Good and bad presentations...... 1

[jmw]

IRStuff has a nice FAQ on presentations and for those who want more there is plenty on the internet, but don't accept it all as gospel.

Here is a link to the "top 20 reasons Presentations suck".
These are all valid reasons but some are a bit trivial, (and so think some of the commentators).

I think anyone who has sat through a few presentations should have a good idea of plenty of other good reasons presentations suck.

One of my favourites is the "Kindergarten reading class" where the presenter reads his slides to the audience.

These web sites and helpful tips are all very well but if your company expects you to give good presentations, then they could do worse than pay for some professional training.
I started giving presentations some decades ago and my first untutored efforts probably ticked all the top 20 and then some.

Perhaps one of the keys to learning involves seeing what you dislike in other peoples presentations and making sure you don't do the same. Another is to rehearse rehearse and rehearse. If your presentation doesn't flow perhaps it is that your material doesn't flow or is not cohesive.
When you rehearse, video your presentation and then watch it back critically......

Anyone else got any tips on how to give a good presentation or how not to give a bad one?

JMW

http://www.ViscoAnalyser.com

 

[zdas04]

JMW,
Did you mean to include a link?

David

 

[IRstuff]

I'll guess here:

http://www.bnet.com/photos/top-20-reasons-presentations-suck-and-how-to-fix-them/6191477

My number one no-no isn't included, which is don't have "horse charts" i.e., don't have charts that basically say, "this is a horse." Every chart should have a purpose, and that purpose should be essentially spelled out in the title. Zillions of charts have a graph of something with a title like, "Measured Data." Is the data good, or bad, or what? What the heck was that chart supposed to tell me?

TTFN

FAQ731-376
Chinese prisoner wins Nobel Peace Prize

 

[jmw]

Sorry, and IRstuff has the right link.

JMW

http://www.ViscoAnalyser.com

 

[JohnRBaker]

If you look at my job title below, you might suspect that I give a lot of presentations. The good news is that since I'm generally talking about our most recent software release, most of my presentation is actually demoing the software live for the audience (note that only once in awhile do I get involved in sales situations, but rather I spend most of my time speaking to large existing customers or groups of users attending a conference or some other user-oriented event). However, in the small number of slides in my powerpoint, I traditionally include a picture of my 4 granddaughters. This started out after a presentation I gave in Singapore when I told the audience that I had just become a grandfather for the first time (I had just talked to my wife back in SoCal). Well, the next year I again speaking at the same conference and one of our gals who worked in our local office remembered what I had said and she asked to she pictures of my granddaughter, and see was disappointed when I had to admit that I didn't have any pictures with me. Anyway, the next year when I again in Singapore I made it a point to include a picture of Tyler in my presentation. Well it has been a hallmark of my presentations ever since, only now I'm up to four girls (all from our #1 son) but in June we add a 5th (from our #3 son) so I'll have some new news for my audience. Ever since then, no matter where in the world I'm presenting (I've visited 30 countries in 30 years on business) people ask me if I'm going to show them new pictures of the girls. It's now part of my 'signature'.

Anyway, there is a point to this story; if like me you're in a situation where you will be giving presentations year after year to the same groups, try to add something unexpected which they will remember since it will both make your presentations memorable, but it will also great an expectation which you can leverage to get and keep the audiences attention.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Design Solutions
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA

http://www.siemens.com/plm

http://www.plmworld.org/museum/

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[jmw]

Yes, at conferences and for articles, my larger audience is much the same. This is where the real challenge comes; to have something new each time.
I doubt I have ever given the same or even similar presentations in the last 15 years.



JMW

http://www.ViscoAnalyser.com

 

[SLTA]

I give the engineering and construction presentation at our sales seminars. Same thing over and over for a different group each time. Most people are surprised, and therefore interested, the minute I walk up, seeing as how I'm a GIRL. I just keep them going from there. I, like John, try to throw in some personal thoughts like "this is one of my favorite pictures because..." and sprinkle in a few jokes about the construction process (yes, they're actually funny). The hardest part for me is staying interested in the presentation, because I've given it so many times.

 

[jmw]

slta,
I fell asleep in my own presentation once... I had an audience of one and he was already asleep.
This is some time ago and standard sales training stuff. Conferences are more fun.

JMW

http://www.ViscoAnalyser.com