make great keynote presentation

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10 Expert Tips to Create and Deliver a Killer Keynote Presentation

So you’ve got a keynote presentation coming up, and you’re hitting the books to make sure you’re armed with the best plan possible. Besides taking notes from all the greats on TED, you’re reading up about a message structure that works, and looking for the perfect template.

While it seems like you’ve got your bases covered, like all things in life, there’s always a way to streamline the planning process.

According to Aaron Weyenberg , the UX Lead for TED and a self-professed “master of slide decks,” and the wizards behind Apple’s presentation slides , there are a number of tricks of the trade that you can rely on to create a rocking keynote presentation .

Below are some of our favorites. And to easily create a professional-looking presentation , sign up for Piktochart . It’s free and it allows you to make beautiful visuals without being a graphic designer.

1. Do your slides last

While most keynote speakers will typically build their presentation around the structure of a template, Weyenberg says that “building your slides should be the tail end of developing your presentation.” Before working on your slides, you should put together your main message, structure, supporting points – then practice and time your presentation. The reason for this, he says, is that the presentation needs to be strong enough to stand on its own. Approaching a keynote like this requires a shift in thinking.

While a beautiful set of slides is imperative to your presentation, it should not be central to it.

Weyenberg said it best: “The slides are just something you layer over [the presentation] to enhance the listener experience.”

Observe these 2017 Google I/O keynotes, especially CEO Sundar Pichai’s – the role of the slides are to support what the speaker is saying – not the other way around.

2. Get creative with photos

Often times, presenters will be far too literal or cheesy with their image choice. Weyenberg suggests to use images that are simple, yet punchy – and pairs nicely with your spoken words. He says to look for photos that are:

• Related to your keynote’s concept
• Are not complex in terms of composition

3. Simplify charts and graphs

While most presenters will simply drop an image of their charts and graphs into their deck, Weyenberg points out that it might be a bit “unsightly.” If you need to use data to back a point that you’re making, you should make the extra effort to make it more attractive – and this can be done by recreating it in your presentation maker .

There are a couple benefits to doing this:

• It will make your presentation seem consistent and well-thought out
• You’ll have control over colors, typography, and more.

4. One theme per slide

According to the designers of Apple presentation slides, less is certainly more. Trying to cram too many ideas on one slide can only work to your detriment. Beyond ideas, the same goes for statistics.

Let’s play a little game: For the following idea, how many slides would you use? “The developer program is incredibly vibrant. We have over six million registered developers. Demand for this show has never been greater. We sold out in just over a minute [71 seconds].”

While the average person might think that 6 million and 71 seconds would belong on the same slide and be short and sweet enough, let’s compare it with what Apple’s CEO Tim Cook did.

He only leveraged two slides: The first said “6 million,” and the second: “71 seconds. Sold out.”

5. Create a visual experience with data

Taking a leaf again from Apple’s presentation book, once you’ve gotten the hang of having just one stat per slide – you should also make it as visual as possible.

One data point per slide, combined with it being visually interesting – is sure to be memorable.

6. Practice Really Makes Perfect

Imagine the late Steve Jobs, a legendary keynote presenter, still rehearsed for months before a presentation. According to Brent Schlender , one of the co-authors behind the Steve Jobs biography “Becoming Steve Jobs,” Jobs would rehearse and prepare “exhaustively” for all of his public appearances.

Despite being a natural on the stage, Jobs never would wing it, he came to the show well prepared.

“I once spent an entire day watching him run through multiple rehearsals of a single presentation, tweaking everything from the color and angle of certain spotlights, to editing and rearranging the order of the keynote presentation slides to improve his pacing,” remembers Schlender.

While you may not be a perfectionist like Jobs, you are likely also not nearly as good of a presenter as he is – so practice really makes perfect in this case.

7. Tell A Consistent Story

Circling back to Weyenberg’s tips – he suggests that in a good slide deck, every slide should feel “like part of the same story.” Think of your deck like a story – every slide should feel cohesive to the big picture message you’re trying to communicate – as opposed to random ideas juxtaposed together.

You can do this by:

• Using the same or similar typography, colors, and imagery across all slides
• Using presentation templates can help with maintaining the same look and feel

8. Less is more

We explored the less is more concept earlier in the article by suggesting you keep to one idea per slide. The same can be applied to text.

When it comes to creating slides for your next keynote, the cardinal sin is a slide with ample text that is verbatim of your spoken presentation.

What this does is encourage people to keep their eyes on your slides instead of listening to you.

Weyenberg also points out that a text-heavy slide forces the brain to multitask between focusing on what it’s reading and hearing – which is quite difficult and will compromise your presentation.

9. Consider topic transitions

While you want to make your slides look like a cohesive unit, you want to also keep in mind that making every slide look the same may be boring. Weyenberg suggests to:

• Create one style for the slides that are the “meat” of the message
• Then create another style for the slides that are transitioning between topics

For example, if your overall slides have a dark background with light text, you can use transitional slides that have a light background with dark text. This way, they’ll still feel like they’re from the same presentation family without being completely uniform.

10. Tell a captivating story

It is fitting that our final tip comes from likely the greatest keynote presenter of all time. The late and great Steve Jobs had the ability to captivate and inspire his audience with his talks, and that’s because he was a very good storyteller. And that’s the golden leaf that you can take from Jobs’ book today.

Always aim to tell a captivating story.

One example is perhaps when he introduced the iPod: “In 2001, we introduced the first iPod. It didn’t just change the way we all listen to music. It changed the entire music industry.” Listen to Steve Jobs weave a story about the digital music revolution when unveiling the iPod.

Bonus Round: Tips From Piktochart Designers  

• Always remember that your audience is sitting far away . So ensure that your title font size is large enough to be seen from a distance, and that your body text is no smaller than 20px.
• Use only two colors for your entire presentation – a primary and secondary color. If you must use a large color palette, your maximum choice should be up to five colors.
• Make sure that there is enough white space throughout your presentation . This will give your content room to breathe. Less is definitely more in this case.
• Emphasize only one object per slide – whether it’s an image, statistic, quote. This will make sure your audience stays focused.

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Pro Speakers on How to Give a Perfect Keynote Presentation

Updated: January 13, 2021

Published: November 03, 2020

Two years ago, I was asked to give a presentation about my HubSpot article on emotional marketing . It was by far the most exhilarating and nerve-wracking experience of my professional life.

I don’t necessarily hate public speaking. However, leading up to the event, I felt the full responsibility of not only delivering a good presentation but also teaching the audience valuable , actionable information — and that was very intimidating.

I wanted to do a good job, and I wanted to be a good teacher.

Therein lies the importance of keynote presentations : to be effective, they should be educational and entertaining. Do you have a keynote presentation in your future? Read on for some advice from professional speakers.

First, what is a keynote presentation? Glad you asked.

You may also be tasked with a keynote presentation in order to secure funding, make a sale, or update stakeholders or executives. Whatever stage you find yourself on, delivering a keynote presentation is an important responsibility as a public speaker.

How to Give a Perfect Keynote Presentation, According to the Experts

I spoke with four professional speakers on how to deliver a near-perfect presentation. Here are five pieces of advice they shared.

1. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse.

When it comes to public speaking, practice quite literally makes perfect. Every expert I spoke with mentioned how frequently they rehearse their presentations.

“However much you think you need to rehearse, rehearse 10 times more than that. When you show up to a concert, you expect that the musicians know their songs, and you certainly don't want the first time they try to play it to be right there on stage. You owe your audience and the folks hiring you to speak the same respect,” said Melanie Deziel , international keynote speaker and founder of StoryFuel . (She received this advice herself from Michael and Amy Port at Heroic Public Speaking .)

Provided by Melanie Deziel

As more presentations and events become fully virtual, the likelihood of technical difficulties also grows. Rehearsing your content can help you weather any interruptions or last-minute changes.

Rehearsal not only leads to content mastery; it allows freedom in your presentations. “The more you rehearse and become comfortable with the content, the freer you'll be to take chances, experiment, and truly focus on your delivery, rather than trying to remember what comes next,” shared Deziel.

How do these experts recommend practicing your presentations? “[Use] a mirror,” said Olivia Scott , keynote speaker and founder of Omerge Alliances . “I take the time to see how I'm being received, I look at my body posture, and I look at everything to make sure that I feel good about what I'm delivering. This isn’t exactly a tool or technology, but it's a way to practice and rehearse.”

Additionally, consider asking friends, family, and trusted colleagues to listen to your practice runs and provide feedback on your presentation.

2. Ask for feedback.

Speaking of feedback, expert orators know to ask for it on a regular basis — from friends, peer groups, mentors, audience members, and clients. “Find a support crew and connect with other speakers in the industry,” mentioned Karen Hopper , keynote speaker and data strategist at M+R. Hopper personally recommends Shine Bootcamp , which provided her with lifelong friendships, helpful feedback, and a priceless education about public speaking.

Provided by Karen Hopper

“We help each other with feedback on our pitches, topics, outlines, and presentations, and we celebrate each others' wins,'' said Hopper. “ ... It’s well worth surrounding yourself with people who will cheer for you and who will give you honest feedback — the fastest way to get better is to ruthlessly seek out that feedback.”

Clients can also be an incredibly helpful source of feedback. If you’re asked to speak at an event or conference, consider asking the people who hired you. “I ask my client for their reaction immediately after every presentation. It’s important to know how they felt, and whether the presentation achieved their goals. Every time my client is happy, that’s my most successful presentation,” said Jeff Toister , keynote speaker, author, and customer service expert.

Lastly, the best feedback often comes from the source — in this case, your audience. Whether you ask questions during your presentation (which we’ll discuss next) or ask for feedback following your presentation, it’s never a bad idea to know what your audience thought about your keynote.

Feedback may look different if giving a remote keynote presentation, but it's still possible.

“It’s been a creative challenge to adapt a talk I'd hoped to give in person to work in a virtual environment. It's much harder to tell how your talks are received online, without being able to see nodding and note-taking and hear laughter and clapping. But all the feedback I have received [over email] indicated that my talk successfully changed the way many people are thinking about their content idea generation process, and that was the ultimate goal of the talk: to change how people think ,” shared Deziel, referring to her recent keynote at Content Marketing World 2020.

3. Engage your audience.

Nobody likes being talked at . Sure, delivering a keynote presentation involves you doing most of the talking, but it doesn’t have to be a one-way conversation. Many of the experts I interviewed encouraged some sort of audience engagement or interaction to enhance your presentation.

