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Planning and Delivering Effective Presentations: A Comprehensive Guide - Prof. Brian O. Wr, Study notes of Computer Science

University of South Alabama (USA)Computer Science
Prof. Brian O. Wright

A detailed guide on planning and delivering effective presentations. It covers various types of presentations, audience analysis, content planning, developing an effective introduction, organizing information, using visuals, and delivering the presentation. It also discusses the use of powerpoint in multimedia presentations.

Typology: Study notes

Pre 2010

Uploaded on 08/16/2009

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Presentation Concepts
Yes, this is a computer applications class, but before we can discuss how to
create a Slide Show presentation using an application like PowerPoint, we first
need to discuss the steps that must be taken to plan what will be covered in a
presentation.
Planning Your Presentation
You should plan your presentation just as you would plan a written document.
First consider your purpose, audience, and situation. Planning in advance will
improve the quality of your presentation, make it more effective and enjoyable,
and save you time and effort.
The purpose of your presentation should be the first thing you think about. Is the
presentation’s purpose to inform, to persuade, to demonstrate a skill, or train?
Informative presentations are used to provide an audience with
background information, knowledge, and details about a topic. Your goal
should be to provide useful and relevant information to your audience.
Persuasive presentations are usually focused on influencing how an
audience feels or acts regarding a position or plan. These presentations
may be sales-oriented or motivational in nature.
Training presentations provide audiences with an opportunity to learn new
skills or obtain new knowledge about a specific task.
Also to consider are the needs of your audience. What is it that you want your
listeners to walk away with? Describing the audience’s desired outcomes of the
presentation may be useful in planning your basic approach. Other factors to
consider are the demographics of your audience such as age, gender, education
level, and knowledge of your topic. Knowing your audience will help you adapt
the content of your message to the appropriate level. This helps ensure that the
information you provide will be useful, interesting, and relevant.
The setting and location of your presentation will also dictate the level of
formality. In advance, be sure to find out information about the locale you will be
presenting in such as size and shape of the room, the seating arrangement, and
the size of your audience. These factors may also influence the type of medium
you use and the size of your visuals.
Developing Your Presentation
Once you’ve defined the purpose of your presentation and have analyzed your
audience’s needs and expectations, you need to plan the content. First, identify
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Presentation Concepts

Yes, this is a computer applications class, but before we can discuss how to create a Slide Show presentation using an application like PowerPoint, we first need to discuss the steps that must be taken to plan what will be covered in a presentation.

Planning Your Presentation

You should plan your presentation just as you would plan a written document. First consider your purpose, audience, and situation. Planning in advance will improve the quality of your presentation, make it more effective and enjoyable, and save you time and effort. The purpose of your presentation should be the first thing you think about. Is the presentation’s purpose to inform, to persuade, to demonstrate a skill, or train?  Informative presentations are used to provide an audience with background information, knowledge, and details about a topic. Your goal should be to provide useful and relevant information to your audience.  Persuasive presentations are usually focused on influencing how an audience feels or acts regarding a position or plan. These presentations may be sales-oriented or motivational in nature.  Training presentations provide audiences with an opportunity to learn new skills or obtain new knowledge about a specific task. Also to consider are the needs of your audience. What is it that you want your listeners to walk away with? Describing the audience’s desired outcomes of the presentation may be useful in planning your basic approach. Other factors to consider are the demographics of your audience such as age, gender, education level, and knowledge of your topic. Knowing your audience will help you adapt the content of your message to the appropriate level. This helps ensure that the information you provide will be useful, interesting, and relevant. The setting and location of your presentation will also dictate the level of formality. In advance, be sure to find out information about the locale you will be presenting in such as size and shape of the room, the seating arrangement, and the size of your audience. These factors may also influence the type of medium you use and the size of your visuals.

Developing Your Presentation

Once you’ve defined the purpose of your presentation and have analyzed your audience’s needs and expectations, you need to plan the content. First, identify

the major points or main ideas that are most relevant. As you brainstorm, capture ideas, concepts, and information to be presented. Then, group those ideas into natural associations based on the material. Give each category a name or title. Next, organize those groups in order of how they should be presented to your audience, from most important to least important. Any remaining information can be used to fill in other parts of the presentation or in a question/answer period.

The Introduction

The introduction allows you to first capture the audience’s attention. This is probably the most important part since it provides the audience with a first impression of you and your presentation and sets the tone for the rest of the presentation. Effective introductions enable you to create a positive relationship with the audience and provide your listeners with an overview or preview of what’s to come. Examples of ways to grab the audience’s attention are:  Anecdotal stories or personal experiences  Surprising facts or questions about the topic  Quotations, familiar phrases or definitions If your audience is unfamiliar with you, you should first introduce yourself and briefly list your credentials if it will help establish credibility with your audience. (Be careful, though, not to boast or distance yourself from the audience.) Next, give a general overview of your presentation to prepare your listeners for what will follow. Also, tell the listeners how the information presented will benefit them so they will know what they have to gain by listening to you.

The Body

The body of your presentation contains the message you are trying to deliver. Your information should be well-organized and should follow a logical manner so your audience can easily follow your ideas. It’s important to keep the information simple and relevant. Substantiate the main points of your presentation with evidence from specific examples, data, or supportable facts or expert opinions. As you shift from one point or topic to the next, always provide a smooth transition. Effective transitions help the listener mentally summarize what you have just discussed and prepare them for the next subject. This also allows you to pause briefly to refer to your notes or reestablish eye contact with your listeners.

