College of Electrical & Mechanical Engineering
Department of Computer Engineering
3rd year
Research Methods
Chapter five
Effective Presentation Skills
MESFIN ABATE
1
Presenting is a Skill…
Developed through training
and experience
“Something set forth to an audience
for the attention of the mind “
“…Delivering and Stipulating a
professional talk to produce a desired
result”
Three Main Purposes of presentation
Inform
Persuade
Educate
1. Determine purpose
◦ What do you want to accomplish?
2. Know your audience !!!
◦ Success depends on your ability to reach your audience
◦ Motivation Why are they there? Why are they attending? What
do THEY expect? How many of them are there? What is their
present knowledge of the subject of the presentation? What are
their possible attitudes about Your topic?
◦ The Answers the above questions Will …
Determine the material you will use
Guide your approach to the presentation situation
Pitch your presentation to the „right level‟ of the audience.
3. Plan Space
◦ Number of attendees and seats, Seating arrangement, Lighting,
and lighting controls, Audio/Visual equipment, Distracters
4. What Day and Time?
◦ Morning, Afternoon, Evening, Work day versus weekend, Any
day
5. Organization
◦ Determine main points (1-5), Prepare outline
6. Rehearse…Rehearse…Rehearse!!
◦ In the actual room if possible, Work to a script and time your
presentation, Practice Q & A, Check equipment – load your
slides in advance, Make contingency plans
Opening Your Presentation
◦ Introduce yourself
Why should they listen
◦ Get attention, build more rapport, introduce topic
Humor, Short story, Make audience think, Invite participation
◦ Get audience response
Presenting Main Points
◦ Make point-transition,…make point-transition,…make
point-transition, etc…
◦ Supporting evidence, Examples, Feedback & questions
from audience
◦ Attention to, and focus on, audience…
are they listening?
Concluding Your Presentation
◦ Inform audience that you‟re about to close
◦ Summarize main points
“Tell ‟em What You Told „em.”
◦ Something to remember, or call-to-action
◦ Answer questions
To make, explain or identify a point
To emphasize, clarify or reinforce a point
To remind, summarize or review a point
Enhance understanding
Add variety
Lasting impact
Used poorly, however, they can be a
distraction and lead to an ineffective
presentation
Content
◦ If it doesn‟t add value, don‟t say/use it
Purpose
Complement speaker
Density
7-10 lines/page
4-8 words/line
Test: Project a sample in the room, or in a room of
approximately the same size as will be used in the real
presentation
Color
◦ Know your room and lighting
Dark room – use light font on dark background
Bright room – use dark font on light background
Subliminal messages
◦ Consider your audience and use carefully
Outline, explain, support main points
Serve audience‟s needs, not speaker‟s
Be simple and clear
Supplement and support…NOT DOMINATE!. the
presentation
Use Sans Serif fonts (fonts without feet)
◦ e.g. Arial, Tahoma, Trebuchet, Verdana, etc.
Titles should be 32-44 pt. font size, BOLD
Text should be as large as possible
◦ First level 24-32 pt font size
◦ Second level 20-28 pt font size
◦ Etc.
Use color wisely
◦ Contrasting colors
Control of information
◦ Know your subject well
◦ Know what you are talking about
◦ Practice and More practice
◦ Believe in yourself
The voice used
The right words
Use of body language
Prompts, scripts and notes
The right location
Useful and meaningful visual aids
Vocal Techniques
Loudness: Will you be using a microphone? it is important that
everyone can hear you
Pitch: Vary to make points
Rate: Watch your audience
Pause for effect: Allow time for message to “sink in”
Use the Rights Words
What you say, and how you say it, is the key to a successful
presentation:
Clear: the use of simple, easily understood words and phrases
Assertive: a bright and confident air born of knowledge of the
subject and good preparation
state your position or point, explain your ideas, use examples
restate your position or point
Use of Body Language
Make eye contact,…but move focus around the audience
Use your hands,…but don‟t go crazy
If possible move around,…but slowly!
Maintain good posture
Make sure everyone can see you
DON‟T speak with your back to the audience
Verbal fillers
◦ “Um”, “uh”, “like”, “you guys”
◦ Any unrelated word or phrase
Swaying, rocking, and pacing
Hands in pockets
Lip smacking
Fidgeting
Failure to be audience-centered
A speaker may put his entire presentation on his slides.
He turns his back to the audience and reads the slides
aloud. Perhaps he feels this approach guarantees all the
information will get to the audience. This may be the
most annoying way to give a presentation. Audience
members feel insulted: they already know how to read!
They wonder why the lecturer doesn‟t simply hand out a
copy of the slides.
Audience is always attentive at the
begining
Somewhat less attentive in the
middle
Generally more attentive at the end
Tell them what you are going to say
Then say it
At the end, say it again
Allow time for questions
Opportunities Pitfalls
Welcoming gestures • Hostile gestures
Focusing gaze • Wandering gaze
Body language • Body language
Getting point
• Missing point
Reinforcing message
• Seeking approval
Including audience
• Excluding audience
Be yourself
Dress appropriately
Get audience support
Smile to relax you & the audience
Show enthusiasm
Look at audience when speaking
Move with a purpose
Gesture naturally
Treat audience with respect
Monitor volume: Avoid loudness
Avoid reading every thing from the slide
Vary pace (watch audience)
Repeat questions
Pause 5 seconds after asking a question
Finish on, or under time
Not bold enough
Rejecting the audience
Showing nerves
Poor use of visual aids
Speaking for too long
Poor preparation
Lack of practice
Anxiety
Unanticipated challenges
Blocking visuals
Prepare a power point presentation for the
research proposal you prepared.
Number of slides: not more than 10
Presentation time: 10 minutes
All group members should be prepared
for the presentation. Presenter will be
selected randomly during the
presentation date.
Submission date of the power point:
Presentation date: