How To Create an Effective Business Presentation: The 10 Commandments

Thorough preparation is the key to giving a great business presentation that will surely get the approval and commendation from your big bosses and even pave the way to an unexpected promotion in the corporate ladder. And, knowing the do’s and don’ts is crucial to this.

It is not enough that you know what to say before your audience, what is required is that you are well-versed about the subject of your presentation; that particular state wherein you feel you can answer whatever questions thrown at you. You are very convinced that no one can beat your expertise on the topic, even your boss, the executives, and all the people in the conference room.

Tip: Study all sides of the topic thoroughly, even those that have little connection or relevance to your presentation goals. Who knows someone from the audience will ask? And, be very particular with the important details. When citing facts and figures, make sure to memorize the year, the people, the number, and the places in general sense.

Once you are well-rounded about the subject, it’s now time to dig deeper by listing possible questions that any of your audience may ask. In doing so, you need to go over all the information provided in your presentation. I know that this will really take time, but I tell you, this is for your sake. Being prepared to speak in front of your bosses can be very challenging and a wrong answer can definitely affect your credibility and overall performance.

Tip: To assist you, make use of timeline templates to easily track the flow of your ideas. These templates are not only perfect for presenting corporate historical data and the like, but are also very helpful in creating an organized and easy to follow flow of your speech.

I know this may sound a bit funny, but there are some speakers who are guilty of this, even those who are experts in the corporate world; they just read whatever is written in the slide until they reach the last part. Although others look to their audience while reading, it is still very boring to hear and watch if you just read what you wrote.

Tip: Only put the most important points or the gist of your ideas in the slides and just expound each of them during your presentation. And, remember to expound naturally. You can effectively connect to your audience if you are calm and natural when speaking. Also, don’t forget to use relevant gestures and eye contact occasionally.

Never ever allow embarrassing moments to happen. I’ve witnessed speakers who are illiterate with their PPT design. And, I'll tell you, if you are not used to creating slides or PPT presentations, I would highly recommend that you try ready-made, customer-friendly and professional PowerPoint templates and slides. You will be amazed with the wide array of choices.

Tip: Master all the aspects of your visual presentation. Hours before the actual speech, rehearse using all the tools and see if they are all working fine. If the USB or file you saved malfunctions, for instance, there might not be second chances.

Not everyone has long attention span. In fact, most people feel sleepy and bored after listening to a 30 minute presentation. So do something to break the ice and wake up everyone. Being in a formal gathering doesn’t mean you have to forego funny stories or world-class entertainment.

Tip: Inserting funny examples in between will surely energize your audience. You can also use different facial expressions or voice tone when talking to keep their attentive. Another option is to give a few minutes to watch short videos, so they have time to stretch their muscles and relax. You can hire a singer or a dance group to entertain too.

You don’t want your audience to experience information overload, so you have to, Keep It Simple Silly or KISS. Make it simple, brief and concise yet quiet interesting. Otherwise, you will see people who are excusing themselves to go somewhere, listeners who are giving their biggest yawn, or worst, guests who couldn’t resist but sleep in front of you.

Tip: Think of a dartboard. In creating your slides, each of them should be able to hit the ultimate message and should never be going around the bush. Always look at the main goal and do not deviate from it. Keep your focus and attention.

The theme of your PPT is not just about having the most attractive color. What you should think of is, will it be effective in reaching out to your audience? Just think about using pink colored templates in front of an all-men gathering. You have consider your listerners always. Remember that you are presenting because they are there.

Tip: Again, if you are unsure what design or template to use, downloading ready-made and editable free PowerPoint templates will save you time.

Welcoming them with a messy, unorganized content and color scheme can create a bad first impression. Just like choosing the best template or design that’s fitting with the subject matter, you have to choose those styles that are pleasing to their eyes.

Tip: When it comes to font style, avoid Comic Sans and running letters. Instead, use only two kinds, one for headings and the other for subheadings. But then again, if you want to save hours of work, ready-made templates are a great help. They showcase the best font style and size to use.

PowerPoint diagrams, text and tables, maps, and shapes are there to aid you in presenting facts and figures clearly. You don’t need to enumerate or list them barely in a plain looking slide.

Tip: Use the power of visual presentation.

Jumping from one slide to another slide to connect ideas can be very distracting; thus, affecting the focus of your audience. Make sure that a certain topic is briefly and concisely explained in continuous relevant slides or even in one slide.

Tip: If you have the opportunity to tell it all, then do it. Don’t wait for another time because you may lose the chance.