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How to Plan a Presentation

Last Updated: October 8, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Christopher Taylor, PhD . Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 230,594 times.

Presentation planning is a useful and necessary skill in the professional world as well as school. Whether you need to sell a product, or get a passing grade in your class, planning a presentation takes time and dedication. You will want to figure out the best way to construct your material, considering your audience and your presentation's message. From there, work on building your slides and materials. Assemble information in a logical order that best illustrates your point. Practice your presentation regularly before delivering it. This can help you figure out any information that should be cut or restructured.

Assembling Your Best Material

• Write down your most important points. See if you notice a key point emerging. If your audience were to take away one thing from this presentation, what would it be?
• Don't just bombard your audience with facts. Think about what these facts do for your audience. What's the point you're trying to make with the information?

• Are you trying to sell them a product, introduce them to a new idea, alter their way of thinking?
• Think about the kind of people in your audience. Do you have a tougher crowd, or do you have a group of enthusiastic people excited about what you're going to say?

• For example, if you're talking to a company about recycling program, you might discuss how corporate pollution contributes to global warming and how recycling can help the company save money. You wouldn't discuss the melting ice caps as a key point.
• Melting ice caps are a valid concern, but they are a fact or a supporting point.

• Add clarity to your argument by explaining anything the audience may not understand. For example: a brief overview of pollution's effect on climate change.
• Add authority by making connections with existing research, studies, and information. For example, you could mention the consensus in the scientific community that global warming is manmade and cite a few studies.
• Add color to your argument through visuals, like pictures and videos. For instance, you could show a chart of the amount of waste an average corporation produces in one month.

Finding a Trajectory for the Presentation

• Include the basics of introducing yourself. You can say something like, "I'm Clara Thompson from Clean Water Action, and I would like to address your company today."
• Get your audience's attention with a question or a fact. For example, you could ask: "Have you ever passed a body of water covered in green sludge and wondered how this happened? The answer may surprise you."
• You don’t have to write your presentation in chronological order. If you want to work on your main points first and save the introduction for last, you can.

• For example, you're trying to get the corporation to alter their recycling program. Start by overviewing the vast amount of corporate pollution in the world.
• Explain the consequences of this. Show how pollution contributes to climate change, then show what the corporation can do through changes in their policies.

• Common linking statements include things like, "Another important issue...," "Based on this data, you can now see..." and, "This brings me to my main point..."
• For example, "Now that I've shown you the effects of corporate pollution, this brings me to my main point. What can you do to stop it?"

• If you have any graphs or diagrams that will help illustrate your point, use them. Physically seeing information can help make your point more clear.
• You should also see if there are any videos you can include. A brief video of someone succinctly explaining an issue can shake things up a bit.
• Pictures are also nice. Each slide should have a picture related to the topic at hand.
• Make sure not to overuse graphics or visuals. Too many could be overwhelming or distracting for your audience.

• You only need one slide. Recap what your point was. Begin with something like, "As you can see..." and then briefly repeat your main point.
• A visual can help as well. Try adding one last visual aid that sums up your point. A graph or diagram would work well here.

Practicing Your Presentation

• If you're taking longer, cut some information out. You do not want to talk fast to include all information, as this can make you difficult to understand.
• For accuracy, talk in your regular voice. Do not speak too fast or too slow. You want to make sure you can fit in all information talking at a normal rate.

• Are any facts extraneous? It's great to illustrate the effects of global warming, but do you really need five examples of environmental decay? Try to cut it down to two or three.

• You should sound enthusiastic when presenting. Talk without hesitance, and don't use filler words, like "um" or "uh."
• Don't jump between topics. Use your linking sentences, and say things like, "And this brings me to the following..."
• Watch the time. Make sure your presentation isn't going on for too long.
• Watch yourself give the presentation in a mirror so you can correct any distracting movements or gestures.

• Don’t read the information off of your visuals since it could affect your engagement between yourself and the audience.

How Should You End a Presentation?

Expert Q&A

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.ncsl.org/legislators-staff/legislative-staff/legislative-staff-coordinating-committee/tips-for-making-effective-powerpoint-presentations.aspx
• ↑ https://www.comm.pitt.edu/oral-comm-lab/audience-analysis
• ↑ https://columbiacollege-ca.libguides.com/presentations/planning
• ↑ https://extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/10551/partsofapresentation.pdf
• ↑ https://emedia.rmit.edu.au/learninglab/sites/default/files/Oral_presentations_signalling_2014_Accessible.pdf
• ↑ https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/how-to-conclude-a-presentation
• ↑ https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/studyingeffectively/preparing/presentations/delivering.aspx
• ↑ https://www.gvsu.edu/ours/oral-presentation-tips-30.htm

About This Article

To plan your presentation, start by spending 5 to 10% of your time summarizing your research and linking it to a main point. A good way to start is with a key question or fact. Then, follow this summary with your research and work, which should take up 60 to 70% of the presentation. This is the body of your presentation, and should be made up of 3 key ideas which lead to your main point. Keep reading for our reviewer’s tips on how to organize the body of your presentation! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Blog Beginner Guides How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

Written by: Krystle Wong Jul 20, 2023

A top-notch presentation possesses the power to drive action. From winning stakeholders over and conveying a powerful message to securing funding — your secret weapon lies within the realm of creating an effective presentation .  

Being an excellent presenter isn’t confined to the boardroom. Whether you’re delivering a presentation at work, pursuing an academic career, involved in a non-profit organization or even a student, nailing the presentation game is a game-changer.

In this article, I’ll cover the top qualities of compelling presentations and walk you through a step-by-step guide on how to give a good presentation. Here’s a little tip to kick things off: for a headstart, check out Venngage’s collection of free presentation templates . They are fully customizable, and the best part is you don’t need professional design skills to make them shine!

These valuable presentation tips cater to individuals from diverse professional backgrounds, encompassing business professionals, sales and marketing teams, educators, trainers, students, researchers, non-profit organizations, public speakers and presenters. 

No matter your field or role, these tips for presenting will equip you with the skills to deliver effective presentations that leave a lasting impression on any audience.

Click to jump ahead:

What are the 10 qualities of a good presentation?

Step-by-step guide on how to prepare an effective presentation, 9 effective techniques to deliver a memorable presentation, faqs on making a good presentation, how to create a presentation with venngage in 5 steps.

When it comes to giving an engaging presentation that leaves a lasting impression, it’s not just about the content — it’s also about how you deliver it. Wondering what makes a good presentation? Well, the best presentations I’ve seen consistently exhibit these 10 qualities:

1. Clear structure

No one likes to get lost in a maze of information. Organize your thoughts into a logical flow, complete with an introduction, main points and a solid conclusion. A structured presentation helps your audience follow along effortlessly, leaving them with a sense of satisfaction at the end.

Regardless of your presentation style , a quality presentation starts with a clear roadmap. Browse through Venngage’s template library and select a presentation template that aligns with your content and presentation goals. Here’s a good presentation example template with a logical layout that includes sections for the introduction, main points, supporting information and a conclusion: 

2. Engaging opening

Hook your audience right from the start with an attention-grabbing statement, a fascinating question or maybe even a captivating anecdote. Set the stage for a killer presentation!

The opening moments of your presentation hold immense power – check out these 15 ways to start a presentation to set the stage and captivate your audience.

3. Relevant content

Make sure your content aligns with their interests and needs. Your audience is there for a reason, and that’s to get valuable insights. Avoid fluff and get straight to the point, your audience will be genuinely excited.

4. Effective visual aids

Picture this: a slide with walls of text and tiny charts, yawn! Visual aids should be just that—aiding your presentation. Opt for clear and visually appealing slides, engaging images and informative charts that add value and help reinforce your message.

With Venngage, visualizing data takes no effort at all. You can import data from CSV or Google Sheets seamlessly and create stunning charts, graphs and icon stories effortlessly to showcase your data in a captivating and impactful way.

5. Clear and concise communication

Keep your language simple, and avoid jargon or complicated terms. Communicate your ideas clearly, so your audience can easily grasp and retain the information being conveyed. This can prevent confusion and enhance the overall effectiveness of the message. 

6. Engaging delivery

Spice up your presentation with a sprinkle of enthusiasm! Maintain eye contact, use expressive gestures and vary your tone of voice to keep your audience glued to the edge of their seats. A touch of charisma goes a long way!

7. Interaction and audience engagement

Turn your presentation into an interactive experience — encourage questions, foster discussions and maybe even throw in a fun activity. Engaged audiences are more likely to remember and embrace your message.

Transform your slides into an interactive presentation with Venngage’s dynamic features like pop-ups, clickable icons and animated elements. Engage your audience with interactive content that lets them explore and interact with your presentation for a truly immersive experience.

8. Effective storytelling

Who doesn’t love a good story? Weaving relevant anecdotes, case studies or even a personal story into your presentation can captivate your audience and create a lasting impact. Stories build connections and make your message memorable.

A great presentation background is also essential as it sets the tone, creates visual interest and reinforces your message. Enhance the overall aesthetics of your presentation with these 15 presentation background examples and captivate your audience’s attention.

9. Well-timed pacing

Pace your presentation thoughtfully with well-designed presentation slides, neither rushing through nor dragging it out. Respect your audience’s time and ensure you cover all the essential points without losing their interest.

10. Strong conclusion

Last impressions linger! Summarize your main points and leave your audience with a clear takeaway. End your presentation with a bang , a call to action or an inspiring thought that resonates long after the conclusion.

In-person presentations aside, acing a virtual presentation is of paramount importance in today’s digital world. Check out this guide to learn how you can adapt your in-person presentations into virtual presentations . 

Preparing an effective presentation starts with laying a strong foundation that goes beyond just creating slides and notes. One of the quickest and best ways to make a presentation would be with the help of a good presentation software . 

Otherwise, let me walk you to how to prepare for a presentation step by step and unlock the secrets of crafting a professional presentation that sets you apart.

1. Understand the audience and their needs

Before you dive into preparing your masterpiece, take a moment to get to know your target audience. Tailor your presentation to meet their needs and expectations , and you’ll have them hooked from the start!

2. Conduct thorough research on the topic

Time to hit the books (or the internet)! Don’t skimp on the research with your presentation materials — dive deep into the subject matter and gather valuable insights . The more you know, the more confident you’ll feel in delivering your presentation.

3. Organize the content with a clear structure

No one wants to stumble through a chaotic mess of information. Outline your presentation with a clear and logical flow. Start with a captivating introduction, follow up with main points that build on each other and wrap it up with a powerful conclusion that leaves a lasting impression.

Delivering an effective business presentation hinges on captivating your audience, and Venngage’s professionally designed business presentation templates are tailor-made for this purpose. With thoughtfully structured layouts, these templates enhance your message’s clarity and coherence, ensuring a memorable and engaging experience for your audience members.

Don’t want to build your presentation layout from scratch? pick from these 5 foolproof presentation layout ideas that won’t go wrong. 

4. Develop visually appealing and supportive visual aids

Spice up your presentation with eye-catching visuals! Create slides that complement your message, not overshadow it. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words, but that doesn’t mean you need to overload your slides with text.

Well-chosen designs create a cohesive and professional look, capturing your audience’s attention and enhancing the overall effectiveness of your message. Here’s a list of carefully curated PowerPoint presentation templates and great background graphics that will significantly influence the visual appeal and engagement of your presentation.

