Knockout Business Presentations – Top Secrets Revealed

If you own or are employed in a business enterprise, then there’s no escaping presentations. Most of us have been at the receiving end of too many boring and pointless presentations and thus the art of making effective presentations should have been obvious but sadly, the wisdom still lays buried deep and largely unpracticed. A few pointers to making knockout presentations that have the audience clapping for more.

Grab the Attention

It is important that you have got the attention of the audience right from the very start. There are smart presenters who do not even waste time in introducing themselves but dive straight in with some vivid images of the problem that silence the chatter in the audience and create high drama. Once you know that you have got the attention of the audience, you can explain what your intention is and present your credentials. The approach needs to be tailored appropriately depending upon the subject; while this may work just fine if you are presenting on a highly-emotional subject, it is unlikely to be of much use if your topic is something more prosaic like a drill bit, though the really creative folks can always find a way.

Overview of the Presentation

Before proceeding further into your presentation, you should take the audience into confidence regarding the key elements of the presentation so that they know what exactly is in store. Do not just list out the sections but provide a short summary of the contents as well so that the audience is able to relate with it. This part of the discussion also has the advantage of giving an elegant way out for any member of the audience who thinks that the presentation is not as per his interest or requirement; a visibly bored attendee can also pull down the mood of the people around him. A good way of impressing them about the quality of your presentation to come is by using high quality PowerPoint templates that can speak more about your professionalism than mere words.

Pack In Loads of Energy

When you are presenting your point of view on any subject, the audience will be making judgment calls all the time depending upon your level of enthusiasm and how convinced you look to them. You should be able to project a very high level of energy and enthusiasm about the subject. Use your body language to best effect and make eye contact with the audience to raise the level of the interaction.

Make the Packaging Smart

Make the information dissemination through your presentation as pleasurable an experience as possible for the audience. You can appreciate that nobody like to read loads of text and data from a screen and then take the trouble of interpreting it. Make your point as briefly as possible through unambiguous text and support your claim with relevant but interesting visual stimuli like charts, graphs, photographs or even AV tracks.

Presentation Length

It is essential to keep it as short as possible without missing out on essential details necessary for a proper comprehension of the issues at hand. Good presentations do not last more than 10-15 minutes.

Conclude Effectively

It is extremely important for you to design and deliver a conclusion that leaves an impression on the minds of the audience. Refer back to your introduction of the topic, do a quick scroll through with the problems and solutions offered, and suggest the future course of action for participation by the audience. Sprinkle in some humor and leave everybody in a positive frame of mind. That’s all to making a topnotch presentation!