Whether you work as a manager of remote teams – and therefore have to conduct presentations via Zoom – or you are an online educator regularly giving virtual lectures, you’re probably keen to hone your presentation technique. Delivering presentations online presents its own unique challenges and potential setbacks, so it’s a good idea to work on perfecting your technique and doing your best to eliminate any possible obstacles.
Keen for some advice and inspiration? Here are some top tips that should help to boost your confidence and elevate your online presentations to a high art.
Create The Perfect Set-Up
The first step toward giving a successful presentation is to make sure you have the right set-up. This means ensuring a professional backdrop – in other words, not a messy lounge or, even worse, an unmade bed! – and good lighting.
You also need to consider your camera angle, to ensure that everyone can see your face clearly and that they don’t just have a good view right up your left nostril.
Finally, you need to check that there are no possible distractions that could intrude upon your lecture, such as a curious toddler, or your mobile phone suddenly going off.
Make Eye Contact
While it can be easy to get caught up in the technicalities of presenting a virtual lecture or presentation, it’s still important not to forget the basics – such as maintaining eye contact with your audience. After all, your viewers are going to struggle to engage with what you have to say if they feel like you are not directly addressing them and paying attention to their reactions.
Ask For Feedback
Speaking of paying attention to your audience and how they are responding to your presentations, you can quickly and conveniently get their opinion with the help of live word cloud polls, provided by Vevox. Their interactive word cloud generator creates a handy visual representation of your listeners’ insights and opinions, providing a creative way for your audience to participate in real time.
These insights could prove incredibly useful, not just for deducing how effective your current presentation is, but also for helping you tailor your future presentations so your listeners can get the most out of them.
Keep Things Simple
You may think that a truly compelling presentation requires all kinds of complex multimedia and deeply detailed slides, but in general, the truth is quite the opposite. A simply but passionately delivered presentation – perhaps studded with a few witty anecdotes or gripping stories – can actually make a much greater impression and bring your message home in the most memorable way.
It’s also important to remember to get your audience involved along the way, as they will relish the opportunity to participate; plus, inviting their input will help to take some of that nerve-wracking ‘performance pressure’ off you!
Thank Your Audience For Listening
Finally, before you bring your presentation to a close, don’t forget to show your gratitude to your students or team members for their patience and their participation. After all, while the content of your presentation is, of course, vitally important, it’s also crucial to create a rapport with your listeners and project a positive and appealing image of yourself – otherwise they may not be so eager to listen the next time!
