For many people, the idea of public speaking fills them with fear and dread. However, no matter how much you might try to avoid it, almost all of us will have to talk in front of an audience at some point in our lives – whether it be delivering a best man’s speech or making a presentation in front of work colleagues.
The jury’s out which is worst between talking in front of strangers or those that know you, but one thing’s for sure – there is now a huge range of technology available which you can use to enhance your presentation positively, engage your audience and bring added interaction to your talk.
New tech that will add life to your presentation
Presentation tools have come a long way in recent years, driven largely by emerging technology and a desire to move away from the static, rather passive days of PowerPoint slides. Read on for a few new ideas you could use to add spark to your next show.
Involve your audience with a poll: It’s now possible for speakers to add a new level of audience participation and interaction using app-based tech like PollEverywhere. With the app, you can ask your listeners a question, and they can respond using the app, which then displays the results live on screen.
Move away from linear slide transitions: While it’s true PowerPoint undoubtedly served a useful function in the past, audiences these days expect much more than just simple slide-left transitions and poorly-designed, static pages. Using alternative presentation software that allows better transition between pages, video content, and animations will shift your presentation to the next level. For example, Prezi offers considerably more content and transition options which effectively hide the idea you’re moving from pages.
Add live captions for maximum audience understanding: Whether you’re presenting to a mixed-nation audience or just speakers of your own language, adding live captions is one of the most effective ways to drive your message home and keep your viewers engaged. Live caption for web conferencing also makes it easier for listeners to feel the full impact of your most salient points and take notes.
Enhance your existing PowerPoint slide decks with improved presenting tools: Oftentimes, there’s nothing particularly wrong with the content in your existing PowerPoint presentation – just the slightly staid way the software presents your message is what’s letting it down. Instead of starting from scratch producing an entirely new slideshow, there is now a huge range of software and apps that can take your existing slides and transitions and improve them with more immersive content and animations between pages. Tools like ZohoShow and SlideDog will take your existing PowerPoint content to an entirely different level – and SlideDog even has options for including real-time feedback systems and live polls.
The take out
From 4K video to advanced CGI and animations, the world of multimedia has moved on considerably since PowerPoint first came on the scene and audiences now expect far more from presentations – and presenters for that matter. If you’re to stand any chance of engaging your audience, it’s time to up your presenting game by creating enhanced content and interactivity. The tools noted above will help.
