Planning Your Presentation

Careful planning can help you to fulfill your purpose in presenting, meet your audience's needs, manage the content of your presentation, and be more relaxed in your delivery. Everyone has their own way of planning and structuring presentations. The information here works for many people. It is by no means the only way or best way. What works for you will depend on your topic, your audience, and your own style. Your approach may also change as you gain experience in presenting.

Purpose and Audience

Every presentation has a purpose: to provide information, to persuade, to motivate, to commemorate, and/or to entertain. Most sessions at MSACROA are to provide information to your colleagues. Consider the following when planning your presentation:

• What do you want the audience to know or do or believe after the presentation?
• What are the key points you want to present?
• What level of knowledge or experience might the audience already have about the topic?
• What issues or concerns about the topic might they have?
• What questions might come up?
• How much time is there for the presentation?

The answers will help you determine the scope of the presentation. Focus on your key points – three or four are usual sufficient.

Structure

Tell them what you're going to tell them,
Tell them, then
Tell them what you told them!

The most common structure for presentations is (1) an introduction, (2) main content, and (3) conclusion.

People most pay attention during the beginning of presentations and at the end when they refocus their attention. You may find it helpful to include your key points in both these sections.

In the introduction, provide a brief overview of the topic. You might want to include your key points, why the topic is relevant, and tie in the interests and needs your audience has for the information.

In the main content section, expand on your key points, adding facts and information to explain your points. Arrange your key points and sub-points in a logical manner, for example by level of importance, from broad to narrow, or chronological. Provide enough information to support your key points but not so much that the audience is overwhelmed or so little that they gain only a sketchy understanding.

The conclusion can briefly restate your key points, sum up the topic, and if appropriate, indicate the next steps you want the audience to take.

Factor in some time for questions. Audiences very much appreciate the opportunity to clarify items.

While this 3 part structure is the most commonly used, there are others. Examples of creative formats are panel discussions, case study discussions, audience participation (cracker-barrels, brainstorming), group exercises, debates, simulations and role-playing. The structure you choose will depend on your style preferences, your audience, and the topic.

Audiovisual aids (A/V) and Handouts

Audiovisual aids can enhance your presentation by emphasizing your points, and by providing illustrations, charts and graphs that would be difficult to describe. They can be computer based (e.g. PowerPoint, webpages), overhead transparencies, slides, video/film clips, flipcharts, posters, or white/blackboards. A/V needs to be visible and audible to a group. Lettering should be large and sound volume needs to reach the back of the room.

Handouts are very popular with audiences. Handouts provide them with some of your information, allow them to add notes, and can be referred to later or shared with co-workers back in the office.

Keep in mind that A/V and handouts serve different purposes. A/V is an aid during your presentation; handouts are a reference for later use. Good A/V aids rarely make for good handouts and vice-versa.

A few words about technical difficulties: be prepared to cope with them. While most of the time A/V equipment works fine, there is always the possibility of computer glitches, blown bulbs in projectors, no internet access or the website you're accessing being down. Don't let a lack of A/V throw off your presentation! Have a contingency plan (and maybe a contingency plan to the contingency plan) for potential technical problems.

Audio-visual Contingency Plans

Internet

Save the webpages on your notebook computer and open the saved files in your browser.
Capture screen shots and put them in a computer presentation or overhead transparencies.

Computer presentations and slides

Print the computer screens and slides on overhead transparencies.

Film, video, music

Have it available on various media (videotape, CD, DVD, flashdrive.

Overhead transparencies

Have flipcharts, posters or handouts

Everything

Be able to present without the A/V aids. Ultimately the audience is interested in your information and not the audiovisual extras.

Practice

Practice is the final part of planning. This gives you a chance to become even more familiar with your presentation and check that it fits into the time allotted.

• Practice out loud and with your audiovisual aids; the spoken word is generally slower than reading to yourself and you may find that changing slides or transparencies adds additional time.
• If you can, practice in front of a group or videotape yourself.
• Make sure your speaker notes are useful to YOU. Using large print makes it easier to scan your notes. Some people like index cards with key words; some like a list of key points and subpoints; some like a more detailed outline with key words highlighted and/or color coded sections. Use whatever helps you to stay focused on the topic, but don't read a speech word for word.
• Practice projecting your voice.
• Practice your contingency plans for your A/V.