Over the past few years, I've given a few presentations to smaller groups/clients. My time at 7-Eleven Canada has given me a bigger and better opportunity to present to larger audiences (100+) of varying audiences: from store managers to the senior VP group, all tuning in from various parts of the country. Some presentations are on video conference, while others are isolated in a conference room.
I'm still a newbie at this, but I think the below presentation tips will give novice presenters the confidence to pull off their first few National/large presentations (even though you may be shaking in your boots at the same time).
1) Speak Loudly. Speaking loud makes you sound more confident than you really may feel! A lot of times, you are so nervous that you end up speaking at a normal speaking decibel or even quieter than your usual volume. This is no good because a) You sound nervous and b) no one can hear you. If you sound nervous, you don't sound confident in what you're saying. If you speak LOUD, then it sounds like you know what you're talking about. Which leads to point number....
2) Present hard Facts. If you have done your research and believe in the facts/data on your powerpoint, you will have no issue presenting the facts. Because facts are numbers and numbers always speak the truth (especially when presenting to senior-level management). When presenting to National audiences, they won't remember the frou-frou, they'll only remember the numbers you presented to them, especially if they've been listening to boring presentations all day. This makes it easy for you, because all you have to do is present the numbers/facts, which also makes it easier for you to remember and feel confident about. Just make sure you are explaining what the numbers mean to the business, too.
3) K.I.S.S. is something we've all learned- KEEP IT SIMPLE, SILLY! Sooooo many people have too many words on their slides. Nobody will read your words. If you can make your facts into a chart, MAKE IT INTO A CHART. Show trending charts or pie charts; those always depict what you need to show, to prove a point. If you have more than 4 bullet point form notes on your slide, that is too many. If you have sentences on your slide, you must make it into a point form. [PS- blogs are not presentation slides, in case you're wondering why I am typing out paragraphs!]
4) Always remember you are the Expert. No one has researched your topic as much as you. Even if you're new to the company or industry, you have done all the background research and are the expert in your field. Otherwise, nobody would have asked you to present in the first place.
5) Go Early. Check out the scene if you haven't presented in a particular location already. Is the podium too tall for you (as it is in my case, many times)? Make sure you get a stool or make a note to stand away from the podium/get a mic, etc. Is the screen behind you? If it is, make sure you've got your own notes handy so you don't have to talk behind you the entire time. Do you have a portable "clicker", or does someone need to help you click slides? Make sure you check out the scene for all possible things that could make you feel uncomfortable, and therefore will cause you to deliver a less than effective presentation.
6) Find your Audience. Before preparing your presentation, make sure you know who your audience is. Is it all senior executives? Local store teams? Internal staff? Regina, SK versus London, ON or Canada-Wide? This seems straight-forward, but I've been caught thinking I would be presenting to a small team but ended up being surprised with upper management attending the conference. I've also been surprised when senior management was NOT there. Depending on who's there, the same exact presentation will change: visuals, language, depth.
I'm sure there's more, but I've already gone beyond 4 points so I'm sure you are already losing focus, if you haven't already!
Good luck, and good speech!
I'm still a newbie at this, but I think the below presentation tips will give novice presenters the confidence to pull off their first few National/large presentations (even though you may be shaking in your boots at the same time).
1) Speak Loudly. Speaking loud makes you sound more confident than you really may feel! A lot of times, you are so nervous that you end up speaking at a normal speaking decibel or even quieter than your usual volume. This is no good because a) You sound nervous and b) no one can hear you. If you sound nervous, you don't sound confident in what you're saying. If you speak LOUD, then it sounds like you know what you're talking about. Which leads to point number....
2) Present hard Facts. If you have done your research and believe in the facts/data on your powerpoint, you will have no issue presenting the facts. Because facts are numbers and numbers always speak the truth (especially when presenting to senior-level management). When presenting to National audiences, they won't remember the frou-frou, they'll only remember the numbers you presented to them, especially if they've been listening to boring presentations all day. This makes it easy for you, because all you have to do is present the numbers/facts, which also makes it easier for you to remember and feel confident about. Just make sure you are explaining what the numbers mean to the business, too.
3) K.I.S.S. is something we've all learned- KEEP IT SIMPLE, SILLY! Sooooo many people have too many words on their slides. Nobody will read your words. If you can make your facts into a chart, MAKE IT INTO A CHART. Show trending charts or pie charts; those always depict what you need to show, to prove a point. If you have more than 4 bullet point form notes on your slide, that is too many. If you have sentences on your slide, you must make it into a point form. [PS- blogs are not presentation slides, in case you're wondering why I am typing out paragraphs!]
4) Always remember you are the Expert. No one has researched your topic as much as you. Even if you're new to the company or industry, you have done all the background research and are the expert in your field. Otherwise, nobody would have asked you to present in the first place.
5) Go Early. Check out the scene if you haven't presented in a particular location already. Is the podium too tall for you (as it is in my case, many times)? Make sure you get a stool or make a note to stand away from the podium/get a mic, etc. Is the screen behind you? If it is, make sure you've got your own notes handy so you don't have to talk behind you the entire time. Do you have a portable "clicker", or does someone need to help you click slides? Make sure you check out the scene for all possible things that could make you feel uncomfortable, and therefore will cause you to deliver a less than effective presentation.
6) Find your Audience. Before preparing your presentation, make sure you know who your audience is. Is it all senior executives? Local store teams? Internal staff? Regina, SK versus London, ON or Canada-Wide? This seems straight-forward, but I've been caught thinking I would be presenting to a small team but ended up being surprised with upper management attending the conference. I've also been surprised when senior management was NOT there. Depending on who's there, the same exact presentation will change: visuals, language, depth.
I'm sure there's more, but I've already gone beyond 4 points so I'm sure you are already losing focus, if you haven't already!
Good luck, and good speech!
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