Last but not least...Using Quotes

Use Quotes

Using quotes in presentations is another way to make your presentation memorable. If you don’t know how to start a presentation, using a famous quote that is related to your presentation is a great way to start. A famous quote from a famous person usually catches the audience’s attention right away.

There are 2 things to keep in mind when using quotes in your presentation:

-        

•      Don’t use clichés. Quotes that are used often or used in fortune cookies are not good resources. Also avoid using quotes that may cause the audiences to roll their eyes.
•      Be original and epic. Using quotes in a presentation should be special and not expected. Choose one or two very good quotes that are not used often, something that the audiences will remember.

When you add quotes into your presentation makes sure it is meaningful and appropriate. Make sure that this quote adds something to the presentation, don’t put quotes just to add time, sounds nice or fills space. This may distract your audience, adding quotes after quotes to pass time during a presentation.

Quotes should be short and right to the point especially if your presentation is on a PowerPoint. Too much word is too clustered and long quotes are very confusing and it can bore you audience. You should let the audience read it and then explain it more in depth.

Therefore, quotes are not the main focus of your presentation, but if it is used correctly and with meaning to it, it will definitely catch the audience’s attention. 

Using Quotations in Presentations. University Writing Centre
http://writingcenter.tamu.edu/2010/types-communication/presentations-2/using-quotes-in-presentations/

Demonstrations and making your audience laugh

Demonstrations

Some presentations need demonstrations to explain things more clearly to your audience. In order to keep your audience engaged you should ask one of the audiences on stage to demonstrate with you. Don’t force any audience up on stage because some of them are timid. For example you can say “I need an assistant for my next demonstration” this way your audience will most likely volunteer themselves.

Some people are visual learners and some are “need to see it to believe it”. So a demonstration is always useful for different kind of audiences. Some presentations that need demonstrations to keep your audience interested are:

•  Science experiments
• Technology ( all functions work )
• Products ( selling to the consumers )

Once your demonstration has succeeded your audience will gain trust with the product that you are trying to sell or a message that you are trying to deliver.

Therefore, in a presentation demonstration is something that keeps your audience interested because they want to know what will happen and keep them on the edge of their seats. 

Once you have proven yourself through your demonstrations your audience will be very interested for the rest of your presentation.

This video gives you a really good example on how to demonstrate to keep your audiences engaged.

Having a sense of humour, making jokes

I think telling jokes is a way to lightening up the mood. Even though the presentation is important there is no need to make your audiences tense and serious. Lightening up the mood can also make you relax when you present your presentation.

There are 4 important things to keep in mind and to do when making jokes during your presentation:

1. Set the scene for casual.By lightening up your presentation, you might want to project some funny visuals as the audience enters the room, maybe play some uplifting music. You can also add some humor to your program description or any of your accomplishments.

2. Get some laughs with a prop.It has been proven that the most effective way of learning and most memorable about a presentation is through visual aids. A prop is a great way to do it because it not only makes your message memorable but it can also get a laugh.

For example:

o   Use balloons to illustrate how people can let go of stress or a cup of water

o   An inflatable globe to illustrate how we carry the world around on our shoulders.

If it is related to you presentation it is great way to use it and get a laugh.

3. Make it relevant.

When presenting make sure that your humour and jokes are relevant. If you are making jokes that are not relevant to your presentation not only the audience won’t laugh but they will get confused and feel that it is a waste of their time sitting down there.

4. Don’t laugh at your own joke.

Never laugh at your own jokes. It will make your audiences bored.

Therefore, by applying these 4 tips on making jokes or making your presentation humorous should succeed on grasping your audience’s attention. This will make them laugh but at the same time getting your message across and make it memorable to them.
  

Incredible Presentation Resources: Adding Humor to your slides. SlideRocket Blog http://www.sliderocket.com/blog/2010/11/incredible-presentation-resources-adding-humor-to-your-slides/

Movement, gestures and eye contact

Move and do gestures

In the day to day conversations with your family or friends sometimes gestures are used to emphasize or help describe a situation or an event. Use your gestures to welcome your audience and engage them into your presentation and emphasize the point of your presentation. Open gestures are a good way of extending them to your audience, move away from your body.

Gestures are good but it has to be controlled and precise. For example too much movement will make you seem nervous and unfocused  on the other hand no gestures isn't good either. No audience likes to see a presenter that keeps their hands in their pockets or fixed firmly at their sides.

Movement means leave the lectern area and walk around the stage or walk towards your audience. The most important movement while presenting is to move towards your audience so that they are engaged into your voice and the message that you are delivering to them. Also it helps to get their divided attention towards you.

So remember to move around use gestures to explain your presentation to make it interesting and fun. 

Here is a video that teaches you how to have effective hand gestures.

Eye Contact

Making eye contact with your audience is the most powerful techniques for involving your audience and to get their attention. When eye contact is used effectively it can serve to make your message much more personal towards your audience. Make sure that you share your eye contact evenly with all members of small or large audiences.

If you don’t make any eye contact with your audience you can seem nervous or unconvincing. Also don’t hold your eye contact too long because audiences can feel awkward or intimated. Therefore, keep your eye contact in control and move your eyes around the room by looking at others. Try to avoid making only eye contact to the people you know or the ones that you don’t know, keep in mind that you need to involve the entire audience if you are making an effective presentation.

I understand that for some of you are shy to make eye contact with your audience or look at anyone one in the room. Remember that some eye contact is better than none, you should try to build your confidence over the course of your presentations. One tip that I can give you to build your confidence in making eye contact is to look at people’s foreheads so then at least you are looking at their direction. Then you can slowly build your confidence and you’ll slowly direct eye contact with your audience. I know it may sound ridiculous but it is much better than looking at the ceiling, floor or your notes.

Guffey, M., Loewy, D. (2013) Business Communication: Business Presentations. Toronto, Canada. Nelson Education.

How to engage with your audience

Relate to the audience (self-interest, experiences)

If interacting with the audience is something that you like to do while delivering your presentation, then this is a great way to get their attention.

The most important thing to keep in mind is to look at your presentation from an audience perspective. Ask yourself questions such as:

• What is your audience interest?

• What they already know about your presentation?

• What would they might learn?

I think by asking these questions and answering them (research maybe needed) will help you understand and get to know your audiences better. Therefore, you will know how to deliver your presentation to keep their attention till the end. By developing creative thinking helps you know what your audience interests and needs are.

Additionally, you can refer to information that the audience already know a little bit about. You can give examples that are simple that the audience uses day-to-day bases. This helps your audience adapt new information much more effectively by adding on their existing knowledge. Also, the way that you deliver your presentation should create a bond with your audience. For example, telling a story that the audience can relate to. That way your audience will be attentive and will not lose interest in your presentation.

This video will give you a visual idea on how to interact and relate to your audience.

Participate (let the audience participate)

One way to involve your audience is to let them ask questions during the presentation or after. I know that a lot of you don’t like the “asking question session” but every presenter has to go through it. Letting your audience participate is crucial to keep their attention and answering their questions keeps their attentiveness.

Second way to involve your audience in your presentation, is by asking one of the audience’s to help you in an experiment or something interesting that the audiences are willing to volunteer for. Let them experience how things are done and how they appear.  Examples of presentations that sometimes the presenter would ask an audience for assistance would be for a science experiment or technology related.

A third way to involve your audience is to create some activities that they can do with each other or ask some of them on the stage to play a game. Avoid playing games that is not related to your presentation and serves no purpose. This can lose the audiences interest and may confuse them for the message that you are trying to convey.

Involving your audience. University of Leicester

http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/ld/resources/presentation/involve