Studies have shown that audiences retain structured presentations 40% easier than unstructured presentations. In fact, not only is structuring a presentation important for the benefit of the audience’s understanding, it’s also important for you as a narrator. A good structure helps you remain calm, stay on topic, and avoid any awkward silences where you’re not sure if you forgot to discuss something crucial.
A presentation should flow in such a manner that it covers all the vital parts as well as allows the audience to easily follow along. An ideal structure for a presentation includes:
- a welcoming and informative introduction;
- a coherent series of main points presented in a logical sequence;
- a lucid and purposeful conclusion.
These elements are discussed below in detail:
-
- The Introduction: The introduction is the point where the content and purpose of the presentation is explained .This is a vitally important part of your talk as you will need to gain the audience’s interest and confidence. You should aim to deliver introduction confidently and communicate energy and enthusiasm for the topic.
- Main Points: The main points are the backbone of your talk. They play an important role in helping you prioritise, focus and sequence your information. When planning your presentation you should produce a list or summary of the main points that you would like to make, expressing each in a few words or a short sentence.
- Transitions: Transitions are used to link and move between points, helping audience to understand the development or the argument.. Importantly, it draws the audience’s attention to the process of the presentation as well as its content. Non-verbal transitions include pausing, changing a slide or other visual aid, moving to a different area of the room before resuming speaking, or making eye contact with a different group in the audience.
- The Conclusion: This is the stage at which you can summarise the content and purpose of your talk, offer an overview of what has been achieved and make a lasting impact. You should try to address the audience directly during your conclusion, consolidating the impression of a confident and useful presentation.