Presentation Tips

Look around where you are presenting from and pay attention to the background noise. Is there any chance that some of that background noise might erupt into something loud close by that will transmit over your conference? Doorbells, overhead announcements, laughing co-workers, barking Schnauzers? Have you turned off your Call-Waiting? If another call comes in while you are speaking, will your phone make a beep or emit a short ring?

We’ve talked about sitting while you present but you should also try to maintain good posture while you are presenting. I know it sounds crazy, but sitting in a lazy position encourages you voice to be lazy. You will slur your words more if you slump. Sit with your back straight but be comfortable so you can also sound relaxed. You want to be able to speak in a normal conversational business-like manner, just as if you were sitting at a conference table. Notice I said “conversational”. The most frequent follow-up comment that I field from post-event surveys is: The speaker sounded like he was reading a script he had never read before. Are you reading a script that you have never read before? We’ll discuss this in more detail in a later blog but for now, make sure you have water accessible. Speaking while nervous increases dry mouth and you want to be prepared if you really need to take a drink.

Try to arrive in your web conference 15 minutes early so you don’t feel rushed, thus increasing any nervousness you might feel. I’ve read articles that suggest that fear of public speaking ranks right up there with fear of death. I’m not a psychologist but I’ve sat in on literally hundreds of web conferences and more than 60% of the time, I can hear nervousness in the voice of the speaker.
In a web conference, the speaker is usually sitting in a familiar location with familiar equipment talking to the air. Why are you nervous? I would love to hear back from anyone who wants to tell me why they are nervous. Click here to send me a note and I’ll review some of your comments in a future blog.