1. How will you stay focused on the Objective of the Presentation?

Sometimes a speaker gets caught up in the need to give the audience too much
information.

In preparing a presentation, she starts working on her outline, and quickly

realizes that there's no way she can share everything she knows on her topic. For
that matter, there's no way to share everything she knows in a day or weekend
workshop, either. She's an expert and she's spent years developing her
knowledge and skills.

She panics and wonders how she can teach her audience anything with such
restrictions. She fears that the audience won't learn enough and worse, that she
might be damaging her "expert" status if she doesn't demonstrate the full extent
of her knowledge.

Instead of looking at this as a sort of prison, where the constraints of time act as
her chains, she might instead look at this as an incredible amount of freedom!

When you narrow your focus and provide fewer options to your audience, you
can be clearer, more concise, and give each idea more thought and discussion.

Pointer 1: Determine your objective

There's one simple step to ensure that your presentation stays focused and clear.
Unfortunately, many speakers neglect this step, which is why their presentations
drift, roam and seem to follow no logical path.

What is the purpose of the presentation? Do you want to inform, educate,

entertain, enlighten, inspire, motivate, or all of the above? What do you want the
audience to do as a result of your talk?

I've noticed that the lack of objective is frequently seen in shorter, 10-15 minute
presentations, perhaps because the speaker has chosen the path of information
overload rather than cutting out the extraneous and focusing on the critical.

Pointer 2: Start from the clock and work backward

Say you are giving a ten minute presentation. If your opening is 1-2 minutes long
and your closing is 1-2 minutes long, that gives you between six and eight
minutes for the body of your presentation. Not much, right?

If you have three main points you want to make in that time, each point will be
between two and 2 1/2 minutes long, assuming you give them equal time.

When you break it down like this, you can see how critical it is to have an
objective before you begin crafting your presentation -- whether it's short or
long.

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Pointer 3: Determine your main points

Once you have your objective in mind, determine your main points that serve
that objective and meet the needs of your audience. You will not be able to cover
everything you know, so decide what's important to share right now.

Rather than experiencing a hurricane of ideas (or a typhoon if you're west of the
International Date Line), your audience can instead absorb the subject matter in
a way that allows for deeper connection with and understanding of your
concepts and message.

Choose the ideas that are relevant to your audience right now. Cut, edit, delete,
tighten, condense, omit and fine tune. Let go of and save the rest for future
presentations, e-books, blog posts, newsletter articles or your upcoming book.

What's new in your industry? What's new in your business? What are the top
three things people should know about buying comfortable footwear, riding a
mountain bike, getting a good workout, choosing a vacation destination or
finding a financial advisor? Pick three and leave the rest for another time.

You're doing the audience a favor by not overwhelming them with information.
Get your objective in place and the rest will follow.

2. How important is your Audience to the Presentation?

Imagine what it would be like to start your presentation, and wonder why no one
in the audience is the least bit interested. Or they fidget or simply just walk out.
Or you feel like you are in the wrong room giving your presentation.

The most likely cause of any of these situations is that audience analysis was not
a priority for you in preparing your presentation.

Why is Audience Analysis Important?

To make the most effective use of your time in the spotlight, you need to know
quite a lot about your audience before you start to prepare. Make these notes
part of your presentation checklist.

 Is the age of your audience generally the same? (Seniors, young adults,
children or a general mix of ages?)
 Is this audience an informal or formal crowd?
 Do they likely have the same level of education or have the same standing
in their jobs?
 Do they live nearby or are they from all parts of the country?
 Do they share a common interest - (type of job, hobby, business, school)?
 Is the income of the audience members a factor?
 Why are they here -- because they want to be or because their company
sent them (perhaps unwillingly)?

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  And ... most importantly, are they counting the minutes until lunch or are
they falling asleep from eating too much at lunch? Be prepared for either
scenario.

Why did your Audience come to your Presentation?

The easiest "sales job" (and let's face it, every presentation is a sales job, no
matter what the topic is), is to have an audience filled with people who are eager
to learn all that you can tell them. That would be in a perfect world. However,
that scenario is not normally the case.

Your audience is likely composed of people from one of these three groups and
you will need to deal with each set differently.

