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I was recently exposed to a large
multi-national’s strategic division presentation. After
listening to the speakers, I was truly amazed at the lack of
professional presentation skills in this group.
When asked for my thoughts by a senior manager, I first
clarified as to whether they just wanted some back-slapping
approbation, or authentically sincere and radically honest
feedback.
My feedback could not be flattering if I was to be true to
their sincere request. I honor them for being brave enough
to ask for the TRUTH.
Here are the top ten mistakes I observe
regularly in the workplace presentations.
1. Lectern Lurching – The public
speaker hangs onto the lectern for dear life. Both hands
forcefully clutching the sides of the lectern with straight
arms and locked elbows. The lectern has also become the
speaker’s anchor point and protector. The presenter seems to
feel that they can hide behind the lectern, either from
glaring attack, or to hide their body or bad dress sense.
They never move a step away from the protection and
separation the lectern affords. NO possibility of audience
connection here.
2. Death by PowerPoint - If there is one aspect that
really indicates the amateurish inability of a public
speaker, it’s when they insist on reading the PowerPoint
/overhead slides to the audience verbatim… at 10% to 20% of
the speed that they have already been read.
I have seen many an eye glaze over in the audience as the
ill prepared speaker plods haltingly through each slide,
word for word, syllable by syllable.
Support tools like PowerPoint are there for reinforcement,
not to replace the public speaker or presenter. The slide
should have bulleted points, with the presenter talking
around these points.
Even when using a digital support tool, cognisance must be
made of font choice, size, colour, and layout, along with
the volume of detail on each slide.
Each slide should have around 4 to 5 points with no more
than 3-6 words per point. Clean, simple and professional
layout.
Provide more detailed follow-up notes
later, not on the screen.
3. No-Notes-Noddy - I find it distressing when the
presenter spends most of the time head down, reading their
notes. Their reading ability is often below par, akin to a
stilted Grade 6, mispronouncing and re-reading abysmal
content.
Occasionally they may tentatively glance up and look at one
small segment of the audience to see if they are all still
there. It’s not long before the attention levels of the
listeners drop. This type of presentation creates a
distinctly unprofessional image, with the resultant
disconnection of the addressees and bad impression of the
associated Brand.
It’s easier to use small cards and anchor points for content
stimulation or as a reminder. A mind map is another helpful
tool that can help a presenter stay on track.
4. Eyeball lock – I have had occasion in a small
presentation of 10 people when the presenter never looked at
me, acknowledged me, or interacted with me through any eye
contact for the entire presentation.
He focused solely on one side of the room, and completely
ignored the side I was sitting on. I felt left out and
totally unconnected to the session. Maybe he had a sore
neck. I certainly didn’t connect, and thus felt his message
was of little real value. I left without any intention
becoming part of their business.
5. Boring Brad – Ever been to a talk where the presenter
droned on incessantly in the same monotonous tone and
lacklustre tempo? With no variety in tone or tempo, very
little emotional contact can be made, and very rapidly the
audience’s minds wander onto more stimulating things, like
the paint drying on the wall, or the antics of a dying fly.
There is absolutely no valid reason to be seen as an
uninteresting or boring public speaker. Vocal variety and
pauses add impact, gain attention and enhance the speaker’s
appeal and secure message delivery.
Even a little body movement can create some interest. Boring
gets tuned out very rapidly, and because you may be the boss
who is speaking, it worsens the situation even more.
Engagement levels crash when a speaker is boring and dull,
and retention drops dramatically.
6. Um…Um…Um…! – For me, there is nothing more
off-putting, and irritating, than a speaker who does not
know what they are going to say, or what is meant to come
next and fills the awkward voids of silence with incessant
ums and ahs. On one occasion I counted a presenter’s ums and
they outnumbered the words he intended to say!
Often this is a strong indicator of nervousness or simply a
blatant lack of preparation. This is simple to rectify on
both accounts. Get a professional Speaking Coach if this is
your weak area.
7. Audience Bonding – Frequently the presenter
neglects to build any kind of rapport, engagement or
emotional bond with the viewers. This prevents them from
participating fully, leaving them feeling distant and
disconnected. There are some presenters who are totally
unaware of the audience’s attitudes or state.
If a presenter is going to persuade or inform, they need to
build a connection, create credibility and evoke interest
before launching into their talk.
Good audience bonding creates and sustains credibility. It
promotes openness to the message and creates a friendlier
audience energy and attitude with greater interactive
potential.
8. Info Overload – We are all experiencing info
overload. Still I often see the presenter will have
50-100 slides, each with volumes of detail and information.
Many times, within 5 -10 minutes of being on the receiving
end of the presented information, people are already into
overwhelm. The presenter cannot afford to be ignorant of the
body language or state of the audience.
Often the presenter provides an overdose of “numbers stuff”
and too little useful information, graphics, meaningful
visuals or shared insights.
Many times presenters are bombarding the audience with Facts
and Figures, when they could achieve greater results if they
explored better ways to get the message across.
Remember “Facts Tell, Stories Sell”. Stories are remembered
long after the facts have faded.
9. Weak Willy – Open and close – The opening and closing
segments are the greatest opportunities a presenter has to
get and retain attention, set the mood and call the people
to action.
A weak opening indicates a poor and boring presentation to
come, and causes people to tune out right in the beginning.
On the other hand, a powerful opening gains the audiences’
attention, sets the tone and tempo, and frames the rest of
the presentation positively.
A weak close is just as bad. Being let down in the end,
invalidates much of what has preceded, regardless of how
interesting it may have been.
10. Muttering Mike - The final sin of presentation and
public speaking is bad or incorrect language use, incoherent
speaking and pronunciation. Make sure you know how to
pronounce the words BEFORE you stand up and present. For
example, if foreign names comprise a part of the
presentation, do some research on their pronunciation,
before running the risk of offending other.
Each time a person stands up in front of an audience, they
have an unbelievable opportunity to build credibility and
passion, to educate, inform or persuade.
If they work for a corporate brand, they also either enhance
or demean the brand's promise. The emotional association the
audience has with the brand is based on, and influenced by,
each and every utterance the presenter makes, how they show
up, their demeanor and what the listener gained from the
event
It is commercial suicide to send out weak and unprofessional
speakers as brand ambassadors, especially to paying
audiences. In seconds the brand image associated becomes
irrevocably contaminated by the unprofessional delivery of
the speaker.
Why not consider ongoing professional training and coaching
for your speakers, managers and leaders, or even contract
professional presenters to keep your brand promise strong in
the public eye?
If you would like to explore ways of ensuring your that
staff become professional presenters, please give Tony
Dovale of LifeMasters International Coaching a call on
083-447-6300 or 011-467-1763 or email prospeak@coachfree.com
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