This document provides 9 tips for creating an effective presentation: 1. Know your audience and define clear goals tailored to meeting their needs. 2. Craft a compelling message with a core message and supporting sub-messages backed by relevant facts. 3. Use visual elements like images, shapes, colors and contrasts to reinforce your message and help your audience retain information.

1. 9 TIPS FOR OF AN
PRESENTATION
EFFECTIVE
QUANTITY
QUALITY
INTRO
BODY
END
Your core message + key sub-messages backed up with relevant facts.
One sub-message = one slide.
Call-to-action
Be specific about what you want people to do (buy something, make a decision…).
A
B
C
What is it all about and why should people care?
Explain the benefits of the solution you’re about to bring to their problem.
Create a structure that clearly articulates your core message, sub-messages and evidence (facts).
4
Use the Rule of 3 to deal with information overload.
It’s a simple way to set limits and chunk things down.
ARRANGE SLIDE ELEMENTS
Use a clean lay-out to convey your message and minimize the comprehension time of your audience.
Your sub- message & the slide content summarized in one sentence.
Pick colors and fonts that relevantly represent you, your company, and your stance.
6
BUILD A THEME
7
IMAGE SELECTION CHECKLIST
Reflect your audience culture Fit with your industry Relevant to the context and message conveyed in the slide
CREATE AN OUTLINE
1
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
Why are you making this presentation? Set up a S.M.A.R.T. set of goals. Otherwise, you’re basically throwing arrows in the dark.
DEFINE YOUR GOALS
2
Who are they? Why are they here? Why do they care?
What do they need and want?
3
Tailor your message to your audience, according to their needs and to your goals.
CRAFT A COMPELLING MESSAGE
Ensure a good balance between text and visuals.
SHAPES
COLORS
8
HOOK YOUR AUDIENCE QUICKLY
Keep it short and sweet
Be beneficial
Today, I’m gonna show you <replace this with a statement that will benefit to your audience>. Don’t tell them what they’ll get but why they want it. What about your presentation is going to be relevant, useful and pressing to your audience?
It is better to have the audience wanting more (of you) than to feel that they have had more than enough.
Trigger emotions
9
Measure with metrics that support your key goals and allow you to take action.
MEASURE EFFECTIVENESS
USE VISUAL ELEMENTS
40%
65%
of people will respond better to visual information than plain text.
is the increase of information retention that visuals can bring.
$
Have they signed up or contacted you?
Did you help them to take a decision?
Did they buy something?
5
SIZE
So your audience can get your point
Facts, proofs supporting your sub- message.
USE CONTRAST
REFERENCES
Heath, Dan and Chip. «SUCCESs Model». Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.
Fisher, Anne. 2013. «Giving a speech? Conquer the five-minute attention span».
«Tips for Effective Presentations - Using Four Important Design Concepts». Columbia University.
Weinschenk, Susan. 2012. «13 Facts Every Presenter Should Know About People».
Teteak, Jason. 2013. «How to do a presentation - 5 steps to a killer Presentation».
Duarte, Nancy. 2008. «Designing effective slides». Slide:ology. 88, 94.
Hyatt, Michael. 2012. «5 Rules for More Effective Presentations».
Reynold, Garry. 2008. «Story and Storytelling». Presentation Zen. 84-87.
is the average adult attention span
5 MINUTES
is what the average listener hears, understands and retains from a presentation
50%
SPECIFIC
MEASURABLE
ACHIEVABLE
REALISTIC
TIME-DRIVEN
I want to show 5 product benefits that aren’t offered by our competitors (in order to double <product> sales).
I want to communicate about 5 awesome product features, not 30.
E.g. 1 message supported by 3 facts.
Be conversational
Make your audience feel happy, successful or free.
Use the words you and I (or we) to engage with people.
Why is presentation effectiveness important?
120 million
people use PowerPoint to create business presentations
say presentation skills are critical to their success at work
of U.S. employees would rather go to the dentist than sit through a slideshow
70%
41%
Simple. Strip down your message to its core content. Build a compact phrase that would summarize it all.
Concrete. People don’t remember vague stuff, be specific.
Credible. Nobody cares about your opinion. Back up your message with evidence that’ll make people believe you.
Beneficial. Communicate key features that can help people accomplishing something they want to.
If you had a gun to your head and HAD to delete content, what would you remove?
Use research, charts, expert quotes or testimonials to back up your argument.
What you will bring them that answers their needs?
Short and to the point.
I want to double <product> sales.
I want to double <product> sales by the end of the year.
I want to grow my product sales by 50% the first 6 months.