1. Members who don't know about your product/concept and really want to
learn
o This is an ideal group. Just be careful not to be so enthusiastic that
you are on the verge of overkill. Audiences are turned off when you
continue on and on, long after you have made your point.
(Visualize your teenager here and how they can tune you out).
2. Members who feel they know much more than you do, but want to be there
just in case you can offer a nugget of useful information
o Invite these audience members to share some of their extensive
knowledge. Not only will you make them feel important, but you
may learn a thing or two that you did not know yourself.
3. Members who totally disagree with you and want to let you know that
o If you can tailor your talk in a way that may make these members
see a different light on the subject or even question their own
thoughts, then you are on the way to a win. Clear and concise facts,
not theories, will be the ticket here.

Any time invested in researching and analyzing your audience prior to your
presentation is always time well spent.

3. How to make your Message Memorable

We’ve all sat there listening to yet another dry presentation, with yet another
PowerPoint presentation. You know the one – it has a nice neat title, four or five
nice neat bullet points down the side, a company logo and – if the speaker’s
feeling really crazy – a clipart in the bottom right hand corner, ‘just to add some
fun.’

The trouble is that when the brain has seen a format so many times, it switches
off. And your message is lost. So how do you become a more memorable
speaker? Let me tell you the ‘RULE’ of Freshness…

The trouble starts with the word ‘professional’. Even speakers who don’t
technically fear public speaking, often fear saying something ‘unprofessional’.
And it’s understandable.

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If speaking in public isn’t an environment you swim about in day-to-day, your
nerves will be heightened by the task. You already feel pretty silly standing up to
talk, your brain then chips in with a resounding ‘No, don’t make me!’ and there’s
that voice inside your head dying to tell you how much people are judging you.
‘Whatever you do, don’t screw up. And for god’s sake, be professional.’

This desire to be professional leads to us giving exactly the same presentation as

everyone else. If ‘professional’ means sliding unnoticeably alongside what
everyone else is saying – job done. If professional is to be bland, then another job
done.

But wait a minute. How many of those ‘professional’ presentations have you sat
through? You probably don’t have enough fingers. And how many of them can
you remember in any detail? Do you even need any fingers to count those?
Speakers who focus on being professional and mild, are in fact doing everyone in
the room a disservice. Far from being pleasant and inoffensive to listen to, they
are subjecting their audience to a presentation which they won’t remember and
their organization, project, or whatever they care enough to talk about is losing
ground over presenters who make their message stick.

So what does it take to make your message stick?

How can you use each differently to make your speaking more memorable?

1) Visual aids
How you use your PowerPoint, flipchart, props, or physical space to engage, or
disengage your audience. Do you ever do a presentation without PowerPoint?
What if you pre-prepared a flipchart or PowerPoint with no words- only pictures
and numbers?

2) Verbal aids
The nuggets of gold that come out of your mouth. These could be metaphors,
poems, a personal story, a famous example, a joke, quotes, powerful facts,
collections of three or buzz phrases to repeat. These all add variety, depth and
emotional buy-in to a presentation. They also provide a good opportunity for you
to stimulate both the left, logical part of the brain and the right through powerful
evidence, emotional part of the brain through rapport-building stories.

3) Interactivity
My personal favourite is to get audiences involved in information as people far &
wide learn best by doing. This could be something so simple as a brainstorm, or
elaborate like a challenge, quiz, team game, or role play. With any interactivity,
make sure that your full energy goes behind the task, so as to motivate others to
get involved.

But before you run off and play, you need to learn the key to making your
memorable messages work. That’s the RULE of Freshness. To be memorable in a
way that helps your message any visual, verbal or interactive ‘nugget’ that you
slot into your presentation should be:

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R – Relevant
Somewhere along the line, we were told to “start with a joke.” This is like saying
“Start with something to distract the audience, then you can get into the really
boring bit.” Any tool that you use should link clearly to your message and should
enhance and emphasize it , rather than pull away from it.

U – Unique
The unusual or unexpected often has the effect of tricking the brain out of its
stereotypes and leads to the creation of new neural pathways. This means your
message will be remembered for a longer period of time.

L – Learning
The best nuggets progress the audience’s understanding of your topic. Give your
audience insight and they’ll see you as an expert in your field. Repeating or
reiterating key learning points reinforces this.

