Presentations – Do’s And Don’ts

When giving a presentation there are clearly a few things in which you want to do and things you don’t want to do. One of the better points you want to keep in mind when giving a presentation are common sense.

The first think is to think about your audience. What do they want to hear? What is it they have come to hear you speak about? Don’t spend time talking about how great you are; tell them things which will educate them and make them better. Use other people, including yourself, to illustrate your point.

Next get the audience involved. Encourage them to take notes and call on them in the audience. Always keep constant eye contact with your audience. As you talk you want to keep a constant look upon them. Alternate between people who are in the audience and if you have to, stare at something within the group. Speak slowly and also remain visual as you talk. Don’t be afraid to use visual aids to get your points across however don’t use too many visual aids. Too many visual aids will bog down your actual speech.

End the presentation with an impacting point. Either a question or a comment that can be directed at the audience, always leave them pondering everything you just spoke about.

Now some of the things you should not do when giving a presentation! The first thing you shouldn’t do is read your speech word for word. This makes you sound automated and you will lose your sincerity; and if you lose your sincerity you will certainly lose your audience’s interest. Don’t talk fast, take everything nice and slow. Remember how long you have to give your speech and pace yourself. This is why people practice before they give an oral presentation. Steer clear of using acronyms unless you spell them out for your audience or explaining what they mean. Acronyms can become very confusing to an audience.

If you use slides for visual aids, refrain from using complete sentences as you show each slide. The slides are suppose to convey a story to you, not your voice, if you tell the story of slides then the slides become redundant and pointless. The last thing your audience wants is to feel they wasted their time. Don’t drone on about things your audience should know or most likely already know. When using exact facts, you should have visual aids to back them up. If you keep these points in mind you should have no problem giving your presentation.

By: Mark J Gregory

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Mark Gregory is writing on behalf of Professional Presentations, who offer sales presentation and sales presentations