to be creative can also be bad
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Background - Good
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Use backgrounds such as this one that are attractive
but simple – best: NO BACKGROUND
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Try to use light backgrounds in dark rooms, and dark
backgrounds in light rooms
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Use the same background consistently throughout
your presentation
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Background – Bad
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Avoid backgrounds that are distracting or difficult to read from
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Always be consistent with the background that you use
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Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Graphs
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Use graphs rather than just charts and words
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Data in graphs is easier to comprehend & retain than is raw
data
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Trends are easier to visualize in graph form
Always title your graphs
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Graphs - Bad
January February
Blue Balls
20.4
27.4
Red Balls
30.6
38.6
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March
90
34.6
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
April
20.4
31.6
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Graphs - Good
Items Sold in First Quarter of 2002
100
90
80
70
60
Blue Balls
Red Balls
50
40
30
20
10
0
January
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February
March
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
April
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Graphs - Ugly
100
90
90
80
70
60
Blue Balls
50
Red Balls
38.6
40
34.6
31.6
30.6
27.4
30
20.4
20.4
20
10
0
January
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February
March
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
April
10/10/2006
Spelling and Grammar
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Proof your slides for:
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speling mistakes
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the use of of repeated words words
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grammatical errors you might have make
If English is not your first language, please have
someone else check your presentation!
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Conclusion
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Use an effective and strong closing
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Your audience is likely to remember your last words
Use a conclusion slide to:
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Summarize the main points of your presentation
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Suggest future avenues
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Questions
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End your presentation with a simple question slide
to:
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Invite your audience to ask questions
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Provide a visual aid during question period
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Avoid ending a presentation abruptly
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Example presentation evaluation form
Criterion
Score (1-10)
Started with a good ‘hook’ to get you interested, and
clearly explained relevance of the problem
Clear statement of objectives of research
Evidence of careful research on the existing state-of-theart
Used clear, simple, illustrative visual aids with adequate
font size
High level of analytical or experimental work free from
error
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Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Example presentation evaluation form
(cont.)
Criterion
Score (1-10)
Spoken in relaxed and confident manner
Logical seminar structure and appropriate length
Answered questions well
Appears to be making excellent progress towards a highquality thesis
I understood and enjoyed listening to this presentation
Total
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Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
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Concluding comments
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Presenting is an important skill
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Adequate preparation is very important
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By following simple guidelines as presented
previously, it is very easy to make a good
presentation
Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006
Questions?????
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Presentations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
10/10/2006