PRESENTATION SKILLS What is a presentation: elements of presentation, designing a presentation, Advanced visual support for business presentation, types

of visual aid, Appearance & Posture, Practicing delivery of presentation. What is a presentation? A presentation means speaking on a topic before a select audience. It form of oral communication with an audience on some formal occasion. For example sales representative make presentation in front of its potential customer.

Features of presentation1) A presentation is made formally before the selected audience. 2 )It has clear structure with an introduction, explanation, and conclusion. 3) It uses audio visual aids to represent facts and figures through tables, graph and charts etc. different colors are made presentation attractive. 4) The presenter shows an understanding of the audience needs and level of understanding while discussing his ideas and viewpoints. Elements of a Presentation A presentation has three major elements which are as follows: Presenter Audience Specific information to achieve a purpose It is the presenter who plays an active role in achieving effective communication with the audience in order to attain specific objectives. Making presentation is a challenging task because of the following reasons In oral presentation , the whole burden of communication falls on the presenter. He has to keep the audience informed and interest. The presenter has to fill a gap of silence grasp breaks to answer the questions. Making oral presentation is difficult for the one who has no stage confidence. Planning a Presentation M.M. Monipally has explained presentation planning in term of five star strategy. The presenter should keep in mind the following 5 Ws: Why- the presenter must have clear idea of purpose of presentation. Presentation would vary to suit the purpose as stated below: To inform, to persuade, to influence, to entertain. Who- the speaker should understand his audience and shape the message to suit the audience. The information about the number, age sex, education knowledge and status of the listener is helpful in deciding the format, tone and manner of presentation. Where-it refers to the venue of presentation which may be a workplace, formal or informal. The place should be accommodate the expected number of audience. When-the time of presentation is of utmost important suppose the presenter is in the morning hours and there is only one presenter , he can extra time with the permission of the audience. But if it is the end of the day and there are a few more presenter, it is deal to be brief and lively. What-it refers to the content of the presentation . the subject matter should be depending upon the need and educational background of the listeners. Designing A Presentation(format of a presentation) The ideas and points to be conveyed need to be given in proper format so as to make them acceptable to the audience. The sequence of ideas should be such that the listener can follow easily without losing interest in the presentation .let us assume that a particular presentation is to be completed in 40 minutes. The presentation should be constructed as followsIntroduction-5min., Main body - 15 min. ,Conclusion 5 min., Question and answer session-15 min.

Introduction-an introduction is required to capture the attention of the audience and gain their acceptance. The exact introduction will depend on the types of the audience , the purpose of the presentation and the culture of the organization. The introductory part accomplish the following Capture the listener attention Give your reason to listen Establish your competence Introduce your topic and preview of your presentation. Main body of presentation the main body consist of the key ideas , facts ,figures and supporting material that is considered necessary. The material should be right in sequence. Conclusion- the conclusion of the presentation is as important as its introduction because the conclusion provides the last chance to sell the ideas. Unless the conclusion is well planned and well delivered what has been build up in the body of the presentation may be lost. Question and answer session- after concluding the presentation, the speaker should thank the audience for their patience and motivate them to raise their queries, if any. He should take each question to provide suitable answer so as to satisfy the participants. Audio Visual Aids Audio visual aids are any device which can be used to make the learning experience more concrete , more realistic and more dynamic. Audio visual aids can make our presentation more effective. If presentation is made with the help of audio visual aids , the audience feel stimulated and they take more interest in the presentation. For an efficient oral presentation audio visual aids supplement the message making the speech vivid interesting and stimulating. Suitability of various audio visual aidsPoster- it can be made on thick card paper by writing in the ink or sketch pens. A large poster can be seen by the audience of about 20 or 30 persons. Black or white board- it is useful during presentation. You must face your listeners even while you are reading; they need to see your face while you speak because good listening involves the eyes of the listeners. Flip Charts
Flip charts are quick, inexpensive visual aids for briefing small groups. The charts, felt-tip markers and graphic materials are readily available, and with a modest ability at lettering, the presenters can compose the desired visual aid in-house. Flip Charts: Help the speaker proceed through the material Convey information Provide the audience with something to look at in addition to the speaker Can be prepared prior to, as well as during, the presentation Demonstrate that the speaker has given thought to his or her remarks Can be used to record audience questions and comments Can be converted to slides

Limitations: May require the use of graphics talent Are not suitable for use in a large audience setting May be difficult to transport

Overhead Transparencies Overhead transparencies are useful for audience settings of 20 to 50 people and can be produced quickly, easily, and inexpensively. Any camera-ready artwork, whether word charts, illustrations, or diagrams can be made into transparencies using standard office paper copiers. Most manufacturers of paper copiers offer clear and colored acetate sheets that run through copying machines like paper, but transfer a black image into acetate for use as overhead transparencies. The standard transparency size is 8=" x 11''. The only piece of hardware required is an overhead transparency projector. Overlay transparencies provide a good cumulative presentation. Speaker can use an overhead projector with significant light in the room, thereby enabling the speaker to maintain eye contact with the audience. Limitations: The projected image size is sometimes too small to be seen from the back of a large room. Often, the image does not sit square on the screen, as the head of the projector is tilted to increase the size of the image. It is difficult to write on the transparency while it is on the projector. Sometimes the projector head gets in the audience's way. Some speakers feel captive to the machine, because they must change each transparency by hand Posters Posters are prepared graphic devices that can be made of a variety of materials and media - photographs, diagrams, graphs, word messages, or a combination of these. Posters work best in smaller audience sizes. Posters are permanent and portable. Posters can be simple or very elaborate. Posters can be used alone or in a series to tell a story.