“People love to be involved in a presentation. Rather than explain a concept to my audience, I find a way to have them experience it,” said Toister. “For example, when I share how multitasking hurts productivity and causes us to make more errors, I have the audience try a brief multitasking exercise so they can experience the problem themselves.”

Did you know that audience engagement levels drop considerably (14%) if a presenter does most of the talking, versus if the audience talks just as much? Moreover, 64% of people believe that a presentation with two-way interaction is much more engaging than a one-way presentation.

Presentation engagement also takes practice — just like your presentation content itself. “ ... Entertainment comes from the performance itself: the way in which you deliver that content and the energy you bring to that delivery. This is a separate skill you need to practice. Work with a coach, watch back recordings of yourself to identify opportunities to improve your craft, and watch videos of top-notch comedians, poets and other speakers to see what you can learn from them,” encouraged Deziel.

Lastly, as important as engagement is, don’t let technology stand in the way. While smartphones and polling software can make audience interaction easier, they can also get in the way of you connecting with your audience. “I prefer to just have people stand up, raise their hand, or clap to participate in the poll. It gets the audience moving, and I don’t have to worry about WiFi connections or whether the polling software is working,” said Toister.

4. Prioritize your content as much as the delivery.

While entertaining and interacting with your audience is helpful and exciting, it shouldn’t take precedence over your presentation content itself. “Nearly all of what the audience can learn from you comes from the content: the stories you tell, the examples you share, the facts you cite and the other information you explain. Carefully crafting those materials and testing it out ensures that the audience will get the information they were promised from your session,” said Deziel.

Tools like PowerPoint, Keynote, Google Slides, and Canva can help you hone your content and develop a story within your presentation. A 2018 Prezi study (another presentation tool option) showed that 90% of people believe a strong narrative makes for a more engaging, interesting presentation. Data can help form arguments and explain facts, but stories stay with your audience long after your time on stage.

Storytelling is yet another way to engage with your audience, especially by evoking emotions like humor. “It’s entertaining to ask questions, saying, ‘Can anyone relate to this? Has anyone ever had this type of experience before?’ and then getting them involved with some laughter around those experiences. Laughter always helps,” said Scott, who presented at INBOUND 2020 .

Hopper, who was also a Breakout Speaker at INBOUND 2020, agreed: “Don't be afraid to be funny or drop in jokes — there are studies that show that laughing actually helps your brain retain information better, so not only will your audience have a good time laughing with you, but they'll also get more out of your presentation. It’s a win-win!”

5. Focus on the audience.

Finally, everyone can agree that public speaking is either revered or feared. If you relate to the latter and find yourself nervous when giving presentations, turn your focus on the audience.

“Speakers easily get nervous when they focus on themselves and worry too much about their own performance. Focusing on your audience first takes the nerves away and redirects your attention to making sure your audience gets something of value from your keynote,” shared Toister.

That’s the goal of a keynote presentation — to provide value to your audience. Regardless of what story you’re telling, what tools you’re using, or how you’re engaging the crowd, as long as you deliver a presentation that inspires your audience to think differently — even for 30 minutes — you’ve given a perfect keynote presentation.

Note: HubSpot Marketing teams reserve the right to use guest blog author’s likeness across our content as we see fit, including but not limited to HubSpot’s social media channels.

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Keynote User Guide for Mac

• What’s new in Keynote 14.0
• Intro to Keynote
• Intro to images, charts, and other objects
• Create a presentation
• Choose how to navigate your presentation
• Open or close a presentation
• Save and name a presentation
• Find a presentation
• Print a presentation
• Undo or redo changes
• Show or hide sidebars
• Quick navigation
• Change the working view
• Expand and zoom your workspace
• Customize the Keynote toolbar
• Change Keynote settings on Mac
• Touch Bar for Keynote
• Create a presentation using VoiceOver
• Add or delete slides
• Reorder slides
• Group or ungroup slides
• Skip or unskip a slide
• Change the slide size
• Change a slide background
• Add a border around a slide
• Show or hide text placeholders
• Show or hide slide numbers
• Apply a slide layout
• Add and edit slide layouts
• Change a theme
• Add an image
• Add an image gallery
• Edit an image
• Add and edit a shape
• Combine or break apart shapes
• Draw a shape
• Save a shape to the shapes library
• Add and align text inside a shape
• Add 3D objects
• Add lines and arrows
• Animate, share, or save drawings
• Add video and audio
• Record audio
• Edit video and audio
• Add live video
• Set movie and image formats
• Position and align objects
• Use alignment guides
• Place objects inside a text box or shape
• Layer, group, and lock objects
• Change object transparency
• Fill shapes and text boxes with color or an image
• Add a border to an object
• Add a caption or title
• Add a reflection or shadow
• Use object styles
• Resize, rotate, and flip objects
• Move and edit objects using the object list
• Add linked objects to make your presentation interactive
• Select text
• Copy and paste text
• Use dictation to enter text
• Use accents and special characters
• Format a presentation for another language
• Use phonetic guides
• Use bidirectional text
• Use vertical text
• Change the font or font size
• Add bold, italic, underline, or strikethrough to text
• Change the color of text
• Change text capitalization
• Add a shadow or outline to text
• Intro to paragraph styles
• Apply a paragraph style
• Create, rename, or delete paragraph styles
• Update or revert a paragraph style
• Use a keyboard shortcut to apply a style
• Adjust character spacing
• Add drop caps
• Raise and lower characters and text
• Format fractions automatically
• Create and use character styles
• Format dashes and quotation marks
• Format Chinese, Japanese, or Korean text
• Set tab stops
• Format text into columns
• Adjust line spacing
• Format lists
• Add a highlight effect to text
• Add mathematical equations
• Add borders and rules (lines) to separate text
• Add or delete a table
• Select tables, cells, rows, and columns
• Add or remove rows and columns
• Move rows and columns
• Resize rows and columns
• Merge or unmerge cells
• Change the look of table text
• Show, hide, or edit a table title
• Change table gridlines and colors
• Use table styles
• Resize, move, or lock a table
• Add and edit cell content
• Format dates, currency, and more
• Create a custom cell format
• Highlight cells conditionally
• Format tables for bidirectional text
• Alphabetize or sort table data
• Calculate values using data in table cells
• Use the Formulas and Functions Help
• Add or delete a chart
• Change a chart from one type to another
• Modify chart data
• Move, resize, and rotate a chart
• Change the look of data series
• Add a legend, gridlines, and other markings
• Change the look of chart text and labels
• Add a chart border and background
• Use chart styles
• Animate objects onto and off a slide
• Animate objects on a slide
• Change build order and timing
• Add transitions
• Present on your Mac
• Present on a separate display
• Present on a Mac over the internet
• Use a remote
• Make a presentation advance automatically
• Play a slideshow with multiple presenters
• Add and view presenter notes
• Rehearse on your Mac
• Record presentations
• Check spelling
• Look up words
• Find and replace text
• Replace text automatically
• Set author name and comment color
• Highlight text
• Add and print comments
• Send a presentation
• Intro to collaboration
• Invite others to collaborate
• Collaborate on a shared presentation
• See the latest activity in a shared presentation
• Change a shared presentation’s settings
• Stop sharing a presentation
• Shared folders and collaboration
• Use Box to collaborate
• Create an animated GIF
• Post your presentation in a blog
• Use iCloud Drive with Keynote
• Export to PowerPoint or another file format
• Reduce the presentation file size
• Save a large presentation as a package file
• Restore an earlier version of a presentation
• Move a presentation
• Delete a presentation
• Password-protect a presentation
• Lock a presentation
• Create and manage custom themes
• Transfer files with AirDrop
• Transfer presentations with Handoff
• Transfer presentations with the Finder
• Keyboard shortcuts
• Keyboard shortcut symbols

Create a presentation in Keynote on Mac

To create a new presentation, you first choose a theme to use as a starting point. Themes use coordinated fonts and colors for a unified look and often include placeholders that you can replace with your own content.

Create a presentation from a theme

To open Keynote, click the Keynote icon in the Dock, Launchpad, or the Applications folder.

If the theme chooser (shown below) doesn’t appear, click New Document in the bottom-left corner of the dialog. You can also choose File > New (from the File menu at the top of your screen).

Note: If you’d like the ability to format table and chart data using the conventions of another language, choose the language in the bottom-left corner before choosing a theme. See Format a presentation for another language .

In the theme chooser, browse the themes by category, then double-click the one that looks closest to what you want to create. To narrow the choices, click a category along the sidebar on the left.

Some themes aren’t downloaded to your computer until you choose them or open a presentation that uses one. If your connection is slow or you’re offline when this happens, placeholder images and slide backgrounds in the presentation may appear at a lower resolution until you’re online again or the theme finishes downloading.

Each slide layout offers a different arrangement of text and images that you use as a starting point for your content.

To add your own content to the presentation, do any of the following:

Add text: Double-click placeholder text and type your own.

Choose File > Save, enter a name, choose a location, then click Save.

Keynote automatically saves your changes as you work, so you don’t need to worry about saving your presentation manually. However, it’s a good idea to rename your presentation so you can easily find it the next time you want to work on it. You can change the name of the presentation or change where it’s saved at any time.

If iCloud Drive is set up on your Mac, Keynote saves the presentation to iCloud Drive by default.

To end the presentation, press the Esc (Escape) key. For more ways to show a presentation, see Play a presentation on your Mac .

To close the presentation, click the red close button in the top-left corner of the window.

Select a default theme for new presentations

You can set Keynote to always open a new presentation in a particular theme instead of from the theme chooser.

Choose Keynote > Settings (from the Keynote menu at the top of your screen).

Click General at the top of the window, then select “Use theme” in the For New Presentations controls.

The name that appears after “Use theme” is the currently selected theme.

Click the Change Theme button, select a theme, then click Choose.

To close the window, click the red close button in the upper-left corner.

After you change this setting, you can still open a new presentation with a different theme. Hold down the Option key, then choose File > New from Theme Chooser (from the File menu at the top of your screen).

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17 Presentation Techniques For A Great Keynote

• Presentation design /
• Public speaking

How much time do you take to design your presentation? Days? Weeks? Where do you get your inspiration from and how do you find the right design elements? Wouldn’t it be fantastic if you could create a remarkable keynote presentation in a day or two? I think anyone can do it, if they pay attention to the following presentation techniques and manage to combine them in a way that helps them put the right ideas in the right context.

