Effective Technical Presentations [1] [2] Cite presentations just like documents.

DISCLAIMER: Slides 7-12 of this presentation come from Virginia Tech’s “The Craft of Scientific Presentation” (a product of the Virginia Tech Engineering Education Department). These slides are marked with an icon in their lower right-hand corner and are used with permission. The presentation’s internet link is handbook/presvisuals.html.

Overview of Topics 1.Speakers’ obvious knowledge of content 2.Noticeable enthusiasm 3.Eye contact 4.Logical organization 5.Useful, attractive slide designs 6.Suitably formal speech Always include an overview/outline! ↑

Effective speakers must know their content. Structure and Speech Delivery This means study & practice. Your knowledge should be apparent. Experts should be gracious. No one knows everything – “I don’t know...”

Be noticeably enthusiastic! What do you achieve by being enthusiastic? [3] 1.Capture attention 2.Instill confidence 3.Convey confidence 4.Increase retention

What do you communicate with eye contact? 1.Confidence 2.Preparation 3.Trustworthiness 4.Authority Your eyes can also gauge your audience. [4]

Organize logically. 1.Beginning 2.Middle 3.Ending 1.Introduction 2.Body 3.Conclusion

Organize logically (cont.). 1.Overview 2.Introduction 3.Theory 4.Equipment & Setup 5.Data / Results 6.Conclusions …and so on… Readers expect beginning, middle, & end – anticipate & use this.

Choose a format that is easy to read. Arial BOOK ANTIQUA Choose legible type Choose a helpful layout words

Color can distinguish a presentation.

Color affects how fast the audience can read. The color combination that is read most quickly is black on yellow.

Color affects how fast the audience can read. What is important is that the combination has contrast—the one on this slide fails to do so.

Color affects how fast the audience can read. Combinations of red, green, and brown are difficult for many people to read.

Color affects the emotions of the audience. Avoid having a hot color such as red or orange as your background color.

What font sizes are effective for slides? 12-point 16-point 20-point 24-point 28-point 32-point 36-point 40-point 44-point 48-point 52-point 56-point ???

How should you fix this? Table 3: Total Purchase Cost of Equipment

Avoid certain excesses in slide design. 1.Avoid using too much animation. 2.Avoid putting too much text on one slide (just make more slides). 3.Avoid changing fonts, sizes, and colors inconsistently or without reason.

Strive for professional diction and delivery. “uh…” Use concrete words. Be as specific as possible. Avoid slang, nonfluencies, & multiple interpretations. Why do we say uh?

Strive for professional diction and delivery (cont.). Enunciate – open your mouth. Be loud enough. Avoid monotone – be polytone. [5]

Miscellaneous closing advice Provide smooth, audible transitions between speakers (“And now Stacy will discuss the experiment itself.”). If you have a clicker, let each speaker control it; if not, work out an efficient system to advance slides before your talk.

Miscellaneous closing advice (cont.) Handouts and other tactile visual aids can help tremendously with attention and retention. Avoid blocking any part of the screen or any audience member’s line of sight. In engineering, using notes/note cards is often considered unprofessional.

Miscellaneous closing advice (cont.) No matter what happens – verbal mistake, memory lapse, teammate breakdown, power outage – find a way to keep the presentation moving ahead.

Questions? [6]