3.3: Developing a Presentation Strategy
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Learning Objectives
Introduction
In beginning to think about a strategy for your presentation, you must move from thinking only about your “self” to how you will engage with the world outside of you, which, of course, includes your audience and environment.
This chapter focuses on helping you prepare a presentation strategy by first revisiting the acronym FAST, which will help you select an appropriate Format, prepare an Audience analysis, ensure your Style reflects your authentic personality and strengths, and that the Tone is appropriate for the occasion.
Then, after you’ve selected the appropriate channel, you will begin drafting your presentation first by considering the general and specific purposes of your presentation and using an outline to map your ideas and strategy.
You’ll also learn to consider whether to incorporate backchannels or other technology into your presentation, and, finally, you will begin to think about how to develop presentation aids that will support your topic and approach.
Preparing a Presentation Strategy
Incorporating FAST
In the Writing module, you learned the acronym FAST, which you can use to develop your message according to the elements of Format, Audience, Style, and Tone. When you are working on a presentation, much like in your writing, you will rely on FAST to help you make choices.
First, you’ll need to think about the Format of your presentation. This is a choice between presentation types. In your professional life you’ll encounter the verbal communication channels in the following table. The purpose column labels each channel with a purpose (I=Inform, P=Persuade, or E=Entertain) depending on that channel’s most likely purpose.
Channel | Direction | Level of Formality | Interaction | Purpose |
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Speech | One to many | Formal | Low. One-sided | I,P,E |
Presentation | One/Few-to-many | Formal | Variable. Often includes Q&A | I,P,E |
Panel | Few-to-,many | Formal | High. Q&A based | I,P |
Meeting | Group | Informal | High. | I,P |
Teleconference | Group | Informal | High | I,P |
Workshop | One-to-many | Informal | High. Collaborative | I (Educate) |
Webinar | One-to-many | Formal | Low. | I |
Podcast | One-to-many | Formal | Low. Recorded | I,P,E |
There are some other considerations to make when you are selecting a format. For example, the number of speakers may influence the format you choose. Panels and Presentations may have more than one speaker. In meetings and teleconferences, multiple people will converse. In a Workshop setting, one person will usually lead the event, but there is often a high-level of collaboration between participants.
The location of participants will also influence your decision. For example, if participants cannot all be in the same room, you might choose a teleconference or webinar. If asynchronous delivery is important, you might record a podcast. When choosing a technology-reliant channel, such as a teleconference or webinar, be sure to test your equipment and make sure each participant has access to any materials they need before you begin.
Once you have chosen a Format, make sure your message is right for your Audience, just as you did in the Foundations module, when you conducted your Audience Analysis. You’ll need to think about issues such as the following:
The AUDIENCE tool you used in the Foundations module will be helpful tool here.
Next, you’ll consider the style of your presentation. Some of the things you discovered about yourself as a speaker in the self-awareness exercises earlier will influence your presentation style. Perhaps you prefer to present formally, limiting your interaction with the audience, or perhaps you prefer a more conversational, informal style, where discussion is a key element. You may prefer to cover serious subjects, or perhaps you enjoy delivering humorous speeches. Style is all about your personality!
Presentation Purpose
Timing
Aim to speak for 90 percent of your allotted time so that you have time to answer audience questions at the end (assuming you have allowed for this). If audience questions are not expected, aim for 95 percent. Do not go overtime—audience members may need to be somewhere else immediately following your presentation, and you will feel uncomfortable if they begin to pack up and leave while you are still speaking. Conversely, you don’t want to finish too early, as they may feel as if they didn’t get their “money’s worth.”
Incorporating Backchannels
Have you ever been to a conference where speakers asked for audience questions via social media? Perhaps one of your teachers at school has used Twitter for student comments and questions, or has asked you to vote on an issue through an online poll. Technology has given speakers new ways to engage with an audience in real time, and these can be particularly useful when it isn’t practical for the audience to share their thoughts verbally—for example, when the audience is very large, or when they are not all in the same location.
These secondary or additional means of interacting with your audience are called backchannels, and you might decide to incorporate one into your presentation, depending on your aims. They can be helpful for engaging more introverted members of the audience who may not be comfortable speaking out verbally in a large group. Using publicly accessible social networks, such as a Facebook Page or Twitter feed, can also help to spread your message to a wider audience, as audience members share posts related to your speech with their networks. Because of this, backchannels are often incorporated into conferences; they are helpful in marketing the conference and its speakers both during and after the event.