E – Engaging
A truly memorable presentation excites or stimulates a part of the audience’s
mind – whether it’s their imagination, their motivation, or their logical mind.
Seek to create “ooh” and “ahah!” moments with what you say, show and do.

Stick to these rules and your presentations will start to stick. Next time you do a
presentation, pick a new way to use your visual and verbal content, or interact
with your audience in a new way. Give whatever nugget you choose to use the
“RULE” treatment.

Give yourself permission to experiment.

4. Important points for Designing the Visuals of the Presentation

Well constructed visuals can make your presentation more exciting, effective and
memorable. However, in order for the visuals to accomplish this, it is critical that
they be properly planned and prepared or they can become a liability rather than
an asset. The guidelines on these pages are designed to help you make the most
of your visual presentation.
Presentation Overview

Your visual presentation should emphasize the most important points and ideas
of your oral presentation. Use the visuals to reinforce, clarify, illustrate or
highlight individual points. Visuals are illustrating, not repeating, your
presentation. Their purpose is to add interest and emphasis, not to compete with
what you are saying.

Some key points to remember when preparing your visuals:

 Simplicity is a key to gaining your audience’s attention and retaining their

interest.

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 Focus on one idea at a time. To include three or four ideas in a single visual
usually detracts from your presentation and is apt to confuse your audience.
 Do not repeat the text of your presentation word-for-word on the visual.
 Keep statements simple and to the point, using key words and phrases.
 Use only essential information which supports your statements; for example,
do not project all the statistics you are using. Pick only the key ones.
 Experiment with a variety of layouts to determine the most effective ones.
Remember that people retain information best through a picture or a chart
than words.
 Consider audience size. Visuals must be prepared properly so that they are
clear to even those at the back of a large room.
 Consider handing out copies of your visual presentation. Be sure to have
sufficient quantity available for your audience.

General Guidelines

 Keep it simple. It is easier for the audience if you use three simple visuals
than a single complex one.
 Keep your audience in mind when designing your visual aides. What
terminology will they understand? What examples have meaning for them?
 Proofread very carefully. Try to have someone else proof in addition to
yourself. It is hard to overlook errors when they are magnified in front of an
audience. Remember, even a small error in such a focal part of your program
can undermine the credibility of your entire presentation.
 Fonts should be clear and easy to read. Use Helvetica or similar sans serif
fonts. Decorative fonts are not recommended. Use only one typeface per
visual. Add variety by using different sizes and bolding title lines.
 Colored fonts should have a dark background (dark blue is best) with
primary titles in either yellow or white and secondary titles in the remaining
color. Details should be shown in clear bright, light contrasting colors. Use no
more than three colors per visual.
 Avoid using shades of the background color for titles or details.
 Avoid commercial endorsements. A photograph of apparatus which
incidentally includes a trade name is allowed, but a table comparing
attributes of identified vendor’s products will not be allowed. There is much
gray area in between these two examples; discuss any concerns you may
have with your session chair. The display of the logo of the company with
which you are associated is restricted for use to the first PowerPoint slide or
visual (usually the title slide). This restriction applies to logos of educational
institutions as well. Be particularly careful to avoid using company/school
PowerPoint templates that feature a logo or other form of identification on
every slide.
 Test your presentation ahead of time. Make sure it is easy to read from an
appropriate distance, and that everything is in the proper order.

Text Pointers

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 The text (or word) portion of presentations is used to state facts or
objectives. When lines of text alone do not illustrate your point, a chart, graph
or graphic might be more appropriate.

 Avoid using more than six or seven words (30–40 characters) per line, six or
seven lines per visual. Make sure type is well spaced and not crowded.
 Eliminate words that do not add meaning, for example: the, an, etc.
 Avoid complete sentences. Use bulleted phrases.
 Be consistent in grammatical construction of lists; for example, use all verbs
or use all noun phrases.
 Use 36 point type for all titles, and for the text of visual aids to be used in very
large rooms.
 Use at least 18 point type for the main text in other than the largest rooms.
 Use bullets at beginning of lines to separate ideas.
 If you are using PowerPoint, use functions that allow you to build
information, bullet by bullet, on a slide, to keep the audience from reading
ahead.