5. Practice, practice and practice

Practice makes perfect — rehearse your presentation and arrive early to your presentation to help overcome stage fright. Familiarity with your material will boost your presentation skills and help you handle curveballs with ease.

6. Seek feedback and make necessary adjustments

Don’t be afraid to ask for help and seek feedback from friends and colleagues. Constructive criticism can help you identify blind spots and fine-tune your presentation to perfection.

With Venngage’s real-time collaboration feature , receiving feedback and editing your presentation is a seamless process. Group members can access and work on the presentation simultaneously and edit content side by side in real-time. Changes will be reflected immediately to the entire team, promoting seamless teamwork.

7. Prepare for potential technical or logistical issues

Prepare for the unexpected by checking your equipment, internet connection and any other potential hiccups. If you’re worried that you’ll miss out on any important points, you could always have note cards prepared. Remember to remain focused and rehearse potential answers to anticipated questions.

8. Fine-tune and polish your presentation

As the big day approaches, give your presentation one last shine. Review your talking points, practice how to present a presentation and make any final tweaks. Deep breaths — you’re on the brink of delivering a successful presentation!

In competitive environments, persuasive presentations set individuals and organizations apart. To brush up on your presentation skills, read these guides on how to make a persuasive presentation and tips to presenting effectively . 

Whether you’re an experienced presenter or a novice, the right techniques will let your presentation skills soar to new heights!

From public speaking hacks to interactive elements and storytelling prowess, these 9 effective presentation techniques will empower you to leave a lasting impression on your audience and make your presentations unforgettable.

1. Confidence and positive body language

Positive body language instantly captivates your audience, making them believe in your message as much as you do. Strengthen your stage presence and own that stage like it’s your second home! Stand tall, shoulders back and exude confidence. 

2. Eye contact with the audience

Break down that invisible barrier and connect with your audience through their eyes. Maintaining eye contact when giving a presentation builds trust and shows that you’re present and engaged with them.

3. Effective use of hand gestures and movement

A little movement goes a long way! Emphasize key points with purposeful gestures and don’t be afraid to walk around the stage. Your energy will be contagious!

4. Utilize storytelling techniques

Weave the magic of storytelling into your presentation. Share relatable anecdotes, inspiring success stories or even personal experiences that tug at the heartstrings of your audience. Adjust your pitch, pace and volume to match the emotions and intensity of the story. Varying your speaking voice adds depth and enhances your stage presence.

5. Incorporate multimedia elements

Spice up your presentation with a dash of visual pizzazz! Use slides, images and video clips to add depth and clarity to your message. Just remember, less is more—don’t overwhelm them with information overload. 

Turn your presentations into an interactive party! Involve your audience with questions, polls or group activities. When they actively participate, they become invested in your presentation’s success. Bring your design to life with animated elements. Venngage allows you to apply animations to icons, images and text to create dynamic and engaging visual content.

6. Utilize humor strategically

Laughter is the best medicine—and a fantastic presentation enhancer! A well-placed joke or lighthearted moment can break the ice and create a warm atmosphere , making your audience more receptive to your message.

7. Practice active listening and respond to feedback

Be attentive to your audience’s reactions and feedback. If they have questions or concerns, address them with genuine interest and respect. Your responsiveness builds rapport and shows that you genuinely care about their experience.

8. Apply the 10-20-30 rule

Apply the 10-20-30 presentation rule and keep it short, sweet and impactful! Stick to ten slides, deliver your presentation within 20 minutes and use a 30-point font to ensure clarity and focus. Less is more, and your audience will thank you for it!

9. Implement the 5-5-5 rule

Simplicity is key. Limit each slide to five bullet points, with only five words per bullet point and allow each slide to remain visible for about five seconds. This rule keeps your presentation concise and prevents information overload.

Simple presentations are more engaging because they are easier to follow. Summarize your presentations and keep them simple with Venngage’s gallery of simple presentation templates and ensure that your message is delivered effectively across your audience.

1. How to start a presentation?

To kick off your presentation effectively, begin with an attention-grabbing statement or a powerful quote. Introduce yourself, establish credibility and clearly state the purpose and relevance of your presentation.

2. How to end a presentation?

For a strong conclusion, summarize your talking points and key takeaways. End with a compelling call to action or a thought-provoking question and remember to thank your audience and invite any final questions or interactions.

3. How to make a presentation interactive?

To make your presentation interactive, encourage questions and discussion throughout your talk. Utilize multimedia elements like videos or images and consider including polls, quizzes or group activities to actively involve your audience.

In need of inspiration for your next presentation? I’ve got your back! Pick from these 120+ presentation ideas, topics and examples to get started. 

Creating a stunning presentation with Venngage is a breeze with our user-friendly drag-and-drop editor and professionally designed templates for all your communication needs. 

Here’s how to make a presentation in just 5 simple steps with the help of Venngage:

Step 1: Sign up for Venngage for free using your email, Gmail or Facebook account or simply log in to access your account. 

Step 2: Pick a design from our selection of free presentation templates (they’re all created by our expert in-house designers).

Step 3: Make the template your own by customizing it to fit your content and branding. With Venngage’s intuitive drag-and-drop editor, you can easily modify text, change colors and adjust the layout to create a unique and eye-catching design.

Step 4: Elevate your presentation by incorporating captivating visuals. You can upload your images or choose from Venngage’s vast library of high-quality photos, icons and illustrations. 

Step 5: Upgrade to a premium or business account to export your presentation in PDF and print it for in-person presentations or share it digitally for free!

By following these five simple steps, you’ll have a professionally designed and visually engaging presentation ready in no time. With Venngage’s user-friendly platform, your presentation is sure to make a lasting impression. So, let your creativity flow and get ready to shine in your next presentation!

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How to Structure your Presentation, with Examples

August 3, 2018 - Dom Barnard

For many people the thought of delivering a presentation is a daunting task and brings about a  great deal of nerves . However, if you take some time to understand how effective presentations are structured and then apply this structure to your own presentation, you’ll appear much more confident and relaxed.

Here is our complete guide for structuring your presentation, with examples at the end of the article to demonstrate these points.

Why is structuring a presentation so important?

If you’ve ever sat through a great presentation, you’ll have left feeling either inspired or informed on a given topic. This isn’t because the speaker was the most knowledgeable or motivating person in the world. Instead, it’s because they know how to structure presentations – they have crafted their message in a logical and simple way that has allowed the audience can keep up with them and take away key messages.

Research has supported this, with studies showing that audiences retain structured information  40% more accurately  than unstructured information.

In fact, not only is structuring a presentation important for the benefit of the audience’s understanding, it’s also important for you as the speaker. A good structure helps you remain calm, stay on topic, and avoid any awkward silences.

What will affect your presentation structure?

Generally speaking, there is a natural flow that any decent presentation will follow which we will go into shortly. However, you should be aware that all presentation structures will be different in their own unique way and this will be due to a number of factors, including:

• Whether you need to deliver any demonstrations
• How  knowledgeable the audience  already is on the given subject
• How much interaction you want from the audience
• Any time constraints there are for your talk
• What setting you are in
• Your ability to use any kinds of visual assistance

Before choosing the presentation’s structure answer these questions first:

• What is your presentation’s aim?
• Who are the audience?
• What are the main points your audience should remember afterwards?

When reading the points below, think critically about what things may cause your presentation structure to be slightly different. You can add in certain elements and add more focus to certain moments if that works better for your speech.

What is the typical presentation structure?

This is the usual flow of a presentation, which covers all the vital sections and is a good starting point for yours. It allows your audience to easily follow along and sets out a solid structure you can add your content to.

1. Greet the audience and introduce yourself

Before you start delivering your talk, introduce yourself to the audience and clarify who you are and your relevant expertise. This does not need to be long or incredibly detailed, but will help build an immediate relationship between you and the audience. It gives you the chance to briefly clarify your expertise and why you are worth listening to. This will help establish your ethos so the audience will trust you more and think you’re credible.

Read our tips on  How to Start a Presentation Effectively

2. Introduction

In the introduction you need to explain the subject and purpose of your presentation whilst gaining the audience’s interest and confidence. It’s sometimes helpful to think of your introduction as funnel-shaped to help filter down your topic:

• Introduce your general topic
• Explain your topic area
• State the issues/challenges in this area you will be exploring
• State your presentation’s purpose – this is the basis of your presentation so ensure that you provide a statement explaining how the topic will be treated, for example, “I will argue that…” or maybe you will “compare”, “analyse”, “evaluate”, “describe” etc.
• Provide a statement of what you’re hoping the outcome of the presentation will be, for example, “I’m hoping this will be provide you with…”
• Show a preview of the organisation of your presentation

In this section also explain:

• The length of the talk.
• Signal whether you want audience interaction – some presenters prefer the audience to ask questions throughout whereas others allocate a specific section for this.
• If it applies, inform the audience whether to take notes or whether you will be providing handouts.

The way you structure your introduction can depend on the amount of time you have been given to present: a  sales pitch  may consist of a quick presentation so you may begin with your conclusion and then provide the evidence. Conversely, a speaker presenting their idea for change in the world would be better suited to start with the evidence and then conclude what this means for the audience.

Keep in mind that the main aim of the introduction is to grab the audience’s attention and connect with them.

3. The main body of your talk

The main body of your talk needs to meet the promises you made in the introduction. Depending on the nature of your presentation, clearly segment the different topics you will be discussing, and then work your way through them one at a time – it’s important for everything to be organised logically for the audience to fully understand. There are many different ways to organise your main points, such as, by priority, theme, chronologically etc.

• Main points should be addressed one by one with supporting evidence and examples.
• Before moving on to the next point you should provide a mini-summary.
• Links should be clearly stated between ideas and you must make it clear when you’re moving onto the next point.
• Allow time for people to take relevant notes and stick to the topics you have prepared beforehand rather than straying too far off topic.

When planning your presentation write a list of main points you want to make and ask yourself “What I am telling the audience? What should they understand from this?” refining your answers this way will help you produce clear messages.

4. Conclusion

In presentations the conclusion is frequently underdeveloped and lacks purpose which is a shame as it’s the best place to reinforce your messages. Typically, your presentation has a specific goal – that could be to convert a number of the audience members into customers, lead to a certain number of enquiries to make people knowledgeable on specific key points, or to motivate them towards a shared goal.

Regardless of what that goal is, be sure to summarise your main points and their implications. This clarifies the overall purpose of your talk and reinforces your reason for being there.

Follow these steps:

• Signal that it’s nearly the end of your presentation, for example, “As we wrap up/as we wind down the talk…”
• Restate the topic and purpose of your presentation – “In this speech I wanted to compare…”
• Summarise the main points, including their implications and conclusions
• Indicate what is next/a call to action/a thought-provoking takeaway
• Move on to the last section

5. Thank the audience and invite questions

Conclude your talk by thanking the audience for their time and invite them to  ask any questions  they may have. As mentioned earlier, personal circumstances will affect the structure of your presentation.

Many presenters prefer to make the Q&A session the key part of their talk and try to speed through the main body of the presentation. This is totally fine, but it is still best to focus on delivering some sort of initial presentation to set the tone and topics for discussion in the Q&A.

Other common presentation structures

The above was a description of a basic presentation, here are some more specific presentation layouts:

Demonstration

Use the demonstration structure when you have something useful to show. This is usually used when you want to show how a product works. Steve Jobs frequently used this technique in his presentations.

• Explain why the product is valuable.
• Describe why the product is necessary.
• Explain what problems it can solve for the audience.
• Demonstrate the product  to support what you’ve been saying.
• Make suggestions of other things it can do to make the audience curious.

