Preparation
After you’ve researched your topic and completed your audience analysis, it’s time to begin structuring your presentation. Some people prefer to script their presentations while others prefer to outline. Either style is conducive to creating a great presentation; however, if you choose to script your presentation, it is highly recommended that you eventually format your script into an outline. Even talented presenters have a difficult time making a memorized script sound natural when they are on stage; furthermore, if you commit your script to memory, you may find that it’s more difficult for you to recover if you lose your place during the presentation.
Download the PDF worksheet Oral Presentation Outline to help you effectively organize your content as you follow the tips below.
Introductions Matter
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- Use CPR to clearly establish the Context, Problem, and Response for your audience. The context, whether fiction or non-fiction, is essential information that introduces your audience to the settings and characters involved in the problem you aim to analyze and solve. Your response to the problem is your thesis. Engage your audience from the beginning by utilizing an effective hook.
Transitions
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- Smooth, effective transitions take a presentation from good to great. Considerate transitions provide signposts for your audience, letting them know where they are in your presentation. Similar to a trail you are hiking, signposts indicate how many miles you have completed and how much further you have to go. If you have three points you intend to make in your presentation, for example, simple signposts could be "first . . . second . . . third." Your audience will thank you.
Simplify
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- You have comprehensive understanding of your topic because you've considered it carefully and thoroughly researched it. You may feel compelled to share everything you know or simply outline the research paper you've written. Please, do not do that. Recall your audience analysis—what do they know about your topic and what do you hope they learn from your presentation? Identify a main takeaway—the problem you aim to solve or your call to action—and select the most compelling, persuasive points to include in your presentation. The simpler, clearer your message, the more likely your audience is to remember it and you.
Meet
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- Once you’ve completed your outline, make sure it addresses all requirements expected of you. If your presentation is for a class, this will likely be in a rubric created by your professor. If your presentation is for a conference, expectations will be in the presentation guidelines.
Dig Deeper
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Tap into the power to persuade by using these 6 techniques of clear and compelling speech to craft your next persuasive speech.
Pro Tip
Remember that your presentation is different than a written work. Your audience can’t take a break, stop listening to look up a term they don’t know, or scan ahead during a presentation—they trust you to guide them and keep them engaged. You are the audience’s guide during your presentation.
If you’re presenting research, try telling the story of your research rather than summarizing a report.
As you organize your outline, consider these questions:
- What content is most compelling to your audience? What do they value? If you aren’t framing your presentation in a way that appeals to your audience, do you think they will be interested in hearing what you have to say?
- What is the most important information your audience should take away from your presentation? Is that information lost in too many details or is it highlighted and reiterated throughout your presentation?
- What does your audience know about your topic? What content will be new to them? To make your presentation more accessible, can you eliminate jargon, define niche terms, and include analogies to bridge familiar concepts to your newly proposed ideas?
- Is there something you want your audience to do? In other words, does your presentation have a call to action, such as funding your project, joining your cause, or changing a behavior? If so, have you communicated it clearly and persuasively?
Interested in a one-one consultation with an expert to review your communication assignment, rubric, or activities? Looking for a workshop on teaching oral competency? How about a Public Speaking 101 workshop for your students? Visit the Sanger Public Speaking Center webpage Links to an external site.or send a message to: slc.speaking@austin.utexas.edu. Our team looks forward to empowering you and your students!