Business

As a conference venue proprietor I take great pride in what our venue Valverde Eco hotel  offers and know that we have all the key elements to ensure that your business conference is seamless from from an operational point of view and a pleasurable experience.

What I, as a conference venue host, can’t guarantee is that it’s going to be a memorable experience for your delegates from a presentation point of view! Will it be another boring conference with presentations that just echo last year’s stats and the coming year’s projections, delivered badly utilising dull power point formats, by less than average presenters? …or will they be treated to power packed presentations that make your conference click?

Well, I can’t make it happen, but having had some presentation experience and written the E-book ‘Ten tips for effective presentations’, perhaps I can offer an abbreviated version to help you to make sure your presentations are the highlight of the event! Here are just 3 pillars of creating a power packed offering…

Do something different – Before you even start on creating a standard power point presentation – think about 2 ‘D’s – Deliberate on doing something Different! Power packed does not necessarily mean ‘power point’. If you can bring other elements into your presentation – music, visual aids …even dancers if you like – whatever is different and makes impact, can immediately alleviate he boredom of a normal power point presentation. In my E-book I refer to this as ‘getting off the grid.’ Think about it – try to come up with something creative – what will have those delegates on the edge of their seats and on their feet? Having considered that – if you are still using power point, then as I said in my E-book remember the elements of Design – Leonardo Da Vinci said “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”. You do not need to be a designer to make good power point slides – just think simply. Secondly, use more images and less words – we are by nature visual creatures and we remember images long after words. Words should be just ‘Keywords.’ Thirdly, relating to simplicity – keep fonts clearly legible and easy to read. Give any necessary lengthy information to delegates in handouts. Finally use powerful, effective imagery – A picture should paint a thousand words – ensure the ones you choose do!

Plan and practice – However different and dynamic your presentation may be, you will be restricted to a certain time span to deliver it. Work out all its elements IE. Beginning, body and possible ending – is there question or discussion time? – Get the stop watch out and plan it to perfection. If the last 5 minutes of your presentation has delegates checking their watches because they want to go to lunch, you have failed to plan it well …and to keep their attention! Secondly practice, practice and practice some more. A power packed presentation should run like a well oiled machine. This is show business – you are entertaining as well as educating. The late Michael Jackson and Steve jobs had one thing in common; they practiced their respective shows meticulously and for hours on end. If possible, perform it to a few people using all your material …like having a dress rehearsal for a show …and ultimately this will lead to…
A slick presentation – Because your material is well chosen, dynamic, well designed and well practiced, you now just need to present it well for it to be a great presentation. Let’s face it, we’re not all showmen, but we can follow a few rules that make us look good. Firstly, don’t read anything – especially not off the board …this is the ultimate insult to your audience, it suggests that you have not had the time to learn your own presentation and makes for a very boring experience. Secondly as I say in my E-book, use black slides – the essence of this is to just ensure the material around and behind you place you firmly in the spotlight …and finally engage with your audience. Have eye contact and wherever possible interact with them. For any audience, their participation makes a presentation far more interesting and fun!

I hope this has been of some use to you and will help you to create power packed presentations that make your conference click. To ensure that everything else about your conference is as well planned, rehearsed, interesting and pleasurable, I invite you to book Valverde Eco hotel for a perfect conference experience. Engage with me here or contact us to talk about every aspect of this vital part of your business calendar.