Also read:  7 Things To Improve In Your Keynote Speech Presentation

Achieving presentation flow is a challenging task. Not everyone has a knack for design. So pay attention to each of these ideas, both the simpler ones and the more complex, and make your own combo to improve delivery and convince your audience.

1. Visuals are your friend

Using different types of visuals can be a great way to help your audience remember and react. Photos, illustrations, icons, symbols, sketches, figures, and diagrams are much more easy for the brain to retain than words. Think of a company logo for example – how many times has your brain recognized the logo even before you remembered the name of the brand?

Another great thing about using imagery is that it makes you more charismatic. It seems that speakers are seen as more charismatic when otherwise identical speeches contain more imagery . Here’s a great example – a former US president’s inaugural address was rewritten to create low and high imagery versions in an experiment. The audio recordings of the two speeches were played for the participants to the study who were randomly assigned. After listening to the speech, they provided ratings on various summary leadership measures. The result? The speech with high imagery was attributed to a more charismatic person.

2. Keep the presentation short and to the point

Thousands of psychological, neurobiological and social science studies have been conducted on how humans “pay attention.” The famous Microsoft “study” claimed that the human attention span went from 12 seconds on average in 2000 to just 8.25 seconds in 2015, which is shorter than that of a goldfish. What most of these studies concluded is that, most of the time, we don’t pay attention. It’s just how our brain works.

Keep your presentation short and sweet and, more importantly, simple. Even if your ideas are complex, you need to find a way to help your audience focus and follow your speech. Make sure your slides are not too busy if you want the audience to listen to you instead of reading slides.

3. The rule of three

This is a rather well-known technique that’s based on the fact that people tend to only remember three things. When you design the flow of your presentation, work out what the three messages that you want your audience to take away are. Then, structure your presentation around them, using the right design elements to separate the three.

The same rule can be applied to an individual slide –  it’s recommended that you use a maximum of three points on a slide. Make sure that they aren’t bullet points or presenter notes. Those should not be on the screen when you’re doing a keynote speech. If Google’s CEO does not  use bullet points , neither should you.

Also read:  5 Pro Tips For Giving Better Presentations

4. Focus on telling stories instead of throwing numbers

Even if you have a technical or scientific topic to present, you still need to tell a story. That is the essence of a keynote speech, to be memorable, emotional, compelling. And that means storytelling.

Tell stories and anecdotes to help you illustrate your ideas and your research. This will definitely make your presentation more effective and memorable. In a UCLA study , students were asked to recall a series of speeches they had heard. Only 5 percent remembered any individual statistic, while 63 percent remembered the stories presented in those speeches.

“Things are not what they seem.” It’s that to get people to sit on the edge of their chair or to get them involved in your story, the audience has to constantly discover something new.

Howard Suber, UCLA

5.  Know what slide is coming next

Memorizing every single word in a presentation is not a good idea. That’s why you shouldn’t have chunks of text altogether. But knowing what slide comes next is a must. Even if you are an amazing speaker and you’ve been really busy so you’ve had the presentation made for you, go through it at least once before.

It helps to build trust and keep the audience engaged when you say “On the next slide [Click] you will see…”, rather than than act confused when the next slide appears. It will also help with the flow of the presentation.

6. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse

Practice is key for public speaking. Many experts say that rehearsal is the biggest single thing that you can do to improve your performance. This technique will make you so comfortable with the presentation content that you won’t need notes or prompts and you’ll appear conversational but knowledgeable.

Perform your presentation out loud at least four times. You can try something different each time: one in front of your friends or colleagues, one alone and one in front of a real scary audience, for good measure. You should also try to do a video recording of a rehearsal. It will help you spot improvement points, from how you are standing, if you are jangling keys, to how well your presentation is structured.

Also read:  Use These Presentation Apps To Rehearse Anywhere

7. Have an emergency plan

This does not include running off the stage. But it is a well known fact that something is bound to go wrong. It’s either the projector, the lights, the audio, the laptop, the fonts, etc. It’s always good to have a back-up plan. This way you won’t be blindsided, stressed and confused in case something goes off track. A useful tip is to check out the presentation room beforehand, so that you know what could go wrong.

Murphy’s kit: Have a printed out set of slides, data stick of your presentation and a laptop with your slides on it.

8. Involve the audience

One of the most powerful presentation techniques is inviting the audience in and have them contribute in some way. This will get them emotionally invested and it will differentiate you from inexperienced, nervous speakers.

Plan a inclusion of the audience in your presentation somewhere. It can be a slide with a question, a game or just an empty slide to help you connect with people and re-gain their full attention. Here are some ideas for audience activities–from a simple show of hands, to requests for brief personal input, to role playing and games, to small group exercises- and their merits:

The show of hands is good for polling the audience and gaining real-time feedback. It lets audience members know where they stand with respect to the group.Brief personal input reveals the diversity of experience in the room.Role playing and games are excellent for practicing sales situations and interpersonal responses.Group exercises allow participants to learn from each other.

9. Don’t read off the slides word for word

Please. Your audience is surely capable of doing that for themselves. They don’t need you to be standing in front of them reading off the screen.

Build your presentation in a way that it provides context for your speech, with visual elements and clear, simple ideas. Use your slides as outlines or conversation points that you build on, just like you would in a normal discussion. Experienced speakers often use slides to add a quick parenthetical note to something they’re saying to the audience.

10. Find the right speed

Most people go too fast. Mostly because they’re nervous or they’re pressured by the time constraints of the format. It’s really easy to rush through your content and speak very quickly, especially if you’re panicked. But it’s much easier for an audience to engage with your content and remember something if your delivery falls into a natural rhythm. Pace yourself and remember to punctuate your speech with pauses to emphasise key points.

Here’s a great exercise shared by Sims Wyeth , who learned it from Marian Rich, a voice and speech teacher in New York who worked with many famous actors to help them improve their vocal presence.

“The exercise will teach you that your voice is a wind instrument, and you must have ample air in your lungs to play it well.

Mark a paragraph / in this manner / into the shortest possible phrases. / First, / whisper it / with energetic lips, / breathing / at all the breath marks. / Then. / speak it / in the same way. / Do this / with a different paragraph / everyday. / Keep your hand / on your abdomen / to make sure / it moves out / when you breathe in / and moves in / when you speak.

Before you whisper each phrase, take a full bellyful of air and then pour all the air into that one phrase. Keep your throat open, and don’t grind your vocal chords. Lift your whisper over your throat. Pause between phrases. Relax. Then, take another full breath and whisper the next phrase. Whisper as if you were trying to reach the back of the room.

Once you’ve whispered the paragraph, then go back to the start and speak it in a conversational way, but again, pour all the air into each phrase and honor the silence between phrases. I can’t stress that enough. Take your own sweet time at the forward slashes.”

If you’re more of a slow talker, with a constant calm rhythm, you might run the risk of boring the audience. Keep people awake and interested by learning to increase your speaking speech without losing articulation and thought clarity. Start by learning what makes you slow. Record a one-minute monologue on tape and use a stopwatch or second hand; listen for the following types of slow spots.

11.  Include some humor

Humor can be one of the most powerful techniques for giving a great keynote presentation. You can use it in the beginning to relieve the tension in the room and help ease the transition into the bulk of the content. Appropriate humor that’s true to you let’s your audience get a sense of your personality and makes for a memorable presentation.

If you’re not a natural punster, do not despair. Anything can be learned. Here are a few techniques you can try:

Exaggeration: “Then I talked to a woman whose voice was so high only the dog could hear it.”Puns: “Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off? He’s all right now.”Self-deprecation: “And then, even though I knew it was too hot to eat, I bit into the pizza anyway. Because, clearly, I am an idiot.”Wordplay: “She brought me a plate of french fries instead. At least I thought they were French because they had an attitude and wore berets.”References: “Do. Or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda

12. Follow Guy Kawasaki’s 10-20-30 rule

Guy Kawasaki wrote that a presentation “should have ten slides, last no more than twenty minutes, and contain no font smaller than thirty points”. Although this was meant for entrepreneurs creating pitch decks, it’s a useful pointer for keynote speeches as well, especially from a design point of view.

Opt for a legible font and type size. Don’t use eccentric fonts that will make it impossible to make out the actual words. Stick to standard, easy-to-read fonts, preferably sans-serif (fonts such as Arial or Helvetica).

13. Pause from time to time

Both in your speech and in your presentation, white space is an important component. Whitespace is a fundamental building block of good design. Its one of the first thing any visual designer is taught. However, to many speakers it is simply a waste of space that could be used to better promote their message or express an additional idea.

Speech pauses allow you to punctuate your spoken words, giving your listeners clues as to when one phrase, one sentence, or one paragraph ends, and the next begins. Brigitte Zellner notes that pauses “participate in rendering human communication more intelligible. (…) In other words, pauses “stick out like sore thumbs”, and thus may occupy “beacon” positions in speech, serving to structure the entire utterance for both speaker and listener.”

14. Try some icebreakers

Why not reference some fun facts? Or have audience members introduce themselves? The most effective keynotes are both informative and enjoyable at the same time.

“For the brain to remember, presenters must deviate from a pattern in some significant way.”

Carmen Simon, co-founder of Rexi Media

Although not everyone is comfortable with icebreakers it doesn’t hurt to try one or two and see how they work for your keynote. Here are some different icebreaker ideas.

15. Make it thematic

Another out of the box idea is to make the most of an upcoming or recent event/holiday/movie release etc. and create a thematic presentation. Go for a memorable appearance, costume and all, and a well-designed presentation to accompany your speech. Get the audience to remember your presentation by connecting it to something they like or even dislike. The emotional connection will help spark a valuable conversation and it will increase the chances of people remembering your ideas.

Connections among elements in memory can make a real difference. Art Markman uses the analogy of a bowl of peanuts in his book Smart Thinking. He says that if you take peanuts out one at a time, you get three peanuts when you reach into the bowl three times. But, if you pour caramel over the peanuts, then when you pull one out, you get a whole cluster. After you draw from the bowl three times, you may have gotten almost all of the peanuts out. Memory functions in a similar way. By encouraging connections among the key points in your talk, you help pour caramel over the peanuts in memory and increases the amount that people remember from what you present.

