TOPIC 3 : DELIVERING POINT OF VIEW

CENTRE FOR LANGUAGE STUDIES (CLS), UTHM

WHAT IS A PRESENTATION?
A Presentation - a means of communication - adapted to various speaking
situations
E.g.. talking to a group, addressing a meeting or briefing a team

A presentation = broad term - encompasses other speaking

engagements
E.g. making a speech at a wedding, or getting a point across in a video
conference

To be effective, step-by-step preparation and the method and means of

presenting the information should be carefully considered.
A presentation requires you to get a message across to the listeners
and will often contain a 'persuasive' element.

PREPARING FOR A
PRESENTATION

The
Objective

The
Subject

The
Audienc
e

The
Place

A) THE OBJECTIVE
Ask yourself:
What is the purpose of the presentation?
what is the objective?
what outcome(s) do you and the audience expect?

Important to write down the reason you have been asked to present constant reminder while you prepare the presentation.
never lose sight of your objective

B) THE SUBJECT
The Subject = what you are going to talk about
comes from the objective
but they are not necessarily one and the same thing.
For example:
* The subject may be given to you by an inviting organization.
* You may be knowledgeable in particular field.
* The subject may be entirely your choice within certain limitations.

C) THE AUDIENCE
Before preparing material for a presentation - worth considering your prospective
audience.
Tailoring your talk to the audience
The following points should be considered:
* The size of the group or audience expected big / small
* The age range - a talk aimed at retired people will be quite different from one aimed at
teenagers.
* Gender - will the audience be predominantly male or female?
* Is it a captive audience or will they be there out interest?
* Will you be speaking in their work or leisure time?
* Do they know something about your subject already or will it be totally new to them? Is the
subject part of their work?
* Are you there to inform, teach, stimulate, or provoke?
* Can you use humour and if so what would be considered appropriate?

D) THE PLACE
Have as much advance information as possible about the place where you are going to speak.
It can be of great benefit to be familiar with the surroundings.
It does much to quell fear if you can visualize the place while you are preparing your talk.
If at all possible, you need to know:
* The size of the room.
* The seating arrangements and if they can be altered.
* The availability of equipment, e.g., microphone, overhead projector, flip chart, computer equipment.
* The availability of power points and if an extension lead is required for any equipment you intend to use.
* If the room has curtains or blinds. This is relevant if you intend to use visual aids, and so that you can
ensure the correct ambiance for your presentation.
* The position of the light switches. Check if you need someone to help if you are using audio/visual
equipment and need to turn off the lights.
* The likelihood of outside distractions, e.g., noise from another room.
* The availability of parking facilities so you do not have a long walk carrying any equipment you might
need to take.

HOW LONG SHOULD A

PRESENTATION BE?
Always find out how long you have to talk
Check if this includes or excludes time for questions.
Find out if there are other speakers and, if so, where you are placed in the
running order.
Beware of over-running - it could be disastrous - other speakers following
you.
People find it difficult to maintain concentration for long periods of time
make a presentation succinct, well-structured and interesting.
Aim for 45 minutes as a max (if no time limit is given)

HOW TO ORGANIZE YOUR

PRESENTATION
Give a clear, well-structured delivery - know exactly what you want to say
and the order in which you want to say it
A good presentation structure will help to alleviate any nervousness you
may be feeling in the build up to your talk.
The talk/presentation should be divided into 3 sections:
* Introduction (beginning)
* Main Content (middle)
* Conclusion (end)

A USEFUL PRESENTATION
STRUCTURE
Introduction
Tell your audience:
what your subject is
how you have organized the presentation (by stating the key elements)

Main Content
Tell them the details of the key elements and/or messages
expanding and qualifying the key points in more detail and providing supporting
evidence

Conclusion
Tell the audience what you have just told them
summarising the key points, concluding with the main subject again

INTRODUCTION & CONCLUSION

The introduction
preview of what you are going to say
gain the attention of the listeners with a statement of purpose.
Make it clear whether you wish to accept questions as they arise during the
presentation, thereby breaking your flow and risk being side-tracked, or will invite
questions at the end.

The conclusion

repeat the main points but this time try to use different words
summarize the main point and argument.
End decisively, so that no-one is in any doubt that your presentation is finished.
This is also the time to ask the audience whether they have any questions.

