Tips for Effective Presentation Design and Delivery

Christopher J. James and Cristian A. Linte

[email protected] and [email protected].

Preparing a Presentation  Continue discussions later if they are consuming too

much time or do not involve more than one audience
 Know your audience: who are they? What level of member.
knowledge do they have about the topic?
 Ask yourself:
o Why am I giving this presentation?
o What am I trying to say? STYLE
o What do I want my audience to get from  Use a consistent layout (same slide background, font,
this? font size, bullets, etc.)
 Choose visual aids that best convey your message
o PowerPoint
 Use an easily legible font and don’t overcrowd the
slide.
o Transparencies
o Videotape  Use PowerPoint animation to focus attention. Do not
o Chalkboard overanimate
o Handouts  Graphs, Tables and Figures should be bold, simple and
o Props contain only essential details.
o Combination?  Colour on slides should be minimal.
 Tell a story (and KEEP IT SIMPLE) HINT: White or yellow text on a blue background is
o Clear opening easiest to read.
o Body: list and prioritize the main messages (3-4)
 Always face the audience, maintain eye contact and
you want to convey with your presentation. What
stand still.
is your ‘take home message’?
o Strong Conclusion: reemphasize key points  Stand comfortably with arms relaxed and feet shoulder
 KEEP TO TIME. For a 20 minute presentation: width apart.
o Intro: 2 – 3 minutes  Keep your hands relatively still.
o Body (with 2 or 3 key messages): 10  Speak with confidence and enthusiasm in a clear, strong
minutes voice.
o Conclusion: 2 – 3 minutes
 Vary the volume and rate of your speech.
o This will leave 4 -6 minutes for Questions
 Talk to the back of the room, to ensure everyone can
hear clearly.

GENERAL PREPARATION
KEY TIPS
 Rehearse your presentation several times out loud,
until you feel confident. (Check the timing). Practice
CONTENT
before ‘friendly’ colleagues for advice.
 Create a title that is reflective of your talk.  EDIT your slides carefully.
 Plan the talk so you tell a story. o Remove superfluous information
 Ensure the audience leaves with a clear message. o Correct typos and grammatical errors (have
 Be concise. Summarize information whenever possible. someone else check).
 Use pictures versus text when possible  Dress appropriately for the occasion.
 Limit each slide to one unified idea.  Verify you are comfortable with the room set-up and
equipment.
 Anticipate questions from the audience.
o Be prepared to be interrupted.  Get yourself a glass of water
o Think of the top 10 questions and prepare  Pay attention to other presenters: learn from their
answers. mistakes or borrow effective techniques.
o Prepare additional slides to answer questions, if
necessary.
 If you don’t know, say so or offer to find out and
follow up. This is better than answering incorrectly. THINGS TO AVOID

TIME

EMBC 2014 – Chicago, IL 1 © 2014

Preparing for an Effective Presentation: Christopher J. James and Cristian Linte

 Do not exceed the allotted time. This is very audience will be able to tell that you’ve memorized
disrespectful to the audience and can make people very whole sentences (especially if you mess up halfway
uncomfortable through one)
o use cue cards with key phrases or ideas for
 2 minutes per PowerPoint slide
each slide of the presentation. DON’T
 Audience questions can provide different views of your WRITE OUT FULL SENTENCES.
topic and can initiate fruitful collaborations and
interactions. Make time for them.
 Flipping through slides too quickly.
 Making rapid movements with the pointer.
VOICE  Aiming the laser pointer at the audience
 Muttering, especially when answering questions  Repetitively circling objects on the slide or moving
 Chewing gum. beyond the slide onto the wall or ceiling
 Talking too quickly.  Tapping the screen with a stick pointer (the screen will
then start moving)
 Use empty words such as ‘uh, like, you know, uhm’,
etc.
BODY LANGUAGE
STYLE  Pacing (especially if you are wearing noisy shoes).
 Reading directly from the slides or your presentation  Blocking visuals. If you see you are in someone’s way,
handouts. Tone of voice changes when reading and try to accommodate them. (Remember to also keep
can be difficult to listen to. watching your audience to maintain a relationship with
them)
 Memorizing your speech. Sometimes it is useful to
memorize one or two opening statements for sections  Fidgeting with keys, pocket change, or your hair/mouth
of your presentation but if every point has been  Turning your back to the audience.
memorized and you get lost or too nervous, the

References and Useful Websites

1. Bourne PE (2007). Ten simple rules for making good oral presentations. PLoS Comput Biol 3 (4): e77.
doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.0030077
2. Fischer, Beth and Zigmond, Michael. Making Oral Presentations. Survival Skills and Ethics Program.
www.survival.pitt.edu
3. Walley, Keith. Good Presentations. iCAPTURE Centre Lunch and Learn Presentation
4. http://www.slideshare.net/thecroaker/death-by-powerpoint
5. http://lorien.ncl.ac.uk/ming/Dept/Tips/present/comms.htm
6. Kschischang, Frank R. 2000. Giving a Talk: Guidelines for the preparation and presentation of technical seminars.
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Toronto.
http://www.comm.toronto.edu/~frank/guide/guide0.html
7. http://www.tthhivclinic.com/guidelines__presentation_skill.html
8. http://www.mapnp.org/library/commskls/presntng/basics.htm
9. http://web.cba.neu.edu/~ewertheim/skills/oral.htm
10. Linte, C. A. Communicating your research in lay language. IEEE Eng Med Biol. 28(3): 5-7. 2009.
11. Linte, C. A. The art of dissemination: What makes an effective scientific presentation? IEEE Eng Med Biol. 27(4): 5-8.
2008.
12. Laster, A. A. and Picket, N. A. Technical English: Writing, Reading and Speaking. New York: Harper Collins. 1996.
13. Hollett, V. Carter R., Lyon, L. and Tanner, E. In at the Deep End – Speaking Activities for Professional People. Oxford
University Press. 1989.
14. Bell, G. The Secret of Successful Speaking and Business Presentations. Butterworth/Heinemann. 1987.
15. Kelcher, M. Better Communication Skills for Work. Accompanies by a BBC TV Series. 1992.
16. Feierman, A. The Art of Communicating Effectively: Tips from all Aspects of pulling off the successful presentation! Available
online: http://www.presentation-pointers.com/showarticle/articleid/64/
17. J. King, ‘‘Talking science with nonscientists: A personal communication,’’ Scientist, 13(7). Pp.12. 1999.
18. National Institutes of Health plain language training program [Online]. Available:
http://plainlanguage.nih.gov/CBTs/PlainLanguage/login.asp
19. Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada [Online]. Available: http://www.hsf.ca/research/en/open-
competitions/competition-faqs.html#6
20. Reynolds, G. Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery New Riders; 2008.
21. Tufte, E.R. The Visual Display of Quantitative Information Graphics Press USA, 2001.
22. Alley, M. The Craft of Scientific Presentations: Critical Steps to Succeed and Critical Errors to Avoid Springer 2003.

EMBC 2014 – Chicago, IL 2 © 2014