With fall term winding down, there tends to be a lot of stress running high around
campus. There are copious amounts of work due such as papers, finals and
probably the most stressful of all- presentations. When I was younger I used to
get so excited over making a PowerPoint presentation for a class. I would include all the
fixings such as fancy animations, bullet point after bullet point and pictures that
have no relevance to the content of my presentation-pretty much I included everything that adds up to a horrible
presentation. Reading Drake Baer's article "7 Ways To Give Presentations That
People Actually Care About" taught me there are a variety of ways to
get your audience involved and make them stay engaged in any presentation. Following these tips can help you create a meaningful presentation for your audience rather than them reading a poorly designed PowerPoint.
1. Tailor the Talk to Your Audience
Make sure to customize your content around what your viewers are interested in. What expectations do they have? What type of humor will go over well? Is it a formal or informal audience? You can state various strategies and tactics to help your audience reach their goals.
2. Don’t Sound Like a Robot
Don’t spit out a memorized speech full of unfamiliar scientific statics; instead be engaging with your listeners. Understand your topic fully so that you’ll be able to communicate the content clearly to the audience. Speak with them as if you are talking to your best friend. The viewers will understand your presentation better if they can comprehend what you are actually saying, instead of attempting to grasp complicated words and phrases.
3. Use Visuals
Illustrate a difficult point by showing graphics on your slide. Most people are visual learners, so having additional images or drawings will help your audience better understand the point you are trying to make. Even videos or interesting charts can help capture your audience’s attention throughout the presentation.
4. Find a Way to Tell a Story
Storytelling is one of the best ways to keep your viewers engaged in your topic. Make sure your story has a purpose, so the audience either learns a lesson or is persuaded to do something by the end of your presentation. Building suspense throughout your presentation will captive your spectators.
5. Don’t Write So Much On Your Slides
People can’t listen and read a lot of information at the same time. Make it easier for your viewers by providing more images and less text. They will be able to absorb and listen better to the information that you are saying instead of tuning you out while reading a block of text.
6. Watch Yourself
Practice makes perfect. Be sure to rehearse over and over again. Each time you practice it can help you determine where you need to pause or slow down in your presentation. Recording yourself will also help you see the presentation from a viewer’s perspective. This can assist you to decide which section of your presentation needs better language to get your point across clearer.
7. Allow the Talk to Get Beyond a One-Sided Conversation
Engage with your audience by listening and watching their reactions to see if they are confused by anything you are saying. This will help break any barriers and create a two-sided conversation. Get involved with your viewers by asking and answering questions for them.
1. Tailor the Talk to Your Audience
Make sure to customize your content around what your viewers are interested in. What expectations do they have? What type of humor will go over well? Is it a formal or informal audience? You can state various strategies and tactics to help your audience reach their goals.
2. Don’t Sound Like a Robot
Don’t spit out a memorized speech full of unfamiliar scientific statics; instead be engaging with your listeners. Understand your topic fully so that you’ll be able to communicate the content clearly to the audience. Speak with them as if you are talking to your best friend. The viewers will understand your presentation better if they can comprehend what you are actually saying, instead of attempting to grasp complicated words and phrases.
3. Use Visuals
Illustrate a difficult point by showing graphics on your slide. Most people are visual learners, so having additional images or drawings will help your audience better understand the point you are trying to make. Even videos or interesting charts can help capture your audience’s attention throughout the presentation.
Storytelling is one of the best ways to keep your viewers engaged in your topic. Make sure your story has a purpose, so the audience either learns a lesson or is persuaded to do something by the end of your presentation. Building suspense throughout your presentation will captive your spectators.
People can’t listen and read a lot of information at the same time. Make it easier for your viewers by providing more images and less text. They will be able to absorb and listen better to the information that you are saying instead of tuning you out while reading a block of text.
6. Watch Yourself
Practice makes perfect. Be sure to rehearse over and over again. Each time you practice it can help you determine where you need to pause or slow down in your presentation. Recording yourself will also help you see the presentation from a viewer’s perspective. This can assist you to decide which section of your presentation needs better language to get your point across clearer.
Engage with your audience by listening and watching their reactions to see if they are confused by anything you are saying. This will help break any barriers and create a two-sided conversation. Get involved with your viewers by asking and answering questions for them.
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