AS A GUIDE:
* 3 key points = a 10-15 minute presentation.
* 6 key points = a 30 minute presentation.
* 8 key points = a 45 minute presentation.
If you have too much material, be selective.
Arrange the key points in logical order

WHAT, WHY AND HOW?

What

Why

How

Identifies the key message you wish to communicate.

What can audience benefit from your presentation?

Addresses the next obvious question that arises in the audience.

what, the audience will naturally then start to think why should I do that?, why should I think
that? or why should that be the case?
Directly addressing the why? questions
Answering these questions - you have the audience on your side immediately.

How? - the next question that naturally arises in the audiences mind ( how are they going to
achieve what you have just suggested)
Try not to be too prescriptive here so, instead of telling people exactly how they should act on your
message, offer suggestions as to how they can act.

EDITING YOUR CONTENT

When editing presentation content, you should consider the following:
1) Appropriate and friendly language use
Are there any terms they may not be familiar with? If so use more familiar terms or explain the meaning.
Use accessible and easily-understood words - rather than technical or obscure words.

2) Eliminate long sentences.

audience will be listening rather than reading.
sentences must be short, and their structure - simple to ease the audiences understanding.

3) Use metaphors to aid understanding and retention.

Identify ways of grabbing the audiences attention.
Are there additional visual materials that you could include to illustrate your key points?

4) Check, and double check

Free from grammatical and spelling mistakes.

DEALING WITH QUESTIONS

Listen carefully to the question
If the audience is large, repeat it to ensure everyone in the audience has heard.
Always paraphrase it back to the questioner and check that you have it right.
Answer briefly and to the point.
If you dont know it is better to be honest than to try to pretend.
I dont know is a very acceptable answer to some difficult questions and it is much
more acceptable than stumbling through an answer or making something up.
I dont know, but Ill find out and let you know is even more acceptable.
If you do not know the answer, then say so and offer to find out - ensure that you follow
up take the questioners name and email address - make sure that you speak to them
before they or you leave.
Relax and do not feel as if you have to know everything.

EXPRESSIONS FOR
PRESENTATION
1. Greet audience & Thank people for coming
Good morning, etc. ladies and gentlemen
Thank you all very much for coming today.
I hope you all had a pleasant journey here today

2. Introduce yourself
My name is Ginny Watson and I am from .
My name is Ginny Watson from.,where I am responsible for .
Let me introduce myself; my name is Ginny Watson and

3. Introduce your subject/presentation

I plan to speak about / Id like to talk about...

Today I'm going / Im hoping to talk about...
The purpose/ subject of my presentation is...
The theme of my talk is...
I've been asked to give a presentation on...

4. Announce your outline.

I have broken my speech down/up into X parts.

My presentation today is divided into Z sections.
I have divided my presentation up into Y parts.
In todays presentation Im hoping to cover three points:
firstly, , after that we will look at , and finally Ill .

5. Stating that there will be time for questions

If you have any questions youd like to ask, please leave them until the end, when Ill be
happy to answer them.
If there are any questions youd like to ask, please leave them until the end, when Ill do
my best to answer them.
I'd ask you to save your questions for the end.
You may interrupt me at any moment to ask questions or make comments.
Please stop me if you don't understand any thing I say but could you keep any specific
questions until after I've finished.

6. Starting the presentation

To begin with .
To start with .
Lets start/begin by looking at .
Id like to start by looking at .
Lets start with / start by looking at .

7. Closing a section of the presentation

So, that concludes[title of the section] .
So, thats an overview of .
I think that just about covers .

8. Beginning a new section of the presentation

Now lets move on to .

Now lets take a look at .
Now Id like to move on to .
Next Id like to take a look at .
Moving on to the next part, Id like to .
Moving on to the next section, lets take a look at .

9. Concluding and summarising the presentation

Well, that brings us to the end of the final section. Now, Id like to summarise
by .
That brings us to the end of the final section. Now, if I can just summarise the
main points again.
That concludes my presentation. Now, if I can just summarise the main points.
Thats an overview of . Now, just to summarise, lets quickly look at the main
points again.

10. Finishing and thanking

Thank you for your attention.
That brings the presentation to an end.
That brings us to the end of my presentation.
Finally, Id like to finish by thanking you (all) for your attention.
Finally, Id like to end by thanking you (all) for coming today.
Id like to thank you (all) for your attention and interest

11. Inviting questions

If anyone has
If anyone has
If anyone has
If anyone has
to answer.

any
any
any
any

questions,
questions,
questions,
questions,

Ill be pleased to answer them.

