Introduction
A properly structured presentation acts as a vital support system for your message. No matter how great your information is, it won’t resonate if your audience can’t follow your train of thought. Good structure turns your information into a powerful message. It takes your audience on a journey from start to finish while guiding them along the way. They’ll be able to comprehend, retain, and stay engaged throughout your presentation. This is why knowing how to structure a presentation is an essential skill for every speaker.
Start with a Strong Opening
Your presentation is only as strong as its beginning. If you don’t grab your audience’s attention right away, it’s going to be very hard to do later. Your opening should immediately engage your audience and make them want to hear more. Begin with a question, shocking fact, story, or a clear statement of the problem you’re going to tackle. The idea here is to create interest and relevance. Once they’re hooked, tell them quickly about the topic of your presentation and why it matters to them.
Define a Clear Purpose
All great presentations share the same feature: a very clear and obvious purpose. Without it, your message will be scattered and impossible for your audience to follow. Before you begin structuring your presentation, you should be able to tell clearly what you want your audience to understand, think or do after they hear it. The purpose should guide every step you take when structuring your presentation. It will help you filter out unnecessary information and ensure that your content remains focused.
Organize Your Main Points Logically
When you’ve identified a purpose for your presentation, the next step is to organize your main points. The best presentations are divided into two to four main points. If you have too many, you’ll lose your audience. Some of the most common ways to structure main points in order include: chronological, problem-solution, cause-effect or by topic. Choose the way that suits the main topic you’re addressing and that allows your audience to easily follow your logic and arguments. Your main points should be arranged in such a way that one flows logically into the other and that the entire presentation becomes one cohesive whole rather than a jumble of unconnected points.
Support Each Point with Clear Evidence
Your main points will not be enough if they’re not supported by strong evidence. This can include examples, data, stories, statistics, explanations, or references. Your goal is to show your audience the point of what you’re telling them. However, try not to overload them with unnecessary information. Use appropriate supporting points and keep them straightforward. You want them to support your ideas and not distract from them. Employ Signposting The signposts of your presentation are your words that let your audience know where they are in the structure. They can be simple words like first, next, now we’ll move on or in conclusion. Without signposting, your structure is much harder for the audience to grasp. If you don’t have signposting you could have a great presentation structure but the audience may not be able to tell. The Middle Your middle should be balanced and focused. You want to make sure your points are not too dense. Your middle is going to contain most of your information and points, you just want to make sure your presentation isn’t overloaded. You want to balance the information you give and how well you are received by the audience. If you have a super long middle section, they may not even be able to get it all. Include Moments of Engagement The structure of your presentation also allows you to engage your audience. You want to include engagement moments throughout. You can engage your audience by asking them questions, by telling a short story and by showing them a picture or a story and asking them about it. This keeps the presentation alive and interesting for them. The Conclusion The conclusion is your chance to sum things up. Your conclusion should have all of your important points and your main idea. The best thing you can do in your conclusion is reinforce the key points of your presentation that you want your audience to take with them, make sure to include your message and key points. The Conclusion is not the time for anything new, you can only reinforce ideas. Connect Your Beginning with Your End One of the best techniques to create a cohesive presentation structure is to tie your opening to the end. This gives your presentation a sense of completion. For example, if your opening started with a story or question, you can tie that back to the end and explain the resolution. It makes your presentation sound polished. Tailor Your Structure to Your Audience If you know your audience, then you can adapt the structure of your presentation to best fit their style. You don’t want to give an audience information that they don’t know about and you don’t want an audience who’s expecting a detailed presentation getting the short version. Knowing who your audience is going to help you adjust the structure to best fit them.