Effective presentation skills in professional communication

¶ … history have brought us great leaders whom people all over the world recognize and admire. In front of hundreds of thousands of people they deliver stirring and moving speeches that touches each listener's heart and soul. Each of their gestures while delivering words of wisdom demands respect and attention. Truly, these great personalities from the annals of history have mastered the art of public speaking, effectively presenting their thoughts, views, ideals and policies. It is no wonder that their works in the past have become the foundation of lectures and studies on how to effectively conduct presentation in front of an audience. The manner of their delivery is now a basis for presentations aided by modern technology.

This paper shall clearly discuss important details in summary on effectively conducting presentations whether in front of a class, a work environment, a public audience or a client. Preparations, situations and the do's and the don'ts of proper staging of the presentation shall also be tackled.

Planning and Preparation

There is great importance in careful preparation and planning before conducting a presentation. Each topic should be clearly identified. The manner of the delivery and each situation should be properly placed in the body of the speech. The amount of persuasion should be carefully considered. The time allotted for the staging should be well budgeted.

With so much potentially at stake, the presenter must concentrate not only upon the facts being presented but upon the style, pace, tone and ultimately tactics which should be used. (Gerard Blaire)

An outline is commonly suggested in preparing the plan. This would include the introduction, the body and the concluding remarks and statement of the whole presentation. After all components are placed in its proper place then you are ready to deliver and conduct.

In front of your audience

Most of the time the introduction is the most critical part of a presentation. This could affect the whole body of your speech and flow of discussion, and may be the initial basis of success or failure on the delivery of your presentation. As Gerard Blaire mentioned in his article on Presentation Skills for Emergent Managers,

"..the introduction firstly puts you on display ... "

The first words that you will be uttering shall dictate the tempo of your speech and grab the attention of your audience. Creating a rapport with your listeners is very important. If the initial verbal expression fails to corner the attention of your audience then there is a big possibility that your listeners would not digest the whole body of the topic. Some articles suggest that humor be supplemented in the first line of the speech or presentation. Kevin Lerner explains in his article 10 techniques to improve your presentation,

Use humor in your presentation! Laughter helps to keep your audience more alert, involved, and inspired. For best results, use humor from your own life experiences ... not from canned jokes or one-liners.

Delivery and Conduction

Now comes the most important part of your presentation, the delivery of your ideas pertaining to the topics you would want to discuss with your audience. An online reference indicates that

Presenting your ideas powerfully and effectively demands content-knowledge, delivery skills and an awareness of the tools that can take an ordinary presentation and turn it into a powerful platform for delivering meaningful messages that will be around long after the meeting is over.

The presenter must always be aware of the gestures and actions while presenting a topic, an idea or a proposal to his audience. There are several things that masters on this field always consider while carrying out the presentation, such as the appearance of the conductor, professional and neatly groomed. Always maintain an eye contact with your audience, natural body movements. The volume, the pitch, the tone and the articulation of the voice is also one of the essential part of the delivery.

The body of the presentation should always answer the vital questions of what, why, how and who. This information is the key in giving the primary content of your topic. The topic must have a flexible and flowing structure. In modern presentations, visual aides and multimedia tools are commonly being incorporated. This can help you in making the presentation more memorable to your audience.