How to write a presentation

Indeed, even when a file is a very high quality, a poor presentation can be disastrous. However, keep in mind that presentation materials are only a small part of the job. These visual aids used to engage the audience, show your ideas and prompt you if you go off-topic during your presentation.

General recommendations for a presentation:

• A presentation includes an introduction, outline, development and conclusion. These elements must be clear in your presentation support.
• At the beginning of your presentation, a screen with the title, your name, the date and animation will be very useful to fill the time until everything is in place and the audience is ready for you to begin.
• The presentation medium serves as an accompaniment: it should highlight your ideas, key concepts and important figures using short and simple sentences.
• It is essential to correct any spelling errors on your medium, a simple typo risks distracting your audience and discrediting you.
• When you speak, you will rely on your supporting media, do not read from the screen, but expand the ideas and illustrate them with examples.
• The presentation is a time-limited exercise. The ideal is to keep it as short and as synthetic as possible. The more concise the presentation, the more it will grab the attention of your audience.
• Most of the attention should be focused on the person speaking, not the supporting media. Don't fix your eyes on your screen all the time, and most importantly, don't turn your back on your audience. Many people read their presentation material directly from the board, which has a disastrous effect.
• If you are worried about not remembering everything you want to say, then you can use cue cards in addition to your PowerPoint slides.
• One last piece of advice is to rehearse your presentation on the computer you will be using, in order to check that everything is working, and plan a backup solution in the event of a technical problem.

Technical and visual aspects:

• Images are used to illustrate your presentation. However, don't overdo them, and use them in their original format: small stretched images often appear pixelated on a large screen.
• Ensure that the whole presentation will appear correctly on the type of screen used during the oral presentation. In a bright room, plan a presentation with strong contrasts, and test it out before using it.
• The fonts you use should be consistent throughout the presentation. Keep the same sizes for the titles of the different slides, as well as for the formatting of the content. Avoid "Comic sans MS" or overly childish fonts, which are often not very professional.
• PowerPoint software allows you to animate your slides, display text or transitions between different parts. You can choose one for your introduction, and conclusion, or to highlight certain elements as you go, but as a general rule, remember that this distracts the audience and does not add much value.

The 10-20-30 rule:

This rule is not a specific PowerPoint technique but applies to all presentations. This rule is a recommendation, to be adapted according to the situation, made by Venture Capitalists, busy people who spend their time listening to presentations, and who therefore know all the pitfalls.

• 10 slides: this requires brevity. In a presentation, it's the person speaking that is important, not the support.
• 20 minutes of presentation: beyond that, your audience's attention may decrease significantly. Take this opportunity to set aside time for questions or a possible debate.
• 30 font-size: below, it becomes too small, and we tend to fill the screen with too much information.

You are now equipped for your upcoming presentations. We recommend that you pay particular attention to oral fluency: fluency, mastery of gestures, audience interaction and rapport, mastering rhetoric, time management etc., are absolutely essential to executing a successful presentation.

Do not forget that, even on a PowerPoint, you must clearly cite all the bibliographical resources which have enabled you to carry out your presentation. Indeed, your data must be easily verifiable and contributes to the professionalism of your work.