Since the existence of the COVID-19, the world has adapted to a new normal where people wear masks in public places and lockdown measures have been put in almost all countries.
This is because social distancing is believed to be one of the ways of not spreading the virus. This has also affected the daily operations of offices from people meeting in person and working together, to virtual presentations being done from the comfort of one’s home. This is because many organizations have normalized remote working.
However, with this new normal and new digital workplace, there are several challenges that people are facing. For instance, since everyone has control of the meeting, one can easily tune out of a virtual presentation as compared to when they attend a meeting in-person.
This gives professionals an extra task of working hard to ensure that the participants do not leave before the meeting is over. There are different virtual presentation tips that will help your meeting to go smoothly. In this case, we will split the virtual presentation tips into three major sections.
Planning:
Planning is the first step to having a successful virtual presentation. In this case, there are three main questions that you need to have answers to for the presentation to become successful. Answering these questions will lead us to some of the virtual presentation tips that will make a meeting go smoothly. These questions are:
1. How am I going to keep the attention of my audience?
Answering this question helps you come up with some of the virtual presentation tips that will be of great benefit to making a virtual presentation go smoothly. One’s concentration in an online platform is shorter as compared to offline.
Focusing online is difficult because there are distractions that are coming in the way and another reason is that they can do whatever they want because they know that you will not notice. Therefore, to keep their attention, you should;
Know Your Audience
This is the one of the most important virtual presentation tips. Knowing your audience helps you to give relevant information to a relevant group. Furthermore, you will know how to handle different reactions from the audience.
For instance, if the audience consists of the youth, you should give them something that will keep them engaged in the presentation. You can also crack jokes in between the virtual presentation so that the engagement is two-way.
Avoid Writing Detailed Slides
This is because people can read twice as fast as they can listen to one talk. They will read everything you have written and then they will find it useless listening to what you have to say. Your audience will then start doing other things that are out of the topic of discussion, maybe play with their pets, or even get on social media platforms.
They have divided attention simply because they find it boring when you tell them the same thing they have read. Therefore, this virtual presentation tip is important and should be looked into at a deeper level.
3. What can I do in advance to feel more comfortable?
In this section, you want to look into virtual presentation tips that will allow you deliver work as desired. If this is your first time holding a virtual meeting then you should incorporate the following virtual presentation tips;
Practice , Practice, Practice…
Nothing beats feeling comfortable when having a presentation. Practicing earlier is important in that you get familiarized with the content that you are going to give out. Your audience is trying to see if you are confident enough to lead the discussion.
To be successful in this case, prepare in advance and practice if you have to before starting the virtual presentation. Ensure that you have covered all the main ideas to familiarize yourself with the rest of the topic and to prepare any questions that your audience may have.
3. What if technology messes up the whole discussion?
Human and Technical Errors
You should have it in mind that human and technical errors occur all the time, before you hold a virtual presentation. To avoid these kinds of inconveniences, you can get someone to keep an eye from the technical department so that you have a smooth meeting without any technical hitches.
Designing:
With the help of PowerPoint individuals and corporations have been able to create presentations that help them in making virtual presentations smooth and successful. (One can use note taking apps like Notion for better organizing the content before designing).The use of Slideshow is important in that presenters can deliver their point across to a larger audience without necessarily having to write on the board.
You just need a projector, connect it to your laptop or monitor, then your presentation will be out to your audience. This is another major virtual presentation tip that can help you have a smooth meeting. In this section, the virtual presentation tips include the following;
Keep It Simple
Another great virtual representation tip and a starting point for virtual presentations is to keep it simple. The virtual presentation should be simple and easy to understand so that your audience can easily understand what they are being taken through.
In addition to that, the slides that are used in the virtual presentation should follow a simple design. Simple designs express a presenter’s presentation in a plain manner. This is to mean that the audience will not have a hard time getting the message that you are trying to pass across. The main points of the virtual presentation should be identified easily to give the audience an easy time in getting the main message and knowing what the rest of the presentation is about.
The details on the main points should be left out, for the presenter to fill them in during the presentation. This helps keep the audience engrossed.
Use Purposeful Titles
Titles say a lot about what the rest of the presentation is about. This virtual presentation tip will determine if your audience will get the main message.
In addition to that, title slides play an important role in virtual presentations in that they inform the viewer and they provide the context for the slide content. Titles go beyond just naming the subject of the slide, rather it also includes the main idea for that specific slide.
