One of the biggest challenges presenters face is using a presentation that they did not create. Physician Speakers in particular, need to learn and practice techniques to make the presentation their own, all while delivering a memorable message and remaining compliant with strict regulations.
Whether or not you are a Physician Speaker, these Nine steps to Taking Ownership of a Slide Deck will enable you to deliver pre-approved presentations with impact.
- Identify Key Messages
- Listeners will only remember a few things – what is most important for them to remember? These points need emphasis.
- Analyze Structure
- Understand the deck’s structure so you can preview it in your introduction and explain the flow of the presentation.
- Inject Engaging Support Material
- These include anecdotes, quotes, examples, humor, and analogies.
- Work Out Slide Transitions
- Transitions prevent the presentation from feeling choppy. What will you say to smoothly transition between the main sections and from slide to slide?
- Develop a Strong Introduction
- Grabber: Generate immediate attention and interest. Possible grabbers include: a thought-provoking piece of information, a question/polling the audience, a relevant anecdote.
- Consider What’s In It For Them (WIIFT)? What promise of value can you make? This is what they will get out of the presentation.
- Source Credibility: What can you say about your experience and/or content sources that will establish credibility? Why should they believe what they are about to hear?
- Preview: Audiences like to know what to expect. How will you preview the content?
- Create Moments of Interaction
- Interaction requires planning in advance. Identify the places in your presentation where a discussion would be most beneficial.
- Develop a Strong Conclusion
- It is good to do a short review of what the presentation covered before entertaining any final questions. Any final questions from the audience should follow the review and precede your closing message. End with a powerful closing message that emphasizes the key point(s).
- Plan Time Management
- It’s easy to run long when using a facilitative style because discussions can take up a lot of time. Determine your timing in advance for multiple points in the presentation. As soon as you see your timeline slipping, start making up time.
- Anticipate Questions
- What questions are you likely to receive? Plan how you will answer them. You can also consider pre-empting a question by speaking to the matter before being asked about it.
If your team needs to develop their ability to delivery pre-approved slide decks, contact us to discuss a training that integrates your slides directly into the program.