Title Pages

Use title pages to introduce new topics or add special emphasis to a very
important point. The best titles are a few simple lines in large type.
Graphs, Charts and Diagrams

Tabular Charts

Tabular charts are used to show raw data and numerical relationships. Use only
a few key examples on the visual to illustrate your point.

Bar Graphs

Bar graphs are used to show absolute data or relationships and comparisons. Be
sure to include scales and values. Be sure the type is legible.

Pie Charts

Pie charts are good for illustrating percentage relationships or parts of a whole.
No more than eight segments are recommended.

Line Graphs

Line graphs are ideal for illustrating trends or performance over time. Your scale
should include significant dates and milestones. Graphs should include no more
than three lines. In black and white visuals, the lines should be distinctly
different, e.g., dashed, solid, dots, etc. In color visuals, the lines should be easily
differentiated colors which contrast well with the background.

Block or Process Diagrams

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Block or process diagrams are good for illustrating structural relationships and
designs. Graphics of this type show how each piece contributes to the whole.
Avoid overcrowding. Limit your chart to no more than 10 simple geometric
shapes and titles connected by lines and arrows.

One-Line Diagrams

PES papers often contain electrical one-line diagrams which are an integral part
of a technical discussion. You should limit applying these to needed segments of
a system to make them legible to the audience.

Photographs

Good quality photographic visuals can make a major contribution to your

presentation. Be extra careful with photographs: they must be very crisp and
clear, with high contrast between light and dark areas. Do not superimpose text
over the image. If text is needed on the visual, it should be placed in areas that
have been cleared of the image. Be sure to test your photos, projecting them to
the size they will be when used to ensure that they are clear and easily
recognizable.

5. How to deal with Audience Questions and Answers

Answering your audience's questions is a great opportunity for a presenter. It

gives you the chance to reinforce the main points from your presentation and
boost your expert status as a speaker.

But you need to be ahead of the game. You should aim to be fully prepared before
you face your presentation audience.

That preparation doesn't need to be tough. As a presenter you are going to know
most if not all of the subject areas that are generated from your presentation.

Question and Answer Technique

1) Prepare questions. First of all you should aim to write down the top ten
questions that might come up from your presentation. Think about the subject
material, the points you intend to make and the supporting images or videos.
Consider the audience. Think about what is topical or timely to them...their
industry...their market sector or their competitors. Be open to the news of the
day: political, business and economics news.

Then write down the questions.

With that done, you should consider their answers. Make sure that your answers
are short and concise. Answering questions with brevity is much appreciated by
audiences. Your answers are not an excuse to show off exactly how much you
know. They should support you; with your presentation reinforcing all your
main points.

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2) Prepare some more questions. Now you can repeat this exercise with another
ten questions. And another ten answers.

With a total of 20 questions and their respective answers you have covered a
good 98% of the likely questions that your audience will come up with. Be ready
for ones that you can't answer. Try dome responses along the lines of..."I don't
know that one. How about you and I look into that afterwards?" Become
comfortable with this style, noting that you must follow up with the questioner
after your presentation.

3) Rehearse. Your questions and answers should be rehearsed. Take care

however that you don't learn your answers. You want them rehearsed. But you
also want them to sound lively, energetic and spontaneous.

4) Take questions. If it's feasible, try to take questions before you conclude your
presentation. Concluding and wrapping up all the disparate strands of a
presentation can be a lot easier once you've tackled audience questions. Your
presentation will finish with a bang. Not a whimper. Your contribution will be
more memorable.

5) Giving your answers. Inviting questions can yield a nil return. It happens
because no-one in your audience wants to ask the first question. It's not that they
don't have questions. A good work-around is to speak to a colleague or the
meeting organizer beforehand. Get them to ask the first question...and prepare it
for them!

Once you've heard the question, replay it to your questioner. Check that you've
heard it and understood the question correctly. If needed (and it might be in a
large conference room), repeat the question so everyone can hear it. Then
answer the question briefly and coherently. Take some care to give your answer
to the questioner. It's their question, they asked it and they should be answered
by you. Establish eye contact with them, making sure of course that you can be
heard by everyone.

Follow these five steps to get the most from your question and answer sessions
during your next presentation.

6. Howcan Voice Modulation enhance the Quality of the Presentation

How many times have you sat through a presentation where you have had to
strain to hear what the speaker said? In fact, after about five minutes of that, we
usually switch off and give up the attempt.

