7 top tips to help you prepare for and present at a conference after Covid.
Imagine this: It is Wednesday morning, you open your emails and - BAM! - the subject line says "Congratulations! - you have been chosen to present at a conference". Although this subject line is something a lot of people dread to read, the reality is that the world is slowly coming back to face-to-face presentations and conferences again. And that is a good thing if you know how to make it work to your advantage!
The good news? This article is designed to help you get the best start and performance for your upcoming conference presentation. So let's get into it!
If this is your first time, it can seem daunting. Even if you’re a seasoned and professional conference speaker, these short tips can help you along the way and turn a good presentation into a great one.
Presenting at a conference is a key feature of nearly all industries, ranging from science, to media, to finance and more. Finding the right message for your eager audience and successfully communicating your findings is a great way to enhance your career prospects.
Designing a conference presentation is no different to designing any other presentation. One of the biggest challenges is likely to be managing your nerves and staying on message. Rest assured that even the most experienced and respected speakers still get nervous before they start, so don't be alarmed. The good news is that the techniques of an effective and mindful presenter and convention networking master can be practised and learned. So how can this be achieved? Here are 7 tips that will help you give an effective conference presentation.
1. Create a smashing presentation deck. Once you have all the information you need about the conference, create the slide deck for your presentation accordingly.
First, remember the ultimate goal of your presentation and then:
Outline - Note down your key points.
Add detail - To your key points to ensure you include everything you'd like to portray, either as a story or visual.
Add visuals - Consider a pie chart to show percentages, or a strong image to convey a point rather than a plain bullet point. Visuals can be much more effective than words.
Set sequence - Ensure your presentation slides are in a coherent order. Rehearse often to get your 'flow' right.
Time - The best presenters know exactly how much time they have to work with, and they tailor their presentation to fit the allocated duration.
Consider aesthetics - The style needs to be easy on the eye, so avoid paragraphs of text. Bullet points are preferable, and it helps to choose fonts and colours that are neither overbearing nor overly attention-grabbing.
Remember the 3 basic slide layouts of a presentation:
A mixture of image and text slides
Image only slides
Text only slides
“If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough" - Albert Einstein - change the way you present today, and click through to your training.
2. Timing is everything! I know I already mentioned time but I cannot stress this enough. Knowing how much time you have to present at the conference will be the deciding factor in your presentation. This will decide how you will choose to convey your information to the audience. Most conferences have time allocated to speaker slots and it will state this time in your convention information kit. Avoid adding too much information to the point where you run out of time to present the key findings. Find out how much time you have and aim to fill that - not more not less.
3. Practise your presentation as often as you can. Ask friends, colleagues or family if they can be your ‘test audience” as you present your talk. You can also record yourself on audio or visual devices and rewatch it as often as required to iron out the kinks and make it flow more smoothly. Don't forget the pregnant pauses (i.e. longer pauses that draw the listener's attention in) that you naturally add in when conversing with a friend. These longer pauses will give yourself time to think and your audience time to digest.
3. Manage body language and nerves when you're speaking. For your audience to engage with you, it is important that they can see you. So, where possible, avoid hiding behind a lectern or looking at your screen extensively. Face the audience and make eye contact. Try to let your gaze wander, rather than staring into the distance or at one person, as this can make people uneasy. Remember to keep a confident, relaxed and open posture, and use hand gestures to emphasise your point and gently move around the stage as you speak. This is more interesting for the audience than a speaker rooted rigidly in one spot.
4. Remember to keep pace on the day. Nervousness can cause you to speed up your speech, meaning you get through your presentation too quickly. Worse, your audience may not fully grasp what you are trying to inform them of, and they’ll become unenthused. Here is a great rule of thumb to help you along: It takes the audience twice as long to understand what you say than it takes for you to say it.
5. Know the event audience. Are you presenting to a roomful of people with information that they already know? The worst thing for a speaker and the audience is when the presenter is preaching to the already converted. A great way to avoid this mistake is to ask yourself:
What does my audience already know about this topic?
How can I present the information in a fresh, attention-grabbing way?
What details can I share that would build upon what they already know? Related niches?
Would my audience benefit from real-life examples, illustrations, or audio-visual aids?
6. Embrace Q&A. At some point during your presentation, you will probably be expected to answer questions from the audience. Many presentations will have a defined time for questions at the end, more commonly known as Q&A (Question & Answer). Q&A sessions can be nerve-wracking because of the dread that you might not be able to answer them. If you are asked a question that you cannot answer, don't be afraid to answer that you don't know, perhaps in a form like "That's a good question - while I don't know enough to answer that question right now, I can find out and I can get back to you on that." Alternatively, you can invite the audience to provide an answer. Ultimately, it is far better to be honest than to make up an answer! And remember that if you do mention that you will find out, do the research afterwards.
If you feel that Q&A might be a blind spot for you we can support you to prepare and practice for Q&A sessions in our presentation training coaching sessions.
7. Prepare for more than just your presentation. Preparation is key for anything in life, especially for conference presentations.
Think about your attire. Wear something that makes you feel comfortable and confident. If you’re not sure what clothes are appropriate, check the dress code with the organisers or with colleagues that already have some conference experience.
Sleep! Seriously, get sleep. Try to get a good night’s sleep before your presentation. Everything feels better and more manageable when you’re well-rested.
Eat well. It is easy to get carried away at a conference and survive on finger food during the day and have a big dinner meal at the end of the day along with some wine. Ask yourself, is my diet sustaining my energy levels?
Back up your backup. A good way to think about your presentation technology requirements is this: Any tech you want to use can fail at some point. It’s not beyond the realms of possibility for your USB stick or hard drive not to work when the big moment comes. Or for the conference’s presentation facilities to fail. Back up your backup to know your presentation is safe and ready.
!Bonus tip! - Remember to stop and breathe during your presentation
It’s normal to feel nervous and uncertain even if you’re well prepared and know your topic inside out. Take the time to pause and take a deep breath during pregnant pauses. It will help you stay focused throughout the presentation and, as mentioned earlier, will give your audience time to digest your content.
Practice this during your rehearsals. Pausing for 1-2 seconds can seem like an eternity to you, but your audience will appreciate it and it will help you feel calmer.
Presenting skills are for life. Once you’ve mastered the tips above, you’ll be set to give a great conference presentation. And the more presentations you deliver, the easier they’ll become - until you reach a point where you can’t remember how nervous they used to make you!
Summary
At the core, preparing for a conference presentation is no different from preparing for any other type of public speaking event. You need to understand the topic very well, research and practice what you are going to say, know your audience, and know how you can best relate to them.