16. Stay connected

Make sure you have an offering for the gods of social media. A tweetable bit on a slide, a hashtag to connect online and to encourage comments and debates or a website with online resources. Connect this technique with the one on involving the audience and you’ll get online engagement as well as offline.

Your “tweetables” should resonate with the audience and to do that they need to be catchy. Use strong verbs and keep it short. Think about what you want your audience to take away from your presentation.

17. Share your slides after the event

It’s nice to build a long term relationship with your audience. After all, they will be the ones ensuring your the growing reach of your ideas. Sharing your slides is a great way to help them recall the content of your presentation. It’s also a great way to encourage engagement after the event so don’t forget to include the date, time and title of the presentation as well as your contact details.

Let them know that you’ll be making the slides available from the very beginning of the presentation so that they don’t feel the need to spend too much time taking notes instead of watching you. But don’t share your slides before the presentation otherwise you’ll spoil the show and give people an excuse to leave without watching.

What are some other powerful presentation techniques that work for you?

If you’re looking to step up your public speaking game, check out these 10 easy steps to becoming a keynote speaker!

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6 Tips and Tricks for Amazing Keynote Presentations on Your Mac

If you use Keynote on your Mac, take note of these essential tips and tricks to make your Keynote presentations stand out.

Keynote is the simplest way to make a beautiful presentation on your Mac. If you pick a template you like and let the defaults do the trick, you'll most likely end up with something you're proud of. However, you've got a lot more options than just the basics.

When using Keynote, you can easily transition between different slides. On top of that, you can jump around however you feel necessary—along with much more. Here, you'll learn the best Keynote tips for making amazing presentations in macOS.

1. Master Keynote's Slide Transitions

Transitions and animations are the two biggest reasons to use Keynote for making a presentation. To add a transition effect, select the slide from the slide navigator on the left. From the top-right corner of the window, click on the Animate tab.

Then, select the Action option, and you'll see a big blue Add an Effect button.

When you click on it, you'll be able to select from more than a dozen effects. In the example below, we've used the Confetti effect.

Once you select a transition, you'll be able to define the duration, the direction, and the start time.

2. Animate Individual Objects on the Slides

Keynote lets you control exactly when and where your objects show up. You can animate these by going to Animate > Build In > Add an Effect .

Click the Preview button to see how it looks. If you want to animate multiple objects together or one after the other, select all of them when defining the Build In effect.

When multiple objects are involved, click the Build Order button from the bottom of the sidebar. Here, you can define the order in which the objects appear on the screen.

3. Master Magic Move

Magic Move lets you directly move an object from one slide to another, with complete control over the animation.

First, place the objects on the slides the way you want. From the Slide Navigator , duplicate the slide by using the Command + D shortcut.

Now, change the position of the objects on both slides. The first slide will have objects in the default state. In the second slide, position the elements where you want them to end up.

Select the first of the two slides (not both), and from the sidebar, click on the Animate tab. From the Add an Effect section, choose Magic Move .

Preview it, and you'll instantly see a smooth animation going from one slide to another. Keynote takes care of the transition and animation automatically. But if you want, you can change the duration, match it with text instead of objects, and define when to start the transition.

4. Edit Your Slide Layouts

If you're working on a big presentation, you'll probably want your styling to be consistent. To achieve this, you can use the feature that lets you edit your slide layouts—which will allow you to define layouts and designs you use frequently.

Finding this feature in Keynote is simple. On your Mac keyboard, hold the Control button and click on a slide with your trackpad. Then, choose Edit Slide Layouts from the context menu.

After selecting Edit Slide Layouts , you can adjust numerous areas of your Keynote slides. For example, you can include a title and photo—along with several other things.

When you're finished, hit the blue Done button at the bottom, and you'll have something that better fits your needs.

If you aren't a big fan of the presentation layouts in Keynote, you can always consider picking from various Keynote alternatives .

5. Customize Your Toolbar

The more you use Keynote on your Mac, the more you'll figure out what does and doesn't work for you. You'll also probably notice that you use some tools more frequently than others. Having easy access to these is a good idea if you'd like to work more efficiently when creating your presentations.

Customizing your toolbar in Keynote is quite straightforward. When using the app on your Mac, you'll first need to go to the View menu from the macOS menu bar and choose Customize Toolbar located at the bottom of the dropdown.

A pop-up window will appear; here, you'll see a huge range of icons and other things you can move around. Moving these is the same as if you wanted to change icons on your iPhone or iPad; you can drag and drop the features you most frequently use.

When you're done customizing your toolbar, you can click the Done button in the bottom right-hand corner.

Keynote isn't the only way you can customize on your Mac . You can change several areas on your computer—color schemes, icons, and sounds, to name a few.

6. Use Action Buttons for Shapes in Keynote

As you create your presentations in Keynote, you might want to use shapes for several reasons. You can use them to create graphics , and they're also handy for breaking up your text—among numerous other things. One of the app's best hidden features lets you turn any shape into more of an interactive button.

You can use the action options for shapes in Keynotes to jump to a different slide. But that's not all; they're also handy for opening web pages and even ending the presentation.

First, you'll need to add a shape to your Keynote presentation. You can do this by selecting Shape from Keynote's toolbar at the top.

Choose the shape you want to add to your presentation and select it. After that, use the Command + K keyboard shortcut.

Expand the dropdown menu, and you can choose whether you want your shape to link to a slide, a website, or something else.

After choosing the purpose of your shape in Keynote, complete the remaining steps that your Mac prompts you to do. You can then use your shape to supercharge how your presentation functions.

Get More Advanced With Keynote Presentations on Your Mac

If you use a Mac to create your presentations, you might want to use Keynote for several reasons. Its interface is user-friendly, and you have plenty of customization options. On top of that, the app makes it easy for you to move around to different slides and various other things—giving you more control over what you're trying to do.

Now that you've read these tips, you should have a better understanding of how you can improve your presentations and wow your audience. You've learned all about adding effects, skipping to different slides, and more.

• Mastering Event Presentation
• Enhancing Engagement and Interaction

Delivering Keynotes and Conference Presentations That Resonate

Aayush Jain

Crafting a compelling narrative for keynotes.

Engaging Beginnings: The Art of Crafting Compelling Narratives

Crafting a compelling narrative is the foundation of any memorable keynote and conference presentation . It's about weaving a story that not only informs but also entertains and inspires your audience. This introductory section delves into the significance of narrative structure, emphasizing its role in capturing and maintaining the audience's attention. By setting the stage with an engaging narrative, speakers can establish a connection with their audience, making their message more relatable and impactful.

The Backbone of Storytelling

Behind every compelling narrative is a well-thought-out structure. This involves setting a clear beginning, middle, and end, each serving a distinct purpose in the overall story. The beginning sets the context and introduces the main characters or ideas, the middle elaborates on the challenges or conflicts, and the end provides resolution. This structure helps in presenting key information in a logical and engaging manner, ensuring that the audience follows along and absorbs the intended message.

Real-World Narratives in Action

Illustrating this concept with real-world examples, consider how renowned speakers use personal anecdotes, historical events, or hypothetical scenarios to frame their presentations. These narratives are often rooted in universal themes such as overcoming adversity, innovation, or teamwork, making them resonate with diverse audiences. For instance, Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford commencement speech skillfully narrated his personal and professional journey, weaving in lessons on resilience and curiosity, thereby leaving a lasting impression on his audience.

Narratives That Resonate: Evidence and Impact

Research supports the effectiveness of narrative storytelling in presentations. Studies show that stories are 22 times more memorable than facts alone. Furthermore, a well-crafted narrative can significantly enhance audience engagement, making the presentation more impactful and memorable. Incorporating narratives not only helps in conveying complex ideas more clearly but also in establishing an emotional connection with the audience, a key factor in the success of keynote and conference presentations .

Techniques for Effective Storytelling in Presentations

Unlocking the Power of Storytelling

Effective storytelling in keynote and conference presentations transcends mere recitation of facts; it involves crafting a narrative that engages, persuades, and moves the audience. This segment explores the techniques that transform simple presentations into riveting stories, focusing on the art of narrative delivery. By leveraging the power of storytelling, speakers can turn their presentations into memorable experiences that resonate with their audience on a deeper level.

Foundations of Engaging Storytelling

Understanding the core elements of storytelling is crucial. This includes the development of a clear plot, relatable characters, and a compelling conflict or challenge that hooks the audience. Incorporating these elements with purpose and precision is key to capturing and maintaining the audience's interest. The background of storytelling techniques stretches back to ancient oral traditions, where storytellers used these components to convey complex ideas and values. Today, these timeless principles still hold, underscoring the importance of a well-structured narrative in presentations.

Bringing Stories to Life: Examples and Applications

To illustrate, consider the use of storytelling in TED Talks, where speakers often start with personal anecdotes or surprising facts to engage the audience. These stories are not just entertaining; they serve to highlight the speaker's main points, making the presentation more relatable and the message more impactful. For example, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "The Danger of a Single Story" uses personal narratives to explore complex themes of stereotypes and cultural understanding, demonstrating the profound effect of storytelling on conveying deep insights.

The Science Behind Storytelling

Research underpins the efficacy of storytelling in presentations, revealing that narratives can significantly enhance memory retention and emotional engagement. A study published in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience found that storytelling activates not only the language-processing parts of our brains but also those involved in experiencing the events of the story. This dual activation makes stories much more engaging than abstract presentations, facilitating a deeper connection with the audience and a more lasting impact.

Engaging Different Types of Audiences

Understanding Your Audience: The Key to Effective Presentations

The effectiveness of keynote and conference presentations largely hinges on the speaker's ability to engage with their audience. However, audiences are not monolithic; they come from diverse backgrounds, possess varying levels of knowledge, and have different expectations. This section underscores the importance of audience analysis as a foundational step in preparing for any presentation. Tailoring your message and delivery style to match the audience's profile ensures that your presentation resonates with them, fostering engagement and comprehension.

Diverse Audiences, Diverse Strategies

Engaging different types of audiences requires an adaptable approach. Whether you're addressing industry experts at business conferences or a general audience at academic conferences, understanding the common interests, level of expertise, and what motivates your audience is crucial. For instance, technical jargon may be appropriate for a specialized audience but could alienate a general audience. This section explores strategies such as audience segmentation and personalized messaging to effectively connect with and engage various audience groups.