Limitations: Posters tend to contain too much detail. Transporting them can be difficult. The more elaborate posters require extensive preparation and can be quite costly. Audio-Slide Show Audio-slide shows are self-contained programs having pre-recorded sound tracks that are coordinated with slides by use of electronic synchronizers. The recording tape includes electronic signals that activate a connected slide projector so that an image appears simultaneously with the appropriate voice message, music or sound effects. Audio-slide programs can serve audiences ranging from a handful to a couple of hundred people. For a fraction of the cost of films, audio-slide programs can achieve many of the same program needs.

They can impart considerable information because color and a wide array of audio-techniques and visual images can be used. If multiple projectors are used with dissolve units that allow images to "fold" into one another, even a sense of movement can be created. They usually can be produces in-house, equipment is accessible, and they offer a presenter the flexibility of changing slides to meet the needs of specific audiences.

Limitations: Time must be allotted for developing script, sound-track, title and credit slides, visuals, and for production. Each presentation requires securing and assembling proper equipment synchronizer, tape recorder, projector(s), screen(s). Good maintenance must be given to slides so that a warped slide doesn't malfunction and throw off an entire presentation. Videotape Videotape electronically carries both a picture and a sound track. Its features of sound, movement, vivid image, color, and variety hold an audience's attention the way film does. Videotape can be used to program an entire presentation, or to support a speaker's remarks by highlighting certain topics. Limitations: Videotape productions can be expensive to create and require experienced production teams. In large meetings, the audience may not be able to see the monitor. (If resources permit, video projectors are available.)

Meeting
A meeting is get together of a group of a persons to discuss ways and means to deal with specific time bound task assigned . the member of the group share common experience , common concern and common interest. The meeting have three important types: informative- the information meetings are conducted for sharing information and gathering views and opinion.(ii)consultative- these meetings are held to consult the members.(iii)executive meeting are held to gather the new ideas and views from executives. Objective of meetings To gather information To exchange ideas and experience among members To discuss the problems and issue of common interest To resolve the conflict To take decision of matters affecting the group.

Types of meeting Formal meeting- the rules of conduct in the formal meeting is laid down in a companys article of association. With such meeting a quorum must be present e.g. The minimum number of the people should be present in order to validate the meeting . tylor dicuss three types of formal meetings Annual general meeting Statutory meeting Board meeting

Informal meeting- likes formal meeting in informal meetings no strict rules and regulation are observed. Member feel free to express their views. Taylor considered the three major types of informal meetings Management meetings Departmental meetings Working parties meetings.

Minutes
Minutes, also known as protocols or, informally, notes, are the instant written record of a meeting or hearing. They typically describe the events of the meeting, starting with a list of attendees, a statement of the issues considered by the participants, and related responses or decisions for the issues. Minutes may be created during the meeting by a typist or court recorder, who may use shorthand notation and then prepare the minutes and issue them to the participants afterwards. Alternatively, the meeting can be audio recorded or a group's appointed or informally assigned Secretary may take notes, with minutes prepared later. It is usually important for the minutes to be terse and only include a summary of discussion and decisions. A verbatim report is typically not useful. The minutes of certain groups, such as a corporate board of directors, must be kept on file and are important legal documents. Tips of preparing minutes Minutes should be written in the third person and in the past tense. While preparing the minute, the agenda of the meeting should be closely followed. In the final draft of the minutes, names of the contributors need not to be mentioned. The minute should not cover the entire discussion held in the meeting . it should include the out come of the discussion of each matter. All decision, taken during the course of discussion should be clearly stated.

Press release
Press release are issued by a company to inform the public about the important events occurring within the company, like change of managing director, expansion of existing project, enter into joint venture with the foreign collaboration, merger and takeovers etc. they publicize the company and create positive impression in the mind of the readers.

Elements
Some of these common structural elements include: Headline used to grab the attention of journalists and briefly summarize the news. Dateline contains the release date and usually the originating city of the press release. If the date listed is after the date that the information was actually sent to the media, then the sender is requesting a news embargo, which journalists are under no obligation to honor. Introduction first paragraph in a press release, that generally gives basic answers to the questions of who, what, when, where and why. Body further explanation, statistics, background, or other details relevant to the news. Boilerplate generally a short "about" section, providing independent background on the issuing company, organization, or individual.

Close in North America, traditionally the symbol "-30-" appears after the boilerplate or body and before the media contact information, indicating to media that the release has ended. A more modern equivalent has been the "###" symbol. In other countries, other means of indicating the end of the release may be used, such as the text "ends". Media contact information name, phone number, email address, mailing address, or other contact information for the PR or other media relations contact person.

Business Etiquettes
The word etiquette means conventional rules of social behavior. These rules are generally unwritten and are passed on from one generation to another. Expected behaviors and expectations for individual actions within society, group, or class. Within a place of business, it involves treating coworkers and employer with respect and courtesy in a way that creates a pleasant work environment for everyone. Fundamental Rules Of Business Etiquette- Golden rules can be easily remembered by the word IMPACT. The rules are briefly stated below Integrity-it means you act in an honest, truthful and trustworthy manner. A reputation for integrity is slowly gained but quickly lost. Manners- it means the patterns of behavior. Selfish, boorish behavior can not lead to fruitful business relationship.. Personality it communicate your own vales, attitudes and opinions. Your behavior will decide weather your quality are appreciated or not. Appearance a well clothed and rightly postured appearance makes good impression on others. Never let your appearance become a liability. Consideration See yourself from the viewpoint of others. By imaging the likely reaction of the person you are to meet , speak or write, you can deal with him more carefully. Tact-think before you speak. There is always the temptation to react immediately to some situation in business dealing. Avoid thought and impulsive words and actions.