Giving a business presentation can be incredibly exciting. However, it may also be anxiety-inducing, especially if it’s your first time giving one. If you’re looking for advice in this area, here are three tips for giving an effective business presentation.
1. Be Clear
In order for your presentation to be effective, the audience needs to understand what you’re saying. Therefore, it’s essential to ensure that your presentation is easily understandable. Go back through your slides. On each one, there should be distinct words with a fairly large font. Try to avoid having lighter words with lighter backgrounds, and vice versa.
You’ll also want to avoid adding distracting graphics. If you have an important graphic, give it its own page. Next, look at the essential data. It should be presented in a way that’s comprehensible and engaging, which may be helped by hiring a data visualization designer. Once that’s done, inspect your planned speech. Keep in mind that this will probably be spoken, not read. That means you need to avoid using complex or run-on sentences. Overall, be sure that your main point is easy to grasp.
2. Do Your Research
No matter how good your presentation is, it may not be effective without research. Doing the proper research can make a world of difference. This should be completed throughout the entire process. From beginning to end, you’ll want to cite all of your sources. If you state a figure that one of your colleagues is curious about, you’ll want to have the source behind it on hand.
Try to make sure that these sources are reliable. Primary sources are excellent in this regard. You’ll also want to prepare for questions. While the presentation should be your main focus, it’s likely you’ll get some questions that aren’t answered by your initial work. In this case, it’s helpful to have further knowledge surrounding the topic. This can allow you to at least provide a general answer, along with places to go for more information.
3. Practice Beforehand
Practice is essential. Without it, you may not feel comfortable when giving the presentation. Ergo, it’s wise to leave yourself ample practice time. First, you’ll want to run the presentation on your own. This can give you a space to explore the piece without fear of judgment. You may stumble over the words, make awkward hand gestures, and lose your train of thought however much you like.
During this stage, it might be wise to present in front of a mirror. Doing this can show you how well your intended body language is translating. Once you’ve practiced on your own for a while, it may be helpful to ask for outside help. In many cases, a friend or family member will be sufficient. However, industry-specific presentations might require bringing in a colleague. Whoever you choose, make sure to take the feedback seriously.
Business presentations are rarely easy to undertake. Despite this, presenting one can be incredibly rewarding. As long as you do enough work beforehand, your presentation may be heading for success.