Transcript Making Effective Presentations Instructor(s) Date Email(s) Learning Objectives Goal: To reveal styles, proven benefits and general aids in creating effective presentations 1.

Making Effective
Presentations
Instructor(s)
Date
Email(s)
Learning Objectives
Goal: To reveal styles, proven benefits and
general aids in creating effective
presentations
1. Make an emotional connection with the
audience
2. Generate and maintain a high level of
energy
3. Focus the content on the payoff
Making that connection
1. Consciously or not, the audience forms a bias for or against a
presenter within seconds.
2. You must come across as likable and trustworthy.
3. The key to being likable is simple: Show you like the audience
and they’ll reciprocate
4. Maintain steady eye contact with the audience throughout the
talk.
Making that connection
cont.
5. Practice the presentation in front of a mirror so you won’t need a script, or
record yourself and see how you like it
6. Show them your humanity.
7. Speak to the audience’s level of knowledge.
8. Talk about specific incidents, be empathetic
9. Make it clear you’ll answer questions at the end
10. Sit in the audience
Generating Energy
• Present with energy!
• Walk in confident
• Speak with conviction
• Use shorter sentences, dynamic
words
• Move closer to the audience to get
their attention
• Stay in tune with your audience
ambiance
• Keep it short
Focus on the Payoff
• Give attention to describing relevance rather than details
• Focus on Benefits
• What’s in it for them?
• Restate key points by using examples, making it personal
• Use visuals
WHAT NOT TO DO:
The Seven Deadly Sins of
PowerPoint Presentations
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7.
Slide Transitions And Sound Effects
Presentation Templates
Text-Heavy Slides
The “Me” Paradigm
Reading
Faith in Technology
Design a template that is free from distracting items
Slide Transitions And Sound
Effects
• Can become the focus of attention
• Distracts the audience
• Computers vary and presentation can run
much slower
• Even avoid “builds” or lines of texts
appearing with
each click of the
mouse can be distracting
• Focus on your message, not the technology
Presentation Templates
• Lacking original ideas
• Can contain distracting backgrounds and/or poor
color combinations.
• Create your own distinctive look or use your
company logo in a corner of the screen.
Text-Heavy Slides
• Slides are a good medium for depicting an idea graphically or
providing an overview. Slides are poor medium for detail and
reading.
• Avoid paragraphs, quotes, and complete sentences.
• Limit slides to 5 lines of text and use words and phrases to
make your points.
• The audience will be able to digest and retain key points more
easily.
• Don’t use your slides as speaker’s notes or to simply project
and outline of your presentation.
The “Me” Paradigm
• Don’t lose sight of the fact that your audience
isn’t seeing what you’re creating – it WILL look
different on a projector
• Keep your originals readable to the audience
• Print visuals are usually meant to be seen from
8-12 inches rather than viewed from several
feet.
• The same is true for font size; 12 point font is
adequate when the text is in front of you.
• Aim for a minimum of 40 point font.
• Remember the audience and move the circle
from “me” to “we.”
Reading
• focus on interactive speaking and listening
• Spoken language is shorter, less formal and
more direct.
• Reading text ruins a presentation.
• goals as a presenter is to capture and hold
the audience’s attention.
• Distribution of handouts
• creating suspense to engage the audience.
(If the audience can read everything you’re
going to say, that element is lost.)
Faith in Technology
Be prepared by having a
back-up of your
presentation
(Flash drive, on paper,
etc.)
Focus on the message.
Always familiarize
yourself with the
presentation, practice it
and be ready to engage
the audience regardless
of the technology that is
available.
Design a template that is free
from distracting items
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Simplicity and readability
Create a template of your own
Don’t overdo it
Leave room for discussion
More helpful hints for effective
presentations:
• Always use fonts that are 24 point
or larger
• Incorporate high quality photos,
images or diagrams that reinforce
your verbal message
• Use phrases or abbreviated
sentences rather than full
sentences
• Bring water with you in case your
throat gets dry while speaking
More helpful hints for
effective presentations:
Highlight what’s most important in tables and graphs where possible

Highlight the most important information

Present only as much data as can be readily understood

If you have complicated data to present, this is one application for
using of slide transitions, which can be used to “build” your
table/graph and focus your audience’s attention.
More helpful hints for
effective presentations
Create handouts

Slides should be designed to visually enhance (not summarize)
your presentation.

Handouts should be well‐written comprehensive reports,
containing detailed information such as (depending on your
content)

Your audience will be grateful to take a well‐written document
with them

This approach takes a significant investment of time, but is well
worth it
More helpful hints for
effective presentations:
Be passionate about your topic
Effectively engage your audience.
Make the topic interesting to you, or it won’t be interesting to them
Use the slides to help you
Conclusion
Make an emotional connection with the audience
Generate and maintain a high level of energy
Focus the content on the payoff
Highlight the most important information
Present only as much data as can be readily
understood
Be passionate about your topic
Q
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