4 ways to create an engaging presentation
Callie Tripodi, Tender Specialist (Sydney)
Presentations are a great way to convey a message to an audience. Whether you are presenting or a member of the audience, an engaging presentation is key.
As tender writing consultants, we understand presentations are required in order to sell a service to potential clients. Here are four things you can do to create an engaging presentation:
Less text on the screen
Utilise graphics
Ensure consistency, and
Provide a recap and Q&A session on the information presented.
Throughout this article we will deep dive into the four points mentioned above and discuss how they can help you create an engaging presentation.
1. Less text on the screen
We all understand that preparing - and delivering - a presentation can be a daunting task. If we’re not 100% comfortable with the topic or trying too hard to win over a new client, our nerves begin to kick in and we might find ourselves placing huge paragraphs of information into our slides.
Why is this not the best approach?
You’ll want to keep your audience engaged and alert throughout the presentation - and reading directly off the screen will not do that. Let’s start with the overload of information you’ve placed into your presentation and break it down one by one. Since your slides get to the core of what you’ll be presenting, a good way to start is to minimise the text by using bullet points and removing what is irrelevant.
Displaying your key messages in bullet points ensures the audience will not be overwhelmed by the information presented and are more likely to listen to what you are saying. Another advantage of utilising bullet points in a presentation is to guide you to your next point, while allowing you to maintain eye contact with the audience. This provides a more personable presentation where you can also gauge how the group is reacting.
2. Utilise graphics
Remember the saying ‘an image is worth a thousand words’? This could not be more relevant when it comes to presentations. Placing graphics in your slides helps to break up heavy text and can also act as a prompt for what to discuss, just like bullet points.
The key to using graphics is ensuring the image you choose clearly conveys your message. This is useful as it will engage your audience as they analyse the graphic and listen to your description of its importance.
So, how do you make your graphic effective, relevant and engaging for your audience?
‘Less is more’ should be your motto: simple graphics done well have the greatest impact
Use high-quality images: nobody has time for blurry or pixellated images
Keep it simple: ensure your graphic does not overwhelm the audience with information, and
Make sure it is easy to understand for the everyday person.
Check out these tips to make your graphics stand out from the crowd.
3. Ensure consistency
This might seem trivial, however consistency within your presentation can make a huge difference to audience engagement. If you forget to include a transition to your slide or used incorrect colours to introduce your next topic, I can guarantee there’ll be a member of your audience who will notice and can’t help but focus only on these and not the awesome information you’re presenting.
The main items that should remain consistent throughout the presentation include:
Font size and type
Transitions to next slide
Colour scheme, and
Writing style.
To avoid distracting your audience, ensure each slide has the same font size, type and colour for the header and body text. Your colour scheme and style should also remain consistent so ensure the correct colour identification has been used, and page numbers have been included on all slides.
Your writing style and tone should also remain consistent throughout. This is particularly important if there are multiple authors contributing to the presentation. It's all a matter of style, so stick to your writing/style guide to minimise the amount of editing required.
4. Provide a recap and Q&A session
Another way to ensure an engaging presentation is to use the final slide to provide a quick recap of what was discussed and open a question and answer (Q&A) session to your audience.
This is beneficial to your audience, especially if your presentation was lengthy, as some important information might have been overlooked or forgotten. Providing a summary of the topic allows you to remind your audience of the key facts and lets them take notes if needed.
Finally, introducing a Q&A session to your presentation will give your audience a chance to clarify any of the information presented. This is beneficial to you as the presenter: if you let the audience know from the beginning that there will be time for a Q&A at the end, you can minimise interruptions ensure a winning presentation.
For further information relating to tender preparation services, please visit the Tender Plus website here.