Whilst your material might be top notch, if no one can hear you clearly, all you
preparation is wasted. Not only that, if you do not have authority in your voice,
then it will be a very difficult job to convince anybody of anything.

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You may have worked for weeks getting your presentation ready, but if no one
can hear you, or you don't sound authoritative, your audience will likely tune out.
So what can you do about it?

Heed these four "P's" to improve your voice.

Pitch
The pitch of our voice could also be called the 'musicality.' It has to do with the
note at which we pitch a word or phrase. Doing so in a monotone is guaranteed
to send your audience to sleep! What we need to do is to vary our pitch
according to the importance of the expression we are using. For instance: when
we are excited our pitch goes up and when we are serious or somber, it drops
(just listen to the voice of the sports commentator when someone scores a goal
and compare that to when someone is injured, to see what range is needed!) If
you have a problem with pitch, either join a choir, or practice singing in the
shower to increase your range.

We can work on what is called MODULATION.

Usually connected with such things as radio waves -- which can be modulated to
change their characteristics -- modulation is also an essential skill for the
professional presenter. So let me present the 4 'P's to improve your voice and
increase your authority in presentations.

Pace
The pace is clearly the speed at which we speak. That too needs to vary during
the course of a presentation to maintain audience interest in our material. Again,
sports commentators give admirable examples of this during the course of their
work. When you want to emphasize an important point, slow down and speak
distinctly. When you want to cover less important points it's Ok to speed up.

Power
Power speaks for itself. And motivation of an audience certainly calls for the
ability to increase the power of our voice. But remember too that it is possible to
'whisper' and still be heard! It's the relative sound that counts from the
audience's side not yours! Here's a suggestion. Read a few sentences out loud to
some colleagues sitting some distance away increasing the volume (power) all
the time, and ask them to raise their hands at the point at which it gets
uncomfortable. I guarantee you will be in for a shock! That point for you will
seem like you are shouting at the top of your voice! Why? Because when we hear
ourselves talking, the sound has only traveled from our mouth to our ears -- but a
few inches. But for our audience that distance had to be measured in feet! So be
careful!

Pausing
The last - but arguably the most important - of our 4 'P's. PLEASE pause from
time to time -- for everyone's sake! For your own sake to get some breath. And
for our sake, to allow time for the points to sink in. Time has a funny habit of
extending when you are a presenter. By that I mean that 3 seconds of silence to

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the listener feels like 3 minutes to the speaker, and he feels that if he stops, even
for a second, the audience will think he has finished and get up and leave. Not so!
Pausing not only gives us time to think, it can also be effectively used to create
anticipation. "Now I would like you to think about this next point very seriously.
(PAUSE and count to 5). During the next three months we need to.”

7. Use of Non-Verbal Communication to improve the Presentation

Non-verbal communications include facial expressions, the tone and pitch of the
voice, gestures displayed through body language (kinesics) and the physical
distance between the communicators (proxemics). These non-verbal signals can
give clues and additional information and meaning, over and above spoken
(verbal) communication.

Non-verbal Messages Allow People To:

 Reinforce or modify what is said in words. For example, people may nod their
heads vigorously when saying "Yes" to emphasize that they agree with the
other person, but a shrug of the shoulders and a sad expression when saying
"I'm fine thanks,” may imply that things are not really fine at all!
 Convey information about their emotional state.
 Define or reinforce the relationship between people.
 Provide feedback to the other person.
 Regulate the flow of communication, for example by signaling to others that
they have finished speaking or wish to say something.

Interpersonal communication is further complicated in that it is usually not

possible to interpret a gesture or expression accurately on its own. Non-verbal
communication consists of a complete package of expressions, hand and eye
movements, postures, and gestures which should be interpreted along with
speech (verbal communication).

