Planning Presentations

Regardless of the topic, form, or length of your presentation, you can follow the same basic steps to develop and present it.

Getting Started

The first step in preparing an oral presentation is getting an overview of the task. Begin by asking yourself What is my subject? What is my purpose? and Who is my audience? Answering these questions will help you write the presentation and shape its delivery.

1. What is my subject?

   • What do I already know about the subject?

   • What do I need to learn, and where can I find the information?

   • What support materials (displays, screen projections, handouts) would help me present my message?

2. What is my purpose?

   • Am I going to explain something?

   • Am I trying to persuade or inspire my audience to do something?

   • Am I hoping to teach my audience about something?

3. Who is my audience?

   • Is it an in-house group or an outside group?

   • How many people are in the group, and what are their ages, backgrounds, and interests?

   • What will people already know about the subject, and what will they want or need to know?

   • What will their attitude be toward the subject and toward me?

Stating Your Main Point

Once you have defined your subject, purpose, and audience, you should write out your main point as a single sentence. Use this formula:

Note: See the outline that develops this idea.

Drafting an Outline

After you’ve clarified your subject, purpose, and audience—and you’ve written out your main point—think about how to present your message. Begin by brainstorming points that you want to communicate, and then organize the points into a list or working outline. For a brief, informal presentation, this list or outline may be the only script you need.

On the other hand, for a longer, more challenging presentation, you may need to significantly revise and develop the outline as you research and write the script. This outline is your tool for gathering and organizing your thoughts.

Gathering Information

Using your outline as a guide, gather the information you need. Begin by reviewing key documents, manuals, and company material related to the topic. If necessary, read current articles, review videos, explore the Internet, and talk with other people. What you gather will depend on your purpose, topic, resources, and available time.

Click here for help in finding and organizing information.

Thinking About Support Materials

As you gather information, keep a list of graphics, displays, and handouts that could make your presentation clearer and more interesting. For example, charts, tables, and graphs can help an audience grasp the meaning of complex data. Technical drawings or sketches can help listeners visualize a product or site. Demonstrations or video clips can help listeners better understand a process or connect with the people involved.

Review the list below for items appropriate to your topic, audience, and setting (including available equipment). Then, as you do your research, make a note about an item that you could use and how you could use it (as a display, projection, handout, and so forth).

• audio clip (music)

• bibliography

• brochure

• cartoon

• chart

• company document

• demonstration

• graph

• handheld prop

• key quotation

• list of authorities

• overhead

• photograph

• sample product

• sketch

• table

• technical drawing

• video clip

Organizing Your Presentation

After you’ve gathered your information, you must organize and develop the message. How? Start by thinking about your presentation as having three distinct parts: (1) introduction, (2) body, and (3) conclusion. The guidelines that follow will help you integrate, organize, and refine all the parts so that they communicate the message and achieve your purpose.

1. Introduction

For any speaking situation, you should develop an introduction that does the following:

• greets the audience and grabs their attention.

• communicates your interest in them.

• introduces your topic and main idea.

• shows that you have something worthwhile to say.

• establishes an appropriate tone.

You may greet the audience in many ways, including the following: introducing yourself; thanking people for coming; or making appropriate comments about the occasion, the individuals present, or the setting. Following these comments, introduce your main point as quickly and as clearly as you can. For example, you could open with one of these attention-grabbing strategies:

• a little-known fact or statistic

• a series of questions

• a humorous story or anecdote

• an appropriate quotation

• a description of a serious problem

• a cartoon, picture, or drawing

• a short demonstration

• a statement about the topic’s importance

• an eye-catching prop or display

• a video or an audio clip

2. Body

The body of your presentation should deliver the message—and supporting points—so clearly that the audience understands the presentation after hearing it only once. The key to developing such a clear message is choosing an organizational pattern that fits your purpose statement.

So before you outline the body, take a moment to review what you want your presentation to do: explain a problem? promote an idea? teach a process? Be sure the organizational pattern will help you do that. For example, if you want to teach a process, the outline should list the process steps in chronological order. If your outline is clear, you may begin to write. Organizational patterns for explaining a process and other purposes are listed below.

• Chronological Order: Arrange information according to the time order in which events (steps in a process) take place.

• Order of Importance: Arrange information according to its importance: greatest to least, or least to greatest.

• Comparison/Contrast: Give information about subjects by comparing and contrasting them.

• Cause and Effect: Give information about a situation or problem by showing (1) the causes and (2) the effects.

• Order of Location: Arrange information about subjects according to where things are located in relation to each other.

• Problem/Solution: Describe a problem and then present a solution for it.

After deciding how to organize your message, write it out in either outline or manuscript form. For help, see the tips below and on these models.

Body-Building Tips

1. Build your presentation around several key ideas. (Don’t try to cover too much ground.)

2. Write with a personal, natural voice.

3. Support your main points with reliable facts and clear examples.

4. Present your information in short, easy-to-follow segments.

5. Use positive, respectful language. (Avoid jargon.)

6. Use graphic aids and handouts.

3. Conclusion

A strong introduction and conclusion work like bookends supporting the body of the presentation. The introduction gets the audience’s attention, sets the tone, states the main idea, and identifies the key points of the message. Almost in reverse, the conclusion reviews those points, restates the main idea, reinforces the tone, and refocuses the audience on what it should think about or do. Together, those bookends emphasize and clarify the message so that the audience understands and remembers it.

