Being a small business owner means that you need to be confident in yourself and in your abilities. But, when it comes to business presentations, this confidence often fizzles out and is replaced with nerves and anxiety. Presentations are vital to small business owners who want to attract and retain new clients, so if you are looking to improve your skills in the area, read on below for some simple presentation tips and a list of presentation skills that every business owner should have.
The ability to think strategically
Rather than thinking of your presentation as a simple set of Powerpoint slides, you should think of it as part of your marketing efforts. This means that you will need to have the ability to think strategically about your presentation.
Every time you prepare your presentation, you should have this structure in mind before you go up to speak:
- What do I want people to remember at the end of my presentation?
- What is the next step my audience should take once I am finished?
- How can I gain my audience’s trust?
Gaining your audience’s trust is vital to the success of any presentation, as it allows them to immerse themselves in the presentation, which makes it easier for you to create a cohesive marketing strategy based off of this presentation. You already know your ideas will be accepted and appreciated.
Control over body language
Being able to control your body language in a stressful situation is key to any presentation success. Many presentation tips include taking a deep breath before going onto the stage, to quell any nerves, and practising in front of a mirror for a week before the big day to see if you have any nervous tics that you need to control.
Nervous tics can include anything from playing with your hair, tapping your fingers on a nearby surface, crossing and uncrossing your arms and other such anxious movements. If you are giving a presentation, these tics can become distracting to the audience, so you need to be able to control your body language in order to appear calm, cool and collected in front of your audience.
Strong communication skills
Standing up in front of a group of people can be nerve-wracking and this can lead you to forget your speech and fumble over your words, leading to a disappointing presentation. You will need to build up your communication skills by practising your speech or presentation regularly before you step up on stage, so be sure that you have clearly outlined notes to read from.
However, there is a bit more to it than simply memorising a script. In order to remember your material and make it ‘flow’ naturally, you will need to understand the information you are trying to communicate, including the following:
- The information you want to cover in your presentation, including statistics
- The flow or sequence of the material you are speaking on
- The goal of the presentation
- Any questions your audience might ask
Understanding the material will help you to remember it and explain it to anyone who might have questions. Speak as though you are speaking to a friend and you will find that your presentation builds a natural flow all on its own.
A charismatic presence
While this is more of a personality trait, having a presence is vital to the success of any client or conference presentation. Building your presence before your presentation will ensure that it is a success and that you leave your audience satisfied and their interests in your company piqued.
Having a charismatic presence means that you are able to express vision and give people a reason to be inspired by your presentation. You can achieve this by speaking about your success in terms that are transferable to others, such as providing tips on how to start your own business or providing relatable advice for entrepreneurs who have hit a rough patch in their business. Be sure that you do not use too much jargon, as this will diminish your presence and make you seem un-relatable.
Presentation tips for success
There is nothing more embarrassing than falling up or down the stairs so it is important that you know your venue before you set up your presentation. Ask the venue owners if you can have some time a day or two before you are presenting so you can familiarise yourself with the entrances, exits, where the podium is and how the sound and projector system works.
Too many people use slides to read their presentation off of rather than using them to augment their speech. When you put slides together, think like an artist and use them to show graphs, visuals and key points rather than having your entire speech on them, word for word. Your audience will appreciate a visually creative display rather than a boring slideshow with of your notes.