Real-World Engagement: Case Studies and Trends

To bring these concepts to life, consider the approach of seasoned speakers who excel in adapting their presentations based on their audience. For example, at TED conferences, speakers often employ a mix of humor, storytelling, and visuals to appeal to a broad audience, while maintaining depth and substance. Another case is academic conferences, where presenters may focus more on data and research findings, using technical language that resonates with an academic audience. These examples illustrate the importance of audience awareness and the use of tailored strategies to enhance engagement.

Audience Engagement: Insights and Evidence

The significance of engaging different types of audiences is backed by research. Studies suggest that audience-tailored messages are more likely to be persuasive and remembered. A review in the Journal of Marketing highlighted that presentations adapted to the audience's values and beliefs significantly increased engagement and message effectiveness. By integrating audience-specific insights and adapting your presentation accordingly, you can ensure that your message not only reaches your audience but also engages them effectively.

Utilizing Visual Aids in Conference Presentations

Enhancing Presentations with Visual Aids

Visual aids play a pivotal role in enhancing the effectiveness of keynote and conference presentations . They serve not only to illustrate and clarify complex ideas but also to engage the audience's attention and facilitate better understanding and retention of information. This section highlights the importance of carefully selecting and integrating visual aids into your presentation to support your message and objectives, ensuring they add value rather than distract or overwhelm.

The Art of Visual Communication

Choosing the right visual aids involves more than just adding images or slides; it requires a thoughtful approach to visual communication. Whether it's presentation templates, conference PowerPoint slides, or diagrams or engaging infographics, each visual element must be purposefully designed to complement and reinforce your narrative. This part delves into the principles of effective visual design, including simplicity, consistency, and relevance, guiding speakers on how to create visuals that resonate with their audience and enhance the overall impact of their presentation.

Real-World Impact: Visual Aids in Action

In practice, successful speakers utilize visual aids to bring their presentations to life. From Steve Jobs' iconic keynote presentations, which masterfully combined minimalistic slides with powerful imagery, to the use of engaging videos and animations in TED Talks, these examples demonstrate the transformative power of visuals. By examining these case studies, presenters can glean insights into how effective visual aids can significantly amplify the message and engage the audience, making complex concepts more accessible and memorable.

Validating Visuals: Research and Recommendations

The effectiveness of visual aids in presentations is well-supported by research. Studies have shown that people are more likely to remember information presented with relevant visuals compared to text alone. For instance, the Picture Superiority Effect, a principle in cognitive psychology, suggests that images are more likely to be remembered than words. Moreover, incorporating visuals into presentations has been proven to increase audience engagement and retention, making them a critical component of successful conference and keynote presentations.

Strategies for Memorable Closing Remarks

Crafting the Perfect Conclusion

The conclusion of a keynote or conference presentation is your final opportunity to leave a lasting impression on your audience. Memorable closing remarks can reinforce your message, encourage action, and ensure your presentation resonates long after it has ended. This section focuses on the strategies for crafting impactful conclusions that effectively summarize the session' key points and inspire your audience.

The Essence of a Powerful Close

A strong conclusion goes beyond merely summarizing the presentation; it connects back to the opening, reiterates the presentation tips main message, and leaves the audience with something to ponder or act upon. Whether it's a compelling quote, a thought-provoking question, or a call to action, the end of your presentation should feel like a satisfying resolution to the narrative you've built. This part explores the techniques for achieving such an ending, emphasizing the importance of coherence, emotional appeal, and relevance to the audience's interests and needs.

Illustrating Success: Memorable Conclusions in Practice

Examining real-world examples, such as the impactful closing remarks by speakers at various conferences, sheds light on the art of concluding a presentation effectively. For instance, Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech is renowned not only for its powerful message but also for its unforgettable conclusion, which masterfully encapsulated the essence of his vision and inspired action. Similarly, in the business and academic worlds, successful speakers often conclude with a strong statement or a summary that reinforces the presentation's theme and motivates the audience toward a desired outcome.

Backing It Up: The Importance of Memorable Endings

Research underscores the significance of an effective conclusion. The serial position effect, a principle from psychology, suggests that individuals are likely to remember the first and last items in a series best (the primacy and recency effects, respectively). This highlights the critical role of closing remarks in ensuring your presentation's key messages are remembered. Studies in communication suggest that a well-crafted conclusion can enhance the persuasiveness of your presentation and significantly impact the audience's perception and recall of the information presented.

Preparing for High-Stakes Keynote Presentations

The Art of Preparation

High-stakes keynote presentations require meticulous preparation to ensure success. These are opportunities not only to share knowledge or insights but also to influence opinions, inspire change, and establish authority in your field. This section emphasizes the comprehensive approach needed for such presentations, covering everything from researching your topic and audience to rehearsing your delivery. The goal is to equip you with a roadmap for preparing presentations that captivate and resonate with your audience.

Foundational Elements of Effective Preparation

Effective preparation goes beyond content creation. It involves a deep understanding of your audience's expectations, the conference's theme, and how your message fits within that context. Additionally, it includes developing your narrative, selecting appropriate visual aids like conference PowerPoint templates or Google slides, and integrating storytelling elements to enhance engagement. This part provides insights into organizing your material, designing your own template and slides for clarity and impact, and crafting a narrative that weaves together your main points into a coherent and compelling story.

Case Studies: Preparation in Action

Successful keynote speakers often share their preparation routines, highlighting the significance of practice and audience analysis. For example, analyzing speeches from TED conferences reveals that the most impactful presentations are those where speakers have meticulously refined their messages, practiced their delivery to ensure clarity and impact, and tailored their content to engage both the audience in the room and a broader online audience. These examples serve as a testament to the power of thorough preparation in delivering presentations that leave a lasting impression.

Research-Backed Strategies for Preparation

The importance of preparation is further supported by research on effective communication and presentation skills . Studies have shown that audience engagement and message retention significantly improve when speakers are well-prepared, utilize engaging visuals, and deliver their content confidently. Furthermore, the practice has been linked to reduced public speaking anxiety, enhancing the speaker's ability to connect with the audience and convey their message effectively.

Handling Nerves and Building Confidence

Mastering the Mindset for Public Speaking

Public speaking, particularly in the context of keynote and conference presentations , can be a daunting task, even for experienced speakers. Handling nerves and building confidence are crucial aspects of delivering a successful presentation. This section explores strategies for overcoming anxiety and fostering a confident presence on stage. Understanding that nerves are a natural response to high-stakes situations can help speakers channel this energy positively, enhancing their performance rather than hindering it.

Techniques for Overcoming Speaking Anxiety

There are several effective techniques to manage nerves and boost confidence before stepping onto the stage. Deep breathing exercises, visualization techniques, and positive affirmations can help calm the mind and reduce anxiety. Additionally, thorough preparation, including rehearsing your presentation multiple times and familiarizing yourself with the venue, can significantly alleviate stress. This part delves into these strategies, offering practical advice for speakers to feel more in control and confident during their presentations.

Real-World Examples: Confidence in Action

Drawing inspiration from seasoned speakers can provide valuable insights into managing nerves. For instance, many TED Talk presenters share their experiences of overcoming stage fright through rigorous preparation, mindfulness practices, and focusing on the message they want to convey rather than on their own fears. These stories illustrate that confidence is often the result of deliberate practice and mental preparation, emphasizing that even the most successful speakers have worked hard to master their public speaking fears.

Evidence-Based Approaches to Building Confidence

Research in the field of psychology offers evidence-based approaches to tackling public speaking anxiety. Studies suggest that exposure therapy, which involves gradually and repeatedly exposing oneself to the feared situation, can be effective in reducing fear of public speaking. Moreover, cognitive-behavioral strategies, such as challenging negative thoughts and practicing relaxation techniques, have been shown to improve confidence and performance in high-pressure situations like keynote presentations .

Feedback and Iteration for Presentation Improvement

The Cycle of Continuous Improvement

Feedback and iteration play critical roles in refining keynote and conference presentations. This section emphasizes the value of constructive criticism and the iterative process in enhancing your speaking skills and presentation content. Incorporating feedback allows speakers to identify areas for improvement and adjust their approach, ensuring their presentations become more effective and engaging over time. This cycle of preparation, presentation, feedback, and revision is fundamental to mastering the art of public speaking.

Embracing Feedback for Growth

Seeking and embracing feedback, whether from peers, mentors, or audience evaluations, can provide invaluable insights into your presentation's strengths and weaknesses. Constructive criticism is not just about highlighting areas for improvement; it's also about recognizing what works well and should be retained or amplified in future presentations. This part explores strategies for collecting feedback, including post-presentation surveys, direct audience interaction, and professional coaching, offering guidance on how to interpret and act on the feedback received.

Real-World Application: Learning from Experience

Many renowned speakers attribute a significant part of their success to the feedback loop. For instance, after every keynote presentation , they analyze audience reactions, review recordings of their speeches, and seek direct feedback to identify areas for improvement. This continuous learning process enables them to adapt their content, refine their delivery, and better engage with their audiences in subsequent presentations. By highlighting these examples, this section illustrates the practical benefits of feedback and iteration in the context of public speaking.

The Impact of Iteration: Research Insights

Research supports the effectiveness of feedback and iterative practice in skill development, including public speaking. Studies in educational psychology have shown that iterative learning, characterized by repeated cycles of practice, feedback, and adjustment, leads to greater proficiency and confidence. This evidence underscores the importance of viewing each presentation as an opportunity to learn and grow, emphasizing that the path to becoming an accomplished speaker is a journey of continuous improvement.

Leveraging Social Media for Pre-Event Buzz

Creating Anticipation Through Digital Channels

In the digital age, leveraging social media has become a critical strategy for amplifying the reach and impact of keynote and conference presentations . This section explores how speakers and event organizers can create pre-event buzz, engaging potential attendees and expanding the audience beyond the physical venue. Utilizing platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram allows for the sharing of sneak peeks, key insights, and interactive content, building anticipation and driving interest in the upcoming presentation.

Strategies for Social Media Engagement

Effective social media engagement requires a strategic approach. This includes identifying the most relevant platforms for your target audience, crafting compelling content that reflects your audience follow the theme of your presentation, and encouraging interaction through questions and discussions. Additionally, using hashtags, live videos, and stories can enhance visibility and engagement. This part provides a roadmap for utilizing social media to not only generate buzz but also establish a connection with your audience before the event even begins.

