7 essential aspects of an electrifying presentation

It’s not enough to load up your PowerPoint slides with text and graphs and then drone on, reading them aloud to your snoring audience. Take charge, and charge them up with these tips.

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Preparing for presentations is tough, tedious and time-consuming, and the cardinal rule once you’re in the room is to engage those in your audience—not put them to sleep.

You don’t have to be the next Steve Jobs or Tony Robbins, but a better version of yourself when presenting your hard work, thoughts and ideas.

As a senior account manager and adjunct instructor in digital marketing, I have seen and participated in my share of presentations. It takes practice and experience to know your audience and learn to quickly pivot if things aren’t going well during a presentation.

So, let’s get down to the seven phases of making an effective presentation:

1. Knowing your audience

The most important thing to do before preparing your presentation is to research your audience. Find out what they expect to gain from you. The more you can connect with them, the more engaged they will be.

Your presentation should cater to the background and needs of your audience. For example, if I’m presenting to a group of accountants, I would include hard numbers and objective data. On the other hand, if my audience is a team of creatives, I would include more visual and interactive content.

2. Outline

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