making oral presentations

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How to Give a Killer Presentation

• Chris Anderson

For more than 30 years, the TED conference series has presented enlightening talks that people enjoy watching. In this article, Anderson, TED’s curator, shares five keys to great presentations:

• Frame your story (figure out where to start and where to end).
• Plan your delivery (decide whether to memorize your speech word for word or develop bullet points and then rehearse it—over and over).
• Work on stage presence (but remember that your story matters more than how you stand or whether you’re visibly nervous).
• Plan the multimedia (whatever you do, don’t read from PowerPoint slides).
• Put it together (play to your strengths and be authentic).

According to Anderson, presentations rise or fall on the quality of the idea, the narrative, and the passion of the speaker. It’s about substance—not style. In fact, it’s fairly easy to “coach out” the problems in a talk, but there’s no way to “coach in” the basic story—the presenter has to have the raw material. So if your thinking is not there yet, he advises, decline that invitation to speak. Instead, keep working until you have an idea that’s worth sharing.

Lessons from TED

A little more than a year ago, on a trip to Nairobi, Kenya, some colleagues and I met a 12-year-old Masai boy named Richard Turere, who told us a fascinating story. His family raises livestock on the edge of a vast national park, and one of the biggest challenges is protecting the animals from lions—especially at night. Richard had noticed that placing lamps in a field didn’t deter lion attacks, but when he walked the field with a torch, the lions stayed away. From a young age, he’d been interested in electronics, teaching himself by, for example, taking apart his parents’ radio. He used that experience to devise a system of lights that would turn on and off in sequence—using solar panels, a car battery, and a motorcycle indicator box—and thereby create a sense of movement that he hoped would scare off the lions. He installed the lights, and the lions stopped attacking. Soon villages elsewhere in Kenya began installing Richard’s “lion lights.”

• CA Chris Anderson is the curator of TED.

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20 Tips For Preparing An Effective Oral Presentation

Don’t mind the informal me, I just seem to love that ‘down-to-earthness’ – I personally believe that such disposition is a better facilitator of effective communication.

Without much ado, I am going to share with you some ideas on what I can safely call most people’s nightmare (next to examinations, of course) – An oral presentation.

Organizations and other platforms have also come to discover the essence of an effective oral presentation. How it can move an employee from a zero state of mind to an excited state of mind after a brief but powerful presentation.

Businesses are not left out too as it has become a core value that has to be portrayed to convince potential clients about a business idea.

Read this: How to manage your time effectively

Essentially, oral presentations are nothing to be scared of.

They add some kind of depth to the learning experience.

Not having this depth is what we should be scared of. Self-expression is just one of the core pillars of assessing how much and how well a student or presenter has assimilated the content of instructional material.

Overall, some of the most faced challenges associated with oral presentations are content and stage management which shall be discussed broadly here.

Whether you are a student, employee, professional or businessman , you sure need this skill to make a good impression.

Enjoy these tips, internalize them and start putting them into good practice. At the end of this write-up, you will discover the peculiar challenges of stage fright, how to deal with it and a few tidbits on presentation etiquette.

1. Know the content

Nothing breeds confidence like competence and nothing breeds competence like preparation . Being vast in and thoroughly familiar with whatever the subject of a presentation will, in no small way, reinforce your sense of having something genuinely interesting to offer.

With this in place, the presentation ceases to be a mere talk or some kind of recital. It indeed becomes an active engagement of the audience on a journey of discovery. All you need do is just visualize yourself as a tour guide or a curator in a museum.

All you need do is to relate antecedents, history, origins, facts, figures and aspects of the subject matter in such a way as to stimulate their imagination.

You lead the audience on, not exactly projecting yourself but helping them see what needs to be seen. You wouldn’t want to go to the stage and destroy the expectations of people eagerly waiting to listen to you.

2. Define the purpose of the presentation

A presentation isn’t just a list of random facts. It makes a specific point, just like laboratory reports or essays.

Without a clear purpose in mind, your presentation will most likely be a jumble of unorganized factual information, putting your audience in the dark about your true intent.

What is the most important message you want to convey to the audience? Consider this to be the idea or theme of your presentation.

Your presentation’s goal(s) could include, but are not restricted to, trying to inform, inspire, or persuade.

Remember that what you say as well as how you say it must be consistent with the presentation’s goal.

3. Be natural

The mistake a lot of presenters make is thinking that great presentations are all about big vocabulary and sophisticated terms.  

May I indulge you in a different perspective – great presentations are all about presentations done in the most natural way. Be calm, relax and flow effortlessly .

Do your presentations like they are your daily routines. Help your audience feel like – “yes, I agree with what he is talking about”.

Rather than trying to charm the audience with a sophisticated style, be more committed to capturing their imagination through simple cues and vivid expressions.

There is a child in everyone, no matter how old. If possible, add a little humour here and there but try not to overdo it. Ensure you stay on track.

Read this: How to ask questions smartly

4. Invoke curiosity

This aspect is what makes your audience hooked until the end of your presentation. They want to know where you are headed. They can’t risk being distracted until you finish. All you need do is reawaken that curious infant in the brief moment of your presentation.

It is for this reason that presentations adopt visual aids and graphical tools. The world-famous PowerPoint computer application also goes hand in hand with projectors – large screens for a clearer, broader view.

Where else is such pervasive attention given to pictures and descriptive tools apart from a kindergarten? Such applications show that there is a childlike nature in every man. Invoke it!

Read: How To Celebrate Failure For Success

5. Get your audience involved

Get your audience involved in your presentation. Don’t stand behind a lectern all through, tale a brisk, confident walk and project your words into the minds of your audience. Don’t let the lectern come in between you and the audience.

Try to get your audience out of their seats, laughing, raising hands or even standing by your side to make an analysis. Getting your audience to laugh is not as difficult as you might think. For example, you might try, “Ladies and gentlemen, I was told to announce something very critical to the success of today’s event. Even though I don’t think it’s my place to begin my presentation with an announcement that has nothing to do with my topic.”

“Anyway, I’ve been asked to tell you that in the event that you laugh too hard, don’t cause a stampede or fart too loud.” 😆 

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6.  Gesticulate

If you can request a cordless lavaliere mic, pls do, so that you can be as flexible with your hands as possible. A handheld mic might become tiring if your presentation takes a while.

Your audience will only remember 30% of what they hear & see but 70% of what they do will stick to them forever.

7. Project your words

Two things that can make your projection so vivid and impactful are a clear voice and clarity of communication. Try to emphasize the last sound of each word which will help you to sound very polished. This may sound odd to you when you start but eventually sound normal as you get used to it.

8. Take a pause

I cannot stress this enough. Take your time to pause! It kinda helps your audience to brainstorm, evaluate and re-evaluate. You shouldn’t say more than six to eight words at a time without a pause. As longer sentences reduce readability, longer spoken words also reduce absorption.

Use a full voice, then pause. Think of great speakers that utilized a full voice and paused. They did efficiently well. Such presentations drop some value within you.

