Presentation Skills Training

Level 2 Workshop

Professional Presentation Skills

The Problem With Presentations

I'm sure that, like me, you have attended more than a few presentations. How many of them were truly memorable, effective, and persuasive? If my guess is right, your answer is 'very few'. The vast majorities fall into what I call The Five Avoidable Traits (FAT).

• No clear point. How many times have you sat through a presentation and, at the end, said to another attendee "What was the point?"
• No audience benefit. The presentation fails to show how the audience can benefit from the information presented. Whenever possible, make sure that you point out to the attendees 'what is in it for them'; not 'what is in it for the organisation', not 'what is in it for the planet', in this case it is purely a personal benefit.
• No clear flow. The sequence of information is so disordered that it leaves the audience confused. By having a logical sequence, you clarify, not confuse.
• Too detailed. Too many facts are presented, including facts that are overly technical or irrelevant. The main point is obscured, and also 'brain numbing' occurs.
• Too long. The audience loses focus and gets bored before the presentation ends. How many times in your entire professional career have you ever attended a presentation that was too short?

Make sure that your next presentation is lean, not FAT.

Quote: "Fantastic workshop. Our senior partner received a lot of praise both from partners and clients for the delivery of his latest presentation — 10 out of 10!" - Julia Banwell, Old Mill Finance Services. End quote.

Who is This Workshop For?

You already know how to control your nerves, you give presentations on a fairly regular basis; but now, you want to go up another level.

This workshop will show you:

• how to make persuasive presentations - taking your audience on a journey from point A to point B
• the difference between features and benefits - and which of these your audience prefers.
• the 4 classic opening gambits
• the proper role of graphics
• how to make the text talk
• how to make the numbers sing

For more information on public courses, in-house training or one-to-one coaching:

>> Fill in this enquiry form

Workshop Information

Workshop registration 9:00am-9:30am, finish 4:30pm. Your investment? £295 + VAT. This includes all workshop materials, video recording of your presentation, refreshments and lunch.

Content

All workshops have been designed to help people create and deliver great presentations, and cover the four essentials of all presentations:

The workshop will cover:

The Opening

• Grab the audience's attention
• State your purpose
• Explain your agenda
• Lay down your ground rules

The Main Body

• Select an appropriate organisational pattern
• Preparing your material
• Limit your information
• Enhance with stories, numbers and examples

The Closing

• Summarise your main points
• Question and answer section (if appropriate)
• Ask for specific action
• Close with a strong final statement

Visual Aids

• Good visual aids are appropriate
• Good visual aids are clear
• Good visual aids are consistent
• Good visual aids are dynamic

Also covered:

• Increasing self confidence out of all proportion
• Using 'Vocal Power' to enhance your speaking success

Feedback

Here's a sample feedback from a conference at which I was one of the keynote speakers. I have masked the other speakers' names.

Quote: " ... what can I say? You were a star turn!! ... I have attached a chart on the feedback from the conferences. " - Robert Crawford; Director, Institute of Customer Service. End quote.

Size of Workshop

This one-day workshop is restricted to a maximum of 6 participants. This is because we will be making a video recording of each participant. You will have a copy of your presentation, enabling you to study your good points and eliminate whatever is necessary.

Public Speaking

Public speaking training is one way of creating a better world for yourself. Any employee in either the public or private sector, who can demonstrate an ability to make a persuasive or informative presentation, is more highly valued than those who do not have this skill. Business communication skills is a rare quality, which can be learned, and quickly! Reason? You already have 90% of the skills required; all you need now is to learn the elusive 10% that transforms you up to the top level.

Effective communication skills are just one of the pillars of presentation/public speaking skills. What is meant by effective communication? We all communicate, but how well do we communicate? In my workshops I demonstrate, in a humorous fashion, what I call 'the art of miscommunication'. This demonstration uses words and directions that (at first glance) are clear and unambiguous. However, when examined a little closer, we find that the message intended was open to many interpretations. Effective communications skills training ensures that this never happens, and also ensures that there is no room for misunderstanding.

This Presentation Skills workshop will also, as a 'ripple out effect', enhance your inter-personal skills. I also understand the need for you to come away with improved PowerPoint skills, as this is an essential part of any Presenting toolkit.

Every Presentation Skills workshop should encompass the basic rules of a Public Speaking workshop.

The first rule of public speaking is Focus. Very often we are inclined to rely too heavily on our 'natural knowledge', by this I mean the accumulated experience we can draw on, instead of treating every presentation as a totally new adventure. That's a good word for it. Adventure. Forget 'challenge' - this should be looked on as an 'adventure'. Focus and prepare as if you have never attempted to make a powerful presentation before (even if you have made umpteen!), this brings a vitality and excitement to your preparation and research. By focusing on good preparation, you will reduce your level of anxiety, and adopt a more positive approach.

The second rule of public speaking is Edit. The best public speakers are the ones who learn to edit their material so that it becomes 'bite size'. How many times have you endured a presentation by someone who has droned on forever giving pointless detail, instead of short snappy, interesting sentences? I too have often lost the will to live listening to those people, and regardless of the message they were appointed to get across, they had the opposite effect. They didn't appeal to me, nor did their message. Communication skills training emphasises, whilst presenting, the need to get rid of the 'FAT', and instead deliver a 'lean' interesting presentation. So please, edit, edit and edit again, find the words that are totally unnecessary, and delete. Good speeches are those full of good content, not meaningless words.

The third rule is Volume. Most presenters who have not been on a Public Speaking workshop will use their normal conversational tone of voice, or, even worse, their 'telephone voice'. Very often I have been to an event and heard a member of the audience shout "can't hear you". Imagine how soul-destroying that must be for the speaker. So let's talk about volume, or voice projection. Learn how to use your voice dynamic range, as you would if you were singing a song. All professional public speakers 'sing' their sentences, without anyone in the audience being aware that this is happening. Even if you are using a microphone, this will not compensate for a timid tone of voice. Note the word 'timid'. Don't confuse this with 'soft'. I have worked with speakers who have spoken in a 'soft' voice, and yet they came across as being very strong and assertive. However, a 'timid' tone of voice usually sounds non-assertive and even apologetic. Good public speakers make sure that they project their voice using a full and varied dynamic range. You don't have to shout, quite the opposite in fact, but you will have to project your voice 'to the back of the room'. The back of the room is where you should focus on making yourself heard, that way you will succeed and come across as a highly confident presenter. An unexpected bonus of public speaking is that your interpersonal skills will be enhanced.

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