What makes a presentation truly memorable? In short, the presentation skills of the person giving it.
That's exactly what our presentation skills courses focus on. Presenters learn the skills required to be charismatic, engaging and truly memorable. We mean memorable for the right, not the wrong, reasons! Presenters
have the chance to practise these skills for real on the day.
Unlike some presentation skills training providers, we feel it's essential that you see what you look like when you're giving a presentation - so we'll film you, not once but twice during the day, so that you can see how your personal presentation skills have improved.
Presenters leave the course with the confidence and presentation skills to ...
Present professionally and charismatically to a group
Use their body language and voice to the best effect
Engage the audience by being different
Prepare the presentation thoroughly beforehand
Use reference notes without reading them
Answer questions calmly and professionally
Some objectives to consider
Our presentation skills courses deal with the presentation challenges specific to each delegate; they can also be tailored to incorporate presentation skills issues specific to your company or team. Here are some examples of the presentation skills topics we can cover;
Planning and preparing a formal or informal presentation
Being memorable from the start and making the very best first impression
Using reference notes effectively and sticking to your objectives
Using your body language to support and reinforce your message
Projecting your voice in order to communicate clearly and confidently
Controlling your nerves or anxiety so that they work in your favour
Usual visual aids and props effectively so that they support your presentation
Identifying and dealing with distracting body language or verbal habits
Seeing how you look and sound to an audience (filming optional)
Engaging the audience throughout and being charismatic
Using humour effectively and carefully
Developing and delivering a 5 minute presentation during the day (filming optional)
Preempting and dealing with difficult questions
Concluding and ensuring that the audience remembers your key points
More information about our presentation skill courses
What makes a really good presentation?
Good presenters do simple things well. In essence, they have a conversation with their audience. If you think about it – what do all the good presenters you remember have in common? … All of them made you feel relaxed and kept you interested throughout – some probably made you laugh too. The true test of course is …. Can you remember what their main messages were? On our Presentation Skills courses, we give you the keys to achieving these essentials.
I'm conscious that some people seem to lose interest in what I'm saying after a few minutes. Do your Presentation Skills courses help with this?
Maintaining the interest of the audience is a key element of good presentation skills. There's an art to this. We'll give you some tips on how to be successful at it. On our Presentation Skills courses, you'll get a chance to see how you come across and to try out different techniques for keeping the audience interested. You'll know exactly what to do if audience members look as though they're drifting off!
Is it possible to stop this feeling of terror I get before giving a presentation, Do you cover how to handle nerves on your Presentation Skills courses?
We do deal with nerves on our Presentation Skills courses. Try not to see nerves as a negative thing. In fact, nerves and anxiety should be used to work in your favour. They are in fact feelings that everyone experiences, even the best presenters. Nerves give you adrenalin and adrenalin is essential if you're going to deliver charismatically. Our Presentation Skills courses enable you to convert nerves and anxiety into positive traits that can actually help you to perform better.
We believe that it’s the people who don’t get nervous or feel anxious who are in the weaker position – they will find it harder to produce the adrenalin everyone needs.
I tend to waffle when giving presentations. Do your Presentation Skills courses cover being more focused and sticking to the point?
The key to overcoming your tendency to waffle is good initial preparation. If you prepare the content and structure of your presentation properly, you are more likely to stick to the point. You'll have to be disciplined though - the way you prepare your reference notes is key. The way your notes are laid out and your discipline in sticking rigidly to the sequence is vital. We cover this on our Presentation Skills courses.
I really struggle when I'm asked a difficult question and tend to just clam up. Is this something you cover on your Presentation Skills courses?
There's nothing worse than giving a really first class presentation and then being asked a question at the end that really stumps you. We deal with knowing how to deal with tricky questions on our Presentation Skills courses. You'll have a fall back plan and know how to reply if you just don't know the answer. There's an art to effective question and answer technique. You'll feel much more confident about this and won't let yourself down anymore once you've attended the Presentation
Skills course.
Do you film people on your Presentation Skills courses?
We believe that filming is a very useful way of helping you to improve your Presentation Skills. So, yes, we do like to film you during the day. We won't force you though. You can still take part in all the activities without being filmed. If you would like to be filmed, we erase all recordings at the end of the course. We find that having the chance to see how others see you is a significant element of learning effective Presentation Skills.
I know that I say 'Umm' a lot when I'm presenting. Do you cover ways to stop this on your Presentation Skills courses?
Saying 'Umm' is an issue we deal with on our Presentation Skills courses. We find that people who struggle with this don't find that it's difficult to overcome. We'll give you a number of techniques to help you to stop the habit. We'll also give you opportunities to practise these during the day.
I tend to drift off the point when I’m presenting – do you cover this on your Presentation Skills courses?
Good presentations always have a focus – good presenters always know what they want to achieve. Your focus should take the form of your objectives. Once you’re clear on your objectives, you need to be disciplined and make sure that everything you say helps to contribute in some way to the achievement of those objectives. Anything that doesn’t help is just not necessary - it’s therefore not needed and should be ditched.
Will you give me feedback on how I come across as a presenter?
This forms a major part of the Presentation Skills training day. You’ll get two chances to present to the group, both of which will be filmed (if you wish) so that you can actually see yourself. We’ll also give you feedback so that you get a really good feel for the things you need to do to improve. You don’t need to do anything before the course to prepare for these exercises
Top tips for improved presentation skills
Eye Contact
Try to maintain eye contact. Your eyes tell your audience that you care. Try to give each person in the audience an equal amount of your eye contact. If the audience is too big to employ this tactic, then make sure your eyes get around it as much as possible. People associate good eye contact with confidence and professionalism.
Audience
If the audience is of a manageable number, try to remember their names. Addressing individuals by name during your presentation makes a huge difference. It tells the audience that you care, you have made an effort, you are confident, you are aware and that you are in complete control.
Focus
Make sure you have very clear objectives at the beginning of your presentation. Everything you say should in some way contribute to achieving those objectives. Anything else should be left out. If you stick to this rule,
you
will look more focused and won't waffle.
Voice
Your tone of voice will make a big difference to your ability to engage the audience. 38% of the way that your message is perceived comes from the tone of your voice. One way to control your tone is to take deep breaths. Taking a few long deep breaths if you feel ‘wound up’ or ‘panicky’ will help you to feel calmer. Being calmer when you talk makes you sound more in control and professional. Secondly, have a look at the way you speak; how fast do you talk? How loudly do you talk? Talking quickly or too quietly
makes it difficult for the audience to assimilate your messages. Some people also associate talking quickly or quietly with nerves.
Body Language
Do you cross your arms? Avoid eye contact? Clench your fists? These are some of the actions that could give the wrong message across. Remember, your body communicates 55% of your message. To look and act more professionally and confidently, try to limit your hand movements to soft and flowing movements to support your words.
Standing Tall
The way you stand or sit not only makes a big difference to how confident you look to the audience but also to how confident you feel inside. Standing tall with your shoulders back and head high not only relieves tension but also makes a person look secure and confident. Standing tall is a simple thing that goes a long way to showing self-confidence.
Preparation
Preparing properly in advance for the presentation will make you feel more confident on the day. Good preparation is the key to success. It will go well if you prepare well. Rehearsing is an integral part of preparation - make time for this if possible.