9. Use acronyms

After you have written all the words on index cards, try to think of an acronym or Slang abbreviation that has every point you want to talk about. Use this strategy to keep your presentation in order.

For example, you may have written on a marriage/relationship index card – ask, support, kiss . Think of the first letter in each word and arrange them to ASK or any other word of your choice.

ASK will keep you on track this way:

A – Ask what he thinks

S – Support his opinion first

K – Kiss him when the discussion ends

You must have practised what you will say about each word beforehand. You will only use the acronym to keep track which the audience has no clue about. They will only think you are so perfect! If your oral presentation takes time and involves longer acronyms, you could keep your index card(s) on you just in case you get lost. 

10. Give life to figures

The best way to do this is to put a ‘Point’ of mind-gripping information (pictures, graphs, a phrase or table, flow charts, diagrams or a statistic) on some slides and speaking to them.

While the audience is fixated on that slide, all you need do is try to make them see the aspects of the slides that are hidden. Hence, you help to make their imagination make up for the rest of the story.

Such information is alike in features such as introduction, plot build-up, themes climax/anticlimax, a hero and his trials/triumph and so on.

And like a good storyteller or the mythical Pied Piper, the story or the music as the case is, becomes the object of the audience’s attention. The presenter is merely an intermediary.

11. Face the object

Sure, it is not bad to feel weird for a moment. Gain your confidence back by becoming the audience for a moment.

Face the presentation with your hands towards the slide, board or what have you? Making this brief move takes a whole lot of burden off as you see that you do not have to be the audience’s object of attention for a while.

You can use this moment to stealthily move from your weak points to your strong points as you gain your confidence back .

Not all presentations have to be a serious one looking like a board meeting. It doesn’t have to be a brainstorming session to close a million-dollar deal. Smile if you can.

In fact, you should smile. It will reduce any pressure you might be feeling. You never know how powerful a smile can be until you smile at a confused child who looks at you and then returns the smile.

While you smile, make good eye contact with them and gesticulate as often as possible. This will create a good impression on your audience and make them connect with you easily.

Read this: Amazing facts about your handwriting

13. Intrigue them with stories

Whether it’s a story your grandfather told you or a story you learnt while growing up, people would love to listen. Stories are interesting ways to give your audience a light mood.

Who doesn’t like the taste of a little icing on the cake or peanuts in the chocolate? Just something a little bit different to ease the whole seriousness of the atmosphere.

Professional speakers are becoming professional storytellers ,  primarily stories about themselves or someone they know so well . If you can tell a story about each word or topic on your cards or slides, your speech will have a better flow.

14. Take corrections politely

One mistake people do is to try to show that they know better than their judges.

Judges, examiners, instructors or even a member of your audience can come into your presentation abruptly. Prepare your mind ahead for this and don’t fidget.

A simple “Noted, sir” “sorry, I skipped that” or “thanks for the feedback” would go a long way in determining your final presentation score.

Be courteous and mindful of harsh emotions as you face arguments or opposition. A wrong approach in dealing with this can ruin everything you have started. So be cool with everyone.

As a matter of fact, who you are and who the audience perceives you to be is a measure of the weight of your words.

Hence, it is safer to use universally acceptable codes of conduct and principles of etiquette that will put you in the good graces of the audience.

15. Define your target audience

The audience’s reaction is the only way to judge a good presentation. What do they currently know about your subject matter?

What are their perceptions about your subject matter: will they accept whatever you say, or will you have to persuade them to change their views? Do they have a good command of the English language?

An effective oral presentation requires much more than simply presenting your ideas or giving a presentation. It is all about clear communication and connecting with the audience.

Preparation is required to create that type of presentation. You must learn about your target audience to tailor your message.

If you’re talking to experts in your field, for example, you don’t have to explain all the terms you’re using but if you expect your audience to disagree with your assertions, it’s a great idea to provide additional illustrations and go into greater detail when presenting the evidence.

You can outline your presentation with your audience in mind to explain your main points and maintain a logical flow. The more you understand your target audience, the better you will be able to communicate with them.

16. P redict your audience’s thoughts and tell them

If you’re lucky enough to predict what is on their minds, you’ll get almost 100% attention from your audience. This lowers the barriers between you and them.

They’ll say “hey, he’s so clever hahaha”. Wow, you’re absolutely right! Tell them you know what they are thinking and answer a question they haven’t yet asked you.

17. Practice your presentation beforehand

You should start with yourself first. Talk to yourself, then move on to talking to a friend or small group of friends. When you build more confidence, start by speaking for free to become more professional.

You could begin by speaking to associations and clubs. Your audience may give you more networking opportunities when they enjoy your free presentations. There are business owners in your audience or people who work for businesses looking for speakers.

In fact, t here is much more to learn while you practise. By the time you become well-known, you can start charging a token or your prices can even become non-negotiable. 😉 

18. Explore every possible detail about your subject matter

To prepare an effective oral presentation, you must thoroughly understand your subject matter, which means knowing far more than you will present.

There is no such thing as too much research. The more familiar you are with your content, the more settled and confident you will feel when presenting it to a group.

Take notes as you read about your topic. Then organize your notes for your presentation. The most straightforward structure is an outline.

In most cases, a concise outline will serve as a good template for presenting your topic. The introduction, body, and summary make up a concise outline.

• Introduction

In the introductory part, you must provide a concise context for your discussion. This is where you describe the problem or issue that the presentation will solve.

You want to immediately grab people’s attention, stimulate their interest, and get them pondering about your topic. That is what creating engaging content is all about.

The bulk of your presentation. It provides specific examples to back up your main point. This is where you add important facts, statistics, and details to your discourse.

Make certain that your material is presented articulately, with each point connected to another and clear progressions.

To summarize, highlight the previous points briefly. Use keywords from your introduction to restate your argument.

Take note of transitory phrases or words like “in summary.” Appreciate the audience for their time and, if the presentation format allows, gladly accept their questions.

A clear structure helps to support a clear and focused message, and it prevents you from jumping from concept to concept, which can make it difficult for your audience to grasp your presentation.

Having this in place, the presentation is no longer just a discussion. It truly becomes an active participation of the audience on a discovery journey. All you have to do is relate the subject’s antecedents, background, facts, statistics, and features in a way that stimulates their curiosity.

19. Use visual aids to supplement your content

It is easier to deliver an oral presentation when you employ visual aids. Visual aids, such as PowerPoint slides or printed handouts, provide structure to your presentation and assist the audience in comprehending the key points.

Since the majority of information is deemed and grasped visually, you may need to resolve this in your presentation by including a few visuals.

This would help the audience follow your discourse and possibly discuss a few of your points after the presentation is finished.

A good visual aid , as obvious as it may seem, must remain visual. Visuals can be bulleted lists or outlines, diagrams or figures, or pictures that depict crucial points that would be difficult to explain orally. Visual aids should be used to supplement, not compete with, your presentation. Use them only when they are necessary or beneficial.