The Conclusion

The conclusion of the presentation is perhaps the most powerful part of the presentation; however, it is often the most overlooked in the planning process. Summaries and conclusions give you an opportunity to reemphasize your main points. This gives the audience a final impression of you and your presentation. Be sure to have a clear, obvious transition as you move into your conclusion. This signals to the audience that you are about to conclude. Repeating the main points of your presentation will help your audience to remember what you have

 Illustrations should only be used if they are supplementing your main points, not because they merely look pretty.  Abide by copyright laws and avoid plagiarism. ALWAYS give proper credit if you are duplicating data or visuals you have obtained elsewhere. In addition to selecting the appropriate visual based on the information you are trying to convey, you should take into account the audience’s knowledge and experience when choosing your visuals. If the audience is familiar with the subject, more complex visuals may be used. Also important is assessing the situation. You need to consider the location and what equipment you will have available. Giving Your Presentation There are three types of delivery methods:

  1. Written or memorized delivery
  2. Extemporaneous delivery, or
  3. Impromptu delivery A written or memorized presentation is effective if you are presenting material you may be unfamiliar with or if it is a highly complex topic. This technique is also useful when you are addressing a large or formal audience, if you have a strict time limit, or if you are inexperienced in public speaking. It can be difficult to alter in response to changes and may not allow for natural delivery, however. Extemporaneous presentations are ideal if you are familiar with the topic, in an informal setting, and have a flexible time limit. It also allows flexibility for audience participation and questions. This method allows for more natural delivery and you can adapt your presentation as needed. Impromptu presentations are the most flexible, but can be more difficult. This method involves speaking without notes, an outline, or memorized text. To be effective, you should be very familiar with your topic and audience and be presenting to a small group. Whichever delivery method you choose, be prepared for questions from the audience. Be sure to listen carefully to the question and repeat it to be sure that the audience heard it. Keep answers brief. If you can’t answer a question, admit it, and move on to the next question. Keep in mind that questions should be welcomed – this shows the audience had interest in what you said, even if some questions are controversial or unexpected.

Useful Guidelines for Giving a Good Presentation

  1. Preparation – This is the key to a relaxed and effective presentation. a. Begin with a script to help prepare yourself in what you are going to say and how you want to say it. b. Observe other presenters; make notes of what you like and try to implement those things into your own presentations. c. Think positively about the presentation; the audience wants to see a good presentation and wants to listen and learn. d. Give yourself plenty of time; avoid rushing around before the presentation; arrive early and devote a few minutes of time to relax and review your notes. e. Tell your story in an interesting way to inspire enthusiasm. f. Practice speaking with your audience, not at them. Remember to practice with your visual aids. g. Practice, Practice, Practice!!! This helps build confidence.
  2. Addressing Your Audience a. Focus your presentation on the listener. b. When you first stand up, look at the audience and smile. c. Don’t read that speech! Reading your speech word for word does not allow for natural delivery. d. Be sure to use proper grammar and pronunciation; avoid filler words such as “um,” “like,” and “ya know.” e. Establish eye contact. This helps establish a positive rapport with your listeners. It also allows you to judge how things are going based on the audience’s reaction to your message. f. Pause for emphasis after key thoughts or numbers. g. Breathe!
  3. Vocal Security a. Speak naturally, confidently, and inspirationally; deliver your message at about 80% of the pace of normal speaking. b. Vary the pitch, rate, and volume to avoid a monotone delivery. c. Repeat yourself with different words at a different pace and volume level for emphasis. d. Good posture improves the quality of your voice. e. Breathe deeply to help you speak properly.
  4. Non-verbal Communication. Over ½ of human communication is non- verbal. If your body communicates enthusiasm then you message will, too. Body language: a. Makes the message more meaningful and memorable. b. Punctuates your presentation; body language is like grammar to the written language. c. Relieves nervous tension.

multimedia presentations. There are certain things you should be aware of regarding the use of multimedia in presentations:  It is the presenter’s job to change the audience; don’t let the presentation take that away from you. You are attempting to get some message across to the audience. It is the message that is important, not the slide show.  The slide show can divert the attention of the audience and speaker from the message; the slide show can become the center of the presentation.  PowerPoint can be a real time waster; hours can be spent refining a slide show, fine tuning fonts, resizing bullets, etc.  Multimedia has a strong appeal to visual learners, which make up roughly only about 40% of the audience. In reality, visual learners do not learn from reading words on a screen (text with clip art), but instead from pictures (such as graphs, charts, and diagrams).  You are expecting the audience to absorb information form both the ear and eye – a very inefficient way of learning. If you hand out printouts of your slides, this makes it worse. Now you are asking them to absorb information from three sources.  Most people clean up their presentation and transfer it to slides; this can become a crutch for a nervous presenter. This practice allows speakers to take a back seat to their visuals. In order to effectively use PowerPoint, keep the following points in mind:  You have to be the driving agent behind the presentation; the slides are a visual aid and only a visual aid. Their job is to make your presentation interesting, add emphasis, and show things in a different way – not to be the presentation.  Keep it simple and keep it moving. Use animation and slide transitions to keep the audience’s attention.  Choose visuals only after you know what you are going to say.  Limit the amount of text on a screen.  The presenter should be the prime focus; visuals should be used sparingly and only to reinforce what the speaker says.  Handouts can be used to provide background information; slides should be brief and to the point. Don’t make your slides into handouts – too much content.  Visuals (PowerPoint) should come at the end of the speech preparation process. The visual aid (slide) must aid in the clarity of the presentation. If it doesn’t, then don’t use it.