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Time: 6 hours
Level: Introductory
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 Introduction Resource- This unit introduces the skills necessary to communicate effectively and deliver successful presentations. By taking a systematic approach to giving presentations the unit aims to develop these skills,...
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- Overview Resource
- Have you ever had to stand in front of an audience and give a presentation?
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- What makes a good presentation? Resource
- The activities in this section are designed to help you recall any previous experiences that may be relevant.
- Understanding the need for presentations Resource
- Before we start practising the various skills that should help you become a better presenter, we need to understand what is meant by ‘making a presentation’. Generally, we mean any situation which involves...
- One way of tackling a presentation Resource
- One of the oldest (and probably one of the best!) descriptions of what a speaker should do during a presentation is attributed to an army commander who said that to ensure an effective presentation you...
| | | | | Planning for your presentation
- Introduction Resource
- The process of preparing presentations can be time consuming, but you need a plan of some kind in order to understand what your objectives are and how you are going to achieve them. Thorough planning provides...
- Purpose of your presentation Resource
- What is the purpose of your presentation? What are you trying to achieve? You may have been given a very concise brief (or subject) for your talk, but sometimes you will only have a title or a vague description...
- Audience for your presentation Resource
- Types of audiences vary enormously – they could include customers for sales, an interview panel, relatives, work colleagues, peer groups, paying clients, tutorial groups, discussion groups.
- Audience size and seating plans Resource
- The size of the audience might affect several aspects of your planning for the presentation. For example, a small group (say about 10–15) would only need a small room. The seating arrangement could be...
- Location, location, location Resource
- The location of your presentation might seem like a matter of simple common sense, but it can have significant implications for how you plan your content and organise yourself.
- Thinking about the location of your presentation Resource
- Imagine that you have been invited to deliver a presentation at a venue that you've never been to before, about 100 miles from your home. The presentation will be one of six others during the day-long...
| | | | | Preparing your presentation
- Gathering your thoughts Resource
- We assume that by now you have clarified the subject and purpose of your talk; you have identified the intended audience; and you have some idea of the situation at the venue. Now you need to focus on...
- Structure of your presentation Resource
- The content of any presentation needs to have a clear structure. This will allow the audience to understand your main themes and leave the presentation feeling that it has been a worthwhile experience....
- Why is the introduction so important? Resource
- It is crucial to be very clear exactly what you are going to say and do in the first few minutes. Your introduction needs to be well structured for several reasons:
- Effective ways to begin your presentation Resource
- Think of a presentation you have attended. Write a list of the sorts of things the presenter put into the introduction. If you can't remember, or haven't ever attended one, think about how a book is laid...
- Why it is important to organise the main body of your presentation Resource
- The main body of your presentation is the ‘tell them’ part. You have prepared your audience for what is about to happen. Now it's happening! The middle section should contain the images and words that...
- Generating ideas for the main body of your presentation Resource
- The aim of this subsection is to help enable you to generate as many ideas, notes, diagrams and data that could be used in your presentation. Then you will need to ask yourself which of these ‘items’ will...
- Putting topics into order for the main body of your presentation Resource
- The next task is to put the groups of information, still in note form, into some sensible order. The most common methods are:
- The importance of visual aids in the main body of your presentation Resource
- Once you have a skeleton outline of the main body of your presentation, you can think about how you will actually deliver the material to your audience.
- The main body of your presentation: a summary Resource
- In summary:
- Copyright issues Resource
- Copyright is becoming increasingly important, especially now that all sorts of information are available on the internet. The problem with copyright is that it can become very complicated and the legal...
- The conclusion Resource
- So now we've arrived at the section where you ‘Tell them what you just told them’, in other words, summarise the presentation. Just as you need to attract the interest of your audience at the beginning...
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- Introduction Resource
- In this section we'll consider what visual aids are available and which are the most practical for you and your presentation. The function of visual aids is to illustrate your talk; you need to be selective...
- What's available? Resource
- How to choose Resource
- For many of us, how we choose visual aids equipment is largely dictated by what is available and how easy it is to produce suitable material to display with the equipment at a reasonable cost. Where selection...
- Presentation packages: pointers and pitfalls Resource
- As you probably know, PowerPoint © is only one of many very popular commercial products that can be used to make presentations rapidly. You may have seen it or some other package for some of your own presentations....
- Create your own visual aid Resource
- Read this statement and sketch out on paper or in words what you think might work (on paper) as a visual aid: ‘A typical UK home produces about 2 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) each year.’
- Ten key points to consider for visual aids Resource
- Keep it simple – The audience can't do two completely unrelated things at once. They can't read your visual aid while you talk about something else; and they certainly can't look at your visual,...
- Fonts Resource
- When using written words, you can shorten your sentences to phrases, key words or critical messages. Use a font which is large enough to see in all parts of the audience (say 32 to 44 point size for title...
- The written word Resource
- Just as you have limited the amount of words you are planning to speak, so should you try to limit the amount on each slide. We can't state an exact rule for this, but in general we found that the most...
- Colours Resource
- The use of colour to emphasise text, figures or background can be highly stimulating visually, as long as you stick to a few simple rules. By using colour combinations that complement each other you can...
- Graphics and charts Resource
- A simple picture or line drawing can add great dimension to your presentation, but you need to be careful not to get overwhelmed by the fun it can be to overstress the visual and forget about the content...
- Final thoughts on visual aids Resource
- Above all, success with visual aids relies on being prepared, planning in advance how you are going to use them, and knowing what to do if things go wrong.
| | | | | Delivering your presentation
- Introduction Resource
- Ideally you should have the opportunity to rehearse at the actual location for your presentation, but it is more likely that you will have to rehearse wherever and whenever you can. This may involve practising...
- Your personal image Resource
- Many of us make judgements (rightly or wrongly) on our first impressions, so your personal image is important when you are giving presentations, even though strictly speaking you will probably not be directly...
- The spoken word Resource
- The activity of speaking is very different from that of writing. Think about this for a moment. It is amazing how often people use ‘written English’ when making a presentation. Clearly we can speak on...
- Mentored presentation Resource
- If you are undertaking an assessed presentation or viva, you may have the opportunity of developing a presentation with full support of a tutor or supervisor. There is always a risk with closely supervised...
- Using notes Resource
- If you have not made a presentation before, you might feel that you should write out the whole script. This can give you a good idea about the length and how it matches up with the timing you have been...
- Delivery style Resource
- We all have our own delivery style with various idiosyncrasies. It is not within the scope of this unit to try and say which of these personal habits is, or is not, appropriate, but most successful presenters...
- What can you do if you are nervous? Resource
- If you have a nervous habit, it may become distracting to the audience to the point that they no longer listen to your talk but are waiting for you to say ‘err’ or stroke your chin.
- Starting off Resource
- Learn your first lines.
- Finishing Resource
- When the presentation is over there may be questions which you either need to answer directly, or indirectly if members of the audience come up to you after the talk. Although every presentation is different,...
- Evaluating Resource
- You need to know how well your presentation has been received. Ask yourself some questions – did the slides really work the way I wanted them to? And could they be made clearer? Did the script give me...
- Team or group presentations Resource
- When a team is reporting on a group activity or where pieces of work are related to each other and to the overall presentation, room planning can get complicated. If one speaker is handing over to another...
| | | | | Further reading and sources of help
- Further reading and sources of help Resource
- Gordon Bell (1987) The Secrets of Successful Speaking and Business Presentations, Heinemann.
| | | | | References and Acknowledgements | | |
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