Making a good impression during a presentation is essential. A good impression means more business and more opportunities for the presenter. There are eight techniques that will help you leave a good impression among your audience members.
1
When you approach your audience for the first time, take a moment to gather yourself and your ideas. Establishing a little control at the beginning of your speech will yield a lot of respect as you begin.
2
Don't read the first few paragraphs of your presentation from your paper. You want the audience to deem you knowledgeable and see you as an expert in your field. If you are referring to your paper from the beginning, they may not give you the credibility you deserve.
3
Maintain good eye contact with the members of your audience. It will probably be impossible for you to maintain contact with every member of the audience so pick out one or two members and re-establish eye contact with them throughout your presentation.
4
Control your voice. Show enough emotion to keep your audience's attention, but maintain control as well. Don't speak too loud, but speak loud enough so that your audience can hear you. When you first begin your speech, you may want to ask the audience if the sound is appropriate before you really get started.
5
Don't use filler words between your ideas or sentences. Fillers are words such as "um," and, "er" and "you know." If you don't have a solid statement to make, just be quiet until you move on to your next idea in the presentation. Using filler words gives you less credibility with your audience.
6
Don't speak too rapidly. If you are nervous, take a few deep breaths. Speaking rapidly in front of your audience may confuse them especially when you are presenting new ideas.
7
Act natural throughout your presentation. Playing with items in your pockets or shuffling your papers will make you seem like a nervous speaker. Stay focused on your audience members and the ideas that you are presenting.
8
Avoid items and topics that are not directly a part of your speech. When you begin your speech, you should have a certain amount of time designated to finish. If you begin using digressions (other thoughts/points that aren't valid to your presentation), you could potentially go over your time limit. If there is one thing that your audience will appreciate, it is you keeping on a scheduled time.
9
Summarize your main points. Go over the main points of your presentation again and point out things specific to your audience. If you want them to do something or think about something, make sure that you reiterate those points and directions.