Problem-solution

This structure is particularly useful in persuading the audience.

• Briefly frame the issue.
• Go into the issue in detail showing why it ‘s such a problem. Use logos and pathos for this – the logical and emotional appeals.
• Provide the solution and explain why this would also help the audience.
• Call to action – something you want the audience to do which is straightforward and pertinent to the solution.

Storytelling

As well as incorporating  stories in your presentation , you can organise your whole presentation as a story. There are lots of different type of story structures you can use – a popular choice is the monomyth – the hero’s journey. In a monomyth, a hero goes on a difficult journey or takes on a challenge – they move from the familiar into the unknown. After facing obstacles and ultimately succeeding the hero returns home, transformed and with newfound wisdom.

Storytelling for Business Success  webinar , where well-know storyteller Javier Bernad shares strategies for crafting compelling narratives.

Another popular choice for using a story to structure your presentation is in media ras (in the middle of thing). In this type of story you launch right into the action by providing a snippet/teaser of what’s happening and then you start explaining the events that led to that event. This is engaging because you’re starting your story at the most exciting part which will make the audience curious – they’ll want to know how you got there.

• Great storytelling: Examples from Alibaba Founder, Jack Ma

Remaining method

The remaining method structure is good for situations where you’re presenting your perspective on a controversial topic which has split people’s opinions.

• Go into the issue in detail showing why it’s such a problem – use logos and pathos.
• Rebut your opponents’ solutions  – explain why their solutions could be useful because the audience will see this as fair and will therefore think you’re trustworthy, and then explain why you think these solutions are not valid.
• After you’ve presented all the alternatives provide your solution, the remaining solution. This is very persuasive because it looks like the winning idea, especially with the audience believing that you’re fair and trustworthy.

Transitions

When delivering presentations it’s important for your words and ideas to flow so your audience can understand how everything links together and why it’s all relevant. This can be done  using speech transitions  which are words and phrases that allow you to smoothly move from one point to another so that your speech flows and your presentation is unified.

Transitions can be one word, a phrase or a full sentence – there are many different forms, here are some examples:

Moving from the introduction to the first point

Signify to the audience that you will now begin discussing the first main point:

• Now that you’re aware of the overview, let’s begin with…
• First, let’s begin with…
• I will first cover…
• My first point covers…
• To get started, let’s look at…

Shifting between similar points

Move from one point to a similar one:

• In the same way…
• Likewise…
• Equally…
• This is similar to…
• Similarly…

Internal summaries

Internal summarising consists of summarising before moving on to the next point. You must inform the audience:

• What part of the presentation you covered – “In the first part of this speech we’ve covered…”
• What the key points were – “Precisely how…”
• How this links in with the overall presentation – “So that’s the context…”
• What you’re moving on to – “Now I’d like to move on to the second part of presentation which looks at…”

Physical movement

You can move your body and your standing location when you transition to another point. The audience find it easier to follow your presentation and movement will increase their interest.

A common technique for incorporating movement into your presentation is to:

• Start your introduction by standing in the centre of the stage.
• For your first point you stand on the left side of the stage.
• You discuss your second point from the centre again.
• You stand on the right side of the stage for your third point.
• The conclusion occurs in the centre.

Key slides for your presentation

Slides are a useful tool for most presentations: they can greatly assist in the delivery of your message and help the audience follow along with what you are saying. Key slides include:

• An intro slide outlining your ideas
• A  summary slide  with core points to remember
• High quality image slides to supplement what you are saying

There are some presenters who choose not to use slides at all, though this is more of a rarity. Slides can be a powerful tool if used properly, but the problem is that many fail to do just that. Here are some golden rules to follow when using slides in a presentation:

• Don’t over fill them  – your slides are there to assist your speech, rather than be the focal point. They should have as little information as possible, to avoid distracting people from your talk.
• A picture says a thousand words  – instead of filling a slide with text, instead, focus on one or two images or diagrams to help support and explain the point you are discussing at that time.
• Make them readable  – depending on the size of your audience, some may not be able to see small text or images, so make everything large enough to fill the space.
• Don’t rush through slides  – give the audience enough time to digest each slide.

Guy Kawasaki, an entrepreneur and author, suggests that slideshows should follow a  10-20-30 rule :

• There should be a maximum of 10 slides – people rarely remember more than one concept afterwards so there’s no point overwhelming them with unnecessary information.
• The presentation should last no longer than 20 minutes as this will leave time for questions and discussion.
• The font size should be a minimum of 30pt because the audience reads faster than you talk so less information on the slides means that there is less chance of the audience being distracted.

Here are some additional resources for slide design:

• 7 design tips for effective, beautiful PowerPoint presentations
• 11 design tips for beautiful presentations
• 10 tips on how to make slides that communicate your idea

Group Presentations

Group presentations are structured in the same way as presentations with one speaker but usually require more rehearsal and practices.  Clean transitioning between speakers  is very important in producing a presentation that flows well. One way of doing this consists of:

• Briefly recap on what you covered in your section: “So that was a brief introduction on what health anxiety is and how it can affect somebody”
• Introduce the next speaker in the team and explain what they will discuss: “Now Elnaz will talk about the prevalence of health anxiety.”
• Then end by looking at the next speaker, gesturing towards them and saying their name: “Elnaz”.
• The next speaker should acknowledge this with a quick: “Thank you Joe.”

From this example you can see how the different sections of the presentations link which makes it easier for the audience to follow and remain engaged.

Example of great presentation structure and delivery

Having examples of great presentations will help inspire your own structures, here are a few such examples, each unique and inspiring in their own way.

How Google Works – by Eric Schmidt

This presentation by ex-Google CEO  Eric Schmidt  demonstrates some of the most important lessons he and his team have learnt with regards to working with some of the most talented individuals they hired. The simplistic yet cohesive style of all of the slides is something to be appreciated. They are relatively straightforward, yet add power and clarity to the narrative of the presentation.

Start with why – by Simon Sinek

Since being released in 2009, this presentation has been viewed almost four million times all around the world. The message itself is very powerful, however, it’s not an idea that hasn’t been heard before. What makes this presentation so powerful is the simple message he is getting across, and the straightforward and understandable manner in which he delivers it. Also note that he doesn’t use any slides, just a whiteboard where he creates a simple diagram of his opinion.

The Wisdom of a Third Grade Dropout – by Rick Rigsby

Here’s an example of a presentation given by a relatively unknown individual looking to inspire the next generation of graduates. Rick’s presentation is unique in many ways compared to the two above. Notably, he uses no visual prompts and includes a great deal of humour.

However, what is similar is the structure he uses. He first introduces his message that the wisest man he knew was a third-grade dropout. He then proceeds to deliver his main body of argument, and in the end, concludes with his message. This powerful speech keeps the viewer engaged throughout, through a mixture of heart-warming sentiment, powerful life advice and engaging humour.

As you can see from the examples above, and as it has been expressed throughout, a great presentation structure means analysing the core message of your presentation. Decide on a key message you want to impart the audience with, and then craft an engaging way of delivering it.

By preparing a solid structure, and  practising your talk  beforehand, you can walk into the presentation with confidence and deliver a meaningful message to an interested audience.

It’s important for a presentation to be well-structured so it can have the most impact on your audience. An unstructured presentation can be difficult to follow and even frustrating to listen to. The heart of your speech are your main points supported by evidence and your transitions should assist the movement between points and clarify how everything is linked.

Research suggests that the audience remember the first and last things you say so your introduction and conclusion are vital for reinforcing your points. Essentially, ensure you spend the time structuring your presentation and addressing all of the sections.

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Organization & Planning Skills Workshop

It seems that you like this template, organization & planning skills workshop presentation, free google slides theme, powerpoint template, and canva presentation template.

Those who are able to make the most of their planning skills end up having a good foresight of the market, the trends or the performance of a product. And those who have great organization skills are able to manage their time and maximize their work done. Prepare a workshop to teach your students these two sets of skills! As an extra help, we have this template that you can use to create a presentation with the contents of your lessons. It's mostly blue and cream and it has detailes in the form ofwaves and grids.

Features of this template

• 100% editable and easy to modify
• 22 different slides to impress your audience
• Contains easy-to-edit graphics such as graphs, maps, tables, timelines and mockups
• Includes 500+ icons and Flaticon’s extension for customizing your slides
• Designed to be used in Google Slides, Canva, and Microsoft PowerPoint
• 16:9 widescreen format suitable for all types of screens
• Includes information about fonts, colors, and credits of the resources used

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This template can be combined with this other one to create the perfect presentation:

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Giving Presentations

Understanding your assignment, planning your presentation, organizing your presentation, signal words and transition phrases.

• Group Presentations
• Using Presentation Software
• Engaging your Audience
• Finding and Using Images
• Citing Sources
• Overcoming Anxiety

Suggested Books

Learn how to deal with nerves, prepare concise and effective notes, anticipate questions or problems and keep your audience interested.

A Student's Guide to Presentations

Provides tips on presenting individually, in groups, and for job interviews.

Develop Your Presentation Skills

Improve your confidence and nail your presentations with this pocket guide to preparing and delivering them well.

As with any assignment, it's important to first check the assignment requirements before you start planning your presentation. Read over the assignment requirements and make sure you understand the following:

• Is it a group or individual presentation?
• Is there a time limit or requirement? 
• Are you allowed to use videos? If so, how long can videos be? Instructors generally do not want videos to take up a big portion of your presentation, but short videos can help to illustrate a point
• What's the topic you will be presenting on? Do you get to choose? 
• Are you required to prepare a visual component such as a PowerPoint or a poster?
• What is the purpose of the presentation? Are you summarizing an issue to inform your classmates? Are you presenting a paper you wrote? Are you trying to convince them of a particular argument related to an issue? Are you leading discussion on a reading?

A good presentation requires careful planning. In general, you will need to follow these steps to plan a successful presentation:

• Brainstorm and outline: What's your topic? What do you know about the topic? What do you want your audience to know? 
• Research: Use research to support your argument, find examples and statistics, or to learn more about your topic.
• Write an outline . 
• Write a draft.
• Plan any visual aids such as PowerPoint or any activities you want your audience to participate in
• Practice, practice, practice!  Make sure your presentation is not too long, and edit it down as needed.

A good presentation should be well organized, with a beginning, middle and end. 

Beginning :

The beginning of a presentation is very important! This is when you have an opportunity to grab the audience's attention, and set the tone for your presentation.

• Use an attention grabber. Some attention grabbing techniques include: asking a thought-provoking question, showing the audience am intriguing picture, telling a story or use a real life example related to your topic, sharing a shocking statistic related to your topic, sharing a powerful quote, playing a short video
• Introduce yourself and the topic you will be discussing
• Outline what you will be talking about. 
• Discuss your main points in a logical order
• It should be clear to your audience when you are moving from one point to another
• Use examples to support your points

Conclusion:

• Summarize the main points
• Avoid providing new information at this point, but you can state any additional questions that you think your research has led you too
• Use language that lets your audience know that your presentation is coming to an end
• Avoid ending with "that's it!" or apologizing for your presentation
• Thank the audience for listening and invite questions

Using transition and signal phrases throughout your presentation will help keep it organized and ensure your thoughts are communicated clearly. Try using some of the phrases below to introduce ideas and structure your presentation.

Introducing your presentation:

• The topic/question I will be discussing today is...
• This presentation will investigate/examine... 

