Power skills | Presenting
How to improve your presentations
It’s only natural to find speaking in front of others nerve-racking, but you can take the initiative through preparation and practice
Words Sophie Cross
It’s a common belief that you are either naturally talented at presenting or you are not – but this isn’t true. Some people might be more confident talking in front of others but presenting is something that everyone can both practise and improve.
Presenting isn’t just about being an assertive public speaker; many skills contribute to the overall delivery. You could be extremely confident at speaking in front of an audience but still serve up a dull presentation if you don’t consider all of the elements.
Working on your skills should be a priority
It’s a common belief that you are either naturally talented at presenting or you are not – but this isn’t true. Some people might be more confident talking in front of others but presenting is something that everyone can both practise and improve.
Presenting isn’t just about being an assertive public speaker; many skills contribute to the overall delivery. You could be extremely confident at speaking in front of an audience but still serve up a dull presentation if you don’t consider all of the elements.
TOP TIPS
Essentials for great presentations
Practice, practice, practice
All these presentation skills can be improved with practice, practice and more practice. In fact, the only way you will be able to get significantly better is by presenting more. Start as small as you feel comfortable by delivering to a few people at work, or you could try approaching a local business group or coworking space and offering to give a free talk about something helpful.
Learn the Pyramid Principle
Top companies commonly use the ‘Pyramid Principle’ in business presentations. It states that “ideas in writing should always form a pyramid under a single thought”. It is used to quickly and clearly communicate potentially complex ideas by:
1. Starting with the answer first.
2. Grouping and summarising your supporting arguments.
3. Logically ordering your supporting ideas.
Always look to organise your content sequentially and support your statements with context, insights and metrics. End your presentation by looking to the future or at the next steps that can be taken.
TOP TIPS
Tips for visual presentation
If you are presenting within your company, make sure you stick to the brand guidelines. Your manager or the marketing team should be able to provide a template with the correct layouts, fonts and colours. If you are creating your own presentation, online tools such as Canva and Pitch are great for designing modern and eye-catching decks. Thoughtful design and creating consistency will help you look professional and be remembered.
When designing slides, stick to these rules so as not to overwhelm your audience:
● Less is more. Use a nice, clean design.
● Make the biggest thing on the slide the most important, as that’s what people will be drawn to.
● Use the 7 x 7 rule for slide content to keep people focused on what you are saying. Keep each slide to a maximum of seven lines, with each line containing no more than seven words.
● Don’t have one slide up for more than one or two minutes.
● Embrace bullet point lists and avoid reading your slides word for word.
● Use images as break slides to keep the audience engaged and give you a minute to read the room.
● Add visual aids such as charts to emphasise numbers.
● Use quotes, testimonials and videos for emotional resonance.
● Ask the audience questions and use a tool like Mentimeter to run live interactive polls.
Finally, offer to share the slides afterwards with anyone who might like them. If you mention this at the beginning, people won’t feel the need to take as many notes.
RESOURCES
Five resources to improve your presentation skills
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