Don’t forget to plan a strong conclusion
I am always surprised by the number of presentations I see that start of well but just seem to fade out at the end leaving an awkward silence as the audience try to work out whether you have finished or not. Not only does this undermine all the good work that you did at the start of the presentation, it also it eliminates an opportunity to reinforce your key messages one last time.
For most presentations, a good close consists of a clear concise summary of;
- The context of the presentation
- The problem faced by the audience that your content can solve
- The three key reasons why your recommended course of action will provide the desired solution
- A call to action
- A confident “Thank you” and a request for questions
Get this one right and your chances of success are greatly enhanced!
So don’t miss out on this vital opportunity to reinforce your main arguments and tell the audience what you want them to do next.
This is so true. I often see people so convinced by the evil voices their head (!) that they have done a bad job, that they fairly run from the front of the room.
That and how stressful our inner chimpanzee finds it to have a whole troupe of chimps looking at it…
In terms of the physical aspects of the ending, I tell people to be conscious of standing their ground, keeping eye contact and smiling. Your points about the content of the conclusion are welcome and well-made.
Making a strong ending is one of the things that has to be very consciously done, as all of our survival bits want us out of the ‘dangerous’ situation.
Nice!