Presentations to Impress Created by: Linda Murray and Kate Smith Learnhigher Learning Area Coordinators for Oral Communication

Aims: Identify purpose & objectives Deliver the Presentation (consider body language & questions) Practise the presentation Prepare your notes & visual aids Structure your presentation Consider audience & environment The Presentation Process Evaluate your performance

Presentation 1: Watch the following clips and evaluate the presentations skills of the presenter: &feature=related

The First Questions to Ask Yourself Why are you saying it? (The aim) Who are you saying it to? (The audience) What are you going to say? (The content) How are you going to say it? (The structure)

The Aim To inform: To tell or to impart factual knowledge to a group. To make a proposition: To sell or persuade the audience to support an idea or plan. To inspire and motivate: To impel. To generate enthusiasm and develop positive attitudes.

Who’s your Audience? Who are the members of the audience and what do they do? What is the benefit to the audience of listening to your presentation? What do they already know about the subject? What is the relationship between yourself and the audience? What interests your audience? How will what you are going to say affect them?

If you fail to consider your audience they may feel… alienated – if you offend their value system insulted – if you fail to recognise and acknowledge their existing knowledge and experience confused – if you assume a level of knowledge or expertise that isn’t there bored – if you fail to relate to their needs patronised – if you use an inappropriate style frustrated – if they are not given the opportunity to question or contribute

Where are you going to do your presentation? What technology will you have? How much space will you have? Where will the audience be? Lighting? Temperature? Picture source:

Learn from experience Consider a presentation that you have seen that was very effective. What made it so? Consider a presentation that you have seen that you thought was unsuccessful. What made it so?

Structure and Signpost Tell them what you’re going to tell them. Tell them. Tell them what you told them.

Introduction Tell them who you are and why you are giving this presentation Tell them what the presentation is about Tell them what your objectives are Tell them what the background to the presentation is Tell them what's in it for them Opening attention grabber

The Main Body Give details of your topic in a logical, smoothly linking order Take advantage of the primacy and recency effect Use anecdotes and real examples to illustrate your points Tell them how this information applies to them Back up all the claims that you made at the start

The Conclusion Summarise your key points Remind them of: the advantages of your position, solution, options, conclusions. Tell them what you want them to do next Tell them how to contact you Closing attention grabber Invite questions Try to end on a high. Avoid saying “That’s it!”

Presentation 2: What do you notice about the presentation style of the speaker in this clip: o&feature=related o&feature=related

Impact of Body Language What listeners might use to interpret the speaker’s meaning: Source: Mehrabian (1981)

Body Language to Avoid Continuous eye contact or staring Constantly rubbing an eye, nose or ear Keep clearing your throat Clenching your hands or pointing Crossing your arms or legs Shuffling your feet and swaying Smiling or raising your eyebrows in a way that suggests you don’t value your audience’s contribution!

Engaging Body Language Stand up straight and face the audience head-on Hold your head up high, with your chin up Use your hands to emphasise and reinforce Vary your gestures Nod your head and smile to emphasise what you are saying Make proper eye contact

Voice Be audible Use pauses for emphasis, or to regain their attention Don’t mumble or drop your voice at the end of sentences Vary the speed with which you talk to keep their attention Alter the volume and tone of your voice for emphasis Sound enthusiastic Avoid jargon Monitor your use of ‘um’, ‘er’, ‘actually’; and try to cut down

Handling Nerves Avoid negative self-talk Don’t run over your allocated time slot Prepare, practise and bring all you need Know your audience Visualise yourself succeeding Act confident to feel confident Don’t stress “what could have been” or “what should have been”

Handling Questions Tell the audience when you will be taking questions Listen carefully and paraphrase the question before you respond Look at the entire audience when answering Call on experts from the audience where appropriate Set a time limit to control hostile questioners Don’t let individuals take over Don’t pretend that you know the answer End the Q&A session with a strong closing remark

In summary… P urpose - establish what it is R esearch your topic E xperiment with visual aids P lace – what is it like? A udience – know who they are R ehearse your performance E arly – arrive well in advance PREPARE!

Where now? Resources: Murray, R. (2003). How to survive your viva. Maidenhead: Open University Press Stott, R.,Young, T., Bryan, C. (Eds.)(2001). Speaking your Mind Harlow:Pearson Education Ltd. Levin, P. & Topping G. (2006). Perfect Presentations! Maidenhead: Open University Press