The Complete Presentation Skills Handbook: How to Understand and Reach Your Audience for Maximum Impact and Success Book

Acknowledgements     vii
Introduction     1
Why Give a Presentation At All?     5
Are presentations worth the effort?     5
Benefits of a successful presentation     7
Setting Expectations     11
The delegate's kit     12
Booking venues     15
Greeting the delegates     16
Researching Your Audience     20
Audience Behaviours     25
Learning preferences     25
Aiming     28
Encoding     31
Transmission     32
Receiving     33
Decoding     34
Responding     34
How People Remember, What They Forget     38
The four stages of memory     38
Associations and differences     41
Numerical information     43
Primacy and recency effect     45
Selecting Your Subject and Organizing Your Information     47
Setting SMART objectives     48
Organization methods     51
Writing the Script     54
Structuring a script     55
Scriptwriting rules     58
Style and vocabulary     60
Visuals     65
Brightness and afterimage     65
Layout, templates and typefaces     69
Using presentation software to the full: the power of hyperlinks     70
How to prepare a hyperlinked show     72
Adapting information for slide shows     74
Staging the Presentation     76
Space     76
The presentation area     79
Lecterns     80
Lighting     80
Acoustics     81
Optional extras     81
Voice and Performance Skills     82
The voice itself     86
Does my accent matter?     96
Nerves and Body Language     98
Charisma, authority and influence     100
Use of space     101
Learning to observe     101
Proxemics     103
Displacement activities     104
Creating rapport     105
Spot the liar     105
Putting body language together     106
Using Microphones and Autocues     107
What you need to know before you use a microphone     107
Types of microphone and how to use them     109
Autocues      111
Rehearsals     113
Equipment and Visuals     120
Clicker/Wireless Pocket Presenter/Presentation Remote     120
USB flash drive     121
Image banks     121
Presentation checklist     121
After the presentation     124
The Question-and-Answer Session     126
Preparing for the question-and-answer session     127
Types of questions to expect     130
Tracking the question-and-answer session     133
Delivering the Presentation     135
First impressions     135
Credibility - what the audience believes     135
The charisma recipe     137
Starting with a bang     138
Your final bow     140
Technical Presentations and Demonstrations     141
Technical presentations     141
Setting demonstration objectives     144
Demonstrations     147
The sales cycle     151
Controlling the Audience     155
Handling interruptions     157
Handling the Media     158
Just before an interview - taking control     162
Preparing for an interview - the five-step preparation process      163
Getting help before an interview     163
The actual interview     166
Handling discussions     167
Other hints and tips     169
Training People to Give Presentations     170
Training yourself     170
Training others     173
The Role of the Master of Ceremonies     177
The MC's duties before the presentation     177
The opening welcome and introduction     179
Following Up the Presentation     183
Alternatives to Presentations     186
Successful meetings     186
Tasks necessary for any meetings     187
Attendees' checklist for meetings     190
Leader's checklist     191
Attendees' personal checklist     191
Organizer's checklist     192
Teleconferencing and video conferencing     192
Handling Disasters     194
Templates, Checklists and Reminders     196
Master checklist     196
Personal profile     198
Self-assessment     199
Feedback sheets     200
Delegate kit     204
Evaluation form     205
Sample course questionnaire      206
Rehearsal checklist     207
Templates     210
Hints and tips on preparing presentations     217
Flip chart questions and answers     219
Index     221