20. Anticipate questions and prepare thoughtful answers in advance

A key component of preparing for an effective oral presentation is anticipating questions and creating thoughtful responses beforehand.

It demonstrates that you are knowledgeable about the subject and that you gave the subject some research. It also helps establish credibility and demonstrate your knowledge.

Additionally, it might assist you in remaining composed and assured throughout the presentation, especially if you are posed with unexpected questions. A few strategies for getting ready for questions are as follows:

• Researching your topic thoroughly: This will enable you to answer any questions that may come up about your subject matter.
• Identifying key points of confusion: Think about what aspects of your presentation may be most difficult for your audience to understand and prepare answers accordingly.
• Practicing your responses: Rehearse answering potential questions so you are more comfortable and confident when answering them during the presentation.
• Being open to feedback: Encourage your audience to ask questions and be open to feedback , even if it is critical. Take the opportunity to address any misconceptions or confusion that may have arisen during your presentation.
• Be prepared for the unexpected: Sometimes, the questions you get may be totally out of the blue, be prepared to answer those as well.

In summary, your oral presentation is highly related to your motion, posture, gesture, gesticulation, eye contact, pausing effect, response to applause and so on.

The evolving nature of education has seen many lecturers and teachers adopt oral examinations as an integral part of grading students’ performance.

That is apart from lines of study such as Medicine (Viva) and Law (mock trials) that already have oral-related content as a part of their continuous assessment.

It also affords the teacher the opportunity to do more than just teach but to also be a kind of ‘coach’ that nurtures not only the content but also the delivery of knowledge . As a teacher myself, I do subscribe to this method of teaching; after all, was it not Einstein that said – If you cannot explain it simply, then you do not understand it all.

In oral presentations, especially ones that adopt projected information, the words you speak are more important than the words you display.

However, the pictures you use are just as important as the words you speak. In no place is the saying truer – a picture is worth more than a thousand words.

Therefore, being in a position where you have to present your own perspective, with your own words and in your own style goes a long way in shaping your intellectual capabilities . It also builds self-confidence in those that eventually master it.

I wish you a hitch-free and mind-blowing experience in your next oral presentation. 😉 . Which of these tips has helped you tremendously?

Share with love!

Post Author: Explicit Success

24 replies to “20 tips for preparing an effective oral presentation”.

Wonderful post! Putting these suggestions into practice will make anyone a ‘better’ presenter! Multiple thumbs up!

Sure, they will. Thanks for reading!

Thanks for this post, I believe it will help me gather more confidence in public speaking.

All the best in your next public speaking engagement, Josephine.

Love this post! I have a fear of public speaking so this checklist is so helpful! Thanks for sharing!

I’m glad you love it, Lissy.

Cool, just cool. I like it.

Thanks, Yeahme.

Thank you these are great tips! I have always had a lot of self confidence but always struggle with imposter syndrome so I get so nervous before public speaking!

Aww, I am sure these tips and a lot of practice will take the nervousness away.

This reminds me of my speech 101 class in college. I definitely with these tips — especially the one about knowing the content. Nothing prepares you more than knowing what you are talking about.

That’s absolutely right!

I used to work for a company that offered feedback for corporate leaders on presenting and I agree with everything you say. Bringing your personality into a presentation or speech can make a huge difference but it can take practice to get comfortable enough to bring that energy.

Yes, practice does a lot to make one perfect. Thanks for your input, Sarah.

This is a very helpful post. I wish I had read this when I was still a student. I didn’t like oral presentations and this could have given me a better perspective.

Awww, You may pass on the message to young students to ensure they get it right early.

Great read. Very helpful for my upcoming convention. Thanks for sharing.

I’m glad this helped. I wish you a splendid convention, Allison.

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Happy to help.

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• Presentation Skills

Preparing for Oral Presentations

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Sooner or later, a lot of us will be faced with the task of delivering an oral presentation. Even if this is not the first time that you are required to do so, you may still feel nervous or insecure in your ability to hold a good presentation.

Luckily, holding oral presentations is a skill like any other. It can be practiced and improved. And the more time you allocate for preparing for oral presentations, the better your presentation will be. If you want to properly prepare and improve your presentation skills , then you've come to the right place! Here's what you can do.

Preparing Your Presentation

Preparing for oral presentations begins with preparing the presentation itself. Presentations usually consist of two aspects: the oral part itself, and the presentations made in Microsoft PowerPoint that will help you to illustrate your points.

When it comes to what you will be saying during your oral presentation, you should know that, no matter how charismatic a speaker you are, taking the time to prepare is vital. As you will only have a limited time to speak, any improvisation is likely to eat up precious time. That is why you need to rehearse in advance and have a good idea of which words you will use and how you will phrase your thoughts.

Rehearsing in advance will also allow you to time your presentation. While you can rehearse in front of a mirror, it is definitely better to convince a friend or a family member to substitute for the audience. Without holding such a presentation before the actual presentation commences, there is no way to precisely time your performance. Usually, there will be parts that you will need to shorten (or you will need to speak faster during those parts), or you may find that you don't actually have enough material.

Additional tips

Preparing for oral presentations is much easier with a little help from your friends.

Here are some other tips that will help you with this part of preparing for your oral presentations:

Know your audience! For example, if you're talking to professionals in your field, there's no need to explain the terms you are using mean (and vice versa). Or, for instance, if you expect that your audience not to agree with your arguments, it's a good idea to provide more examples and to go into detail when you're presenting the evidence.

The clock is ticking, so you'll want to focus on your main points. Don't waste time on overlong introductions and detailed background information. Rather than that, get to the gist quickly and then elaborate on it.

On the other hand, some audience members might be especially interested in the details surrounding the main point. So, notify your audience that if they're interested in such details, you will be happy to answer all the questions they may have. Being prepared for dealing with questions also includes the questions to which you currently don't have an answer for. In such situations, it is best to offer to send the answer later (for example, by e-mail), once you've looked it up.

You can also prepare handouts to give out to the audience. Otherwise, the audience members may be too busy writing down notes, and incapable of fully following your presentation.

How to Make an Excellent PowerPoint Presentation

Preparing for oral presentations includes taking the time to prepare a great PowerPoint presentation. However, it is important to remember that such presentations are only there to complement the oral part of your presentation.

Under no circumstances should you read from your PowerPoint presentation during your entire performance. Rather, use it as a tool to reinforce your points in the mind of the audience, and to help you remember the structure of your oral presentation.

Use dark text against a light background if you want your audience to be able to focus.

Here are some more tips & tricks on making an excellent PowerPoint presentation:

The font should be large (avoid going under 24 points), and the typeface should be easy to read (as a rule, Sans Serif is better than Serif).

Instead of full sentences, use bullet points. Remember, you're the one who's delivering full sentences; bullet points are simply there to underline what you are saying.

