This lesson presents strategies for improving your oral presentation skills. At the completion of this lesson, you should be able to:

• Identify strategies for conducting effective oral presentations.
• Indicate how actively engaging the audience contributes to effective communication.
• Identify your own anxiety about public speaking and take steps to reduce your anxiety.
• Prepare and deliver an oral presentation in a manner that effectively delivers the message and meets the needs of the target audience.
• Identify personal action steps to improve your oral presentation skills.

Audio Transcript, Preparing for Oral Presentations

At the beginning of this course you considered great speeches you have heard and what made them strong and effective. Typically, great speeches:

• Match the message to the audience.
• Match the content and delivery to the purpose.
• Are delivered in a clear and engaging manner.

Matching the message to the audience begins with analyzing the needs of the audience. The more you know about your audience, the better you can connect with them.

What you say and how you say it also need to be consistent with the purpose of the presentation. It is likely that you will make two types of presentations:

Informational presentations

Transmit specific knowledge. Present information directly or through explanation. Feature statistics or supporting research. Present ideas in logical sequence. For example, if asked to provide fire evacuation guidance to the occupants of a residential complex, you would make an informational presentation.

Motivational presentations

Create awareness, change attitudes, or garner support. Use concrete language to communicate abstract points. Use vivid and interesting language. For example, if you are trying to gain community support for a preparedness initiative, you would make a motivational presentation, or one with both informational and motivational elements.

Informational messages can be organized in this order:

1. Introduction - briefly explain the goal, and what points will be covered.
2. Discussion of main points - give details about the main points.  This is the main focus and amount of the information.
3. Conclusion - reiterate the main points briefly, ask questions to ensure understanding.

Motivational presentations are delivered in a different manner than informational presentations. A common approach is to:

1. Open with an attention-getting introduction.
2. Create tension or a need for the message in the audience.
3. Demonstrate that your message can satisfy the need you identified.
4. Use visualization to magnify the appeal.
5. Provide the action step that you want the audience to take.

Tips:

• Use the introduction to establish your credibility by demonstrating your familiarity with the topic.
• Use a vivid illustration to highlight the importance of the need or problem to the listeners.
• Create a need for your solution or idea by highlighting one or two benefits, rather than providing a laundry list.
• Show how your specific ideas will resolve the problem or meet the need you’ve identified.
• Tell the audience how, when, why, and what it can do to carry out your proposal.

Preparing an oral presentation involves planning, development, and writing. Select each step below to learn about the key concepts.

• Plan the presentation.
• Develop the presentation.
• Write the presentation.

The first step toward effective delivery is to develop a delivery strategy:

• How do you wish to appear?
• What tone is appropriate for the subject matter and audience?
• How can you use body language effectively?
• How long should you speak?

The second step is to practice, practice, practice!  Tips:

Effective communication requires practice to get it right. Practice your presentation repeatedly until you are completely familiar with the content. Rehearse the opening until you have it memorized. (This strategy will help you to relax.)

• Become comfortable with the pronunciation and enunciation of your material.
• Present your speech in front of a mirror to check your nonverbal behavior and identify any unconscious mannerisms.
• Stand upright and relaxed. Make eye contact with people in various parts of the room.
• Try to gesture an average of twice in each sentence.
• Turn your torso to face various parts of the audience.
• Use volume, pitch, and emphasis to maximize your message.
• Use pauses for impact before you begin and during speech transitions.

Practice with a watch to check your pacing and ensure that your message fits the allotted time.

Get feedback as you practice

• Ask an observer to provide feedback to refine your delivery.
• If possible, videotape or tape record your practice session.

There may be times when you will prepare an oral presentation for a small audience in a small meeting space—for example, in a room instead of an auditorium. In these circumstances, you may be able to use charts, PowerPoint visuals, or other media to enhance your presentation.

Use of presentation media may be especially effective for audience members who have access and functional needs because it allows them to use multiple senses to take in the information.

It is important to use presentation media effectively so they enhance rather than detract from your presentation.