The types of interpersonal communication that are not expressed verbally are
called non-verbal communications. These include:

 Body Movements (Kinesics)

 Posture
 Eye Contact
 Para-language
 Closeness or Personal Space (Proxemics)
 Facial Expressions
 Physiological Changes

Types of Non-Verbal Communication

When we communicate, non-verbal cues can have as great as an impact on the

listener as the spoken word. There are many different aspects of non-verbal
communication including:

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Body Language or Body Movements (Kinesics)

Body movements include gestures, posture, head and hand movements or whole
body movements. Body movements can be used to reinforce or emphasize what
a person is saying and also offer information about the emotions and attitudes of
a person. However, it is also possible for body movements to conflict with what
is said. A skilled observer may be able to detect such discrepancies in behaviour
and use them as a clue to what someone is really feeling. Research work has
identified the different categories of body movement that are detailed below
with each category describing the purpose they commonly serve:

Emblems: Gestures that serve the same function as a word are called emblems.
For example, the signals that mean 'OK', 'Come here!', or the hand movement
used when hitch-hiking. However, be aware that whilst some emblems are
internationally recognized, others may need to be interpreted in their cultural
context.

Illustrators: Gestures which accompany words to illustrate a verbal message are

known as illustrators. For example, the common circular hand movement which
accompanies the phrase 'over and over again', or nodding the head in a
particular direction when saying 'over there'.

Affect Displays: These are facial expressions or gestures which show the
emotions we feel. These are often unintentional and can conflict with what is
being said. Such expressions give strong clues as to the true emotional state of a
person.

Regulators: Gestures used to give feedback when conversing are called

regulators, for example head nods, short sounds such as 'uh-huh', 'mm-mm', and
expressions of interest or boredom. Regulators allow the other person to adapt
his or her speech to reflect the level of interest or agreement. Without receiving
feedback, many people find it difficult to maintain a conversation.

Adaptors: Non-verbal behaviours which either satisfy some physical need such
as scratching or adjusting uncomfortable glasses, or represent a psychological
need such as biting fingernails when nervous. Although normally subconscious,
adaptors are more likely to be restrained in public places than in the private
world of individuals where they are less likely to be noticed. Adaptive
behaviours often accompany feelings of anxiety or hostility.

Posture

Posture can reflect people's emotions, attitudes and intentions. Research has
identified a wide range of postural signals and their meanings, such as:

Open and Closed Posture: Two forms of posture have been identified, ‘open’ and
‘closed’, which may reflect an individual's degree of confidence, status or
receptivity to another person. Someone seated in a closed position might have
his/her arms folded, legs crossed or be positioned at a slight angle from the

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person with whom they are interacting. In an open posture you might expect to
see someone directly facing you with hands apart on the arms of the chair. An
open posture can be used to communicate openness or interest in someone and a
readiness to listen, whereas the closed posture might imply discomfort or
disinterest.

Mirroring: Notice the way a loving couple relate to each other. You might like to
observe a close relationship in person or on television. You will see that the
partners' postures will match, as if one partner is a mirror reflection of the other.
For example, if one partner drapes an arm over the back of a chair this might be
replicated in the other person's position. If one partner frowns, it could be
reflected in the other partner's facial expression. This 'mirroring' indicates
interest and approval between people and serves to reassure others of interest
in them and what they are saying.

Eye Contact

Eye contact is an important aspect of non-verbal behaviour. In interpersonal

interaction, it serves three main purposes:

 To give and receive feedback: Looking at someone lets them know that the
receiver is concentrating on the content of their speech. Not maintaining eye
contact can indicate disinterest. Communication may not be a smooth process
if a listener averts their eyes too frequently.
 To let a partner know when it is their 'turn' to speak: This is related to the
above point. Eye contact is more likely to be continuous when someone is
listening, rather than speaking. When a person has finished what they have to
say, they will look directly at the other person and this gives a signal that the
arena is open. If someone does not want to be interrupted, eye contact may
be avoided.
 To communicate something about a relationship between people: When you
dislike someone, you tend to avoid eye contact and pupil size is often
reduced. On the other hand, the maintenance of positive eye contact signals
interest or attraction in a partner.

Para-language

Para-language relates to all aspects of the voice which are not strictly part of the
verbal message, including the tone and pitch of the voice, the speed and volume,
at which a message is delivered, and pauses and hesitations between words.

These signals can serve to indicate feelings about what is being said.
Emphasizing particular words can imply whether or not feedback is required.

Closeness and Personal Space (Proxemics)

Every culture has different levels of physical closeness appropriate to different

types of relationship, and individuals learn these distances from the society in
which they grew up.

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In today's multicultural society, it is important to consider the range of non-
verbal codes as expressed in different ethnic groups. When someone violates an
'appropriate' distance, people may feel uncomfortable or defensive. Their actions
may well be open to misinterpretation.

