How to land a great presentation from an idea – STL

In this piece, Professional Development Trainer Karen tells us how to make sure Presentations hit the mark. From preparation to delivery, there are six crucial elements to consider. Karen shares them with us here.

In conversation with Karen from our learning solutions delivery team

Karen, we were talking about the welcome growing levels of face-to-face training we are experiencing (something we here at STL have maintained and supported throughout the last 2 years). We got onto considering that there are going to be plenty of us who may have to give our first in person presentation for quite some time and it’s only natural to feel some nerves!

What suggestions would you recommend to someone preparing for a presentation?

Preparation: vital for great presentations

It’s important to remember that there is more to a successful presentation than simply standing in front of an audience and doing your thing. Preparation is vital and the more time and effort your commit to this, the better your chances of being successful.

What are you trying to achieve?

As a result of your presentation do you want the audience to:

- - Know something
  - Decide something
  - Do something

It could be just one of the above, a combination of or all three but it’s important to recognise exactly what you want from your audience before you begin to prepare. Turn your idea into a deeper thought.

If it’s a business presentation you should also consider if, by delivering it, you will be helping to improve:

- - Productivity
  - Efficiency
  - Profitability

If the presentation doesn’t help increase any of these things, then ask yourself whether it’s worth doing at all? If it does, then make sure the audience knows that as well.

Do your audience research.

The more you know about who your audience are, the easier it becomes to tailor your presentation to ensure it meets their needs. Ask these questions to build a profile of your audience prior to delivering your presentation to help you to frame your story.

- - What are their roles?
  - How will your presentation benefit them?
  - What relevant knowledge/experience do they already have?
  - Is there anything in your presentation that might cause concern?
  - What are their communication preferences?

Clarity. Beginning, middle and end.

Use the beginning of your presentation to explain the purpose and context. For example, you might want to pose a question. On the other hand, you might want to make a statement or use some statistics and/or a picture that ‘hooks’ the audience. As a result, they will be eager to hear more.

The middle of your presentation is all about making sure you provide the right level of detail, delivered in the right way. Making certain your audience have understood what you want from them as a result of your delivery.

We use the end of the presentation to confirm the important points you have made, to remind the audience of what you now want them to know, decide or do.

Logistics

Don’t make the mistake of preparing a beautiful presentation on PowerPoint and then finding that there is no projector available in the room. Equally important, make sure you know many people are likely to turn up. By knowing this, you can ensure adequate space and availability of refreshments. Details like these are often overlooked when we focus solely on the presentation itself. Here is a quick checklist of things to make sure meet your needs:

- - Venue/Room – is it big enough to fit people in, and do you have space to walk around?
  - Audience invites – Are all attendees aware of the time and place of the presentation?
  - Technology – do you have a projector available? Can you connect it to your laptop?
  - Flip charts/pens – if your presentation is interactive, make sure activities have the necessary equipment.
  - Refreshments – this helps attendees feel relaxed, knowing that they have water, or tea and coffee available (and appropriate snacks! Don’t provide crisps!)

Ready yourself.

You know yourself better than anyone so make sure you prepare yourself to be successful.

- - Practice the presentation beforehand and get some feedback.
  - Get a good night’s sleep beforehand.
  - Make sure you have water available as even the most confident of presenters can get a dry mouth.
  - Visualise a successful presentation. This really works, try it!

Conclusion

In order to ensure a great presentation, start with solid preparation. As Alexander Graham Bell wisely said “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success”

Thank you, Karen for sharing these tips!