lecturer: gareth jones class 9: presentations 3. how to be a better presenter ◦ body language ◦...

Lecturer: Gareth JonesLecturer: Gareth JonesClass 9: Presentations 3Class 9: Presentations 3

How to be a better presenter◦Body language◦Stances◦Speech◦Practising the presentation◦Conquering Nerves◦Presentations summary

20/04/23Business Communication (BUS-101) 2

Feet close together and your weight evenly distributed between them

Do not grow roots - don't stand in one position! Inject movement as you speak Why?


Don’t walk around too much or the audience will find it distracting and annoying


How do you look to your audience? How do you come across to your audience? Why is this important?


Usually you don’t notice what you do with your arms… BUT in a formal presentation you are constantly aware

of them. The key point about arms is to ignore them. Moving your arms away from your body and showing

open palms to your audience can also be a good tactic..


Negative passive stance Negative aggressive stance


This stance involves an unbalanced position◦ Leaning on one leg ◦Arms may be crossed low in front of the body in a

protective way. Often be accompanied by inappropriate eye contact and

a nervous vocal style. Portrays a lack of confidence Audience may see this as a sign that you don’t believe in

your words.


Standing with hands on hips Constantly intruding into the public zone Fixing on one or two members of the audience:◦Dominant gaze ◦Unsmiling face.

Arrogant, closed-minded and domineering attitude. May be used by someone in authority in order to

intimidate their audience.


There are further aspects of posture that you should be aware of - as they can easily communicate subconscious messages; some of which you will want to avoid:◦ Forward sloping◦Backward sloping◦Bent stance◦Upright stance


Indicates a wish to dominate others, often it is accompanied by an over-stressed point.

Impose a concept or point of view on their audience. Made worse by aggressive or intrusive behaviour –◦Entering the public zone or the use of hostile gestures.


A Indicates a presenter who is not happy with their situation.

This defensive or submissive stance tends to indicate that they:◦ Lack confidence in what they are saying ◦Would rather not be there.


Indicative of a person who is saying something without conviction.

Saying one thing whilst meaning another:◦ salesperson giving an exaggerated sales pitch◦ customer who wants to say no but has been placed in an

awkward position.


Demonstrates adult, assertive behaviour with no hidden meaning or manipulations in the communication.

Indicates that the person has conviction and confidence in what they are saying.

This is the posture you should practice and use when presenting.


One of the most obvious forms of conscious body language communication is the hand gesture.

Be careful with your hand gestures Why?


Be aware of the standard interpretations associated with them ◦Avoid any with a strong negative meaning - such as a

threatening gesture. When you rehearse you may want to:◦ Include some pre-planned hand movements◦ but let others occur in a natural and spontaneous way.


Where should your eyes by looking? Why?


Try to address the whole audience throughout the presentation

Avoid looking at the floor Avoid looking to the back Avoid looking at one person


What do we mean by vocal quality?◦Vocal variety◦Rate◦Articulation◦Volume.


Effectively uses pauses throughout the speech to signal that a new point is about to be made.

Pauses can also be used to create tension, or Emphasise key points Create emotion


Don’t read from a script. Don’t recite the whole presentation Use a few note cards if you need to but using the visual

cues from your PPT’s is better.


You need to ask your self some questions… Such as?


Can I present my material naturally?◦Your audience wants you to talk not read to them!

Is the equipment working and can I work it?◦Do you know how to set everything up?

Is my timing good? ◦Practise your entire presentation in front of your friends.

Can I pronounce all the words I intend to use?


Can you effectively introduce slides?◦Can you introduce the slide before you show it?

Do you know what questions the audience might have?◦Put yourself in the audiences shoes

Cultural adaptations◦Appearance, mannerisms and language


Prepare more material than you need◦Combined with a genuine interest in your topic

Practise◦ The more familiar you are with your material, the better

Visualise your success◦ Imagine yourself in front of your audience before you

start feeling confident and prepared


Take a few deep breaths◦ The audience want you to succeed too!

Be ready◦You don’t need to and shouldn’t memorise the

presentation BUT ◦Have the first sentence ready!


Think positively◦ If you think you are professional, the audience will too

Be comfortable◦Dress appropriately◦Drink water before hand◦Bring some water with you if necessary


Don’t PANIC!!!◦ If you feel you are losing your audience pull them back

by involving them with some questions◦Ask for their opinions◦ Take some deep breaths

Concentrate on your message and your audience, not on yourself◦You forget your fears when thinking about the audience

and your topic


Maintain eye contact◦Be careful to ensure you maintain eye contact with the

audience◦Shift your gaze periodically around the room◦ Looking at your listeners will make you appear sincere

and trustworthy◦Also provides a great non-verbal cue


Second language problems◦ If English isn’t your first language don’t worry about small

mistakes you make◦Brush any mistakes aside and move on◦ Let your confidence carry you

Keep going!◦ Things get better as you move along, each successful

minute giving you more confidence


Communication Strategies◦What type of presentation am I giving?◦Who are my audience?◦What is my message?◦What communication channel choices do I have?


Research◦Do I know my topic?

If no, what more do I need to know?◦How do I interpret responses?◦Why are responses important?


