Presenting on stage or a conference call can be an intimidating challenge. Whether you are a confident public speaker or not, hosting a presentation and engaging with an audience is difficult to do. Here are some tips that can help you become a host with the most and create an engaging and informative presentation every time, no matter who you are talking to.
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Make It Interactive
One of the best ways to grab the attention of a group of people and hold on to it is through interaction. With the help of live audience polling, you can give your presentation attendees a role to play which will keep them engaged. Vevox helps you get instant engagement on your polls. You can use it to get feedback right away or have live polls running while you talk with live results. Make the audience part of the action with live polling on the topic you are discussing.
Keep It Focused
If you have ever been an audience member at a presentation you know how hard it can be to concentrate on the topics being discussed and more importantly remember the talk later. People can suffer from information overload during long presentations. Keep your talk focused. Do not go off on tangents that may offer some background detail but can also confuse the issue for listeners. Do not be afraid to repeat information, this helps people remember important points.
Keep Introductions Short
Do not spend too much time going over who you are, why you are there, or your credentials. Your audience probably already knows this information, or it is available to them in any literature that accompanies your talk. If you are on the stage, people will assume you have earned the right to talk on your topic and have the experience and qualifications needed to discuss it with authority. Your presentation should be about the topic, not about you. Make a swift intro and then get the ball rolling.
Tell A Story
The best way to get your audience on the edge of their seats and hang on to every word you say is to tell a story. Using a narrative to get your points across helps people to remember them, and see things from your perspective. Every story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. When discussing business topics, this is perhaps better expressed as a problem, which leads to a reaction, and then a solution. Tell a story of what a problem is, why it matters, and what people can do about it.
Use Slides As A Supplement
One of the most common mistakes presenters make is reading off their slides. If you are using software like PowerPoint, it can be tempting to put all the information on there and just read through it. This is dull from the audience’s perspective and makes you look like a narrator more than a presenter. Use slides to supplement the information you are discussing. The information on the slides should underscore your points, but not make them for you.
Do Not Rush Yourself
If you are not very comfortable speaking publicly you can be in a rush to get the presentation over with so you can sit back down and out of the spotlight. This is a mistake. If you rush yourself you are likely to miss important information, stammer, or give the audience the impression that you are not confident talking on the subject of your presentation. Do not be afraid of moments of silence. Make sure you take all the breaths you need. If you are relaxed, so is the audience.
Write For The Audience
Even the most accomplished speakers make this mistake. Your presentation should be tailored to the audience in front of you. Regular speakers often repeat the same speech over and over again. This may make their life easier, but it often means that the presentation covers too much ground or misses out on important information that will be helpful to the audience. If you are talking to students, for example, tailor your talk to their perspective so it is relevant and useful to them. This will make your presentation more successful.
Finish With The Start
Your presentation should end with a summary of all the information you have covered. The end of your talk should be tied to the start. You may have begun by asking a question or discussing a problem. When you summarize your discussion you should demonstrate how you have answered the question or how you and the audience can solve the problem. Make sure the end of your talk is relevant to the beginning.
Plan your talk, write your script, and prepare your slides with these tips in mind. Talking to groups doesn’t have to be intimidating, use these tips to make an engaging and informative presentation.