When it comes to your use of colors, remember that the text should be easy to read. So, if the background is dark, the text should be light, and vice versa.

Don't use too many effects. They tend to distract the audience from what you are saying.

A website can be a good alternative to a PowerPoint presentation.

Preparing for the Delivery of Your Oral Presentations

Finally, you should also work on your delivery. When it comes to this part of your oral presentation, it is important to have the right mindset. Namely, you are not giving a speech; you are delivering a presentation! This means that you are there to actively communicate with the audience members and to try to involve them in the presentation.

And to be able to do that, the audience must be able to understand you clearly. Pay attention to see if anyone is having a hard time hearing you. If you have any written notes, you can consult them, but don't read from them all the time. Instead, maintain eye contact with the audience members. Basically, if you show an interest in your audience, if you show that you care whether they're listening to you or not, the audience will respond with interest.

The science of fear

Admittedly, this may be hard to do if you're feeling nervous. In such cases, what one suffers is called a "fight or flight reaction", something that can be explained from an evolutionary standpoint. Whenever our ancestors were scared by the dangers lurking in the primordial wilderness, their neural systems produced so-called "fear hormones", urging them to either fight or run away.

Our ancestors were rightfully afraid of lions; however, we still experience a similar fear in physically much less dangerous circumstances.

Today, nothing has changed, only the "danger" that's responsible for causing fear is usually very different (and much less harmful). This is perfectly normal; even experienced presenters may often still feel nervous before delivering a presentation.

Luckily, coping with presentation nerves is indeed possible with some useful tips and some practice. Have in mind that your instincts are wrong in this situation, as there's actually no need for a fight or flight reaction. Focus on preparing oral presentations as best as you can, stand your ground, and simply try to communicate to the best of your abilities in the given situation.

About the Author

Alex Durick has delivered quite a few oral presentations in his life. From college to his previous job working as a marketing consultant, he was at first a reluctant public speaker, but over time, he grew to enjoy holding presentations.

Today, he is a freelance writer focusing on marketing guides, but he occasionally writes about different topics as well.

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See also: Self-Presentation in Presentations Giving a Speech Dealing With Presentation Questions

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Undergraduate Research

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Steps to Plan Your Presentation

Delivering an effective oral presentation is an essential skill for sharing your research findings with an audience. Tailoring your presentation to your audience, preparing for technical issues, and engaging your listeners with clear, concise content are crucial for the success of your research project. This guide provides comprehensive advice on how to prepare, what to include, and common pitfalls to avoid, ensuring your presentation is impactful and memorable.

For further assistance, contact the Office of Undergraduate Research for individual consultations.

What You Need To Know

 Purpose

The purpose of an oral presentation is to share your research with an audience, typically through PowerPoint or Prezi. It is typically a synopsis of your research. If you've conducted a study, you will probably address the following topics:

• Background research on your topic (with citations to past studies)
• The rationale for your study (how does your study address a gap in the literature?)
• Hypotheses/research questions
• Methodology
• Results (graphs are more interesting than tables or words)
• Conclusions (for example, the implications or applications of your research, limitations, future research directions, a concise summary of your main findings, concluding thoughts)
• References and Acknowledgements (such as grant support, a faculty advisor if he/she is not an author on the presentation, assistance from others who are not listed as authors)

If your scholarship is in a different form (e.g., a film analysis, a presentation of a creative work), the structure will likely be a little different, but in all cases, it should be clear to the audience what the main goals of your research are, why it's important to do this work, and what you found in your research.  

Preparation

• First, make sure you know how much time you have; it is common for oral presentations at conferences to exceed the time limit. Prepare a presentation that is a little shorter than the allotted time to allow for questions and other comments.
• Think about your audience: Will they understand technical terms, jargon, and acronyms? Will they be mostly undergraduates or professors in the field? You should tailor your presentation to your expected audience.
• Think carefully about your central message. What do you want the audience to know by the end of your presentation? Most people will only remember a few take-home points from your carefully constructed presentation (if that!). There's no point in getting bogged down in minutia that the audience can't really process anyway.
• The most important parts are the beginning (to draw the audience in) and the ending (to wrap up, to inspire). Put some thought into how to make these parts of your presentation have impact.
• Think about your speaking style; can you speak loudly and clearly? Can you modulate your voice appropriately, or do you tend to sound monotone when you give presentations? Consider working on your public speaking skills if it's needed; consider joining Legacy Owls Toastmasters Club  for this purpose and check out Toastmasters International public speaking tips .

 Plan for the Unexpected

• Will the conference provide computers or do you bring your own laptop?
• Will there be internet available?
• How reliable is the internet?
• Will there be speakers or a way to use audio (if necessary)?
• Back up your presentation in at least two places (e.g., flash drive, Dropbox, email it to yourself).
• When you prepare a presentation on a Mac and then use a PC (or vice versa), be aware that sometimes things look different.
• Bring a printed copy in case the technology fails, or have a tablet/laptop with you.
• Find the room early, and check out the technology so you’re familiar with it.

What to Avoid

It is usually not required that you use visuals for your presentation, but a PowerPoint or Prezi can often help the audience follow along with your research.

If you use PowerPoint or Prezi:

• Avoid the temptation to put too much text on your slides; the audience can get bored or overwhelmed and might not be able to clearly see all the words if you've used a small font (less than 20-pt is considered "small"). 
• Avoid font types that are hard to read or look unprofessional.
• Avoid putting words on a busy powerpoint background that makes the words hard to read.
• Avoid using font color that doesn't contrast with the background (in other words, your audience can't read gray text on a black background). 
• Avoid tables and graphs that have too much information - you can recreate those tables and graphs with just the most important information instead.

Also, consider your verbal and physical presentation:

• Avoid reading your slides to the audience.
• Avoid reading from prepared notes; the audience will maintain interest better if you can speak extemporaneously directly to them. It's also hard to make eye contact with the audience if you are reading.
• Avoid distracting behaviors or verbal tics (“um,” “like,” “uh”).
• Dress appropriately for the occasion.
• Consider your body language (e.g., arms crossed can come across as you not wanting to be there).

Ways to Stand Out

• Embrace a "Presentation Zen" style: simple (not simplistic), clean, and powerful.
• Have interesting, high-resolution images on your slides.
• You could connect your research to recent events (perhaps asking the audience to summarize the recent event).
• You could ask specific questions throughout the presentation.
• You could poll the audience on a topic relevant to your presentation (perhaps even using a free resource such as Socrative or Poll Everywhere ).
• You could insert a powerful quote into your presentation (perhaps at the beginning or end).
• You can show a short video to illustrate something important about your topic.
• The point is not to be gimmicky; the point is to keep your audience interested and engaged (especially when the audience has been listening to oral presentations all day and might be tired). Be aware, though, that different disciplines have different conventions regarding what is and is not appropriate for an oral presentation; be sure to ask your research advisor for advice first.
• Showing enthusiasm for their work
• Being energetic
• Using emphasis on certain words
• Using hand gestures to keep the audience engaged

Handling Audience Questions

• Be sure to leave some time at the end.
• If a questioner is soft-spoken, repeat the question so everyone hears.
• Avoid long, meandering answers.
• Don’t make something up if you don’t know an answer. Offer to look it up and get back to the person, and be open to someone in the audience knowing the answer.
• Give positive reinforcement to questioners (smiling, nodding, “that’s a good question”).
• If someone is attacking you or otherwise being rude, remember that this usually comes from someone who wants to show off or appear smart in front of everyone The other audience members will recognize the rudeness and be on your side! Stay calm, answer as best you can, and acknowledge it when he/she makes a good point (smiling and nodding can disarm an attacker).
• People will often talk to you right afterwards; try to avoid running out right after your presentation if you can help it.
• Audience members may email for a copy of your presentation or to ask further questions; be sure to follow up with them.