Success Stories: Social Media in Action

Examples of successful pre-event social media campaigns demonstrate the power of digital engagement. For instance, conferences like SXSW and TEDx extensively use social media to tease topics, highlight speakers, and share content related to their events, significantly increasing reach and engagement. These case studies showcase innovative ways to use social media, from behind-the-scenes glimpses to interactive Q&A sessions, illustrating how these tactics can create a sense of community and anticipation around an event.

The Impact of Social Media: Evidence and Insights

Research highlights the effectiveness of social media in event promotion and engagement . A study published in the Journal of Marketing Research found that social media buzz can significantly influence event attendance and audience engagement, suggesting that digital engagement strategies can complement traditional marketing efforts. By leveraging the power of social media, speakers and event organizers can not only generate interest in their presentations but also enhance the overall event experience.

Analyzing Impactful Keynote Presentations

Decoding the DNA of Memorable Speeches

Understanding what makes certain keynote presentations stand out and resonate long after the event has concluded is crucial for any speaker aiming to make an impact. This section delves into the analysis of impactful keynote presentations, exploring the common elements that contribute to their success. By dissecting memorable speeches, we can uncover the techniques and strategies that make them effective, providing valuable lessons for future presentations.

Key Components of Successful Presentations

An impactful keynote presentation often combines compelling storytelling, clear and persuasive communication, effective use of visuals, and a strong connection with the audience. Additionally, the ability to convey complex ideas in an accessible and engaging manner is a hallmark of successful presentations. This part examines these components in detail, drawing on examples from renowned speeches that have left a lasting mark on their audiences.

Learning from the Masters

Analyzing keynote presentations by speakers such as Steve Jobs, Brené Brown, or Sir Ken Robinson offers insights into the art of captivating an audience. These speakers excel in engaging their listeners through personal anecdotes, humor, and a deep understanding of their subject matter. By studying their techniques, such as the strategic use of pauses, variations in tone, and audience interaction, speakers can glean valuable strategies for enhancing their own presentations.

Research and Recommendations for Impactful Presentations

Research on communication and psychology provides evidence-based recommendations for creating impactful presentations . For example, studies emphasize the importance of storytelling and emotional appeal in enhancing audience engagement and retention of information. Furthermore, the effective integration of visual aids and the importance of rehearsing to refine delivery are also supported by academic findings. This section highlights key research insights and offers actionable advice for speakers aiming to make their keynote presentations more impactful.

FAQs on Keynote and Conference Presentations

What is a Keynote Presentation?

A keynote presentation serves as the cornerstone of a conference, setting the tone and theme for the event. It's typically delivered by a prominent speaker who can inspire and engage the audience, offering valuable insights related to the next conference call's core topic.

What is the difference between PowerPoint and Keynote presentations?

PowerPoint, a product of Microsoft, and Keynote, developed by Apple, are both presentation software but differ in user interface, design templates, and functionalities. While PowerPoint is widely used across various platforms, Keynote is known for its advanced graphic capabilities and is primarily used on Apple devices.

How do you make a good Keynote presentation?

Creating a compelling keynote presentation involves clear articulation of your message, integrating storytelling, utilizing engaging visuals, and practicing your delivery. Tailoring the content to your audience's interests and expectations is also key to making your presentation resonate.

Is Keynote presentation free?

Keynote is available to download for free on Apple devices, including Mac, iPad, and iPhone, offering a suite of design tools and templates to create engaging presentations.

What is an oral presentation at a conference?

An oral presentation at a conference involves delivering your research findings, project updates, or expert insights to an audience, typically accompanied by visual aids such as slides. It's a platform for sharing knowledge and fostering academic or professional discussions.

How do you present an oral paper in a conference?

Presenting an oral paper involves summarizing your research or paper's key points, explaining the methodology, results, and conclusions, and highlighting the significance of your findings. Engaging the audience with clear explanations and visual aids is crucial for an effective presentation.

What are the 4 types of oral presentation?

The four types include informative, demonstrative, persuasive, and inspirational presentations, each serving different purposes, from educating the audience about a whole idea or specific topic to motivating them towards certain actions or changes.

How do you present a conference presentation?

Effective conference presentations require a well-organized structure, engaging content, clear visuals, and confident delivery. Engaging your audience with questions, interactive elements, and compelling storytelling can enhance the impact of your presentation.

What is the 5 golden rule of PowerPoint presentation?

The five golden rules include keeping slides simple and uncluttered, using visuals to complement your message, limiting bullet points, charts and text, practicing consistent design, and rehearsing your delivery to ensure a smooth presentation.

How many slides should a conference presentation have?

The number of slides should align with the presentation's length, aiming for a balance that allows you to convey your message effectively without rushing or overloading the audience. A common guideline for slide amount is one slide per minute of presentation time.

What is the first slide of a conference presentation?

The first slide typically includes the presentation's title, the speaker's name, and their affiliation, setting the stage for the audience by introducing the topic and the speaker.

How do you present a press conference?

Presenting at a press conference involves preparing a statement or announcement, addressing the media's questions, and delivering your message clearly and concisely. Engaging with the media positively and professionally is key to effectively conveying your information.

What do you say at the beginning of a press conference?

The beginning of a press conference usually starts with a greeting, followed by an introduction of the topic or purpose of the conference, thanking attendees for their presence, and outlining what will be discussed during allocated time.

What is press conference examples?

Press conference examples include product launches, crisis management responses, policy announcements by government officials, or any event where organizations or individuals aim to communicate directly with the media.

What are the do's and don'ts of press conference?

Do's include preparing thoroughly, being clear and concise, staying on message, and engaging respectfully with the media. Don'ts include avoiding questions, providing misleading information, or being confrontational.

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Here’s an Excellent Keynote Speech GUIDE: With 2 Great Examples

You’ve probably been asked to give a keynote speech and you are afraid of it. Well, if you’ve never done this before, then there’s no need to panic. Thankfully, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s start with the basics, shall we? 

So, what is a keynote speech? 

Simply put, a keynote speech is usually given to set the theme of the entire event. It is a speech that is generally delivered by an expert, renowned and well-respected individual, depending on the theme of the event.

Being asked to give a keynote speech in front of a large audience can be a little intimidating. However, it’s the greatest honor to be selected as a keynote speaker. That said, you must deliver the best speech you possibly can. 

Now that we’ve covered what a keynote speech is, it’s time to key steps that you should take when preparing a keynote speech. 

Related Article: 7 Basic Elements of Public Speaking

How to prepare a keynote speech

Keynote speeches are very important. With that in mind, it’s one of the best opportunities for you and your business. Therefore, if you’ve been asked to be the keynote speaker, take advantage of such an opportunity. But, first, you will have to prepare your speech: 

1.     Find out the theme for the day

For any first-timer, you will probably be given the theme for the day by the event organizer. But if you are an experienced speaker, I’m sure everyone will applaud anything you say. All the same, both scenarios still require you to plan and organize your thoughts for your speech. 

2.     Outline your presentation

Sadly, most speakers always skip this part. And, it’s usually visible in their delivery and line of thought. The best way to handle this situation is by creating a sort of blueprint for your presentation which will include: 

• Highlight some of the key structural elements, for instance, introduction, conclusion, or even stories. 
• Highlight your key element in the presentation. What do I mean? Start by answering the question-what messages are you using to support your logical key point? 
• Link all the elements together in a systematic sequence
• Also, try mapping out the transition from one key point to the next and ensure that it’s flawless. 

3.     Now fill each section

Following your outline, use keywords to convey a clear message to your audience. This will also help in keeping the audience’s attention. On top of that, it will ensure you have a great flow of thoughts in your presentation. 

Write down the topic you’d like to present. Then go ahead and add principal keywords. Afterwards, write what you derive from each keyword. Thankfully, the structure of your keynote speech will give you a set of new keywords to follow. 

Make sure that you are brief and clear when filling each section. More importantly, don’t crowd up your content. You will also need to ensure you have most of the keywords in your mind. This will save you the time you use to check on your keynote speech instead of maintaining eye contact with the crowd. 

4.     Make the work visually attractive

Without a doubt, you should always ensure that your work has some visual ideas that would be easy to interpret. Add graphs or charts where necessary, but only where necessary. Too much of anything will lead to you losing the attention of your audience. 

5.     Add personal stories

Anecdotes and stories will assist you in illustrating your ideas to the audience. On top of that, it’s the best way to show your research. With stories, you should be able to capture the attention of your audience. Additionally, your audience will be emotionally invested which will differentiate you from nervous and inexperienced speakers. 

Play a game, add a question, or simply just maintain eye contact with your audience. This will help you gain their full attention throughout your speech. 

6.     Finally, rehearse

There’s no shortcut in this section. For you to present a killer speech in front of your audience without sounding nervous is through research. By rehearsing your speech several times, you can understand what it means to your audience and also see places where you can improve your speech. 

Actually, you can even record yourself while giving your keynote speech. That way, you will be able to work on your body language and speaking rate. If you have stage freight, this is a good way to avoid the effects of it. 

Now that you already know how to get ready for your speech, let’s take on how to open a keynote speech. 

The next points of discussion are: how to open a keynote speech, how long should a keynote speech be, and some great examples of keynote speeches. Before digging into that, let me add below some of the top related and interesting articles that can add to what you’re learning from this one. If any of the titles picks your interest, please click and open in a new tab, so you can check them out later. Enjoy!

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How to open a keynote speech?

I bet you are probably worried about your opening lines in your keynote speech, right? Well, first thing’s first, don’t be in a rush to speak. Before you open your mouth, the attention is usually high at this moment. Therefore, once you arrive up there, pause for a moment. To the audience, you will appear like you are trying to be confident and collected, so use that moment. 

The audience will lean in to try and hear your first few words. And at that moment, the audience will form their first impression of you with the first words you utter. An example of the first opening words include, ‘um, good evening everyone….I’m happy to be here in front of you. I will like to thank you so-so-so-so much…..’

Trust me if you start your speech with these words, the audience will feel like you are repeating words that will sound the same as the conversations they have been trying to avoid. 

To get the full attention of your audience, here are some quick tips on your opening statements. 