Organisation◦ Introduction◦Body◦Conclusion


Introduction◦Attention/opener◦Preview


Attention◦Start by getting the audiences attention◦Choose the best method by analysing your audience

before hand


Attention Get them interested◦ Tell a story – “ 四川 earthquake, how people were

rescued…”◦Show a picture

◦Show an impressive statistic- “7.9 on the Richter scale”


Attention Benefits◦Open by telling your audience how you and your

presentation can help them Benefits to both the heart and the mind


Attention Credibility◦Make your audiences interested by making your

audience trust you Are you going to cheat them? Will you deliver your promises?


Attention Humour (be careful)◦Some presentations work by opening with a joke◦Be careful as some topics or audiences will be angry at

the use of humour!


Preview◦Before discussing your main points, give a preview of

your presentation


Preview Types:◦Outline◦Agenda◦ List of main points


“In the next 5 minutes, I will discuss construction projects in three cities: Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen.”

“In the course of this presentation I will discuss the importance of idols in today’s society.”

“During this press conference I will appeal to the audience to help the people of SiChuan”


Body State Main points clearly◦Should be organised and easy to follow


Body Limit your main points◦Don’t try to say too much.◦Better to talk for longer on just a few key points

Why?


Body Use explicit and long transitions◦ “Let’s move on to the next region”◦ “The second thing I’m going to discuss is..”

Why?


Body Use internal summaries at the end of each section◦ “Now that we have looked at the parts of the introduction:

attention/opener and preview, let’s discuss the body.”


Body Keep audience interest high◦Use stories and situations your audience can relate to

Why does this work?


Body (summary) State main points clearly Limit main points Use long transitions Use internal summaries Keep audience interest high


Conclusion◦Make sure to have a strong conclusion as your audience

will remember the last things you say


Conclusion◦Begin with a strong transition such as “in conclusion” or

“to summarise”◦ The use one or more of the following techniques…


Conclusion Give a summary◦Good for explaining or instructing


Conclusion Refer to your opening◦ If you began with a story, go back to the story you used

in the introduction Why?


Conclusion End with action steps◦ For a persuasive report, make sure to tell your audience

what to do at the end


Final aspect of the presentation


Agenda Slide:◦Begin your presentation with a list of your main points◦All other slides should relate to one of these main points


Titles:◦Use effective and large titles so that the audience knows

what you are talking about


Transitions◦Have effective transitions between sections in your

presentation.◦Example: return to agenda slide


Number of slides◦ In general, one slide should be at least one minute of

talking.◦ There may be exceptions to this rule (short presentations

and lectures)


Graphics are used to:◦Wake the audience◦Emphasise a point◦Show impressive data


They should not be used too often. They must also:◦Be large◦Be clear◦Contain only relevant information


Rule of 6 Try not to put more than 6 words on 6 lines on each slide Not always possible


Avoid centering text Remember indentation! Check for errors


When to take questions How to take questions What to say if you don`t know the answer How to answer difficult questions


Inform your audience at the beginning of the presentation, when you will take questions:◦ “Please hold your questions until the end”◦ “Please ask questions as they come up”


At the end Good because you:◦Control the schedule◦Maintain flow in your presentation


At the end Bad because:◦You may lose audience attention and comprehension if

they can’t ask questions◦ It may be uncomfortable if important audience members

ask questions after you told them not to


If you do questions at the end, finalise the presentation with a very brief summary after questions have been answered

Why?


During the presentation Good because:◦Provides quick feedback◦Encourages active listening◦Questions will be more meaningful


During the presentation Bad because:◦Change your schedule/agenda◦Waste your time


If you do questions during the presentation:◦Allow enough time◦Don’t get off topic (don’t digress)


Prepare in advance Show your understanding Stick to your objective Keep everyone involved


Prepare◦Guess what questions may be asked◦Bring extra information◦Get a friend to ask possible questions while practicing


Show understanding◦Ask audience to repeat questions◦Repeat or paraphrase questions if you are dealing with

large audiences


“Someone just asked how much this plan will cost, so I will now tell you.”


Stick to your objective◦When answering the question, stick to main ideas◦ If they ask a question you plan on discussing later, tell

them you will discuss it later


Keep everyone involved◦When answering one person’s question, keep eye

contact with entire audience◦Don’t turn the presentation into a conversation


If you don’t know the answer... Say “I’m afraid I don’t know the answer to that question” Even better, say “I can look it up and let you know after

the presentation”


Only guess if you make it clear its a guess. “I believe the company started in 1983, but I might be

wrong.”


If you need time to think... Do something to buy yourself some time. Such as…


Repeat◦ “You’re wondering how to fix that?”

Turn it around◦ “How would you fix that?”

Ask the audience◦ “How would the rest of you fix that?”

Reflect◦ “Good question. Let’s think for a second”


Confusing questions◦Ask the person to repeat or rephrase their question◦Paraphrase the question to make it more relevant


Controlling Questions◦Do not feel like you have to answer◦ Thank them and continue with the presentation


Angry Questions◦ Look for common ground◦ Identify their anger and answer in a non-personal way


Get your structure right Know your topic Use effective visuals and text Use good body language Speak with confidence Conquer your nerves!


We will be covering referencing, report writing and business messages

Have a good weekend!


lecturer: gareth jones class 9: presentations 3. how to be a better presenter ◦ body language ◦...

Documents

business communication

submissive stance

roots dont

dont notice

leg arms

key point

lack confidence

overstressed point