Conclusions

If you have been accepted to present your research at a conference, congratulations! This is a great honor, and you should be proud of this accomplishment. If you would like an individual consultation with someone from the Office of Undergraduate Research about your presentation, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected] .

Other online resources to check out include:

• Presentation Tips (Prepare, Design, Deliver)
• 18 Tips for Killer Presentations

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14 Dos and Don’ts for an Effective Presentation

Renderforest Staff

16 Jun 2021

7 min read  

Giving a presentation can be stressful. There are just too many balls to keep in the air: an effective opening, audience engagement, body language, visual aids, anxiety management. The list goes on. 

On a positive note, public speaking and presentation skills can be learned and refined. That’s why we put together a list of 14 dos and don’ts that will help you deliver a killer presentation. If you already have your presentation idea and are wondering how to effectively develop and deliver it, this article is for you.

Let’s jump right in and explore the basic rules of making and giving a presentation.

Focus on the Key Message

From the very beginning, the audience should feel that your speech is leading to something important. This is what will spark their curiosity and keep their attention focused. 

Of course, to achieve such an effect, you should actually have something important to communicate. Otherwise, your audience will feel like they wasted their time (and would be right to think so). The material you present should resemble an arrow with a clear point, not an unending loop of words that leads to nowhere. 

But having something worth telling is only part of the job. You also need to make sure that your entire presentation is woven around that key idea. From beginning to end, your core message should be your guiding light. Each sentence should move the audience closer to it, and by the end of the speech, leave them with a sense of illumination.

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Plan the Structure

Planning your speech beforehand is the only way to avoid getting sidetracked. As you think about your message, try to structure it in a way that makes its delivery most effective for the audience.

So, how do you structure a presentation? Consider both the logical and emotional implications of your structure. First, you want to give your listeners enough background information to help them get better acquainted with the topic, but not so much as to get them bored. Once all the need-to-knows are out of the way, make a seamless transition to your main message and start laying out your arguments in a convincing way.

Also, think about the emotional effect you want to achieve in each part of your presentation. The best way to go about it is to capture your audience’s attention right off the bat, which is often considered to be the hardest part of giving a presentation.

“How do I begin a presentation?” is a question you’ve surely asked yourself.  Once you’re done introducing yourself, you can jump into the presentation with a story or an intriguing question. Then, build suspense throughout the speech and release it at the end with a well-grounded closing statement.

Tell a Story

How do you present a topic? As human beings, we’re attracted to stories. This is why we go to the movies, read fiction and, yes, become all ears when hearing gossip. Thus, it’s always a good idea to begin your presentation with a story or even spice it up with one in the middle. This can make all the difference between an engaged and indifferent audience. 

Need some proof? Watch this TED talk and see how the presenter wins the audience over in less than 3 minutes using the magic of a personal story (admittedly, a relatable one).

Keep a Conversational Tone

Many first-time public speakers try a bit too hard to make their speech expressive. As a result, their presentations appear showy and even pompous to the audience.

To prevent this, simply use a conversational tone. Feel like you are communicating your message to individual people, rather than a large alien audience. This will not only ease you up but will help the audience connect to you as well. 

After all, when you really look at it, you are talking to individual people, not their aggregation.

Remember the Takeaway

What is the one thing you’d wish the audience to take away from your speech as they leave the room or the auditorium? Define it in a single phrase or sentence, using straightforward, accessible language, and present it at the end of your presentation. Keep that takeaway in mind when planning your speech, and put a special emphasis on it during the wrap-up.

Source: TED talk by Angela Lee Duckworth

Time your speech.

There’s probably a specific timeframe within which you should complete your speech. Even if it’s not rigidly set, the audience will have certain expectations as to how long your presentation will take. 

Therefore, it’s important to plan beforehand the approximate time your speech should take and set a timer during rehearsals. If your presentation lasts longer than expected, make sure to leave the inessential parts out. 

As you memorize your material, your speech will get smoother and faster. This will also shorten the time required for it. Thus, before making any adjustments to the length of your script, rehearse it a few times.

Do Your Rehearsals  

Practice your speech as many times as necessary to build confidence. This is not to say you should memorize every single word or sentence, but you should know exactly what you need to cover at every point. 

When you’re confident enough about your speech, there’s one less reason to be nervous during the presentation. You can now relax and focus on building rapport with your audience.

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Perhaps, the worst thing you can do during a presentation is to read your script. Even glancing at a paper or screen far too many times is distracting enough. What’s more, your audience will find it difficult to connect to your message, as it will all feel mechanical and staged.

The solution? It’s fairly simple: rehearse, rehearse, rehearse.

Don’t Rely on Slides

A slide should never be the main source of information for the audience. Use it as a mere extension that makes your speech more engaging or credible. Always keep in mind that your audience needs to learn from you , the speaker, not from your slide.

It goes without saying that you shouldn’t stuff any slide with text. Or include so much information (whether textual or visual) that your audience gets overwhelmed and stops following your speech. When it comes to slide design, minimalism is your best friend. 

To know if you’re relying heavily on your slides or not, ask yourself this question: “Will my presentation still make sense without the slides?” If the answer’s no, then you should rethink your script. But, there’s also a fun side to this. When you free your slides of the burden to inform, they can now be used creatively and even enhance the effect of your speech.

Notice how the presenter in the video shown above only turns to slides to highlight or demonstrate a point she made. And if you remove all the slides? The presentation will be just as complete and impactful.

Don’t Use Fancy Slideshows

How a good presentation should look like? Nowadays, there are lots of advanced presentation software and screen-sharing tools one can use to “wow” the audience. The problem with them? “Wowing” your audience with something as trivial as slides is hardly why you’re making your speech. The fewer distractions there are in your presentation, the better. Keep this in mind, and avoid using anything showy. 

Don’t Talk Too Fast (or Slow)

While presenting, it’s recommended to maintain a consistent pace that’s neither too fast nor too slow. Talking fast might cause unnecessary tension in the audience, and excessively slow speech is sure to annoy them.

