Ten Tips that will make you a Star Presenter
In today’s business environment, as well as
in academia, the use of technology such as PowerPoint slides or more recently
Prezi is not only commonplace but also essential. However, the PowerPoint
slides are not the end… they are a means to an end. They are a tool in our
massive toolkit of communication skills to convey a message that is concise,
clear and effective.
You may be making a presentation to
·
Inform
·
Instruct
·
Entertain
·
Inspire/
motivate
·
Activate/
stimulate
Whatever be your purpose, communicating
successfully is an art. Below are some of tools shared by Ecube Training & Consulting in its Presentation Skills Training workshops that you, as an artist could use to
make your presentation more successful:
Know your Audience
For any form of communication to be
effective, its vital you understand who your audience is, and speak with
empathy. The better you know your audience, the more you can tailor your
message to inspire, motivate and persuade them. Go beyond superficial qualities
such as age, gender, etc and seek to gain deeper insights. Ask yourself the
following questions:
·
What
motivates them?
·
Why are
they here?
·
What are
their greatest worries?
·
How can I
solve their problems?
·
What do I
want them to do?
·
How can I
best reach them?
Establish a Common Ground
Being able to connect with your audience (pathos)
can make all the difference in the way your presentation resonates with them.
How would you like them to feel?
Try to think about lateral reference points
to the kind of cognitive or emotional response you would like to elicit from
them. Think about the best presentation
you sat through that was mind-blowing. What about it resonated with you? Think about the last conversation you had
with a friend that made you more relaxed and receptive.
Try to relate these experiences with your
audience. Some commonalities to consider would be:
·
Shared
experiences
·
Common
goals
·
Aligned
beliefs
Define your “BIG IDEA”
So, now that you have established how you
would connect with your audience, the next step would be to ensure your main
message is communicated. So what is your “big idea”? It’s the crux of your
presentation. It is your clear view or opinion of the subject and what’s at
stake if your audience does not agree with you. Your big idea should be a
complete and concise sentence that includes tow components:
·
Your point
of view
·
What’s at
stake (why should the audience care about it)
Define the Audience’s Journey
During your presentation, are you asking
your audience to change their behavior in any way? The more clearly you define
what you want, the more likely your audience is to accept it, and the more
clearly you define the next steps, the easier it would be for them to visualize
getting there.
Before you begin your presentation, map
your desired audience transformation:
·
From
(their current position)
·
To (what
you would like them to believe and how you want them to act going forward)
Generate content to support the BIG IDEA
When you are planning your presentation, it
is very tempting to build your slides first and use them as an outline for your
talk. However, if you could step back,
and build your content, you would have much better clarity and possibly
generate new content. The way to do this
is to research existing content and then brainstorm on your ideas, around your
BIG idea.
Keep it creative, use mind maps, draw, use
arrows, flowcharts, whatever works for you – just get your right brain
thinking.
Anticipate Resistance
Asking an
audience to change their behavior or beliefs in order to adopt your big idea is
a big deal and some listeners are bound to object to your opinion. Think about how your audience may resist your
idea and be ready to overcome potential arguments. Consider how they might
demonstrate the following:
·
Logical Resistance: an audience member might resist your
argument by reasoning through why the budget doesn’t work. He or she might not
buy your idea if they perceive holes in your argument structure or the way you
made your case
·
Emotional Resistance: some audience members might object to your
argument on the basis of a specific emotional response (such as fear, anger, or
guilt) or an ingrained aspect of their personality (such as the desire to
follow the majority).
·
Practical Resistance: Barriers such as money, time and geography
can all limit an audience member’s ability to make the changes that you are
calling for.
If you are
able to acknowledge your audience’s objections, apprehensions and limitations,
you give them the confidence that you have taken the time to consider their
needs and desires, thus establishing a relationship that is based on trust.
Amplify your message by contrasting
You can make
your presentation more interesting by highlighting the difference between two
concepts. This creates suspense and provides the context for your idea. Some
types of contrast that you could use are:
·
Past vs. future
·
Speed vs. endurance
·
Sacrifice vs. reward
·
Strategy vs. action
Contrasting
is particularly useful when it comes to selling the audience on your big idea:
by emphasizing the differences between the idea you’re presenting and competing
and a competing point of view, you can better prepare the audience to accept
your argument.
Create a solid story structure
As we were
all told when we started writing in school, all compelling stories and presentations
have a clear beginning, middle and end. This is also a structure we can find in
most successful movies, stories and speeches in history.
·
Beginning: this is the “what is” (an assessment of the current state) compared
to the “what could be” (showing the audience this rosy picture of a possible
future state). Using visualization or setting a huge challenge could be an in
interesting way to draw attention.
·
Middle: shift between what is and what could be
using appropriate content to show your audience why your Big Idea is more
desirable than the status quo and move the audience toward your vision of “what
could be”
·
End: clearly state a call to action, emphasizing
how bringt your audience’s future will be if the heed it.
Add Emotional Texture and Humor
A good story
elicits visceral responses: we may shed a tear, get Goosebumps, roll down with
laughter and applause. Unfortunately, we don’t often see this in presentations.
Think about how you can infuse humor into you presentation, how you can connect
with your audience at an emotional level and make your message more memorable.
To forge an
emotional connection with your audience, incorporate STAR moments (Something
They’ll Always Remember) into your presentation. This could include:
·
Shocking statistics
·
Evocative visuals
·
Funny anecdotes and visuals
·
Repeatable sound bites
Try to use
these STAR moments at points in you presentation when you want the audience to
remember what you said and chat about it later on.
Practice, Practice, Practice
Having practiced in advance will help you
feel confident about your presentation. When you know your material well, you
are able to relax and focus on the message and not the slides – it allows you
to connect with the audience. Try to
prepare well in advance:
·
Seek
honest feedback and inputs from a trusted colleague or subject matter expert
·
Have a
shorter plan B in case of unforeseen circumstances
·
Play
around with the order of the slides to make sure the flow is seamless
·
Practice
using the slideshow so you know how it flows and practice at least once without
your speaker notes.
·
Videotape yourself
Finally, remember; NEVER deliver a
presentation you wouldn’t want to sit through!