Presentation structures

The presentation structures I typically see fall into three categories:

The wrong way around

Most people when they structure presentations do so using what is called deductive reasoning.

Deductive reasoning moves from a general premise to a more specific conclusion. This type of presentation structure:

1. begins with a general overview, background/intro to the presenter and company;
2. goes into detail about the topics, covering all possible areas;
3. finally, right at the end, usually gives an executive summary slide that answers the question the audience had.

This is a very legitimate approach but you really must ask yourself if your audience is going to wait until the end to get what they need. Would you wait that long? This approach may be fine for a book or a written document because people are choosing to read it at their leisure or dip in and out at certain points, but for a presentation this is a very uncertain approach.

While the structure outlined above might seem like a logical way to lay out your information in a presentation, it is actually the completely wrong way to approach it!

Now here is the good news, you can transform this presentation structure in two easy steps.

Turn it right side up

You have to start your talk with your conclusion or your executive summary.

1. You must start with your most relevant and engaging point for the audience. This is what is called inductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning moves from the specific to the more general yet relevant material.
2. Once you have hooked the audience in the first 45 seconds by giving them what they need, you have to keep them. As you go through the facts, data and more general information you must link it back and make sure the audience knows why it is relevant to them. The word you is the most powerful word you can use in a presentation.

The presentation should start with the most important point and work its way down to the supporting information.

The most powerful word you can use in a presentation

Researchers at Yale have identified the 12 most powerful words in the human language proven to attract attention and stir emotion within readers. At the top of the list is the word you!

Using the word you is vital to relate your data back to the audience and what is important to them. Here are two examples of the power of the word you.

Before:

‘We have 45 offices worldwide with 10,000 staff.’ Audience = ‘So what?’

After:

‘We have 45 offices worldwide which you can access to leverage your existing business. We also have a huge support team which will be available to you with a range of languages and contacts already in place. We intend to give you a key contact in each country if you choose to do business with us.’ Audience = ‘Sounds great!’

Barack Obama, the US President, addressed supporters in Chicago after decisively winning a second term using the word ‘you’ to relate and engage:

‘Tonight, more than 200 years after a former colony won the right to determine its own destiny, the task of perfecting our union moves forward.

It moves forward because of you. It moves forward because you reaffirmed the spirit that has triumphed over war and depression, the spirit that has lifted this country from the depths of despair to the great heights of hope, the belief that while each of us will pursue our own individual dreams, we are an American family, and we rise or fall together as one nation and as one people.

Tonight, in this election, you, the American people, reminded us that while our road has been hard, while our journey has been long, we have picked ourselves up, we have fought our way back, and we know in our hearts that for the United States of America, the best is yet to come.

I want to thank every American who participated in this election. Whether you voted for the very first time or waited in line for a very long time, by the way we have to fix that, whether you pounded the pavement or picked up the phone, whether you held an Obama sign or a Romney sign, you made your voice heard and you made a difference.’

What goes where?

The success of your presentation is determined by your ability to put your information together in a way that is meaningful for the audience. This is where the skill comes in.

Words and ideas have great power when they are linked together properly and in the right order.

You have to have a beginning, middle and an end not a beginning, muddle and an end.

The only way to avoid the muddle is to structure your data around three digestible groups of information. Any more than three and the audience will struggle to remember them.

It is vital not to overload your presentation with too many ideas and messages. Three core messages illustrated in different ways, re-visited and re-emphasised will make sure your messages are understood and remembered.

Presentation slides are not a tool for helping you structure your presentation. You must structure your data first and only after you are clear on your key messages do you then think about adding visual aids.

I am going to show you how to get your talk into this structure in the approach section of this book.

After the Introduction and Hook (What Is In It For Me?) we introduce our three core points to be remembered.

Concluding and recapping

The primacy and resonancy effect claims we remember the first thing we hear and the last thing we hear in a presentation. I have talked about how important your hook, or first 45 seconds are. This is the point where you tell your audience ‘What’s in it for me?’ Your conclusion is also just as important as this will be the last and most recent message your audience will receive and walk away with.

Concluding a presentation is like landing a plane. There are a few ways you can do it.

1. Crash landing: You can crash out of the sky. You can suddenly and abruptly finish your presentation with no warning at all.
2. Circling: The presenter is coming to the end and realising they haven’t got their message across just keeps going in the hope that they will get there at some stage. No one has ever said, I wish that presentation was longer. Only speak for your allotted time.
3. Smooth landing: You tell your audience what they have gained from the presentation and what action they need to take, if any. The good news is your conclusion is very similar to your hook. All you need to do is remind your audience of the key messages and why those messages are relevant to them. Thank them and ask for questions.