While different people naturally speak at different paces, it’s still something that can be worked on and modified with enough practice. You can refine your pacing during rehearsals until the preferred pace is second nature to you.

Don’t Forget Backup Slides

You’re about to start your presentation, but the internet connection is too slow, and your slides won’t load. On top of it, you didn’t follow our advice about not relying on slideshows. What do you do?

Well, if you’re considerate enough, you will have a USB flash drive with backup slides. Next time you feel like forgoing this little step, recall this scenario.

Don’t Neglect Body Language

The way you move your body on stage tells a story. And if that story is incoherent with the one you’re telling with your words, disharmony arises. Imagine a speaker is talking about peace and tolerance, yet their every movement is abrupt, hasty, and aggressive. Sure, this might be the result of nervousness, but would you still be able to connect to their message? The answer’s likely to be no.   

When rehearsing your speech, don’t neglect body language. Practice standing tall, keeping your hands open, and your movements relaxed. Avoid pacing on the stage during your presentation, as it may distract or, worse yet, annoy your listeners. 

Check out this TED talk by Emily Esfahani Smith. Pay attention to how her empathetic facial expressions and open hand gestures help to reinforce her message.

And, of course, don’t skip eye contact. Instead of glancing over the entire audience, pick a few individuals from different parts of the room, and establish your eye contact with them. This little trick will help you feel like you’re speaking to one person at a time. And that’s far more manageable than speaking to everyone at once.

To emphasize a point, sometimes, what you need is not words but their absence. Take a pause after you ask a question or make a strong statement. Spare your audience a moment to think, reflect, and ponder. Or leave a gap of silence right before you present something exciting to build suspense and anticipation.

No one expects you to go on talking for 10-15 minutes without a pause. Take a few seconds once in a while to breathe. Draw in deep breaths to collect your thoughts and calm your nerves if the situation calls for it. This is one of the most effective ways to relax when presenting.

These were the things good presentations include. Hopefully, you’ve learned enough from our tips and are now ready to get to work. Delivering effective presentations is not an easy task, but definitely, one that’s worth the effort. If you’d like to create a presentation for your speech or even online platforms, give these customizable templates a try.

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Oral Presentation Tips

An oral presentation is more than just reading a paper or set of slides to an audience. How you deliver your presentation is at least as important in effectively communicating your message as what you say. Use these guidelines to learn simple tools that help you prepare and present an effective presentation, and design PowerPoint slides that support and enhance your talk.

Preparing an Effective Presentation An effective presentation is more than just standing up and giving information. A presenter must consider how best to communicate the information to the audience. Use these tips to create a presentation that is both informative and interesting:

• Organize your thoughts. Start with an outline and develop good transitions between sections. Emphasize the real-world significance of your research.
• Have a strong opening. Why should the audience listen to you? One good way to get their attention is to start with a question, whether or not you expect an answer.
• Define terms early. If you are using terms that may be new to the audience, introduce them early in your presentation. Once an audience gets lost in unfamiliar terminology, it is extremely difficult to get them back on track.
• Finish with a bang. Find one or two sentences that sum up the importance of your research. How is the world better off as a result of what you have done?
• Design PowerPoint slides to introduce important information. Consider doing a presentation without PowerPoint. Then consider which points you cannot make without slides. Create only those slides that are necessary to improve your communication with the audience.
• Time yourself. Do not wait until the last minute to time your presentation. You only have 15 minutes to speak, so you want to know, as soon as possible, if you are close to that limit.
• Create effective notes for yourself. Have notes that you can read. Do not write out your entire talk; use an outline or other brief reminders of what you want to say. Make sure the text is large enough that you can read it from a distance.
• Practice, practice, practice. The more you practice your presentation, the more comfortable you will be in front of an audience. Practice in front of a friend or two and ask for their feedback. Record yourself and listen to it critically. Make it better and do it again.

PowerPoint Tips Microsoft PowerPoint is a tremendous tool for presentations. It is also a tool that is sometimes not used effectively. If you are using PowerPoint, use these tips to enhance your presentation:

• Use a large font. As a general rule, avoid text smaller than 24 point.
• Use a clean typeface. Sans serif typefaces, such as Arial, are generally easier to read on a screen than serif typefaces, such as Times New Roman.
• Use bullet points, not complete sentences. The text on your slide provides an outline to what you are saying. If the entire text of your presentation is on your slides, there is no reason for the audience to listen to you. A common standard is the 6/7 rule: no more than six bulleted items per slide and no more than seven words per item.
• Use contrasting colors. Use a dark text on a light background or a light text on a dark background. Avoid combinations of colors that look similar. Avoid red/green combinations, as this is the most common form of color blindness.
• Use special effects sparingly. Using animations, cool transition effects, sounds and other special effects is an effective way to make sure the audience notices your slides. Unfortunately, that means that they are not listening to what you are saying. Use special effects only when they are necessary to make a point.

Presenting Effectively When you start your presentation, the audience will be interested in what you say. Use these tips to help keep them interested throughout your presentation:

• Be excited. You are talking about something exciting. If you remember to be excited, your audience will feel it and automatically become more interested.
• Speak with confidence. When you are speaking, you are the authority on your topic, but do not pretend that you know everything. If you do not know the answer to a question, admit it. Consider deferring the question to your mentor or offer to look into the matter further.
• Make eye contact with the audience. Your purpose is to communicate with your audience, and people listen more if they feel you are talking directly to them. As you speak, let your eyes settle on one person for several seconds before moving on to somebody else. You do not have to make eye contact with everybody, but make sure you connect with all areas of the audience equally.
• Avoid reading from the screen. First, if you are reading from the screen, you are not making eye contact with your audience. Second, if you put it on your slide, it is because you wanted them to read it, not you.
• Blank the screen when a slide is unnecessary. A slide that is not related to what you are speaking about can distract the audience. Pressing the letter B or the period key displays a black screen, which lets the audience concentrate solely on your words. Press the same key to restore the display.
• Use a pointer only when necessary. If you are using a laser pointer, remember to keep it off unless you need to highlight something on the screen.
• Explain your equations and graphs. When you display equations, explain them fully. Point out all constants and dependent and independent variables. With graphs, tell how they support your point. Explain the x- and y-axes and show how the graph progresses from left to right.
• Pause. Pauses bring audible structure to your presentation. They emphasize important information, make transitions obvious, and give the audience time to catch up between points and to read new slides. Pauses always feel much longer to speakers than to listeners. Practice counting silently to three (slowly) between points.
• Avoid filler words. Um, like, you know, and many others. To an audience, these are indications that you do not know what to say; you sound uncomfortable, so they start to feel uncomfortable as well. Speak slowly enough that you can collect your thoughts before moving ahead. If you really do not know what to say, pause silently until you do.
• Relax. I t is hard to relax when you are nervous, but your audience will be much more comfortable if you are too.
• Breathe. It is fine to be nervous. In fact, you should be all good presenters are nervous every time they are in front of an audience. The most effective way to keep your nerves in check aside from a lot of practice before hand is to remember to breathe deeply throughout your presentation.
• Acknowledge the people who supported your research. Be sure to thank the people who made your research possible, including your mentor, research team, collaborators, and other sources of funding and support.

