Unit 6.

PRESENTATION TECHNIQUE AND PRESENTATION

Presentation is a formal talk in which you describe or explain something to a group of people

e.g. to make/give presentation

1. The text below contains several recommendations for giving effective presentation. Scan the text to match the seven points below to the right paragraph, a) – g). You do not have to read the text in detail.

1. Choose visuals to support the presentation.

2. Have a simple, clear structure.

3. Show enthusiasm.

4. Use PowerPoint.

5. Making informal presentation.

6. Consider the audience.

7. Dealing with nerves.

a) ….. The key to a successful oral presentation is to keep thing simple.

I try to stick to three points. I give an interview of the points, present them to the audience and summarize them at the end.

b) ….. My purpose or desired income, the type of audience, and the message

dictate the formality of the presentation the kind of visuals, the number

of anecdotes and the jokes or examples that I use. Most of my

presentations are designed to sell, to explain, or to motivate. When I plan the presentation I think about the audience. Are they professionals or

nonprofessionals? Purchases or sellers? Providers or users? Internal or

external? My purpose and the audience mix determine the tone and the

focus of the presentation.

c) ….. When I make a presentation, I use the visuals as the outline, I will not use

notes. I like to select the kind of visual that not only best supports the

message but also best fits the audience and the physical location.

PowerPoint, slides, overhead transparencies, and flip charts are the four

main kinds of visuals I use.

d) ….. PowerPoint and slide presentation work well when I am selling a product

or an idea to large groups (15 people or more). In this format, I like to use examples and graphs and tables to support my message in a general way.

e) ….. In small presentations, including one-on-ones and presentations where

the audience is part of the actual process, I like transparencies or flip charts. They allow me to be more informal.

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f) ….. I get very, very nervous when I speak in public. I handle my nervousness

by just trying to look as if, instead of talking to so many people, I’m walking in and talking to a single person. I don’t like to speak behind lecterns. Instead, I like to get out and just be open and portray that openness: “I’m here to tell you a story.”

g) ….. I try very hard for people to enjoy my presentations by showing enthusiasm on the subject and by being sincere. I try not to use a hard sell – I just try to report or to explain – and I think that comes across. In addition, it helps that I am speaking about something that I very strongly believe in and something that I really enjoy doing.

2. Read the text in detail and answer the questions:

1) What advice from Luis E. Lamela do you think is the most important?

2) What are the key considerations involved in preparing a

presentation?

3. Read the conversation between management trainees talking about the preparation of presentations. They mention eight key areas. What areas do they mention? Number them in the order in which they are mentioned.

George: Right, now let’s think about the preparation of the

presentation. What do you have to do to prepare it?

Sara: The most important thing is to know the audience, find out about them.

Bob: Yes, but you need to make sure about your objectives first,

so decide on the objectives – what you want the talk to achieve.

Sara: Yes, but to do that, you need to know about the audience –

their knowledge, what they want to know, you know,

everything like that.

George: So, audience and objectives.

Hal: And the third thing you have to sort out is content, collect

information, organize it, decide on a structure.

Sara: Yes, get a good structure, I agree. Then once the structure is

okay, you need to visuals, any graphs, you know, that sort

of things.

George: Yes, the visual supports.

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Sara: The, you could write it all out. At least the introduction –

just to practice it. Some people write out everything, some

don’t. It depends.

George: I think that’s a good point. But practice is really very

important. A key part of the presentation is to actually

practise it, to give the presentation – practise until you

could go it just from notes. Then well … what else?

Bob: Check all the language, keep it simple, make sure there’re

no mistakes on the visuals. Spelling and all that.

Hal: And I think you should check that the room is okay, check

the equipment is okay. And maybe also PowerPoint. If you

use PowerPoint, make sure your computer and the disc, or

the data projector, make sure it all works.

George: Yes, using presentations software can help enormously.

4. Comment on any of the points mentioned in the discussion you have read. Which do you think are the most important? Do you feel it is necessary to write out a presentation?

5. STARTING PRESENTATIONS

Decide whether each sentence in the Useful Language box is “formal” or “informal”? Write “Formal” (F) and “Informal” (I).