Providing an outline:

• I want to start by..., then I will... 
• This presentation is divided into [x number] of parts. First I will... then I will..., finally I will conclude by...
• There are [x number] of points I will discuss: A, B, C and D
• Let's begin by looking at... before examining... 

Introducing your main point: 

• A significant issue is...
• A major concern is...
• The central problem is...

Rephrasing your main point:

• In other words...
• Another way to think about the problem is...

Moving to another point:

• Now let's consider...
• I'd like to move on to examine...
• Now, turning to the issue of...

Introducing an example:

• A case in point is...
• Take the case of...
• This is illustrated/demonstrated by...
• An example of this is...

​Introducing images or explaining visuals: 

• This image/diagram illustrates...
• As you can see here...

Introducing and integrating videos:

• We will now watch a short video that illustrates...
• In the video we've just watched, it is important to note that...
• As the video demonstrates...

Conclusions:

• ​ To sum up...
• In conclusion...
• In summary...
• To summarize...
• To conclude...
• Therefore... 

Inviting and Answering Questions:

• I am happy to take questions now.
• That's a very interesting question. In my opinion,...
• Thanks for your question. What my research shows is that...
• That's a relevant question, but it is out of the scope of my research.
• I'm afraid I cannot answer that question, but that's an interesting topic.

The above tips have been adapted from RMIT University Study and Learning Centre's  " Oral Presentations: Signalling and Transition Phrases."

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• Last Updated: Aug 25, 2023 11:04 AM
• URL: https://columbiacollege-ca.libguides.com/presentations

Blog > How to structure a good PowerPoint Presentation

How to structure a good PowerPoint Presentation

08.09.21   •  #powerpoint #tips.

When creating presentations, it is particularly important that they are well organized and have a consistent structure.

A logical structure helps the audience to follow you and to remember the core information as best as possible. It is also important for the presenter, as a good presentation structure helps to keep calm, to stay on the topic and to avoid awkward pauses.

But what does such a structure actually look like? Here we show you how to best organize your presentation and what a good structure looks like.

Plan your presentation

Before you start creating your presentation, you should always brainstorm. Think about the topic and write all your ideas down. Then think about the message you want to communicate, what your goal is and what you want your audience to remember at the end.

Think about who your audience is so that you can address them in the best possible way. One possibility is to start your presentation with a few polls to get to know your audience better. Based on the results, you can then adapt your presentation a little. Use the poll function of SlideLizard and have all the answers at a glance. SlideLizard makes it possible to integrate the polls directly into your PowerPoint presentation which helps you to avoid annoying switching between presentation and interaction tool. You can keep an eye on the results while the votes come in and then decide whether you want to share them or not.

• an informative
• an entertaining
• an inspiring
• or a persuasive presentation?

Typical Presentation Structure

The basic structure of a presentation is actually always the same and should consist of:

Introduction

Make sure that the structure of your presentation is not too complicated. The simpler it is, the better the audience can follow.

Personal Introduction

It is best to start your presentation by briefly introducing yourself which helps to build a connection with your audience right away.

Introduce the topic

Then introduce the topic, state the purpose of the presentation and provide a brief outline of the main points you will be addressing.

Mention the length

In the introduction, mention the approximate length of the talk and then also make sure you stick to it.

The introduction should be no longer than two slides and provide a good overview of the topic.

Icebreaker Polls

According to studies, people in the audience only have an average attention span of 10 minutes, which is why it is important to increase their attention right at the beginning and to arouse the audience's interest. You could make a good start with a few icebreaker polls for example. They lighten the mood right at the beginning and you can secure your audience's attention from the start.

For example, you could use SlideLizard to have all the answers at a glance and share them with your audience. In addition, the audience can try out how the polls work and already know how it works if you include more polls in the main part.

Get to know your audience

As mentioned earlier, it is always useful to think about who your audience actually is. Ask them questions at the beginning about how well they already know the topic of your presentation. Use SlideLizard for this so that you have a clear overview about the answers. You can use both single- and multiple-choice questions or also open questions and display their results as a WordCloud in your presentation, for example.

Include a quote

To make the beginning (or the end) of your presentation more exciting, it is always a good idea to include a quote. We have selected some powerful quotes for PowerPoint presentations for you.

Present your topic

The main part of a presentation should explain the topic well, state facts, justify them and give examples. Keep all the promises you made earlier in the introduction.

Length and Structure

The main part should make up about 70% of the presentation and also include a clear structure. Explain your ideas in detail and build them up logically. It should be organized chronologically, by priority or by topic. There should be a smooth transition between the individual issues. However, it is also important to use phrases that make it clear that a new topic is starting. We have listed some useful phrases for presentations here.

Visualize data and statistics and show pictures to underline facts. If you are still looking for good images, we have selected 5 sources of free images for you here.

Focus on the essentials

Focus on what is most important and summarize a bit. You don't have to say everything about a topic because your audience won’t remember everything either. Avoid complicated sentence structure, because if the audience does not understand something, they will not be able to read it again.

Make your presentation interactive

Make your presentation interactive to keep the attention of your audience. Use SlideLizard to include polls in your presentation, where your audience can vote directly from their smartphone and discuss the answers as soon as you received all votes. Here you can also find more tips for increasing audience engagement.

Repeat the main points

The conclusion should contain a summary of the most important key points. Repeat the main points you have made, summarize what the audience should have learned and explain how the new information can help in the future.

Include a Q&A part

Include a Q&A part at the end to make sure you don't leave any questions open. It's a good idea to use tools like SlideLizard for it. Your audience can ask anonymous questions and if there is not enough time, you can give them the answers afterwards. You can read more about the right way to do a question slide in PowerPoint here.

Get Feedback

It is also important to get feedback on your presentation at the end to keep improving. With SlideLizard you can ask your audience for anonymous feedback through star ratings, number ratings or open texts directly after your presentation. You can then export the responses and analyse them later in Excel.

Presentation style

Depending on the type of presentation you give, the structure will always be slightly different. We have selected a few different presentation styles and their structure for you.

Short Presentation

If you are one of many presenters on the day, you will only have a very limited time to present your idea and to convince your audience. It is very important to stand out with your presentation.

So you need to summarize your ideas as briefly as possible and probably should not need more than 3-5 slides.

Problem Solving Presentation

Start your presentation by explaining a problem and giving a short overview of it.

Then go into the problem a little more, providing both intellectual and emotional arguments for the seriousness of the problem. You should spend about the first 25% of your presentation on the problem.

After that, you should spend about 50% of your presentation proposing a solution and explaining it in detail.

In the last 25%, describe what benefits this solution will bring to your audience and ask them to take a simple but relevant action that relates to the problem being discussed.

Tell a Story

A great way to build an emotional connection with the audience is to structure a presentation like a story.

In the introduction, introduce a character who has to deal with a conflict. In the main part, tell how he tries to solve his problem but fails again and again. In the end, he manages to find a solution and wins.

Stories have the power to win customers, align colleagues and motivate employees. They’re the most compelling platform we have for managing imaginations. - Nancy Duarte / HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations

Make a demonstration

Use the demonstration structure to show how a product works. First talk about a need or a problem that has to be solved.

Then explain how the product will help solve the problem and try to convince your audience of the need for your product.

Spend the end clarifying where and when the product can be purchased.

Chronological structure

When you have something historical to tell, it is always good to use a chronological structure. You always have to ask yourself what happens next.

To make it more interesting and exciting, it is a good idea to start by telling the end of something and after that you explain how you got there. This way you make the audience curious and you can gain their attention faster.

Nancy Duarte TED Talk

Nancy Duarte is a speaker and presentation design expert. She gives speeches all over the world, trying to improve the power of public presentations.

In her famous TED Talk "The Secret Structure of Great Talks" she dissects famous speeches such as Steve Jobs' iPhone launch speech and Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech. In doing so, she found out that each presentation is made up of 4 parts:

• What could be
• A moment to remember
• Promise of “New Bliss”

Related articles

About the author.

Helena Reitinger

Helena supports the SlideLizard team in marketing and design. She loves to express her creativity in texts and graphics.

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With SlideLizard you can engage your audience with live polls, questions and feedback . Directly within your PowerPoint Presentation. Learn more

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The big SlideLizard presentation glossary

Slide transitions.

Slide transitions are visual effects which appear in PowerPoint when one slide moves to the next. There are many different transitions, like for example fade and dissolve.

Solution Presentation

A solution has already been found during a solution presentation. The only thing that remains is to find a solution on how to realize the decision.

Learning on Demand

Learning on Demand means that the content is available extactly when it's needed by the learner

Virtual Reality

With Virtual Reality people can practice situations and important processes in a virtual room by putting on special digital glasses. They can influence what happens themselves.

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Planning Slides PowerPoint Template Pack

Number of slides: 10

Every successful business spends some time planning certain actions and objectives. Therefore, this template is great for planning different aspects of your company’s operations. It will allow you to clearly define each step in the planning process and to successfully communicate it in front of an audience. The template will fit any company’s needs, regardless of the industry they operate in.

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Free PowerPoint Template for Planning Slide Presentation

Decision-making planning slide.

The decision-making process is the one the makes or breaks the profitability of the company. Your business won’t be successful without the appropriate decisions taking place. This slide will enable you to make the best decisions possible for different processes in your company, such as controlling, planning, organizing and actuating.

Audience Planning Slide

You can have the flawless business model that will function perfectly in theory, but you should also make sure that it will work in real-life too. One of the best ways to do that is to define your audience. This means that you should have a perfect understanding of the market and to understand the needs of your customers.

Planning Schedule Planning Slide

Not even one plan can be successful without the proper schedule. Therefore, this slide provides you with a planning table that will allow you to plan your tasks on a daily basis. You can fit all of your monthly tasks on this slide and if needed, you can add more such slides where you can fit all the tasks for upcoming months.

In order for your business to be successful, you need to plan many objectives in advance

By using this template you will be able to define each step along the planning process.

The decision-making process is one of the most important ones in your company

This slide can adapt to decision-making processes in controlling, planning, organizing and actuating.

The planning schedule slide will allow you to plan your tasks on a daily basis

You can easily update it so that it will fit all of your tasks of upcoming months.

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Organizational Planning Guide: Types of Plans, Steps, and Examples

Organizational planning is like charting your company’s path on a map. You need to know what direction you’re headed to stay competitive.

But what exactly is organizational planning and how do you do it effectively? This guide will cover:

The Different Components or Types of Organizational Plans?

The 5 Process Steps of Organizational Planning

Organizational planning examples.

Organizational Planning Tools

What is Organizational Planning?

Organizational planning is the process of defining a company’s reason for existing, setting goals aimed at realizing full potential, and creating increasingly discrete tasks to meet those goals.

Each phase of planning is a subset of the prior, with strategic planning being the foremost

There are four phases of a proper organizational plan: strategic, tactical, operational, and contingency. Each phase of planning is a subset of the prior, with strategic planning being the foremost.

Types of Organizational Planning

A strategic plan is the company’s big picture. It defines the company’s goals for a set period of time, whether that’s one year or ten, and ensures that those goals align with the company’s mission, vision, and values. Strategic planning usually involves top managers, although some smaller companies choose to bring all of their employees along when defining their mission, vision, and values.

The tactical strategy describes how a company will implement its strategic plan. A tactical plan is composed of several short-term goals, typically carried out within one year, that support the strategic plan. Generally, it’s the responsibility of middle managers to set and oversee tactical strategies, like planning and executing a marketing campaign.