Sharing your work can help you expand your network of contacts who share your research interests. For undergraduate researcher who intend to complete a graduate degree, presenting can be an invaluable experience. We recommend discussing your interest in sharing your research with your faculty advisor. They can help match your interests with the appropriate venue.

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Giving an oral presentation is a common part of any business, whether you’re talking to colleagues, clients, or partners. It’s your chance to persuade, inform, or update them. But rushing in unprepared can lead to less-than-stellar results. So, the key to achieving your objective, whatever it may be, depends on one thing: preparation.

This guide is here to help you dedicate the necessary time to make and rehearse your presentation. With the right approach, you’ll deliver an effective oral presentation PPT that leaves a lasting impression. Now, get ready to transform your next meeting into a confident and persuasive experience.

In this article

Part i: what is oral presentation in business communication, informative presentations, instructive presentations, persuasive presentations, sales deck presentations, product marketing presentations, training and development presentations, data-driven presentations, progress report presentations, pitch deck presentations, demonstrations, blackout unnecessary slides, speak slower to avoid filler words, use ai presentation generator, complement texts with visuals, engage your audience.

An oral presentation is a form of verbal communication delivered to an audience. It is a way to share information, persuade them of an idea, or keep them updated. Visual aids like slides, handouts, or demonstrations often support a speaking presentation.

Oral presentations in business communication have several purposes. These include explaining new projects, pitching client ideas, or delivering team updates. Depending on what works, you can do it solo or with a team and keep it short or long.

However, an effective oral presentation doesn’t just happen on its own.

When making oral presentations, ensure they are well-organized, informative, and engaging. They follow a clear structure, with an introduction, body, and conclusion. You should also be confident, enthusiastic, and able to connect with the audience on a personal level.

Now that we’ve laid the groundwork for business oral presentations, let’s dive into the different types you’ll come across. The next part will uncover a variety of business presentations, each with its own goal.

Part II: 10 Different Types of Presentations in Business

Not all speaking presentations are the same. Different business situations call for different styles. Before you think of what you’ll say, figure out which presentation type works best for your audience. Here are the common types of business presentations you can give:

Informative presentations aim to equip attendees with knowledge of a chosen theme. Imagine presenting industry trends to your team or explaining a new company policy. These business presentations focus on clear communication and factual accuracy.

The instructive presentation aims to equip the audience with skills or knowledge they can apply practically. Think of a training session on using a new software program or a workshop on effective negotiation. This business presentation focus shifts to step-by-step guidance and practical exercises.

In a persuasive oral presentation, the goal is to win people over to your viewpoint. Be it convincing investors or pitching a new marketing plan, the deal is to build a solid case. You want compelling arguments, strong data, and a clear call to action.

Designed for sealing the deal, using a sales deck for your oral presentation highlights the value of a product or service. It emphasizes features, benefits, and why it’s better, all while tackling possible concerns. Salespeople often pull these out in client meetings or when pitching to investors.

A product marketing presentation focuses on creating awareness and excitement about a product. It targets a broader audience, not just potential customers, and aims to generate interest and brand recognition. Think of product launches, industry conferences, or social media marketing campaigns.

Training presentations are crucial for giving employees the skills they need. Whether it’s welcoming new hires or boosting leadership skills, the format changes based on the context. Usually, there’s a mix of instruction, practice, and chances to ask questions. You can use this for your oral presentation to ensure everyone’s up to speed in a way that works.

In data-driven presentations, facts and stats take the spotlight. You can add visuals for research, market trends, or data-backed solutions when making oral presentations. The trick is turning complex info into a clear, punchy story with eye-catching charts.

A progress report presentation updates a project, initiative, or campaign. They often involve data and metrics to show progress toward goals and objectives. These business presentations are crucial for maintaining transparency and building trust among stakeholders.

The pitch deck presentation hustles to get funding for a fresh business idea. Picture quick pitches, like selling your vision to venture capitalists. They zoom in on the problem you’re solving, what makes you stand out, and the promise of success. It’s all about packing a punch quickly to make your oral presentation stick.

These oral presentations go beyond words – they show it in action. Whether it’s software, new gear, or tricky procedures, the focus is on demonstrating. It’s a powerful way for the audience to see exactly how things work and throw in questions for a clearer picture.

Knowing the types of business presentations available is crucial. The next section will empower you to deliver effective oral presentations, regardless of your chosen format.

Part III: Techniques for Giving an Effective Oral Presentation

So, you’ve crafted an amazing presentation deck that captures your vision. Or you are starting with an idea for the oral presentation. Now comes the real challenge: delivering it in a way that grabs attention and keeps everyone hooked. Let’s explore some oral presentation techniques to make it a captivating experience.

Imagine a screen packed with text. Boring. No one wants to read a novel on a slide. Instead, blackout slides that reiterate points you’ll cover verbally. Focus on primary points and leave the details for handouts.

Speaking and presenting too fast can sound rushed and nervous. Slow down your pace and articulate clearly. It allows the audience to absorb your message and creates a sense of confidence. Plus, it helps you avoid filler words like “um” and “uh” that can distract from your message.

We all know you’re passionate about your business idea. However, securing investment requires captivating investors and presenting a vision that resonates deeply. Making a compelling pitch deck traditionally meant long hours of wrestling with design software and agonizing over content.

But what if you could lessen the time to create an oral presentation PPT to a few minutes?

Tools like AI presentation generators can help with structure and flow and even suggest visuals. Wondershare Presentory is one of the best in the market that can help automatically create a starting point for your slides. It makes an initial outline for your review. Then, Presentory generates stunning presentations with text, formatting, and imagery in PPT format. All these are based on a keyword or your topic.

Presentory is valuable for busy professionals and people who need to save time without compromising quality. But it doesn’t stop boosting your work efficiency here. This tool also empowers you to customize the design and content of the AI-generated oral presentation PPT. Furthermore, Presentory offers several additional benefits:

• Online and desktop access: Work on the go. This app lets you access your presentations online or offline, allowing you to work from anywhere.
• Personalized design: Make it your own. This app gives you the tools to customize your slides with layouts and templates that feel fresh and engaging.
• Content optimization: Presentory not only generates content. It also provides suggestions for improvement, ensuring professionalism and persuasiveness.
• Ease of use: No design skills? No problem. This app is user-friendly, and anyone can create professional-looking presentations in no time.
• Integration of resources: Level up your PPT slides. The built-in AI helps you find high-quality images and graphics to make your presentation pop.
• One-click streaming: Reach your audience across platforms. Presentory allows you to stream your oral presentation on Teams, YouTube Live, Facebook Live, Google Meet, and more platforms.
• Enhanced visuals: Import pictures and videos or add animations for a more dynamic presentation.
• Recording: Get your presentation ready for the big day. Use the teleprompter to record yourself practicing and feeling confident.