Ill do my best to answer them.
please feel free to ask them now.
please feel free to ask them and Ill do my best

12. Dealing with (difficult) questions

Ill come back to that question later if I may.

Ill / Well come back to that question later in my presentation.
Ill / Well look at that point in more detail later on.
Perhaps we can look at that point at the end / a little later.

11 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR

PRESENTATION SKILLS
1. Practice
o Do a practice run for a friend or colleague,
o Try recording your presentation and playing it back to evaluate which areas need work.
o Listening to recordings of your past talks can clue you in to the unaware problems / habits.
o This will help you to get an accurate picture of how you speak.

2. Attend other presentations

o Try to attend presentations of others to scope out their presentation skills and get some
context.
o Give you a chance to feel out the audience.
o The speaker may also say something that you can play off of later in your own
presentation.

3. Arrive Early
o Allow yourself plenty of time to settle in before your talk.
o Extra time gives you plenty of time to get adapted to your presentation space.

4. Adjust to Your Surroundings

o The more adjusted to your environment you are, the more comfortable you'll feel.
o If possible, practice with the microphone and lighting, make sure you understand
the seating, and be aware of any distractions potentially posed by the venue
(e.g., a noisy road outside).

5. Meet and Greet.

o Do your best to chat with people before your presentation.
o Talking with audiences makes you seem more likeable and approachable.
o Ask event attendees questions and take in their responses.
o They may even give you some inspiration to weave into your talk.

6. Take Deep Breaths/stay relaxed

o When we're nervous, our muscles tighten--you may even catch yourself holding your breath.
o Instead, go ahead and take those deep breaths to get oxygen to your brain and relax your body.

7. Smile
o Smiling increases endorphins, replacing anxiety with calm and making you feel good about your
presentation.
o Smiling also exhibits confidence and enthusiasm to the crowd.
o Just don't overdo it no one enjoys the maniacal clown look.

8. Actively Engage the Audience.

o Asking the audience what they think
o welcoming audience participation can boost engagement and make attendees feel like a part of
a conversation.
o It also makes you, the presenter, seem much more relatable.
o Dont be put off by unexpected questions instead, see them as an opportunity to give your
audience what they want.

9. Be entertaining
o Even if your presentation is packed with useful information, including some jokesand light-hearted
slides is a great way to help the audience (and the presenter) feel more comfortable
o However, its important to maintain a balance after all, youre not performing a stand-up
comedy, and people didnt come to your presentation with the sole intention of being entertained.
o Dont be afraid to inject a little humor into your talk.

10.Admit You Dont Have All the Answers.

o If someone asks a question that stumps you, its okay to admit it.
o It can also increase your credibility with the audience, as it demonstrates that, no matter how
knowledgeable a person might be, were all learning, all the time.
o Nobody expects you to be the God of knowledge they just want to learn from you.

11.Use a Power Stance

o Practicing confident body language is another way to boost your pre-presentation jitters.
o When your body is physically demonstrating confidence, your mind will follow suit.
o Whatever you do, don't sit--sitting is passive.
o Standing or walking a bit will help you harness those stomach bats (butterflies? =) ).

USEFUL LINKS FOR EFFECTIVE

POWERPOINTS
Effective PowerPoints, Part 1: Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-j-c_nBpdU

Effective PowerPoints, Part 2: Effects, Fonts & Animations

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFUlIczPKbA

Effective PowerPoints, Part 3: How to Use Images

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-lOPKGqA10

USEFUL LINKS FOR EFFECTIVE

POWERPOINTS
Presentation software LEARN PREZI!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fubGt7wAiBU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMAisOfcsSs

Create infographic presentations LEARN PICKTOCHART!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzI9RzvnwZA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eV9vn9gxvEI

Create animated presentation videos - LEARN POWTOON!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFv8L0z-72c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPIazKNckI8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGY1L66WCco

ITS YOUR TURN TO SHINE!!!

Create a 3-minute presentation on any educational/interesting topic of

your choice using any of the following tools:

Prezi
Powtoon
PowerPoint slides
PiktoChart

Apply what you have just learnt into your presentation

Possible topics include travel, culture, current issues e.g. Zika virus,
poverty, water scarcity, organ donation and so on. Make it informative

SEE YOU NEXT WEEK WITH YOUR

EXCITING PRESENTATIONS