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Key tips on the opening statement in your keynote speech

There’s no shortcut here. Just jump into the speech with something interesting and unexpected. There’s an infinite number of possibilities for how you can start your keynote speech. Here are a few that you can check out:

• Name someone central to your message
• Use a provocative question
• Use a short, pithy quote
• Start with a personal association
• Tell an Interesting and relatable Story
• Paint a picture with your words, and so on…

How long should a keynote speech be?

Usually, the maximum length of the keynote speech depends majorly on the skill of the speaker. Therefore, the minimum length of the keynote speech depends on how long the speaker will need to make an impact on the audience.

You will know when the keynote does not last long enough when the message said by the speaker doesn’t have a deep effect on the audience. Additionally, the length of the keynote speech depends on the time allocated to the event. 

Examples of Excellent Keynote Speeches 

If you follow the instructions above, you won’t even need examples to sharpen your skills. However, here are some of the examples you can check out to give you a deeper understanding of keynote speeches

• Fire Antony speech
• A speech by Briana Scurry

With these two examples, you will be able to draft your speech in no time. 

To wrap it all up…

A keynote speech is an incredible way to get over public speaking and be able to introduce yourself to the audience. It doesn’t matter the number of people in the gathering. Always remember to count every opportunity that comes your way. 

Also, a great speech is not one that strings different elements together-no siree! A great speech is one that weaves them in the minds of the audience in such a way that they are not able to tell the difference between the segments. The speech shouldn’t be repetitive or random. It should be something that you sat down and constructed to perfection. 

Give the audience something that they can remember you by. A speech that will make them concentrate on the best course of action. Someone once told me that, ‘words can change the world’ and I believe it. Now, this is your opportunity to change the world. 

REFERENCES & FURTHER READING

https://business.tutsplus.com/tutorials/what-is-a-keynote-speech–cms-31420

https://www.thebalancesmb.com/how-to-write-a-keynote-speech-2295879

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How to Write a Keynote Speech

Last Updated: October 28, 2022 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Lynn Kirkham . Lynn Kirkham is a Professional Public Speaker and Founder of Yes You Can Speak, a San Francisco Bay Area-based public speaking educational business empowering thousands of professionals to take command of whatever stage they've been given - from job interviews, boardroom talks to TEDx and large conference platforms. Lynn was chosen as the official TEDx Berkeley speaker coach for the last four years and has worked with executives at Google, Facebook, Intuit, Genentech, Intel, VMware, and others. There are 9 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 105,542 times.

A good keynote speech is gripping and inspiring. It sets the tone for the event, program, or conference, and it can really unify the audience. If you’ve been invited to write and give a keynote speech (congrats!), you might not be sure where to start, or maybe you’re looking for tips to elevate your speech to the next level. Either way, we’ve got you covered! This article will walk you through how to craft a memorable keynote speech from start to finish.

Brainstorming Ideas for the Keynote Speech

• If there is a theme of the event, you may use this as your purpose or inspiration for the speech. For example, if the theme of the event is “Social Responsibility,” the purpose of your speech may be to explore your experiences with social responsibility on a professional and personal level.

• For example, if your audience is within an age range of 20-30 and are social responsibility advocates, you may make the speech light, engaging, and full of specialized language that you know your audience will understand.

• For example, if you are writing a speech around the theme of social responsibility, you may focus on three key points: the history of social responsibility, the current state of social responsibility, and where social responsibility is headed next.

• You can find the top keynote speeches of 2016 at https://www.bigspeak.com/best-keynote-speakers-of-2016 .

Crafting the Keynote Speech

• For example, if you are writing a keynote speech on diversity in the classroom, you may tell a story about a student of color that you worked with in your classroom as a teacher.
• You may also look in the news for a story about a student of color who publicly spoke out about difficulties with diversity in the classroom, preferably a news story based in your area or country.

• For example, if the purpose of your speech is to discuss social responsibility in the corporate world, you may open with a fact about how consumers tend to buy more if a brand is socially responsible.

• For example, your purpose may appear as, “I am here today to talk to you about social responsibility, the theme of this conference and the theme of much of my professional work.”

• For example, you may make a funny aside that is self-deprecating, such as, “I wasn’t always a great teacher. Sometimes, I was known as the fun teacher or the angry teacher. Not always the great one.”

• For example, you may highlight terms like “unity,” “engagement,” and “social consciousness” in your speech by returning to them at least twice. You may begin the speech by mentioning these terms and then return to them again later in the speech.

• For example, you may use a funny saying that you use with your students in your classroom in the speech. Or you may use less formal words and terms to keep the tone of the speech conversational.

• For example, you may have a call to action that refers to the story or fact you used at the beginning of your speech: “Just like my student who reached out to a peer in need, I ask you all now to be vulnerable, to try to reach out to someone in your community who needs help.”

Polishing the Keynote Speech

• When you read the speech aloud, notice if you skip over any words. You may be able to remove any words you skip over for flow.
• If you read the speech aloud to others, you can ask them for feedback. Ask them if they found any parts of the speech boring or hard to follow. Be open to getting constructive feedback on the speech so it is at its best.

• Correct punctuation is especially important if you are going to read the speech aloud to an audience, as the punctuation will tell you when to pause or take a breath. Often, a comma means pausing in your speech and a period means taking a short breath.

• If there is a time constraint for the speech, you should also time yourself reading the speech to confirm it is within the limit.

Expert Q&A

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/brainstorming/
• ↑ Lynn Kirkham. Public Speaking Coach. Expert Interview. 20 November 2019.
• ↑ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mitch-ditkoff/post_3868_b_1868754.html
• ↑ https://professional.dce.harvard.edu/blog/10-tips-for-improving-your-public-speaking-skills/
• ↑ https://www.toastmasters.org/Magazine/Articles/Six-Rules-of-Humor
• ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffschmitt/2013/07/16/10-keys-to-writing-a-speech/#25d3cdba4fb7
• ↑ https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/chapter/11-2-steps-of-a-conclusion/
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/reading-aloud/
• ↑ https://www.unr.edu/writing-speaking-center/student-resources/writing-speaking-resources/editing-and-proofreading-techniques

About This Article

A good keynote speech is inspiring and can set the tone for an entire event. Start your speech with an engaging anecdote to grab your listeners' attention. The story can be from your own experience and should relate to the topic of the event. Then, tell your audience what the purpose of your speech is. You might say something like, “I am here to talk to you today about social responsibility, which is the theme of the conference and the theme of my professional work." Use a little humor and a light-hearted tone to keep the speech engaging and make it more memorable. Make sure to write the speech along the lines of how you normally talk so it sounds natural when read out loud. At the end of your speech, finish with a strong call to action. This part of the speech should compel listeners to do something to help the cause. For example, if you're giving a speech for a humane society, you may encourage listeners to volunteer at their local shelter. To learn how to polish your keynote speech, read more from our Writing co-author! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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7 things that make a great keynote

Imagine: you are standing on a stage and look straight into a darkened room full of people. You read enthusiasm in their faces. People are standing, applauding and cheering. You feel a wave of positive energy coming in your direction. You have just finished your keynote and have managed to tap into your audience’s emotions. They trusted you and you were able to take them on a journey. You were able to motivate and inspire them. This feeling is indescribably beautiful. 

This is the result of a great keynote that every speaker wants. 

Throughout the course of this blog post, I will show you what the ingredients for a brilliant speech are. 

A keynote that will: –

• remain in the memory of your audience. 

Maybe you want to give a good keynote yourself. My 7-point guide brings you closer to this goal.

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1. Why do you need an outstanding keynote?

First of all, think about what you want to achieve with a keynote.  

If you want to tailor your keynote to an event, you should also be aware of its goal. The goal of the event must be clearly defined and determined in advance. 

The term “keynote” refers to the vocal sound that a choir is tuned with. A keynote tunes the audience to a topic that should be seen in a larger context. This sounds very strategic, but is the actual purpose of a keynote.

A good keynote may – no, should of course – also be entertaining. With a keynote, the central message of an event is conveyed to the audience in a relaxed manner. The presentation should provide impulses, trigger a specific topic or stimulate critical discussion.

Many keynotes are only 20 or 30 minutes long, although they can last up to an hour and a half. Must be able to win the audience over to your topic and to the central idea within this short space of time. You have to do everything you can to get the goal, the product or the vision across to the audience in the best possible way.

This is where the real difficulty lies when creating a keynote. The goal is quickly recognized, but it takes experience to skilfully implement it.

2. Know your audience

Now that you have set the goal of the keynote, there is one no-less-important point: you need to know your audience.

• What is the average age of the audience?
• Are there more men or women present? 
• What do the audience members do professionally and in what roles?
• What is the emotional involvement with your topic? 
• Are the participants familiar with your topic or are they beginners?
• Are the attendees here voluntarily or is it “part of the job”?

A good keynote is harmoniously focused on the audience. The wording used reflects the language of the audience.

The better you know your audience, the better you can emotionally engage them. That creates trust. If the audience trusts you, that’s already half the way to a successful keynote. Above all, knowing how your audience feels about the topic is essential. Your audience will feel understood and in good hands with you.

3. Clear structure and dramaturgy are the essence of an outstanding keynote

A good speech is characterized by a clear structure and dramaturgy that fits the topic. Does my keynote follow a clear theme? Is there a comprehensible beginning, middle section and conclusion to my speech? Is my entire keynote aligned with the main objective? Do I have enough examples or stories in my subsections?

A good keynote speaker pauses in the right places and varies the tone, tempo and volume. Similar to a narrative, an excellent keynote creates dramatic tension. Good keynote speakers don’t fall out of the sky, especially when it comes to the challenge of maintaining the right tempo. This is where point 6 comes into play.

4. Creating emotions through storytelling

In addition to creating dramaturgical suspense, a keynote should also contain various magic moments. In other words: it can be emotional. Storytelling is more popular than ever, because what better way to engage the audience than a speaker using figurative and flowery words to convey a topic? The speech should be filled with life so that it can develop its own dynamic. So: your speech is given life by your stories.

Creating emotional moments is incredibly important. The audience is immediately awakened by a perhaps provocative introduction right at the beginning of the speech. That way you create interest and can gracefully move on to the main topic.

The end of the keynote can also be a real highlight. You can leave a good last impression with a concluding anecdote or striking question. In this way, the audience is encouraged to think beyond the keynote. 

After all, that’s the purpose of a keynote. If your keynote is still a topic of conversation at the bar, you’ve already done a lot right.

