Just like any skill you master, there are rules or attributes to presenting that you should be familiar with in order to succeed. These include:
• Speech Attitudes & Adjustments
• Voice & Articulation
• Posture & Action
• Language
• Content & Organization
• Audience Interests & Adaptation
Speech Attitudes & Adjustments
A “listener” often makes a judgment based upon a speaker's level of interest or attitude toward the topic. For example, does the presenter appear indifferent? Is he or she nervous, apologetic or even somewhat immature? Each of these components triggers a reaction that impacts on the listener's attention, reception and retention. The results of these triggers could turn a receptive listener into a hostile questioner.
Voice & Articulation
The tone of a presenter's voice can both maintain a listener's attention to the subject and suggest a level of conviction on the speaker's part. There are several variables to consider regarding voice and articulation. For example, is the presenter's voice weak or loud; fast or low; monotonous or is he or she vocalizing excessively? It is also important that a speaker pronounces and articulates words properly. Mispronunciation often gets in the way of the audience hearing the presenter's message. There are a number of techniques to consider, such as using 'pauses' to emphasize a thought. This is a good technique, whereas losing your place or train of thought is something to avoid. We'll cover more in the section on 'Content & Organization'.
Posture & Action
Your posture and gestures, like other aspects of presentation, are often idictated by the size of your audience. As a rule, it is always better to “reach out” to a larger audience and not “crowd” a one-on-one. Of course, things like standing straight, maintaining effective eye contact and showing expression are typically rules of thumb. Along with showing expression is using your hands to make points. This doesn't mean waving them about in the air, but gesturing, pointing and otherwise using your hands and arms to make a point. Too many speakers stand woodenly, hands at their sides, stuck behind a podium. Their presentations are just as stiff and forbidding. Speaking of podiums, try not to use them. If you need them for your notes or computer, try standing beside them and using index cards for notes. Nothing is as disinteresting or distracting as a speaker hidden behind a huge podium.
Language
Your choice of words says a great deal about you. And while it's not necessary to impress an audience with 'big words,' it's a cardinal error to be inaccurate in your choice of language. You want to use the correct industry terminology, without becoming bogged down in an Alphabet soup of acronyms. Technical terms are fine if they are everyday language to your audience, but should be used only sparingly with audiences that might not understand every expression. The words you choose should also quickly help you get to the point, so ambiguity should be avoided, as should sentences that seem to go on forever. Finally, your words should be expressive without being colloquial or clichéd.
Content & Organization
Content that is unclear, inaccurate or poorly organized can lose an audience as quickly as bad delivery. Once an audience starts to ask, “Where is he going with this?” it's often too late. You've lost them. A good presentation should start with an opening remark, which could be a statement, a rhetorical question, or even a short joke. The remark should introduce the core statement (the primary objective of the presentation). No more than three points should be used to support the core statement and each point should be supported by no more than three facts, pieces of evidence, documentation, etc. A presentation summary should restate the three points leading back to the core statement and then you should break for questions. Of course, this varies depending on the size of your audience. A formal presentation in front of a large group is inappropriate at a trade show, one-on-one with a prospective buyer or user. There, your presentation is more likely to be much more brief-“let's go to the demo”-and consist of questions and answers. But you still need to convey your three main points and use the demo or a discussion of your services to provide the evidence.
Presentation Basics
Presentation Environment
Presentation Attributes
Audience Dynamics |
