Improve Your Presentation with These 4 Tips!
Speaking in front of an audience is often a nerve-wrecking experience. In general, the goals of every presentation are to convey your message clearly in a persuasive manner and to capture the interest of every listener. Of course, words are not the only means you can use to achieve these goals. Nowadays, with the implementation of computers and other high-tech gadget, there are many accessible tools that can assist you for such occasion. Eye-catchingly designed slides, thought-provoking graphics, carefully phrased words or sentences that help communicate your point; these are just a few components that can help make your presentation more interesting and keep the audience eyes glued to the stage. Here are a few suggestions on ways to improve your presentation.
Know your audience
It goes without saying that preparation is an important part in delivering a good presentation. In this stage, it is vital for you to identify who your audiences are and what they want to hear. After all, the way you talk in front of a room full of adults should be different with the way you talk in front of children. Remember, a presentation or speech is not about you or what you know. It is about the audience and their needs.
Interaction
Just talking and fiddling with your slides when doing a presentation are often not enough to keep your audiences' attention for long. To make sure that the audience stay focused, you need to engage them directly. Make eye contact, ask questions (rhetorical or otherwise), use hand gestures, smile, and keep a confident exterior even when you are nervous inside. Even when you do not feel like it, the audiences would most likely consider you to be the expert on the subject because you are the speaker, and that is why you have to act like it. Just by keeping that in mind, your action will reflect that way of thinking, and you will be able to speak with a firm voice and a self-assured attitude on stage.
Keep to the point
To improve your presentation, structure it by using talking points. This will prevent you from rambling and derailing your entire presentation from its planned time. It might be tempting to share an amusing anecdote that just came up in your mind or to explain the subject to every last bit of details but remember that there are limits to your audience attention span. Although it is advised to use story to illustrate your point better and to make it relatable to your listener, do not tell one if it is not related to the subject at hand.
Design interesting visuals
Another way to imrove your presentation is through the use of a well-designed presentation slides. A striking visuals can help to emphasize your point better and give a clearer picture to what you are talking about. You can use these slides to display graphics and data that can provide solid proofs to your arguments. Display real life photos or heart-rending illustrations to gain sympathy for your cause. If you cannot use a computer for your presentation, brings printed handouts. What you need to pay attention to when making these slides or handouts, is to never make it a wall of text. If you do, it can be almost guaranteed that your audience will lose interest immediately the moment you show it to them.
If you are the type of person that gets stage fright easily, there are no other ways to be better than to keep practicing. Speak in front of the mirror and timing yourself can be a good exercise to do to prepare for the big day. The first step to become a confident speaker is to visualize yourself as one. Try implementing these tips to improve your presentation. It will take time but the end result will certainly be worth it.