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At one point or another, whether in front of a client or colleagues, you’re going to have to give a presentation. While some people thrive on presenting, others dread it. Whichever camp you fall into, there is always room for improvement – both for your own presenting, and for delivering presentations that resonate with your audience.
Here are three tips for creating and delivering presentations that capture your audience’s attention and engagement with ease.
Remember VARK
Ever wonder why after a presentation, people ask questions that make you think that they weren’t listening at all? They aren’t trying to ignore you – you might just not be presenting in their language. There are four different ways people take in and process information – visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinaesthetic. If your presentation is entirely you talking at people, you are missing out on most of your audience. Try and hit as many modalities as possible in your presentation:
Present in Colour
Use colours strategically in your presentation to convey ideas and connections. Not only does colour improve comprehension, but it also helps boost memory of content when trying to remember it later.
Prepare with a Mind Map
Mind maps are a great way to organize your thoughts when planning your presentation. They can help you categorize all the information that you need to cover, and to plan the flow of your presentation.
A mind map is also useful in place of notes while presenting. It will help you remember your points at a glance, so you can maintain eye contact with your audience instead of fumbling with papers. Research also shows that mind maps help you to memorize the content of your presentation.
Here are three tips for creating and delivering presentations that capture your audience’s attention and engagement with ease.
Remember VARK
Ever wonder why after a presentation, people ask questions that make you think that they weren’t listening at all? They aren’t trying to ignore you – you might just not be presenting in their language. There are four different ways people take in and process information – visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinaesthetic. If your presentation is entirely you talking at people, you are missing out on most of your audience. Try and hit as many modalities as possible in your presentation:
- Visual Use different colours, icons, charts, graphs, and images to summarize, emphasize, or categorize your points.
- Auditory Vary your tone of voice, and encourage group discussions and questions.
- Reading/Writing Provide handouts with speaker notes, and give people enough time to write notes.
- Kinaesthetic Let people stand for your presentation, make it experiential, encourage people to doodle, or provide fidget tools.
Present in Colour
Use colours strategically in your presentation to convey ideas and connections. Not only does colour improve comprehension, but it also helps boost memory of content when trying to remember it later.
Prepare with a Mind Map
Mind maps are a great way to organize your thoughts when planning your presentation. They can help you categorize all the information that you need to cover, and to plan the flow of your presentation.
A mind map is also useful in place of notes while presenting. It will help you remember your points at a glance, so you can maintain eye contact with your audience instead of fumbling with papers. Research also shows that mind maps help you to memorize the content of your presentation.
Audio read and recorded by RP Singh