2. To come…
Getting Ready
Outline
Slide Structure
Fonts
Colour
Background
Graphs
Spelling and Grandma
3. Getting Ready
Write out:
– The objectives of your talk
– The main points you want to make
Keep It Simple
Beginning – Middle – End
News At Ten Model!
Check out the groovy templates!
4. More good advice…
Practice your presentation - don’t memorise it
Make sure everything works, in advance
Use good support materials/visual aids
Pace yourself, not too fast, not too slow
Make good eye contact with the audience
Notice body language - are they with you?
It’s the content - not the graphics!
5. BUT I’M TERRIFIED!!!
They won’t eat you
They will probably make allowances for your
nervousness
Things might well go wrong, get over it. Be
prepared
If all else fails - close your eyes for a moment
and imagine them all sitting there -
Naked.
6. Outline
Early on in your talk, give an outline
– Tells people what to expect
– Make sure the talk follows this outline!
Only cover main points in the outline
– Use the titles of each slide as main points
7. Slide Structure – Good
Use 1-2 slides per minute of your presentation
Write in bullet point form, not in sentences
Use 4-5 points per slide maximum
You could use index cards to help remember
Don’t be wordy
– use key words and phrases only
– These will act as ‘triggers’ for your talk
8. Slide Structure - Bad
This page contains too many words for a
presentation slide. It is not written in point
form, making it difficult both for your audience
to read and for you to present each point.
Although there are exactly the same number of
points on this slide as the previous slide, it
looks much more complicated. In short, your
audience will spend too much time trying to
read this paragraph instead of listening to you.
9. Slide Structure – Good
Show one point at a time:
– Will help audience concentrate on what you are
saying
– Will prevent audience from reading ahead
– Will help you keep your presentation focused
However – this makes your presentation take
longer.
10. Slide Structure - Bad
Do not use distracting animation
Do not go overboard with the animation
Be consistent with the animation that you use
11. Fonts - Good
Use at least an 18-point font
You can indent to make sub-points
– This bit is indented, it’s a sub point.
And me, I’m a subsub point!
– What about me then, a subsubsubpoint
Enough already, you made your point.
Use a standard font like Times or Arial
12. Fonts - Bad
If you use a small font, your audience won’t be able to read what you have written
CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. IT IS
DIFFICULT TO READ CAPITALS. IT ACTUALLY
TAKES 30-40% MORE TIME
Don’t use a complicated font
Don’t use Unreadable No.6, however much you like it.
13. Colour - Good
Use a colour of font that contrasts sharply with
the background
– light blue font on dark blue background, perhaps?
Use colour to reinforce the logic of your
structure
– Ex: light blue title and dark blue text
Use colour to emphasize a point
– But only use this occasionally
14. Colour - Bad
Using a font colour that does not contrast with
the background colour is hard to read
Using colour for decoration is distracting and
annoying.
Using a different colour for each point is
unnecessary
– Using a different colour for secondary points is also
unnecessary
Trying to be too clever can also be bad
15. Background - Good
Use backgrounds such as this one that are
attractive but simple
– Well, that’s a matter of opinion, isn’t it?
Contrast background colour with foreground
Use the same background consistently
throughout your presentation
16. Background – OMG!
Avoid backgrounds that are distracting or
difficult to read from
Always be consistent with the background that
you use
17. Graphs - Good
Use graphs rather than just charts and words
– Data in graphs is easier to comprehend & retain
than is raw data
– Trends are easier to visualize in graph form
Always title your graphs
18. Graphs - Bad
January February March April
Blue Balls 20.4 27.4 90 20.4
Red Balls 30.6 38.6 34.6 31.6
19. Graphs - Good
Items Sold in First Quarter of 2002
100
90
80
70
60
Blue Balls
50
Red Balls
40
30
20
10
0
January February March April
20. Spelling and Grandma
Proof your slides for:
– speling mistakes
– the repeated use of of repeated words
– grammatical errors, you might have make
– Places wear you used the wrong word
If English is not your first language, please
have someone else check your presentation!
21. In Closing…
Oh, do get on with it…
– Stick to your allotted time, don’t over-run
Use an effective and strong close
– Your audience remembers your last words, (even if
they slept through most of the rest)
Use a conclusion at the end:
– Summarize the main points of your presentation
– Suggest future avenues of research
22. Any Questions?
End your presentation with a simple Q&A:
– Invite your audience to ask questions
– Provide a visual aid during question period
– Avoid ending a presentation abruptly