Developing the Content
Creating an Outline
Section | Content | Verbal and Visual Delivery |
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Introduction |
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Body |
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Conclusion |
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Introduction
Body
Rhetoric and Argument
Your audience will think to themselves, Why should I listen to this speech? What’s in it for me? One of the best things you can do as a speaker is to answer these questions early in your body, if you haven’t already done so in your introduction. This will serve to gain their support early and will fill in the blanks of who, what, when, where, why, and how in their minds.
You may remember the three rhetorical proofs, namely, ethos, pathos, and logos, from the Writing Module. The Greek philosopher Aristotle (384‒322 B.C) considered these the three most important elements in a speaker’s arsenal.
Ethos
Ethos refers to the speaker’s character and expertise. When you use ethos correctly, you are showing the audience that you are credible and that they can believe what you say. To cover this element in your speech, tell the audience why they should listen to you. You can do this by demonstrating your authority on your topic. For example, you could begin a persuasive speech on the dangers of drinking and driving with a short story about how you helped implement a “designated driver” program. This way the audience will understand your relationship to the message and form a positive perception of you. If you are trying to persuade the audience to donate blood, your credibility on the subject may come from your studies in the medical field or from having volunteered at a blood drive.
Pathos
The term pathos refers to the use of emotion as a persuasive element. You have probably seen commercials on television for charities trying to raise funds for sick children or mistreated animals, complete with sad images and music; this is pathos at work. We don’t always make decisions based on clear thinking. We are easily moved by words, by a video clip, or by a piece of music, so this can be an effective way of convincing the audience to take a particular action. But it can be overdone, and the audience will tire of it if you push too hard. If pathos is central to your strategy, be subtle about it so that you don’t turn off your audience.
Logos
The term logos refers to logic. Aristotle believed that any argument should be based on logic, not pathos (emotion), but you might not agree! To win your audience over using logic, your speech must be carefully organized and present facts and evidence. Depending on the general purpose of your speech, particularly if its goal is to persuade, you may need to present an argument. To do this, logos is key. Think about what prosecutors do during a trial—particularly during closing arguments. This is the place for facts and reason. Prosecutors will argue that the scenario they have presented is the only logical interpretation of the evidence. To use logos effectively, incorporate expert testimony, statistics, and other reliable data.
Organization
An organized body helps your audience to follow your speech and recall your points later. When developing the body of your speech, recall the specific purpose you decided on, then choose main points to support it. Just two or three main points are usually sufficient, depending on the length of your speech. Anticipate one main point per two to three minutes of speaking.
To narrow down your main points, start by brainstorming. Don’t worry about judging the value or importance of the points at this stage; just write down as many possible points as you can that support your topic. What information does your audience need to know to understand your topic? What information does your speech need to convey to accomplish its specific purpose? Here is an example of a list that you might begin with.
Item | Notes |
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Specific Purpose | To inform a group of school administrators about the various open-source software packages that could be utilized in their school districts |
Brainstorming List of Points | Define open-source software. |
Define educational software. | |
List and describe the software commonly used by school districts. | |
Explain the advantages of using open-source software. | |
Explain the disadvantages of using open-source software. | |
Review the history of open-source software. | |
Describe the value of open-source software. | |
Describe some educational open-source software packages. | |
Review the software needs of my specific audience. | |
Describe some problems that have occurred with open-source software. |
Once you have a list of points, you’ll need to narrow them down. Begin by looking for closely related minor points that can be grouped into one. This process is called chunking. Before reading our chunking of the preceding list, can you determine three large chunks out of the list above?
Item | Notes |
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Specific Purpose | To inform a group of school administrators about the various open-source software packages that could be utilized in their school districts |
Main Point 1 | School districts use software in their operations. |
Define educational software. | |
List and describe the software commonly used by school districts. | |
Main Point 2 | What is open-source software? |
Define open-source software. | |
Review the history of open-source software. | |
Explain the advantages of using open-source software. | |
Explain the disadvantages of using open-source software. | |
Describe some problems that have occurred with open-source software. | |
Main Point 3 | Name some specific open-source software packages that may be appropriate for the audience’s use. |
Review the software needs of my specific audience. | |
Describe some educational open-source software packages. |
Concluding on a High Note
Conclusion
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