How To Make an Effective Oral Presentation PPT Using AI?

Presentory empowers you to focus on the speaking and presentation aspects while the AI takes care of the rest. Follow these steps below to create an effective oral presentation PPT for free online:

Step 1: Open the Wondershare Presentory app dashboard in your web browser. Sign in with your Google Account or create a new one.

Step 2: Click Create Presentation AI from the Home page to start.

Step 3: Select Begin with a topic to use AI and generate an outline.

Step 4: Enter your topic in the text box, then click Continue to let AI create the content outline. You can also select from one of the suggested keywords to explore first.

Step 5: Review the AI-generated outline and click Continue if satisfied.

Step 6: Select a template you want to use for the presentation, then click Generating to apply.

Step 7: Tailor your presentation. Edit text, switch slides, add images, and experiment with different layouts and themes to personalize your presentation.

Step 8: Click Share from the upper navigation pane, choose the file format from the pop-up window, then click Export presentation to save the PPT.

Images, infographics, and videos are powerful tools to engage your audience and reinforce your message during oral presentations. But don’t just throw random visuals in there. They should complement your words, not replace them. Choose visuals that are clear, relevant, and support your points.

Giving oral presentations shouldn’t be one-sided lectures. Get your audience involved. Ask questions, encourage participation, and invite discussion. Maybe even throw in a poll or a quick activity to keep them on their toes. Remember, your goal is to present information, connect with your audience, and make them care about your message.

You’ve got the ideas, the passion, the drive. But when it comes to giving an oral presentation , the pressure’s on. Traditional presentation tools can be time-consuming. Relying solely on “best practices” might leave you blending into the background. You need an edge, a way to grab attention and captivate your audience from the get-go.

However, making a compelling oral presentation PPT often takes time and expertise. That’s why you need to incorporate AI tools into your workflow. Try Wondershare Presentory - it is your partner in business communication success. Start creating presentations that win today.

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Ten Simple Rules for Making Good Oral Presentations

Continuing our “Ten Simple Rules” series [ 1 – 5 ], we consider here what it takes to make a good oral presentation. While the rules apply broadly across disciplines, they are certainly important from the perspective of this readership. Clear and logical delivery of your ideas and scientific results is an important component of a successful scientific career. Presentations encourage broader dissemination of your work and highlight work that may not receive attention in written form.

We do not mean face the audience, although gaining eye contact with as many people as possible when you present is important since it adds a level of intimacy and comfort to the presentation. We mean prepare presentations that address the target audience. Be sure you know who your audience is—what are their backgrounds and knowledge level of the material you are presenting and what they are hoping to get out of the presentation? Off-topic presentations are usually boring and will not endear you to the audience. Deliver what the audience wants to hear.

Rule 2: Less is More

A common mistake of inexperienced presenters is to try to say too much. They feel the need to prove themselves by proving to the audience that they know a lot. As a result, the main message is often lost, and valuable question time is usually curtailed. Your knowledge of the subject is best expressed through a clear and concise presentation that is provocative and leads to a dialog during the question-and-answer session when the audience becomes active participants. At that point, your knowledge of the material will likely become clear. If you do not get any questions, then you have not been following the other rules. Most likely, your presentation was either incomprehensible or trite. A side effect of too much material is that you talk too quickly, another ingredient of a lost message.

Do not be overzealous about what you think you will have available to present when the time comes. Research never goes as fast as you would like. Remember the audience's time is precious and should not be abused by presentation of uninteresting preliminary material.

A good rule of thumb would seem to be that if you ask a member of the audience a week later about your presentation, they should be able to remember three points. If these are the key points you were trying to get across, you have done a good job. If they can remember any three points, but not the key points, then your emphasis was wrong. It is obvious what it means if they cannot recall three points!

Think of the presentation as a story. There is a logical flow—a clear beginning, middle, and an end. You set the stage (beginning), you tell the story (middle), and you have a big finish (the end) where the take-home message is clearly understood.

Presentations should be entertaining, but do not overdo it and do know your limits. If you are not humorous by nature, do not try and be humorous. If you are not good at telling anecdotes, do not try and tell anecdotes, and so on. A good entertainer will captivate the audience and increase the likelihood of obeying Rule 4.

This is particularly important for inexperienced presenters. Even more important, when you give the presentation, stick to what you practice. It is common to deviate, and even worse to start presenting material that you know less about than the audience does. The more you practice, the less likely you will be to go off on tangents. Visual cues help here. The more presentations you give, the better you are going to get. In a scientific environment, take every opportunity to do journal club and become a teaching assistant if it allows you to present. An important talk should not be given for the first time to an audience of peers. You should have delivered it to your research collaborators who will be kinder and gentler but still point out obvious discrepancies. Laboratory group meetings are a fine forum for this.

Presenters have different styles of presenting. Some can captivate the audience with no visuals (rare); others require visual cues and in addition, depending on the material, may not be able to present a particular topic well without the appropriate visuals such as graphs and charts. Preparing good visual materials will be the subject of a further Ten Simple Rules. Rule 7 will help you to define the right number of visuals for a particular presentation. A useful rule of thumb for us is if you have more than one visual for each minute you are talking, you have too many and you will run over time. Obviously some visuals are quick, others take time to get the message across; again Rule 7 will help. Avoid reading the visual unless you wish to emphasize the point explicitly, the audience can read, too! The visual should support what you are saying either for emphasis or with data to prove the verbal point. Finally, do not overload the visual. Make the points few and clear.

There is nothing more effective than listening to, or listening to and viewing, a presentation you have made. Violations of the other rules will become obvious. Seeing what is wrong is easy, correcting it the next time around is not. You will likely need to break bad habits that lead to the violation of the other rules. Work hard on breaking bad habits; it is important.

People love to be acknowledged for their contributions. Having many gratuitous acknowledgements degrades the people who actually contributed. If you defy Rule 7, then you will not be able to acknowledge people and organizations appropriately, as you will run out of time. It is often appropriate to acknowledge people at the beginning or at the point of their contribution so that their contributions are very clear.

As a final word of caution, we have found that even in following the Ten Simple Rules (or perhaps thinking we are following them), the outcome of a presentation is not always guaranteed. Audience–presenter dynamics are hard to predict even though the metric of depth and intensity of questions and off-line followup provide excellent indicators. Sometimes you are sure a presentation will go well, and afterward you feel it did not go well. Other times you dread what the audience will think, and you come away pleased as punch. Such is life. As always, we welcome your comments on these Ten Simple Rules by Reader Response.

Acknowledgments

The idea for this particular Ten Simple Rules was inspired by a conversation with Fiona Addison.

Dr. Philip E. Bourne is a Professor in the Department of Pharmacology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America. E-mail: ude.csds@enruob

Competing interests. The author has declared that no competing interests exist.

Funding. The author received no specific funding for this article.

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