Operational

Operational plans encompass what needs to happen continually, on a day-to-day basis, in order to execute tactical plans. Operational plans could include work schedules, policies, rules, or regulations that set standards for employees, as well as specific task assignments that relate to goals within the tactical strategy, such as a protocol for documenting and addressing work absences.

Contingency

Contingency plans wait in the wings in case of a crisis or unforeseen event. Contingency plans cover a range of possible scenarios and appropriate responses for issues varying from personnel planning to advanced preparation for outside occurrences that could negatively impact the business. Companies may have contingency plans for things like how to respond to a natural disaster, malfunctioning software, or the sudden departure of a C-level executive.

The organizational planning process includes five phases that, ideally, form a cycle.

Strategic, tactical, operational, and contingency planning fall within these five stages.

1. Develop the strategic plan

Steps in this initial stage include:

Review your mission, vision, and values

Gather data about your company, like performance-indicating metrics from your sales department

Perform a SWOT analysis; take stock of your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats

Set big picture goals that take your mission, vision, values, data, and SWOT analysis into account

2. Translate the strategic plan into tactical steps

At this point, it’s time to create tactical plans. Bring in middle managers to help do the following:

Define short-term goals—quarterly goals are common—that support the strategic plan for each department, such as setting a quota for the sales team so the company can meet its strategic revenue goal

Develop processes for reviewing goal achievement to make sure strategic and tactical goals are being met, like running a CRM report every quarter and submitting it to the Chief Revenue Officer to check that the sales department is hitting its quota

Develop contingency plans, like what to do in case the sales team’s CRM malfunctions or there’s a data breach

3. Plan daily operations

Operational plans, or the processes that determine how individual employees spend their day, are largely the responsibility of middle managers and the employees that report to them. For example, the process that a sales rep follows to find, nurture, and convert a lead into a customer is an operational plan. Work schedules, customer service workflows, or GDPR policies that protect prospective customers’ information all aid a sales department in reaching its tactical goal—in this case, a sales quota—so they fall under the umbrella of operational plans.

This stage should include setting goals and targets that individual employees should hit during a set period.

Managers may choose to set some plans, such as work schedules, themselves. On the other hand, individual tasks that make up a sales plan may require the input of the entire team. This stage should also include setting goals and targets that individual employees should hit during a set period.

4. Execute the plans

It’s time to put plans into action. Theoretically, activities carried out on a day-to-day basis (defined by the operational plan) should help reach tactical goals, which in turn supports the overall strategic plan.

5. Monitor progress and adjust plans

No plan is complete without periods of reflection and adjustment. At the end of each quarter or the short-term goal period, middle managers should review whether or not they hit the benchmarks established in step two, then submit data-backed reports to C-level executives. For example, this is when the manager of the sales department would run a report analyzing whether or not a new process for managing the sales pipeline helped the team reach its quota. A marketing team, on the other hand, might analyze whether or not their efforts to optimize advertising and landing pages succeeded in generating a certain number of leads for the sales department.

Depending on the outcome of those reviews, your org may wish to adjust parts of its strategic, tactical, or operational plans. For example, if the sales team didn’t meet their quota their manager may decide to make changes to their sales pipeline operational plan.

These templates and examples can help you start thinking about how to format your organizational plan.

This is a single page two-year strategic plan for a fictional corporation. Notice that the goals listed in the “Strategic Objectives and Organization Goals” section follow the SMART goals model: They’re specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, and time-based.

Workforce Planning

Companies need to use workforce planning to analyze, forecast, and plan for the future of their personnel. Workforce planning helps identify skill gaps, inefficiencies, opportunities for employee growth, and to prepare for future staffing needs.

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This is a two-year action plan for an administration, which could also be described as a tactical plan. Organization-wide goals—aka strategic goals—that are relevant to this department are listed in the top section, while the more tactical goals for the manager of this department are listed below.

Check out this strategic plan template . You’ll notice that tasks for an individual employee fall under operational planning. Note the space within each item for the manager to leave feedback for the employee.

Organizational Planning is Vital for a Successful Business

While organizational planning is a long and complex process, it’s integral to the success of your company. Luckily, the process becomes more automatic and intuitive with regular planning and review meetings.

Use Pingboard’s org chart software to help you plan and communicate your strategy. With Pingboard users can build and share multiple versions of their org chart to help with succession plans, organization redesigns, merger and acquisitions plans. Pingboard also helps with hiring plans by allowing you to communicate open roles in your live org chart so employees understand where their company is growing and what roles they can apply for. Pingboard’s employee directory helps find successors for specific roles by allowing managers to search through their workforce for the skills and experience needed to fill a position.

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Chapter 11 Planning and Organizing

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How to Organize a Presentation

From health care facilities and pharmaceutical companies to law firms and finance agencies, virtually every business relies on high-quality presentations to communicate with team members and sell their products to investors, other companies, and potential consumers. The ability to craft a strong, compelling presentation is a vital skill for professionals involved in all industries, but most people find the prospect of presenting to an audience stressful and intimidating. Thankfully, carefully planning and structuring your presentation can help you to deliver a persuasive message, demonstrate your experience and authority on the subject, and accomplish your goals.

Why Is Organization of a Presentation Important?

You have undoubtedly experienced several presentations throughout your business career with varying degrees of success. Some presentations may have educated or inspired you, while others were so dull you may have forgotten about them as soon as you left the room. The difference between the two presentations was likely not solely due to the knowledge or enthusiasm of the speaker, but because the former understood the importance of organizing the presentation to engage the audience. Powerful speakers know how to structure their message in a simple, straightforward, and logical manner to capture the audience’s attention, keep them interested, and ensure they can gain valuable information from the presentation.

In fact, research from Stanford University has demonstrated that an audience is able to retain information 40% more accurately when the speaker presents their message in a meaningful structure than when they do so in an unstructured format. Establishing a solid structure for your presentation helps your audience know what to expect at each stage and guides them along the process so they can absorb what you are sharing with them. This not only helps the audience follow along, but it is also vital for you as the speaker. By structuring your presentation, you can ensure you remember your talking points, keeping you on track and letting you avoid awkward pauses or confusing transitions.

How to Prepare for a Presentation

Before you can begin writing and organizing your content, you must first identify your target audience and determine the goal you hope to accomplish with your presentation. Conduct thorough research regarding your audience to determine how familiar they are with your topic. If they have limited understanding or awareness of the concepts, you will be covering, you must provide the proper background information to catch them up. If they are well-versed in your concepts, you should skip this information to avoid boring them. Instead, focus on more in-depth and detailed aspects of the topic that they can follow and appreciate.

Next, consider your purpose, or what you are hoping to achieve by presenting your message. You may want to educate them on a certain topic, inform them of your company’s offerings, help them solve a problem, or explain how your products can meet their needs. The goal is not to cover everything, but to consider how your content relates to your audience and use it to capture their interest and encourage further discussion. Pay attention to the setting of the presentation, the time constraints you face, and whether you can use presentation software, product demonstrations, or other visual aids to support your message.

Follow the steps below to learn how to organize a presentation:

1. Develop an outline for your key points.

Think about three or four key points you want to share with the audience and organize them into a concise outline. Any points that are too lengthy or too complicated should be simplified, condensed, reworded for clarity, or even eliminated altogether if you determine that they do not effectively help accomplish your goal. Provide information that supports your topic, including relevant facts, research data, survey results, or statistics. Think about the visual elements you can use to enhance your message, such as graphs, charts, diagrams, illustrations, photos, and infographics.

2. Decide on the right structure for your presentation.

There are several ways to structure your presentation based on your goals, including:

• Chronological – recounting an event from the beginning to end or explaining the steps of a process
• Spatial – describing the physical composition or structure of an item based on space, such as top to bottom, or left to right
• Categorical – dividing one broad topic into smaller sub-categories and discussing how each of them fits into the main topic
• Analytical – breaking a concept down into logical components and analyzing how they relate to one another to produce the intended effect
• Compare and Contrast – highlighting similarities and differences between two items, events, or situations
• Cause and Effect – demonstrating the cause-and-effect relationship between two variables in which one has a specific impact on the other
• Problem and Solution – discussing an important problem relevant to your audience and offering a reasonable solution to solve this problem

3. Determine a clear beginning, middle, and end of your presentation.

Your presentation should have three primary sections:

Introduction:

Begin by citing an eye-opening statistic, asking an open-ended question, sharing an appropriate quote, telling a story, or connecting your topic to the audience to build common ground. Establish your credibility and authority on the subject matter by discussing any personal experience you have in this area or research you have conducted on the topic. This allows you to gain the confidence of the audience and gives weight to the rest of your presentation. Your audience should understand the value of your topic, how it applies to them, and what information or encouragement you will be providing to help them take action to meet a need, solve a problem, or otherwise improve their lives. End with a preview of your presentation structure so they can anticipate the flow of your message.

The body of your presentation is where you will present your key points and offer information to support these points, such as examples, customer stories, and other evidence that your claims are valid. Divide this section into distinct topics organized in a logical way the audience can understand. Address each point one by one, support it with compelling evidence, then briefly summarize how it relates to the main idea before shifting to the next point. Utilize transitions to show connections between your points and signal to the audience that you will be moving to another point. Transitions include words and phrases like “likewise,” “similarly,” and “in the same way” so your speech flows well and viewers can easily follow your message.

Conclusion:

Do not simply end your presentation after making your last point. Instead, it is crucial to clarify the purpose of your presentation and ensure your message resonates with the audience. Develop a clear conclusion that summarizes your message, reinforces your key points, mentions the implications and consequences of these points, and provides a persuasive call to action that motivates them to learn more about your topic. Do not rush or add new content. If your introduction began with an attention-grabbing piece of information, revisit it in the conclusion to bookend your presentation. Finally, thank viewers for their time, explain how they can contact you for further information, and invite them to ask questions.

Create Better Business Presentations Today

Creating a presentation can be a daunting prospect but implementing the steps above to organize your presentation ensures you can effectively express your message, engage your audience, and secure optimal results. If you are interested in learning more about how to organize a presentation that impresses potential investors and clients, contact Shapiro Negotiations today. Our negotiation training program is based on science, backed by experience, and boasts a track record of proven results that have helped business professionals in all industries negotiate their way to better deals. We can help your team prepare successful pitches, craft compelling presentations, and achieve the best outcome for your business.

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How to create an effective PowerPoint presentation (2024 guide)

Jun 24, 2024

Posted by: Regine Fe Arat

Creating a compelling PowerPoint presentation is an essential skill in today's professional world. 

Whether you're presenting to colleagues, clients or a large audience, a well-designed and engaging presentation can make a significant impact. 

This guide will walk you through making a powerful, effective PowerPoint presentation. Let’s get straight into it with the most important part of all: Your audience.

Understanding your audience

Effective, tailored communication is the foundation of any successful presentation. 

To connect with your audience and deliver your message effectively, you must understand:

• who they are, 
• what they care about and
• what they hope to gain from your presentation. 

Researching your target audience and adapting your content ensures you create a presentation that resonates with them on a deeper level. This connection means you’re more likely to keep them engaged and motivated throughout. 

Let’s look at the key steps to understanding your audience and crafting a presentation that speaks directly to their needs and interests.

Analyzing your target audience

Before creating your presentation, it's crucial to understand your target audience. Consider factors such as their background, knowledge level, interests and expectations. 