• Use dark colors for text. Black, blue, green, brown, and purple stand out and are easier to read than pastels. Alternate colors from line to line to separate ideas or topics.
• Waterbased markers will not bleed through to the next page.
• Highlight key points. Use color, shapes, graphics, boxing, underlining, and pictures to focus attention on key points.
• Use bold printing, at least 1 inch tall. Smaller letters are hard to read.
• Leave space between lines. Lines of text that are too close together are hard to read.
• Use the top 2/3 of the board. It can be hard to read text near the bottom of the page, especially for those in the back of the room.
• Use as few words as possible. Too much text can be distracting. • Check readability. Walk to various parts of the room to see if people will be able to see and read the chart.
• Don’t block the audience’s view. Stand to one side so that you don’t block people’s view of what is being written.
• When capturing audience ideas, record key words quickly and write exactly what they say. This technique keeps the audience interested. Do not edit the content of what was said.

• Test the equipment. Arrive early and test the equipment. Check the readability of your visuals for different locations within the room.
• Have backups. If you are using a projector, have an extra bulb on hand. Have a second set of PowerPoint files. Recognize that equipment can fail so also prepare to give your presentation without the hardware!
• Dim lights as little as possible. Dim the lights in the room (but don’t make it too dark). If you can, darken the lights in the front of the room where the screen is located. Bring the lights back up to complete exercises or during discussions.
• Position yourself. Stand to either side (rather than in front) of the equipment and screen. Talk to the audience, not to the projected image or your computer.
• Use motion. Motion attracts people’s eyes. Gesture to the screen when appropriate. Stand still when you want people to read the screen.
• Pace yourself. During the presentation, hold the image on the screen only until the audience has had time to grasp the meaning.
• Control attention. Turn the projector off or make the screen black when it is not being used.
• Be confident.

Interactive presentations, such as media interviews and news conferences, differ from static presentations in that you are less in control of the content and flow, and it is difficult to pre-script them.

On the other hand, these very qualities can add interest and energize both you and the audience. You need to stay on your toes and be ready to respond in a calm, confident, and clear manner.

It is important to plan ahead by anticipating the types of questions that will be asked and practicing how you will respond.

Select this link to access tips for media interviews.
Select this link to access tips for news conferences.

Effective presentation is much more than just presenting your ideas or delivering a speech. It is about skillful communication and relating to the audience (whether a few people or a large gathering).

• Face the audience and maintain an attentive stance.
• Avoid reading to the group. Simple notes can help you avoid reading from a prepared script.
• Come out from behind the lectern, minimizing barriers between you and the audience.
• Don’t stand in a fixed position. Move around to keep the audience engaged and energized. Draw people in by moving toward them. Remember: If you fidget, then everyone will sense your discomfort.
• Make eye contact and avoid talking with your back toward the group.

Mark Twain said, “There are two types of speakers. Those who get nervous and those who are liars.”

Glossophobia, or speech anxiety, is one of the most common phobias affecting about 70% of the population. How do you feel when you learn that you must present a speech?

To analyze your level of speech anxiety, take a few minutes to complete the self-inventory on the next screen.

Some people are anxious speaking in front of others. Symptoms of Speech Anxiety include:

• Tightness in chest
• Dry mouth
• Clammy palms
• Stomach pain or nausea
• Shortness of breath
• Other

Whatever the sources of your anxiety, there are many steps that you can take to reduce nervousness and gain control of your presentation. Most presenters control their nerves by:

• Preparing ahead of time.
• Practicing your presentation until you are comfortable and confident with it.
• Connecting with the audience before starting the presentation.
• Converting the nervousness into positive energy.
• Maintaining a sense of humor.
• Knowing that there is no such thing as a perfect presentation.
• Realizing that audiences want the presenter to succeed.
• Knowing it is okay to pause to gather thoughts.

Instructions:

1. Prepare a briefing or other oral presentation using the provided worksheet. You may choose to use a regular work-related responsibility or event as the basis of your presentation, or you may wish to use this as a practice opportunity. Select this link to access the worksheet.
2. Deliver the presentation. Ask a friend or colleague to observe the presentation and give you feedback using the provided checklist. Select this link to access the observer checklist.
3. Review the observer’s feedback. Identify strengths and needed improvements, and develop strategies for improvement.

This lesson has presented strategies for improving your oral presentation skills. You should now be able to:

• Identify strategies for conducting effective oral presentation.
• Identify your own anxiety about public speaking and take steps to reduce your anxiety.
• Prepare and deliver an oral presentation in a manner that effectively delivers the message and meets the needs of the target audience.
• Identify personal action steps to improve your oral presentation skills.

You have now completed this course. Prior to taking the examination, we recommend that you:

• Complete the offline activities suggested throughout the course if you have not already done so.

Select this link for a printable summary of this course.