In Western society, four distances have been defined according to the

relationship between the people involved; the study of personal space is termed
proxemics.

The four main categories of proxemics are:

 Intimate Distance (touching to 45cm)

 Personal Distance (45cm to 1.2m)
 Social Distance (1.2m to 3.6m)
 Public Distance (3.7m to 4.5m)

These four distances are associated with the four main types of relationship -
intimate, personal, social and public. Each of the distances is divided into two,
giving a close phase and a far phase, thus making eight divisions in all. It is worth
noting that these distances are considered the norm in Western Society.
Understanding these distances allows us to approach others in non-threatening
and appropriate ways. People can begin to understand how others feel about
them, how they view the relationship and, if appropriate, adjust their behaviour
accordingly.

Understanding these distances allows us to approach others in non-threatening

and appropriate ways. People can begin to understand how others feel about
them, how they view the relationship and, if appropriate, adjust their behaviour
accordingly.

8. Knowing the Expectations of the Audience

As a speaker, you will always deal with audience expectations.

They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but they're always the lens through
which the audience hears, interprets and values your message.

Expectations typically are based either on past experiences..."I've been in this

situation before and I got 'x' so it's reasonable to assume that I will get 'x' this
time as well" or they're based on outcomes one simply hopes will happen,
without much basis in fact or reason. For example, the student who expects he
will get an A on the final exam when he hasn't studied.

Sometimes audience expectations can be downright unrealistic...like wanting to

master a new skill in a way-too-short time frame or expecting information that is
not yet available for release.

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And more times than you'd think, speakers don't even know what the audience's
expectations are.

So what's a speaker to do?

While meeting or exceeding any expectations the audience may hold is a worthy
objective, a sensible parallel one is to learn to manage them.

How do we do that? Here is an integrated approach to managing any audience's

expectations.

 Before the presentation, provide an accurate summary of your topic for any
source [agenda, program, etc.] where details of your remarks will be
published. If the presentation is within your organization, to the best of your
ability, monitor any descriptions or comments that are circulating and adjust,
as necessary, so they reflect what you will actually talk about.

 Do an outstanding job of audience analysis so you have clear insight into the
audience's needs. Send out a questionnaire, interview representative
attendees, understand their mindset, and anticipate questions. If you do your
homework, you will be much more likely to understand the majority of
expectations and provide information that is relevant to the audience's
circumstances. And while this won't capture every single expectation that
attendees bring, it will give you a good foundation from which to address
anything unexpected.

 During the presentation, state clearly what you will cover. Sometimes unmet
expectations come from lack of clarity when an attendee mistakenly assumes
that something should have been covered and is then frustrated when it's
not.

 If there is a gap between what you're delivering and what the audience
expects, bridge it by suggesting additional resources. For example, "We've
been talking about exercises to engage a group of 10-15 people. For those of
you who work with larger groups, here's a website that has excellent tools for
large group activities."

 Adopt a technique from the training world...the parking lot. If attendees

reveal expectations in the form of issues or questions that you are not
equipped to deal with [because of lack of knowledge, information or time],
"park" them [on a flip chart or piece of paper, ideally where all can see] and
let attendees know that you will either follow up with more information or
refer the issue to the appropriate person(s). While this doesn't automatically
cause those expectations to be met, it does convey that you are committed to
satisfying the needs of the audience.

 If a majority of your audience has expectations that, by keeping to your

planned remarks you will not likely meet, and if you have the necessary
knowledge to have a discussion about the audience's desired topic, I say go

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 for it. What could be a better example of meeting audience needs than letting
them set the agenda. If you have this flexibility, I guarantee you, your
audience will walk away more satisfied.

9. Layout of the Presentation

Choose Content Appropriate for the Medium

Your presentation is one part of your communication tool set. When laying out
your presentation, use it to emphasize the high points of things covered in the
handout. Use short, targeted sentences within your presentation, rather than
gigantic blocks of text. Make those short sentences tie into the headers on your
handout, so that the presentation acts as a roadmap for memory.