Here are some strategies—which you can use alone or in combination—for concluding a presentation:

• Review your main idea and key points.

• Issue a personal challenge.

• Come “full circle.” (State those arguments or details that back up your original point.)

• Recommend a plan of action.

• Suggest additional sources of information.

• Thank the audience and ask for questions.

Q & A

Following your presentation, you may want to invite your audience to ask questions. Very often, a Q & A session is the real payoff for participants. They can ask for clarification of points or ask how your message applies to their personal situations. Audience members may even offer their own insights or solutions to problems mentioned in the presentation. The following suggestions will help you lead a good Q & A session:

• Listen carefully and think about each part of the question.

• Repeat or paraphrase questions for the benefit of the entire group.

• Answer the question concisely and clearly.

• Respond honestly when you don’t know the answer, and offer to find an answer.

• Ask for a follow-up question if someone looks confused after your answer.

• Look directly at the group when you answer.

• Be prepared to pose an important question or two if no one asks a question.

• Conclude by thanking the audience for their participation.

Drafting Presentations

How much of your presentation you actually write out depends on your subject, purpose, audience, and—of course—your personal style. The three most common forms for a presentation are a list, an outline, and a manuscript.

• List: Use a list for a short, informal speech such as an after-dinner introduction. Think about your purpose and then list the following:

  • your opening sentence (or two)

  • a summary phrase for each of your main points

  • your closing sentence

• Outline: Use an outline for a more complex or formal topic. You can organize your material in greater detail without tying yourself to a word-for-word presentation. Here’s one way you can do it:

  • opening (complete sentences)

  • all main points (sentences)

  • supporting points (phrases)

  • quotations (written out)

  • all supporting technical details, statistics, and sources (listed)

  • closing (complete sentences)

  • notes on visual aids (in caps or boldface)

• Manuscript: Use the guidelines below if you plan to write out your presentation word for word as you plan to give it:

  • double-space pages (or cards)

  • number pages (or cards)

  • use complete sentences on a page (do not run sentences from one page to another)

  • mark difficult words for pronunciation

  • mark script for interpretation (See these symbols.)

Writing Presentations in Outline Form

Writing Presentations in Manuscript Form

Designing Audio-Visual Presentations

Business people commonly create audio-visual presentations on platforms such as PowerPoint and Prezi because this multimedia approach can powerfully reinforce and clarify a message. To use presentation software effectively, follow the guidelines below.

1. Develop a design. Be sure your graphic design fits your topic and your audience—businesslike for a serious topic, casual for a team meeting, and so on.

2. Create pages. If a main idea has several parts, present each one on its own page. Each click should reveal a new detail.

3. Use transitions. Dissolves, fades, wipes, and other transitional effects refine a digitial presentation and keep the audience’s attention (as long as the devices don’t detract from the message).

4. Try animation. Text can be animated to appear from off screen at just the right moment. Graphics can be made to appear one element at a time, and illustrations can change before the viewer’s eyes. Remember to use special effects, especially animation, wisely.

5. Add sound. Just as graphics and animation can enhance a presentation, so, too, can sound. Music can serve as an intro or backdrop, and sound effects can add emphasis. Voice recordings can add authority and help drive home key points.

6. Fine-tune your presentation. Practice delivering your presentation while clicking through your slides. Try it with an audience of coworkers, if possible, and ask for their input.

7. Check for word choice and style. Make sure that the words on the screen are keywords. Use these words as talking points—don’t try to cover any point word for word. Also, check that transitions, animations, and sounds are smooth and not disruptive.

8. Edit the final version. Check spelling, punctuation, usage, and other mechanics. Remember: On-screen errors are glaringly obvious to many people.

9. Rehearse. Practice running the equipment until you can use it with confidence.

10. Make a backup copy. Protect all the effort you invested in your presentation.

Practicing Your Delivery

Research shows that less than 40 percent of your message is communicated by your words. More than 60 percent is communicated by your delivery—your voice, body language, and attitude. In other words, rehearsing the delivery of a presentation is at least as important as revising the script.

Rehearsing Your Presentation

Keep going over your presentation until you’re comfortable with it. Ask a family member or coworker to listen to you and offer feedback, or use a video recorder so that you can see and hear yourself. Practice these things:

1. Maintain eye contact with your audience. It helps people feel that you care about them. It also helps you notice how people are responding to your message.

2. Speak loudly and clearly. Also speak at an appropriate speed.

3. Take your time. Glance at your notes when necessary.

4. Use your hands to communicate. Practice using natural, unforced gestures.

5. Maintain a comfortable, erect posture. Avoid the following:

   • folding your arms across your chest.

   • clasping your hands behind you.

   • keeping your hands on your hips.

   • rocking back and forth.

   • fidgeting with objects.

   • chewing gum.

6. Use your voice effectively. You can mark your copy for vocal variety by using the techniques that follow.

“According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. . . . If you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.”

—Jerry Seinfeld