When you give purposeful titles to slides, the viewers will get guidance on the content that is presented, and in turn it will help your audience follow the presentation more closely.
Use Safe Fonts
Fonts also matter in how the audience will perceive your presentation. The fonts that are used in the presentation should be easy to read and should reflect on the brand of the company. It should also say more about the tone of the message.
The most important part is that the fonts that are used should be eligible and easy to read to make the virtual presentation smooth and interesting for the audience. The font may look perfect on the computer, but when projected, it will have a different look. It is therefore important that you compare how the font looks on the computer and how it will look when projected to a white wall.
Remember, people are in different locations, and they want to have an easy time getting through with the presentation without having to strain to read. Also consider both smaller and larger screens, and confirm that the font is already installed in the screen that you want to use.
Delivery:
In this phase, we are looking at how the virtual presentation is delivered to the audience. In addition to that, as your audience may come from different parts of the world, you need to recognize the fact that you need to reach more people through technology.
The advancement in technology has made this very easy in that you can reach more people with just a click. In addition to that, you must also consider some of the challenges that come with connecting virtually with your audience. Some of the virtual presentation tips that will help you deliver your presentation effectively include the following;
Get Help
This virtual presentation tip is important in that if you are doing a virtual presentation that requires much work, you can get help from other people. For instance, you will need the help of the technician to ensure that everything that you want to use is in the right place and works in perfect condition.
In addition to that, you can also have someone who will email or text your audience and get them engaged in the discussion. Getting assistance helps in making your meeting as smooth as possible. You do not need to worry about dealing with technical issues, and at the same time deliver the presentation.
Consequently, team work makes the dream work. Do not go in alone, but ensure that you have someone behind the scenes who knows how the platform works, so that they can keep an eye on the comments and questions that the audience are leaving.
This is helpful especially if it is your first time holding a virtual meeting. This virtual presentation tip is helpful especially since you are getting help from someone who has done that before. Having a helper makes a huge difference in the final content of your work.
Be Loud Enough
You may think that you are loud, but someone else who is in the presentation is not getting what you are saying. This may be due to technical issues or geographical differences.
This virtual presentation tip is important especially since your main aim is to engage your audience in the discussion. You don’t want people on the platform to feel left out since they cannot hear you clearly. Be loud but don’t shout because this will only make the situation worse.
Show Up Early
As the coordinator of the meeting, be early and wait on the other members of the meeting. This virtual presentation tip will help you in engaging with the members who are present in the platform before you start the meeting.
For instance, since we are all facing a difficult time during the COVID-19 season, everybody needs a friend and someone who will help him or her feel much lighter. If the other members of the meeting show up late, you can engage with the one person who is already online, and check up on them. Ask them how they are doing and assure them that everything will be fine.
Crack jokes with each other, and you can also share the humor with other members on the platform. This will make the presentation even more interesting since your audience will want to hear more of what you have to say.
Another advantage of showing up early is that your audience will not leave the meeting simply because you have not shown up. In fact, they will feel ashamed for showing up late, and this is good because you can keep them engaged for long before taking a few minutes break.it is better if you wait for your audience instead of it happening the other way round. Punctuality is an important virtual presentation tip that everyone holding a virtual meeting, and the people attending the meeting should adhere to.
Therefore, before holding a virtual meeting, you should practice and ensure that everything that you plan to use is in the right place. In today’s normal world, virtual presentations have become the new way of interacting and holding meetings.
The above virtual presentation tips are effective in ensuring that the meeting goes as smoothly as possible. You need to be very engaging to have your audience on the right track and to avoid instances where people leave the meeting anytime they work. If someone is bored, he or she may give an excuse that he was having connection problems and you will believe it blindly, thinking that he is telling the truth, yet he was just bored with the presentation.
Conclusion
Virtual presentation has become the new normal of communicating with people from different parts of the country. Different virtual presentation tips come in handy in keeping the audience active, and staying on track for longer periods.
Also, if you are holding a meeting that takes more than 30 minutes, then you should consider having breaks in between the meetings where people can take time to stretch, and even drink a glass of water. Also, you need to know that your audience will be slightly distracted during the virtual presentation since most of them are at home and they have families and kids who will definitely want to steal their attention.
Therefore, make the virtual meeting short, simple and straight to the point so that at the end of it, your audience gets the message you intended to pass.
Images Courtesy – Photo by Headway on Unsplash , Photo by William Iven on Unsplash , People photo created by user18526052 – www.freepik.com , Man vector created by studiogstock – www.freepik.com
