10 Tips to Great Presentations

Ten great presentations tips about planning, designing and delivering presentations in English:

1. First, define your prospective listeners and their needs.
2. Describe the context in which you operate: for which contract, for what purpose (promoting an idea, informing team members, presenting a design review, fund raising, etc.) and plan your presentation accordingly.
3. “Know Thy Audience”, their wishes, their expectations, their politics or hidden agenda, where they came from and where they are going.
4. Adjust your talk to your audience, including the register, the tone, use of humor, use of professional jargon, etc.
5. If the audience is comprised of people of different backgrounds (for example, developers and marketing people) – find the common ground and use a language that is understandable and interesting to them all.
6. Then deliver a practical message to your audience, while incorporating the three Cs: Clarity, Connection and Conviction.
7. Don’t be too technical, you don’t have time; Instead, try to use known concepts that everybody understands.
8. Respect the timing allocated for your presentation, but also be adaptive – if there is a point which needs to be further explained, don’t hesitate to cut down on other issues.
9. Remember that as a professional of any field – your role is not to sell technical knowledge but a product/service that gives a practical solution to the customer’s need.
10. Practice makes perfect – practice your presentation time and time again in front of friends, family, colleagues, even the mirror, in order to deliver a convincing and effective presentation.