For example, if you're presenting to a technical audience, you may include more detailed information and jargon. If you’re presenting to children, you might want to add some fun slide transitions that you wouldn’t use in a corporate environment.

Tailoring the presentation to the audience

Once you understand your audience, tailor your presentation accordingly. Adjust the content, language and tone to resonate with your audience. 

If you’re presenting to a client, can you align your presentation with their branding and messaging to create a sense of harmony? How can you create a compelling call to action if it's a business presentation ?

Use relevant examples, stories and case studies your audience can relate to, and always present the information in a way that’s easy to understand and engage with.

Planning and organizing content

A well-structured presentation is essential for effectively communicating your ideas and engaging your audience. 

The key to success is carefully planning and organizing your content before creating your PowerPoint slides.

Take time to develop your key ideas, structure your presentation flow and create a clear outline to deliver a compelling and memorable presentation. Let’s look at how to do that.

Developing key ideas

Start by identifying the key ideas and messages you want to convey in your presentation. Focus on the most critical points and organize them logically. 

Use mind maps, outlines or brainstorming techniques to organize your thoughts and ensure your presentation has a clear structure.

Structuring your presentation

Once you have your key ideas, craft your presentation to flow smoothly and engage your audience.

Begin with an attention-grabbing introduction, followed by the main content divided into clear sections or topics. 

Use transitions to seamlessly move from one section to another, and end with a strong conclusion that reinforces your main points.

Designing visual elements

Your PowerPoint presentation’s visuals play a big role in capturing your audience's attention and reinforcing your key messages. 

Carefully designing your slides can create an engaging and visually appealing presentation that effectively communicates your ideas.

Be mindful of your audience. They will appreciate it if you can include an element that represents them. It could be a color combination of a company’s logo or a symbol that represents a group. 

Let’s explore the principles of effective slide design to ensure your visual elements enhance your presentation.

Choosing the right fonts

Select easy-to-read, visually appealing fonts. Stick to a maximum of two or three font styles throughout your presentation for consistency. 

Use font sizes large enough for your audience to read, typically 24 points or larger for body text and 36 points or larger for titles.

Using engaging backgrounds and themes

Choose backgrounds and themes that complement your content and enhance the look of your presentation. 

Skip the distracting backgrounds that take away from your message. 

Incorporating high-quality images and videos

Incorporate visuals such as images, charts, graphs and videos to make a more memorable and engaging presentation. 

Use high-quality images that are relevant to your topic and add visual interest to your slides. Avoid too many decorative elements that can clutter your slides.

Using PowerPoint effectively

PowerPoint is the perfect tool for creating dynamic, engaging presentations. However, to make the most of this software, it's essential to understand its features.

In this section, we'll explore everything from animations to best practices for supporting your key messages and keeping your audience engaged .

Utilizing slide layouts and templates

PowerPoint offers various slide layouts and templates to save time and ensure consistency. Choose a layout that suits your content and conveys your message effectively. 

Customize the templates to fit your presentation style or branding, but avoid overloading your slides with too much text or information.

Adding animations and special effects

Use animations and special effects sparingly to emphasize key points or catch the audience’s attention. Too many animations can be distracting and take away from your content. 

Stick to simple animations that enhance your message rather than overpowering it. Use animations consistently throughout your presentation to maintain a cohesive look and feel.

Applying color schemes and design themes

Choose a color scheme that aligns with your branding (or your client’s) and creates a visually appealing presentation. Contrasting colors for text and backgrounds ensure readability. 

Applying design themes consistently throughout your presentation creates a polished and professional look.

Proper formatting and citations

Ensure that your presentation follows proper formatting guidelines and includes accurate citations for any external sources. 

Bullet points or numbered lists break down information into easily digestible chunks, making it easier to keep your audience interested. 

Including slide numbers and a clear agenda or table of contents helps your audience navigate your presentation. 

Always proofread your slides for any typos before finalizing your presentation.

Delivering an engaging presentation

Delivering an engaging presentation is more than just creating great slides; it also requires strong communication skills and the ability to connect with your audience. 

In this section, we'll focus on presentation delivery, providing you with techniques and strategies to captivate your audience and effectively convey your message. 

Enhancing presentation skills

Work on your presentation skills to become a confident and compelling speaker. Regular practice is one of the best ways to become a great speaker. 

Go beyond boring slides and speeches and use storytelling techniques to make your content more relatable and memorable. 

Practice active listening and reply to your audience's reactions and questions. If they seem bored, jazz it up a little with humor. 

Impromptu speaking is also ideal for engaging your audience. While it can be scary to move away from your script and slides, it can be very effective. 

Using effective body language and eye contact

Good body language is vital in engaging your audience. Maintain a confident posture, use gestures to highlight key points and make eye contact with your audience.

Avoid reading from your slides — use them as visual aids to support your message. 

Consider what side of the slides you want to stand on. Generally speaking, you want to be to the audience’s left of the screen. You want the audience to listen to you before looking at the slides. 

Using voice and tone to engage the audience

Vary your voice and tone to keep your audience interested and engaged. 

Use pauses for emphasis, adjust your speaking speed and modulate your volume to create a dynamic presentation. If you have an impactful slide, let the audience sit with it for a moment.

It’s also important to speak clearly. Properly pronouncing words and not mumbling ensures your audience understands your message.

Tips for a successful presentation

Creating and delivering a successful PowerPoint presentation requires careful planning and practice.

In this section, we'll provide you with valuable tips and best practices for elevating your presentation skills, from rehearsing to gathering feedback.

Preparing and practicing beforehand

Preparation and practice are key to delivering a successful presentation. 

Work backward when planning your presentation: What date is the presentation? Plan weekly milestones to ensure you don’t feel overwhelmed with everything you need to do.

Give yourself time to research your topic, gather relevant information and organize your content.

Rehearse your presentation multiple times to grasp the flow and timing. Practice in front of a mirror, colleagues or friends for feedback to make necessary improvements.

Tips for dealing with technical issues

Technical issues can disrupt your presentation and cause unnecessary stress. Be prepared with backup copies of your presentation on different devices or online platforms. 

Familiarize yourself with the presentation equipment and venue beforehand to minimize potential technical problems. 

Have a plan in case of unexpected issues. Printing handouts and preparing to deliver your presentation without slides are great ways to get ahead of issues.

Engaging the audience with Q&A sessions

If you can, allocate time for a Q&A session at the end of your presentation to engage with your audience and address their questions. 

Encourage participation by asking open-ended questions and actively listening to their responses. 

Be prepared to handle challenging questions with grace and professionalism. Use the opportunity to clarify any unclear points or provide additional insights.

The last card

Creating a good PowerPoint presentation requires effective design, careful planning and engaging delivery. 

Understanding your audience, organizing your content, effectively using visuals and enhancing your presentation skills can captivate your audience and leave a lasting impact. 

Keep exploring the Pip Decks website and our resources to discover more tips, tutorials and templates for even better PowerPoint presentations. 

What is the 10 20 30 rule of PowerPoint?

The 10-20-30 rule is a guideline for effective PowerPoint presentations. 

It suggests: 

• using no more than 10 slides, 
• limiting the presentation duration to 20 minutes and 
• using a font size of at least 30 points for optimal readability.

What are the 5 golden rules of PowerPoint presentations?

The five golden rules of PowerPoint presentations are:

• Keep it simple and concise
• Use visuals to enhance your message
• Maintain a consistent design and color scheme
• Use clear fonts
• Practice and prepare for a confident delivery

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How to Organize and Structure A Presentation for Maximum Impact

by Janice Tomich

• Presentation Planning & Public Speaking Skills

Have you attended a presentation where you had difficulty following along or understanding what the speaker was trying to communicate?

Were you lost along the way and couldn’t understand the key points (and covertly looked for the exit)? 

I suspect the answer is yes. We’ve all been there and felt sorry (and frustrated) for the presenter. You may have asked yourself what went wrong. 

There are many layers and interconnections that are required to write and give a business presentation or keynote address . Do it right and you’ll have your audience nodding yes and receive great presentation feedback . 

If you leave crucial organization and structure out you’ll create a disorganized presentation. One that will be difficult for your audience to follow. 

Table of Contents

Why Is It Important To Organize and Structure a Speech?

When I think back to well structured and poorly structured presentations, attending university comes to mind. 

I remember a few eccentric professors that went off on tangents that dipped and dived into the abyss and had little or nothing to do with the topic of the day. After class the hallway would be full of confused looks and comments such as, “I didn’t get what they were talking about. Did you?”

I also remember a few professor’s eloquent lectures that  took us along on a fluid, logical path. At the end of these lectures it was clear what they had planned for me to understand or do. After these classes the hallway discussions highlighted aha moments and the opportunities and possibilities of new ideas. 

These scenarios are common at conferences and meetings (whether in person or online) too. 

A well organized and structured presentation helps your audience quickly make sense of what you want to communicate – they will be able to connect the dots quickly and understand the message you are sharing. You’ll grab the audience’s attention, and keep it. 

What’s In It For Your Audience When You Organize Your Presentation?

And as one of those professors often reminded us, all communication, including presentations and speeches, are all about the audience, not about you the person writing or delivering them. 

Presentations must (or should) be audience focussed. Of course, you have a message to share but if it’s ignored your time invested is wasted. 

When you organize your presentation with the audience in mind they’ll understand your message and you have a better chance of them taking action.  

What’s In It For You To Create And Deliver An Organized Presentation?

Presentations are a big investment in time…or should be if they’re developed with creativity and thoughtfulness in mind.

When presentations/speeches are organized well, they will impact your attendees/audience. A speech that is well structured will influence and persuade.

​​​​Sucheta Misra Associate VP Inclusion & Diversity and Social Impact Leader

A question I always ask my clients when we debrief after they’ve delivered their presentation is about the reaction and feedback they received. Instead of the usual response of ‘great presentation’ or ‘well done’ when consideration to the presentation’s organization and structure is used, attendees often reach out to express how much the presentation impacted them. 

There’s nothing more rewarding than when you see the ideas that you’ve shared actually make change happen and that’s what a well organized presentation can do. 

Strategies For Organizing Your Research

Capture your research and notes all in one place.

There are online platforms that can help to gather your research in one place so you’re not wasting time hunting for that one important piece that’s some how disappeared. 

A few of my favourites are:

Evernote helps you capture notes and find them fast:

• Syncs notes to all devices.
• You can add text, images, audio, scans, PDFs, and documents to your notes.
• A powerful search tool that helps you find your research as you type.

“ Scrivener is an app often used by writers and works for writing presentations too because it brings together all your notes, research, and writing so they’re always at your fingertips: “Your background material is always at hand, and you can open it right next to your work. Write a description based on a photograph. Transcribe an interview. Take notes about a PDF file or web page.”

OneTab is a Chrome extension that populates all of your open tabs into one list. It’s brilliant having all of your internet research in one place with an added bonus of saving up to 95% of memory. If you’re like me, I have too many tabs open at one given time, which can make your computer move like a slug. 

Laser Focus Your Research

As a subject matter expert you have a depth and breadth of knowledge and experience, a database that your audience doesn’t have. With all your information gathering, having too much information is more often the problem than having too much. 

Does your audience need to know everything? Do you need to take them down obscure rabbit holes?

But it can be difficult to target and whittle down to the most relevant concepts to create a presentation that will convince and persuade. 

Which is why it’s key to keep yourself focussed. 

