Presenting Information to an Audience

Presenting information to an audience, especially a large audience, can be an unnerving experience even to the most proficient orator. Presenting information single-handedly is far different from group discussions or board meetings, where the form of communication is mostly two way. However, when you think about presenting on your own, you impulsively think about the hundreds of eyes that would follow you the moment you step on dais, with questions plastered all over their face. Although, the suggestions given in this article do not assure great oratory skills overnight, nonetheless they can definitely help you to prepare well, thereby boosting your confidence. So, here we go..

Tips for Presenting Information to an Audience

Planning
Planning is the fundamental step of any activity and your presentation should not be an exception. Firstly, you need to understand what is the purpose of your presentation. Is it for academic purpose or official? Are you hoping to make new clients through your presentation or are you doing it as a part of a fundraising program or for a social cause? Identifying your purpose will help you to gather relevant information. Also take into account factors such as the time for which you will be delivering your lecture, so that you can present the gathered information in stipulated time. Mostly, time is a crucial constraint, since most of the time you are supposed to present large information within a small duration. Hence, you should determine the important points in your information.

Identify Your Audience
This is another step towards making a great presentation. Identifying the type of audience is essential while collecting information for your presentation. You should consider their background, their taste, their knowledge regarding the issue you are going to present etc. You definitely do not want to waste your time upon something which your audience is already aware of, nor would you like to confound them with a baffling speech. Hence, you might have to do some research, so that you can present the information in a way that will appeal to your audience.

Organize Your Content
Now that you know what kind of information you are supposed to present and the time duration for the same, the rest should be easy. Simply, organize your information in the order of importance. You might want to elaborate some important points, while devoting less time to the trivial issues. Allocate time slot to each point out of the total time and distribute your content accordingly. Organize the figures (if any) in tabular or any other suitable format.

Choose Your Media
Again, this is going to be a deciding factor for creating the right impression of your presentation. The format in which you are going to present your information is going to matter a lot. If you have the choice of selecting your own media, then again you have several factors to consider: the scope of your subject, the purpose of presentation, available infrastructure, number of your audience etc. Powerpoint presentation or other multimedia presentations are best suited for academic or official purposes. However, there are a few do's and donts' about powerpoint presentation, which are as follows:

• Do not go for flashy, colorful slide designs. Keep it simple and formal.
• Selection of font size should be such that even the person in the last row should be able to read the content without difficulty. Also, steer clear of stylish font types. Instead, stick to basic, official ones.
• Do not clutter your slides with unnecessary or too much information. You should only include important points on slide and elaborate them while you talk.
• Do not include irrelevant animation or unnecessary charts, tables and diagrams.
• Do not stuff all the Microsoft PowerPoint features in your presentation, just because you know them.
• Lastly, distribute your content neatly and evenly throughout your presentation with good formatting.

Besides, there are other options for presenting information to an audience such as transparencies on overhead projector, leaflets and brochures, boards and markers etc. While going for audio-visual media or other hi-fi devices, make sure the venue of presentation has infrastructure to support your media.

Practice
Now that you have most of your aids in place, you can concentrate on your speech or lecture or whatever it is. Although, it is not necessary to write and memorize it to the word, you should definitely highlight some important points of your discussion and memorize them thoroughly. Do not forget to set a timer, so that you can manage your presentation within stipulated time. If you are going to use multimedia for presentation, then practice it beforehand to get the feel of it. Instead of practicing your presentation alone, deliver it in front of members of your family or friends, so that you get used to people sitting and staring in front of you! Also, they might give you valuable inputs on how you can improve it further.

Perform
Yes, 'perform' is the apt word as you are going to present your information in front of 'audience'! Now that you are well versed with your presentation, you should definitely feel confident about it. Whether you choose to play your memorized speech or decide to go extempore, make sure you don't make it monotonous and boring. Interact with the audience as far as possible by raising questions or narrating personal experiences. You can strike a correct cord with the audience only if you know their taste beforehand. Hence, your research can come in handy here! Stick to your points as far as possible but do not fumble if you happen to miss a point or two. Swiftly, switch to the next one and continue the rest of your presentation confidently.

No matter what methods for presenting information you choose, the whole point of presentation is to get it conveyed to your audience and evoking their response. Hope these tips help you in making an outstanding presentation!