Presentation

Structure and Content

Introduction: General information on the topic
Give your listeners an introduction to the topic (some general information) and explain what exactly you are going to talk about in your presentation.
Actual Presentation
Subdivide your presentation into several sub-topics.
Conclusion
Try to find a good conclusion, e.g.:
- an invitation to act
- an acknowledgement
- a motivation

As listeners cannot take up as many information as readers, keep the following rules in mind when giving a presentation:

Keep your sentences short and simple.
Use standard English, avoid slang and techy language.
Prefer verbs to nouns (not: The meaning of this is that …, but: This means that …).
Use participal constructions sparingly. (In written texts they are often used to increase the density of information in a sentence. In spoken texts, however, they make it more difficult for the listeners to follow.)
Speak clearly and slowly.
Have little breaks in between the sentences to allow your audience to reflect on what has been said.
Communicate freely (don't read the whole text from a piece of paper).
Illustrate certain aspects of your presentation with pictures and graphics.

The following tricks will also help you keep your audience's attention:

Outline to the audience how your presentation is structured. (e.g. I will first explain ... / Then I will … / After that … / Finally… ).
Indicate when you come to another sub-topic (I will now talk about …). This way your audience can follow your presentation more easily.
Use a rhetorical question or hypophora from time to time. Your listeners will think that you've asked them a question and thus listen more attentively.
Use enumerations starting first / second / third. This also draws your audience's attention.
A joke or a quotation might also help keeping your audience listening. Don't overdo it, however. Using too many jokes or quotations might not have the effect you want.

Changed: 04th Apr 2005 23:19

URL: http://www.ego4u.com/en/business-english/communication/presentation