What is it you want the people that attend your presentation to know, think, or do? It’s necessary that you define this and consider while you develop your presentation. 

With your presentation focus in mind scan through your information. Dispense of the thoughts, ideas, and concepts that don’t support your key message. 

Structure Your Presentation With My Framework

I’m a public speaking coach , and often clients come to me with a draft presentation that they’ve built in Keynote as a Powerpoint presentation. It’s slide after slide of information, but it’s usually disjointed and a mess. I know it’s tempting to work from the slide deck platform, but it’s not in your best interest to skip presentation organization. 

You may ruffle at the thought of building your presentation in a framework structure, however my framework gives you lots of opportunity to get creative. 

Building a speech or presentation is similar to building a house. It needs to be supported by a strong foundation. 

All types of presentations—whether an investment pitch, an inspirational keynote speech, or a board meeting —can easily be developed and created using my framework. The framework provides flexibility to build out the length whether short, medium, or long. It guides you from getting clear about your key message, and then helps you weave that through the entire presentation structure, using supporting proofs, points, and arguments. The presentation map ends by prompting you to decide how to close.

I know it’s hard to have that difficult conversation, pitch that podcast, or choose just the right words to make your presentation come to life.

How Do I Begin Developing My Presentation?

Presentation Outline Example

It’s all about the audience.

In the first row of my presentation map you’ll see guided questions titled under intention. Each and every presentation is all about the audience (not about you). This is the first step to creating and organizing a presentation or speech. Having a solid grasp of who they are and what they want/need is key to the success of your speech or presentation.

How Will You Measure Success?

The next concept to clarity is your own intention.

Why are you giving the keynote and what do you want to have happen because of it?

How will you measure if you have been successful?

I see many speeches or presentations fail because a success measurement isn’t defined. It’s the driver for your speech and will illuminate what worked or didn’t. 

What Is Your Throughline?

It’s at this point I’ve watched many presentations go off the rails because the presenter covers too many key topics.

As a subject matter expert it’s enticing to share all you know. Remember that your audience doesn’t have the same depth and breadth of knowledge and the experience you have. 

KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) is a basic design principle which ensures your audience will clearly understand your main point and is more likely to engage or follow up. 

Don’t let yourself get married to ideas that you love but don’t help with your audience understanding your key point and argument.

I’m a complete communication nerd and could go on all day about the good and bad that I hear and see every day. Do others want to hear all the minutia …no. They only want to know what impacts them. 

So take your red pencil and (bravely) cross out ideas / concepts that don’t pass the KISS principle. 

Organizing The Introduction 

Here’s a startling fact: in the 45 years since the introduction of the automated teller machine, those vending machines that dispense cash, the number of human bank tellers employed in the United States has roughly doubled, from about a quarter of a million to a half a million. – David Autor

The introduction is your chance to pull in your audience while creating an opening that will start the path of your through line. Creating it is usually better left until you’ve created the body of your speech or presentation.

Steer away from a long introduction that speaks to your expertise/credibility or providing too much context. Instead aim to pique your audience’s interest to hear more. 

There are many ways to begin a presentation. Here are a few of the tried and true:

• Begin with the start of a story that sets the stage for your theme/throughline. Then integrate it throughout your presentation and/or finish your presentation with the story ending. One of the best examples of this opening I’ve heard is Dr. Amy Cuddy’s TED Talk. She threads the theme of lacking confidence throughout her presentation beginning with her own and then that of one of her students.
• Share a stat or fact that is not common knowledge. Something that I often begin a presentation with is it’s a fallacy humans have the attention span of goldfish , which is one of those tall tales that is not true. 
• Ask a question – perhaps something contrary that isn’t a common point of view. The question can be rhetorical or ask for hand’s up to make your presentation interactive right from the start. My go-to is asking my audience about their level of comfort for public speaking. 
• Start with a quote that ties into the key message or your call to action. One of my favourites is a passage from Mary Oliver where she asks, “What is it you want to do with your wild and precious life”. I use it because it gets my audience thinking about how short life is and what uncomfortable (or wild) thing you would do to accomplish what you hope to. 
• Tell a joke. This is something I never do because I’m the worst joke teller. Some of my clients are brilliant at it. If you’re comfortable, then I encourage you to use humour as your opener. It’s a brilliant way to break the ice and get audience engagement quickly. Remember to leave a few seconds for people to laugh. Similar to a comedian, you need to consider your timing. 
• Get the elephant out of the room right away to break the ice. For example are you someone that is younger than many of those in the audience or perhaps older? Openings like this will help establish your credibility by showing your humility. 
• With a minimal amount of context/background state the problem that your audience is facing. Jumping quickly into the problem that you’ll be solving for your audience will get their attention. 

Organizing The Body Of Your Presentation Or Speech

You’ll notice in my presentation map above, just below the space where you define and describe your opening, there are three columns to prove/argue your key message/through line. 

For this section brainstorm as many ideas as come to mind that will support key message. Use Post-it notes to capture one idea per note. Stick them on a whiteboard or wall and keep going until you run out of ideas. Taking a few breaks helps clear your head and bubble up new ideas. After you’ve run out of ideas remove the weak ones. Then create clusters of ideas that are similar. Aim for three. Identify the (three) major themes, which will be your major proof points.

I encourage you to use only three major proof concepts. Any more and you’ll lose your audience because your presentation will be too dense. They will have difficulty following your train of thought. 

You should have a number of concepts that will support your three major proof points. Choose the strongest ones. How many you choose will depend on the amount of time you have to deliver your presentation. 

What Is The Internal Structure In The Argumentation?

What is. what can be.

In her public speaking book Resonate , Nancy Duarte, shares the concept of ‘What is and What Can Be”. This framework takes the audience from the present state to possibilities. Her technique can be used for the major theme, the key messages, and the supporting messages to take the audience on the up and down of a roller coaster ride. 

Context, Problem, Solution, And Benefit

The CPSB (Context, Problem, Solution, and Benefit) framework is powerful for clear communication. 

• Using two or three sentences describe the background of a problem/issue. 
• Go on to speak to the problem at hand.
• Then speak to your idea(s) about solving the problem.
• And always talk about the benefit your solution will provide. It’s key to persuading and influencing your audience.

Here’s an example of CPSB in action:

Insightful leaders are focussed on creating an open and trust-based culture. By supporting their team members this way an organization has opportunity for sustainable growth. ( Background ) 

Many organizations are steeped in antiquated hierarchical, politically charged environments where employees feel the need to be careful of what they say and do. This type of org structure stagnates growth. ( Problem ) 

When leaders foster a culture where their teams can speak openly, which requires them in turn to be vulnerable (and open to feedback) ( Solution ) it creates a creative environment that supports growth ( Benefit ). 

Use An Example Or Story  

Presentations or speeches where the speaker delivers data point after data point or statement after statement are dry and run the risk of losing their audience. 

Stories are appropriate for even the most professional or academic presentations.

With each proof point to illuminate and connect the dots of understanding use a real world example or a short story. I often have my clients analyze other people’s presentations. The most remembered parts are the stories. 

Stories and examples are sticky and help us make sense of concepts and ideas. Without them speeches and presentations are simply boring. 

Organizing The Conclusion: What Are The Essential Elements Of An Impactful Conclusion? 

Have you attended a presentation where you were unsure if it was over?

People weakly clapped or nodded and then left the room? Unfortunately it happens too often. 

Your conclusion is as important as every other element of your speech or presentation. 

The biggest mistake I see presenters make is facilitating a Q & A and then wrapping it up with the answer to the last question. When you do this you give your power away.

After the Q & A take back control and wrap it up. 

There are as many ways to conclude as there are to open. 

Here’s a few that work well:

• Loop back to your story if you opened with one. Concluding this way finishes up your presentation so that it ‘feels’ finished as though wrapped up with a bow. 
• Highlight the most important concept that you shared – one that you want remembered. One is all you need. 
• If you’ve created a presentation with the intention of having your audience do something – a call to action – you will have seeded it throughout. When you conclude it’s time to fully describe what it is you want them to do. 
• A powerful statement. When I present I often speak about presentation skills and start by talking about how my fear of public speaking brought up horrible anxiety and when I delivered presentations you could see my legs shake. I have concluded with, “See…no more leg shakes”. 

• A powerful visual if you are using a slidedeck. Simply standing beside a well chosen image is an unusual ending that will be remembered.
• The ‘what could be’ close describes how good life will be or the success a company will realize if your solution or idea is used. Concluding with a visually rich outcome has your audience leaving on a positive note. 
• A rhetorical question will have your audience leaving with food for thought for example, “What would your company’s pitches look like if each and every team member could deliver with confidence”. 

What are the consequences of not having a satisfying conclusion?

You’re the one who has the stage and whose responsibility it is to finish your presentation powerfully. It’s your last opportunity to make an impression and a missed one if you don’t. It’s your opportunity to leave your audience inspired or with a clear understanding of what you want then to do.

Taking the time to organize your presentation is worthwhile. By considering and following through each of the concepts I’ve guided you through will create a presentation that is clear, focussed, and will engage your audience. One that you’ll be proud to deliver. 

Do you have a limited amount of time to deliver your upcoming presentation? If presentation or speech is looming and you need to be confident you’ll deliver an A+ presentation my Crunch Time service may be what you need.

It would be my pleasure to work with you. 

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Planning and Organizing Instruction

Jan 21, 2012

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Planning and Organizing Instruction. Mercer Ch. 2. Activity. Using large paper and markers, draw your ultimate classroom Explain each area and their relevance to the function of the classroom. Arrangement of Students. All students should easily see and hear the teacher

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• heterogeneous group
• interest centers considerations
• special needs
• group instruction
• classwide peer tutoring format
• rough sketch

Presentation Transcript

Planning and Organizing Instruction Mercer Ch. 2

Activity • Using large paper and markers, draw your ultimate classroom • Explain each area and their relevance to the function of the classroom

Arrangement of Students • All students should easily see and hear the teacher • Teacher has easy access to all students • Teacher sees all students • Decide to put desks in clusters or rows • Place difficult-to-teach or off-task students in the middle of the room near the front

Classroom Arrangement • Teacher draw a rough sketch of the floor plan • Consider advantages for desk arrangements: vertical rows, group circles, and small clusters • Location of predominant activities • Number of students in the environment • Storage area for equipment • Need for special equipment for students with special needs

Managing the Physical Environment • Environmental Design • Classroom Arrangement • Complements to the Instructional Environment • Interest Centers • Bulletin Boards

Environmental Design Considerations • Sense of community • Personal territory • Authentic motivation • Classroom flexibility • Environmental acknowledgment • Flexible seating • Work aesthetic • Barrier-free

Complements to the Instructional Environment • Study Carrel • Provide a quiet place to study • Provide a comfortable place to read independently

Interest Centers Considerations • Characteristics of the user • Objectives that the activities are designed to meet • Interest value to the students • Procedures and directions • Materials or equipment needed

Bulletin Boards • Most popular is to display students’ work • Can foster creativity by providing example topics or themes for student work

Large-Group Instruction • Advantages: • time efficient • Prepares students for the type of instruction primarily used in secondary education • May help students with special needs make the transition to general education classes

Large-Group Instruction Cont. • Disadvantages: • Difficult for teachers to deal with diverse abilities and skill levels • Questions may go unanswered • Distracted students may stay off task • Students do not receive intensive instruction