Use Graphics to Convey Information

Graphs and graphics are one of the most efficient ways of converting space on a
page (or slides) into information comprehended by the reader. Choose graphics
and graphs that convey useful, relevant information. Keep the color choices
reasonably neutral, and always make sure that a reference key for the graph is
presented. Use bar graphs or line graphs in preference to pie charts, because
they are read (and absorbed) much more readily in a short period of time.

Lay Things Out in Reading Order

On an individual slide, or a multiple slide series, lay materials out from left to
right, top to bottom. This is the same way people read, and it makes navigating
through the presentation much easier. Your most important information (or
graphic) should be in the upper left corner of your presentation, and it should
flow from most important to least important on the page. Organize your material
in text before you set up your presentation deck, and make an outline, then
follow it. The number one cause of muddled, jumbled, hard to follow
presentations are last-minute additions or reorganizations done from within the
presentation software package.

Context Is Important

Whether the slide is appropriate or not for your particular audience is more
important than whether it is good or bad. However, it is common for people to
think more in terms of what is good or bad, particularly in the area of design.
When it comes to PowerPoint slides for your presentation, it is important to
consider the best way to layout your page so it is easy to understand and follow
by your audience. Therefore, you need to think about the content and images you
want to use and create a slide with the right placement for your audience.

Keep It Simple

Simplicity is an important element to creating PowerPoint slides that are

effective for your audience. Sometimes the best graphics are those that are

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created with simplicity in mind. However, just because the design is simple
doesn’t mean the presentation lacks information. As long as you put the work
into the content and the context of each slide, a simple slide can be even more
effective than one that is more complex. Keeping your audience in mind will help
you make sure your design is not too complicated for them to understand.

Some people view simplicity as a way to provide greater clarity to the

information you are trying to provide. If you are careful about the story you are
trying to portray through your presentation is best told with visuals that will
support the story and clue your audience in more easily. However, you may not
know just how to create that simplicity. You may wonder if there is a specific
formula that must be followed to make sure your presentation follows this law of
simplicity.

There is no easy answer to this question. However, if you think about it, you will
realize the formula to simplicity requires you to break down each problem and
issue into its individual components. The ability to break everything down into
smaller elements will provide you with the simplicity you desire in your
presentation. However, there is still no clear answer for everyone. Each person
and industry must decide what that simplicity means to them.

Because there is no specific formula, the design of your presentation will be a

combination of art and science you must work on. You need to consider the
needs of your audience, as well as your company, so you can determine just what
information you need to portray in your presentation. When you apply these
needs to the context and content in your presentation, the answer will become
clear for you, though no one else will be able to use the same answer you will.

Visual Changes

The best way to cover the need for visual changes in your slides is to use a brief
example. For instance, if you are creating slides as a part of your presentation
that detail important statistics you want your audience to remember, you need
to look at the way you have designed these slides. You may attempt to use
irrelevant clip art with the text that details the statistic or you may use a
specially designed chart that illustrates your statistic. Both of these methods
portray the information but often in an unclear manner, such as boring
backgrounds, text that blends in and 3D graphics. All of these things should be
avoided for better slides.

Instead, you can better portray the graphics you want your audience to
remember for future reference by creating slides that are more uniform with the
rest of the presentation. Your entire presentation should follow a theme,
including the background colors of the slides. In your redesigned slides, you
should make sure the text that details the statistic stands out from the
background and you use a graphic that reflects that statistic. You don’t need to
include a lot of information on a slide. Your verbal presentation will elaborate.

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You can still use a graphic, such as a chart, to reflect the statistic, but it is
important to use a plain chart, not one that is in 3D. You can also create a slide
that simply features your statistic as a headline. However, you need to turn that
headline into a full declarative sentence, rather than a short headline, for the
greatest impact.

How Should You Design Your Slides?

Even with the examples above, there’s no way for any person to tell you exactly
how to design your slides for your presentation. Each presentation should be
unique to you, providing your audience with the information they need in an
easy-to-understand and read manner. You also need to take into consideration
the topic of your presentation. A non-technical presentation can easily use slides
that are extremely simple. However, if you are presenting on a more technical
topic, such as technology, you may need to add a little more complexity to the
slides for the best impact. Even with this complexity, though, the focus should
still be on simplicity.

Therefore, there is no good or bad when it comes to your PowerPoint slides.

Instead, you need to consider your topic and your audience and go from there as
you design your presentation.

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