BEP 63: Business Presentations - Referring to Visual Aids
Topic :
Presentations
It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words, and this is certainly true of business presentations in which a graph, table or image can present a clear picture of what you want to say. Many people find it easier to understand information when it is presented visually, and visual aids are essential to most business presentations.
To create an effective presentation, it is important to strike the right balance between text and graphics. Text should be brief, and organised into bullet points for easier reading. You should use a combination of different kinds of graphics, such as images, graphs and pie diagrams, to keep your audience’s attention.
Every image or graph should be relevant to your topic. Never use an image just to brighten up your presentation.
You should also familiarise yourself with the operating system and projector well before your presentation, so that you do not have any technical difficulties during your presentation.
In this lesson, we will listen to two presentations where the speakers use visual aids to enhance the effect of what they are saying.
Situation 1
You will now listen to a presentation on product training made by Susan, who works as a trainer at an insurance company. Susan makes use of several visual aids during her talk on training needs assessments for a new product that is to be launched by her company.
A good graph, diagram or chart can bring your presentation to life. Remember that "a picture can paint a thousand words".
Putting graphical information into words can be easy as long as you keep your sentence structure simple. In your reading, you will come across a great variety of words and expressions to describe trends. However, when you speak you should only use words whose meaning you are totally sure of. Use clear and familiar words at all times. Remember that your one objective in giving your presentation is to get your message across to your audience clearly and simply. Your objective is not to impress your audience with your extensive vocabulary.
First, you're going to listen to someone describing three different graphs during a presentation. Then we present the language and grammatical structures you need to accurately describe trends. After that, you can practice using the language by completing a number of exercises. And finally, we'll summarise the topic in our podcast lesson.
The introduction to a presentation is a very important - perhaps the most important part of the presentation. This is the first impression that your audience have of you. You should concentrate on getting your introduction right. You should use the introduction to:
welcome your audience
introduce your subject
outline the structure of your presentation, and
give instructions about questions
Let’s now look at some useful language you could use for the four parts of an introduction.
BEP 47: Business Presentations - Handling Questions
Topic :
Presentations
At some point in your presentation you will be expected to answer questions from your audience. They might have some important questions that need to be answered before they buy into your message. Handling their questions with authority can make the difference for you between a successful presentation and a waste of time. This is the opportunity for the audience to test your knowledge on the topic and commitment to your message.
To some people the question-and-answer session can be the most exciting part of the presentation. To others it can be their worst nightmare simply because they have to speak on the spot without notes. In fact, there are some presenters who purposely avoid the question-and-answer session all together.
In this podcast lesson, you’re going to listen to the final part of two business presentations. You decide whether the presenters handled the question and answer sessions with authority.
Presentations are an important aspect of working in a business environment. Since they give you an opportunity to showcase your abilities and thoughts, they should be planned well and organized in such a way that your main points are highlighted constantly. One of the best ways to do this is to end your presentation effectively. Remember, audiences tend to remember best what they hear last! An effective conclusion can help your listeners to quickly recollect your main points, and also set the stage for a discussion on the topic you have covered.
Here are some points to keep in mind for an effective conclusion to a presentation:
Always provide a brief summary of your main points (no more than two to three sentences).
Include recommendations for further research or exploration if possible.
End by checking with your audience if they need clarifications, or if they have any comments or questions.
You are now going to listen to a conversation with three participants. Tara is a language trainer at a large company. She has just completed a presentation on issues which need to be addressed by the company’s training department in the coming month. Alex and Rebecca are members of Tara’s team who ask her for clarifications.
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