Guidelines for Large-Group Instruction • Keep instruction short • Use questions to involve students • Use lecture-pause routine • Active participation among lower achieving students • Visual aids • Lively pace • Frequent change-ups • Determine rules during presentation and discussions • Use participation buddies to promote student involvement

Small-Group Instruction • Advantages: • Students participate more often • Teachers provide more instruction, praise, and feedback • Students can progress at their own pace • Less boring • Monitor student progress better • ELL students are more comfortable • Important for students with LD and EBD because they lack to skills to work independently

Small-Group Instruction Cont. • Disadvantages • Students are required to do more seatwork • More planning is involved • Teachers must organize instructional variables • Teachers must provide more instruction

Guidelines for Small-Group Instruction • Establish rules • Make groups homogeneous • Maintain flexible grouping • Locate groups so teacher can see all groups • Place students in semicircle • Use motivational activities

Cooperative Learning Strategies • Peer tutoring • Classwide Peer tutoring • Group projects • Jigsaw • Student-team achievement divisions

Guidelines for Peer Tutoring • Determine goals for peer tutoring • Practice and learn targeted skills • Provide a review • Develop appropriate social skills • Enhance self-concepts • Determine target skills or content • Select materials • Design procedures for tutee and tutor • How to present the task • How to provide feedback for correct and incorrect responses • How to score responses

Guidelines for Peer Tutoring • Assign tutor-tutee pairs • Across-class • Pull-out • Intraclass • Train tutors and tutees • Teach social skills • Review skills • Schedule sessions

Classwide Peer Tutoring • Three main features: • Peers are used to supervise responding and practice • A game format is used that includes points and competing teams to motivate students and maintain interest • Weekly evaluation plan ensure gains in student progress

Classwide Peer Tutoring Format • Daily tutoring sessions of about 30 minutes • Tutor-tutee pairs work together for a week • After 10 minutes the pairs switch roles • Two points are given for each correct response, one point is given for a corrected response • Teacher moves around the room monitoring tutoring behavior – awards bonus points for good behavior • End of the session, students add up the points and record on chart • Friday the teacher conducts a more intensive assessment of the skills learned

Student-team achievement divisions • Heterogeneous group of 4 students are assigned to a team • After teacher presents the lesson, the team works together to ensure mastery of the skills taught • Students take individual quizzes without peer help. • Quiz scores are compared to previous scores and points are awarded based on improvement

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74th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe

Call for Experts: Technical Advisory Group on Behavioural and Cultural Insights (TAG-BCI)

Issued on: 24/06/2024

Deadline: 31/08/2024

The World Health Organization (WHO) is seeking experts to serve as members of the Technical Advisory Group on Behavioural and Cultural Insights (TAG-BCI), established in the WHO Regional Office for Europe (WHO/Europe). This Call for experts provides information about the TAG-BCI, the expert profiles being sought, the process to express interest, and the process of selection.

Behaviours have a critical impact on health and well-being. Health behaviours, including lifestyles or the way people interact with health systems, have extensive implications for health status, equity, health system capacity, costs and more. It is therefore crucial that the complex factors affecting health behaviour are being explored and used to develop evidence-based interventions.

In September 2020, the 53 Member States in the WHO European Region adopted the European Programme of Work, 2020–2025 – “United action for better health” (EPW), which identifies Behavioural and Cultural Insights (BCI) as a flagship initiative working to advance the use of evidence-based and people-centred approaches to health. There is growing evidence across different health areas and countries demonstrating that BCI-related work contributes to improving the outcomes of health-related policies, services and communication, including by making them more relevant, effective, equitable, sustainable, inclusive and people-centred. Yet, BCI in health remains underexplored and underutilized and subject to modest investment in many places globally and in the WHO European Region.

BCI here refers to a broad field of work drawing on existing approaches from the fields of behavioural and social sciences, cultural studies, health humanities, and related fields. Guided by the ‘Tailoring Health Programmes’ approach, the work involves the systematic exploration of individual and contextual factors affecting health behaviours; the use of global and local evidence to improve the outcomes of health-related policies, services and communication, delivering better health and reducing inequity; and the robust evaluation of these interventions.

The TAG-BCI acts as an advisory body to the BCI Unit at WHO/Europe, with the aim to advance the use of evidence-based and people-centred approaches to health-related behaviours in the Member States of the Region.

In line with the Resolution: European regional action framework for behavioural and cultural insights for equitable health, 2022–2027 , the vision is a Region where health-related policies, services and communication deliver better health and reduce health inequity owing to the systematic application of BCI approaches in their development, implementation and evaluation. This vision is advanced through five strategic commitments made by Member States: to:

• build understanding and support of BCI among key stakeholders;
• conduct BCI research;
• apply BCI to improve outcomes of health-related policies, services and communication;
• commit human and financial resources for BCI and ensure their sustainability;
• implement strategic plan(s) for the application of BCI for better health.

The work of the BCI Unit seeks to support Member States in advancing the use of BCI for health through four workstreams:

• In-country work: technical support to health authorities in the Region to conduct BCI-related work;
• Capacity-building: trainings at regional, sub-regional and in-country levels, online and in-person;
• Evidence: publication of guidance, policy considerations, evidence;
• Advocacy: visibility, partnership and stakeholder relations to advance the use of BCI for health.

The WHO European Region comprises 53 Member States, covering a vast geographical Region with a high degree of diversity as regards health, health systems, income levels, socio-economic conditions, political systems, historic and cultural contexts and more.

Functions of the TAG-BCI

In its capacity as an advisory body to WHO/Europe, the TAG-BCI shall have the following functions:

• To advise the WHO Regional Office for Europe on strategic opportunities for the BCI work, including identifying and describing current and future challenges where BCI can be leveraged, in order to accelerate action towards broader regional and global health goals and strategies;
• To provide technical advice and expertise to the BCI Unit in the development of academic projects, research protocols, technical documents and policy recommendations on BCI, particularly with regard to the state of the evidence and relevant policy innovations;
• In line with WHO strategic documents and specific requests, to contribute to advancing the use of BCI for health across the Region, including through increased visibility and advocacy-related activities; and
• To advise the BCI Unit in the implementation of interventions and activities at country and regional levels, including through reviewing documents related to research projects.

Member must be free of conflicts of interest. Membership is personal, and no members will represent their employer or an organization which they are affiliated with. See more information below.

Operations of the TAG-BCI

The TAG-BCI shall normally meet in plenary once or twice each year. Meetings are topic-based and TAG-BCI members will need to prepare presentations, considerations and input on the topic in question (for example, behaviours and health equity, cost-effectiveness of health behavioural interventions, dimensions of stakeholder engagement, or the cultural contexts of health behaviours). WHO/Europe may convene additional meetings of the TAG-BCI or its sub-groups as needed. Meetings may be held in person (at the WHO Regional office for Europe in Copenhagen or another location, as determined by WHO/Europe) or virtually, using online meeting options.

TAG-BCI members may be invited by WHO/Europe over email to review documentation or provide their advice and feedback for consideration, in accordance with the TAG-BCI functions, outside of TAG-BCI meetings.

The working language of the TAG-BCI will be English.

Participation entails the following:

• Members will be appointed to serve for a period of 2 years and shall be eligible for reappointment.
• TAG-BCI members are expected to attend meetings. If a member misses two consecutive meetings, WHO/Europe may end his/her appointment as member of the TAG-BCI.
• Active participation is expected from all TAG-BCI members, including in online meetings and interaction over email. Members may be required to review strategic and technical documents in advance of meetings and provide their views for consideration by the TAG-BCI.
• WHO/Europe shall determine the modes of communication with the TAG-BCI.

Who can express interest?

The TAG-BCI will be multidisciplinary, with members who have a range of technical knowledge, skills and experience relevant to behavioural and cultural insights and as mentioned below. Knowledge of WHO’s mandate and ways of working or experience with working or engaging with WHO are not a requirement but is an advantage for TAG members. Approximately 8 members may be selected.

WHO seeks to put together a TAG-BCI with a diverse set of skills, expertise and experience and with different perspectives on health behaviours, encompassing behavioural science, the cultural context of behaviours and other relevant dimensions to behaviour, such as political, health systems, equity, communications, digital/AI and other.

WHO welcomes expressions of interest from individuals with expertise/experience working with behaviours, including researchers, public health experts and practitioners, policy-makers, healthcare professionals, innovators and other professionals.

Applicants from outside the Region will be accepted, but priority will be given to applicants within the Region and to ensure representation from its various subregions.

Submitting your expression of interest

To register your interest in being considered for the TAG-BCI, please submit the following documents by 31 August 2024, 24:00h (midnight) CET using the following online form:

and including the following documents:

• Your curriculum vitae; and
• A signed and completed Declaration of Interests (DOI) form for WHO Experts, available at:

After submission, your expression of interest will be reviewed by WHO. Due to an expected high volume of interest, only selected individuals will be informed.

Important information about the selection processes and conditions of appointment

Members of WHO advisory groups (AGs) must be free of any real, potential or apparent conflicts of interest. To this end, applicants are required to complete the WHO Declaration of Interests for WHO Experts, and the selection as a member of an AG is, amongst other things, dependent on WHO determining that there is no conflict of interest or that any identified conflicts could be appropriately managed (in addition to WHO’s evaluation of an applicant’s experience, expertise and motivation and other criteria).

All AG members will serve in their individual expert capacity and shall not represent any governments, any commercial industries or entities, any research, academic or civil society organizations, or any other bodies, entities, institutions or organizations. They are expected to fully comply with the Code of Conduct for WHO Experts. AG members will be expected to sign and return a completed confidentiality undertaking prior to the beginning of the first meeting.

At any point during the selection process, telephone interviews may be scheduled between an applicant and the WHO Secretariat to enable WHO to ask questions relating to the applicant’s experience and expertise and/or to assess whether the applicant meets the criteria for membership in the relevant AG.

The selection of members of the AGs will be made by WHO in its sole discretion, taking into account the following (non-exclusive) criteria: relevant technical expertise; experience in international and country policy work; communication skills; and ability to work constructively with people from different cultural backgrounds and orientations .The selection of AG members will also take account of the need for diverse perspectives from different regions, especially from low and middle-income countries, and for gender balance.

If selected by WHO, proposed members will be sent an invitation letter and a Memorandum of Agreement. Appointment as a member of an AG will be subject to the proposed member returning to WHO the countersigned copy of these two documents.

WHO reserves the right to accept or reject any expression of interest, to annul the open call process and reject all expressions of interest at any time without incurring any liability to the affected applicant or applicants and without any obligation to inform the affected applicant or applicants of the grounds for WHO's action. WHO may also decide, at any time, not to proceed with the establishment of the AG, disband an existing AG or modify the work of the AG.

WHO shall not in any way be obliged to reveal, or discuss with any applicant, how an expression of interest was assessed, or to provide any other information relating to the evaluation/selection process or to state the reasons for not choosing a member.

WHO may publish the names and a short biography of the selected individuals on the WHO internet.

AG members will not be remunerated for their services in relation to the AG or otherwise. Travel and accommodation expenses of AG members to participate in AG meetings will be covered by WHO in accordance with its applicable policies, rules and procedures.

The appointment will be limited in time as indicated in the letter of appointment.

If you have any questions about this “Call for experts”, please write to [email protected] well before the applicable deadline (31 August 2024).

Related Highlight

Code of Conduct for WHO Experts

Declaration of Interest (DOI) form for WHO Experts

BCI at WHO/Europe

Technical work

Terms of Reference (TOR)

TAG-BCI