5. Activate your audience

Not only is an audience that sits quietly and passively in its seats mind-numbingly boring for the keynote speaker; there is also a danger that the audience will miss the target and the topic. With a good speech, the audience is both energised and challenged.

But how do you do this most effectively? The answer is by challenging your audience while always listening to your listeners and viewers. The audience must feel that they are being invigorated and taken on a journey, because this is the only way to achieve a transformation on all levels.

Of course, the activation of the audience is also crucially dependent on your own energetic state. You have to be in the highest possible state yourself. If you want to spark the fire in others, you must first of all burn for it yourself. More tips on how to increase your stage presence can be found here.

6. Practice makes perfect

The perfect keynote does not fall from the sky; nor does the perfect keynote speaker. Successful keynote speakers regularly practice their speeches. They carefully prepare the content and all necessary materials. A test audience is often given the opportunity to enjoy the speech in advance so that the presentation can be optimally prepared. Many hours of work are invested until the speech is ready.

It’s not primarily about the content, but about details such as dramaturgy, structure or the rehearsal of punchlines. The right body language is also an essential part of a convincing presentation. And since the message should also travel, the right voice training is also part of the ideal preparation.

When practicing, the focus should always be on the audience. A test audience can give you helpful tips on how to immediately improve your speech. If there is no audience with whom you can practice the speech in advance, record your own speech at home with a video camera or cell phone. This gives you the opportunity to watch and optimize individual sequences over and over again.

7. Flexibility and improvisation are the key points to a great keynote

Last but not least: the ultimate discipline! What distinguishes a good keynote from an outstanding one? An outstanding keynote is characterized by the fact that the speaker does not stick rigidly to his speech, but can react flexibly to what is happening in the audience. Here, direct input from the audience can also be incorporated into the presentation. The more the audience can identify with the keynote, the more valuable the feedback.

A total focus on what is happening in the room at any time during your keynote is also valuable. For example, the technology can sometimes fail, meaning that improvisation is then called for. An often-practiced keynote leaves enough free space within the content to react flexibly to unexpected events. If you are an experienced speaker and you have already given the keynote several times, you are quite capable of changing your speech during the presentation without the audience noticing. It is important that you always keep your goal in mind, because as long as you know where you want to go, you will find a way.

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Keynote from an amateur or from a professional?

This question may sound a bit provocative. Basically, whether you are an amateur or a professional keynote speaker, it takes a lot of practice to deliver a captivating keynote. This is because keynotes are not just simple lectures; they are strategically-sophisticated speeches that pursue goals. Product keynotes á la Steve Jobs, for example, were crucial to Apple’s success. Even with speeches by great speakers like Bill Clinton, Tony Robbins or Arnold Schwarzenegger, nothing is left to chance.

You need time to practice and rehearse your speech and to feel comfortable on stage. Possible challenges arise when unforeseen situations arise, for example if all of a sudden the technology fails or a heckler in the audience interrupts you. Inexperienced performers will have difficulty coping with such disturbances. They lack the practice and experience to be able to improvise flexibly.

My tip: if the quality of a keynote at your event determines the well-being of your company because an innovative product is to be marketed or certain values are to be transmitted, follow the example of the big boys; leave nothing to chance and get a professional keynote-speaker.

Have you ever held or experienced a keynote yourself? What makes a keynote so special? Leave me a comment about it!

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5 Free Alternatives To Microsoft PowerPoint

M icrosoft PowerPoint has always been the default choice for creating professional meeting briefs or fun little project demonstrations in schools. Its inclusion as a free service for students or working professionals makes it a no-brainer to use. However, for the general public, it can get quite expensive to pay for a subscription just to be able to create simple presentation slides. Although you can subscribe to Microsoft's Office Suite and get more bang for your buck, the pricing still doesn't hit the affordable range for most. 

Fortunately, completion has been growing, and a sea of strong contenders offer similar services to PowerPoint. After considering feature sets, here are five of the best free alternatives to Microsoft PowerPoint. At the end of the article, you can find a detailed explanation of why we've chosen the services, alongside useful comparisons that may help you make your decision easier.

Read more: The 20 Best Mac Apps That Will Improve Your Apple Experience

When it comes to productivity apps, Zoho makes some of the better ones in the market. Zoho Sheet, for example, is one of the best Microsoft Excel alternatives out there  —  owing to its extensive product catalog, there is a great way to view and edit presentations. The aptly named Zoho Show lets you design and demonstrate professional-looking slides, all without having to download the program.

Zoho takes a minimal approach to most of its services, and its PowerPoint application is no different. You'll find that most menus are contextually aware of what tasks you're currently performing, which helps keep unnecessary tools out of the way and bring the important ones in focus. There is also a huge library of customizable templates you can choose from, making it easier to kickstart your presentation work. 

Zoho Show is completely free to use for individuals and offers unlimited cloud storage. No features are locked behind a paywall, and rest assured, you can fully rely on this online presentation-making tool for all your needs, be it for school or work. 

Canva is a service that can easily climb up to becoming everyone's favorite once they start using it. While most applaud it for its graphic designing prowess, there are many other things Canva can do that you probably aren't aware of . Among them is the ability to craft beautiful slides for your presentations and projects. 

By creating a free account, you can access thousands of templates on Canva. You can filter these by use case—maybe you need one for a professional business briefing or a casual one explaining why your pet dog is the best canine. There is a whole section of ready-to-use templates dedicated to mobile-friendly viewing as well, which is something you don't usually find to be as accessible with other tools. 

Like most presentation apps, Canva lets you collaborate with your team members and work across devices seamlessly. The Canva app for mobile also lets you control your slides remotely during your presentation. Some menus also feature AI-featured tools to add one-click enhancements to your slides -- unfortunately, these are locked behind premium subscription tiers. However, for the cent percent of the population, Canva can be used without spending a dime to meet a plethora of creative needs. 

Apple takes great pride in developing in-house solutions to meet every user requirement. While most of its products dominate the competition in popularity, the same cannot be said for Keynote , the company's version of Microsoft PowerPoint. The program was first released in 2003 with macOS Big Sur and has largely remained one of those icons you glance over and forget about. 

However, recent versions of Keynote have made it a compelling alternative to PowerPoint. Not only is it pre-installed on every Apple device, including your iPhone, but it also works best with the iPad touchscreen. Keynote has a largely clean and professional approach to the built-in templates, but nothing is stopping you from going creative. Animations are one of Keynote's strongest suits, allowing you to create near cinematic-looking presentations with just a few clicks. 

While you can still use Apple Keynote through iCloud on Windows devices, this alternative is clearly meant for people surrounded by the walled garden of Apple technology. It makes use of features like AirDrop, Live Photos, and VoiceOver  — all of which are technologies available across Apple devices. Using Apple Keynote is completely free, and the app has easy exporting tools that make working with Microsoft PowerPoint less of a hassle.

WPS Presentation

WPS Office makes some of the best solutions for creating and editing documents on smartphones , but their service offerings extend to Windows, macOS, and even Linux. WPS Presentation is perhaps the closest you'll get to Microsoft PowerPoint in terms of the user interface and how most tools are bundled in familiar locations.

This PowerPoint app offers real-time collaboration where you can invite your team members and work on the same document remotely. Like most collaboration tools, users can leave comments to suggest changes or add information for other people on the team.

WPS Presentation is not the only free product; you can utilize every app in the WPS Office suite. Unlike most competitors, you don't need to download or use a separate mini-app to make presentations. WPS Office has a document editor, PowerPoint creator, spreadsheet manager, and other tools all within its umbrella. Premium plans for this service exist, but they mostly cater to unlocking features for editing PDFs. 

Google Slides

As a netizen, you most likely already have a Google account. Not only is it required to make any meaningful use of your Android phone, but popular services that we take for granted, like Gmail and Drive, all fall under Google's umbrella. One such free service that the tech giant has at its disposal is Google Slides . While the barebones UI might seem lackluster at first, Slides has nearly the same level of functionality as Microsoft PowerPoint and can even be supercharged by add-ons. 

All of Google's workspace apps, such as Docs, Sheets, and Slides, provide an intuitive way to work in a team. You can add comments, use annotations, and share the presentation with limited access to others. You can use one of the many predesigned Google Slides templates for simple presentations , or browse for templates that cater to specific needs. Being part of a bigger service catalog has its obvious advantages, such as seamless integration with Google Meet, Gmail, and other products from Google that you already use. 

We recommend Google Slides to anyone who needs to create and edit PowerPoint presentations on the go and can't be bothered with working in a complicated environment. The service is also available as an app for Android and iOS, and you can export your presentations in a wide range of formats, including PPT, PDF, or PNG for individual slides. 

To Pay Or Not To Pay?

You'll notice that all the services we've mentioned on this list are free to use. In fact, you can use Office 365 apps online for free   — including PowerPoint, which makes purchasing a standalone subscription to the Microsoft PowerPoint app quite redundant. However, nearly every free alternative here short of Keynote also offers premium plans, but should you consider buying one?

For the vast majority of people who are looking for a robust software to create, edit, and share presentations with  —  these free options deliver exceptionally well in every aspect. Some apps like Google Slides and Apple Keynote let you work in smaller teams with the free tier as well. Apps like WPS Office and Canva tend to lock new and exciting features like AI tools behind a paywall, and while these are nice to have, you definitely can do without them. 

If you're looking for a presentation tool for a company with multiple people, you can scale up using any of the alternatives mentioned on this list. Both Google Workspace and Zoho offer reliable and enterprise-level plans you can upgrade to. For everyone else  — enjoy creating and demonstrating your PowerPoint presentations for free.

Read the original article on SlashGear .

Make a Great STEM Presentation

• Poster Making Resources
• Poster Presentation Resources
• Lightning Talk Resources
• Multimedia Presentation Resources
• Undergraduate Research Opportunities
• Citation Information

What is a poster presentation?

"A poster presentation is a way to communicate your research or your understanding of a topic in a concise and visually engaging format. A poster presentation usually includes two elements:

• a brief verbal explanation of the poster content or topic (often less than 5 minutes).

A poster will generally be placed alongside other students' posters on a wall or an online platform, where audience members can view it. In some poster presentations, there may also be opportunity to answer questions from the audience (typically academic staff, other students, or friends and family).

To be successful, make sure you develop your poster content carefully, design the poster to engage and inform your viewer, and present your ideas effectively." (~ Monash University )

SVC Guidelines for Poster Presentations

Svc poster guidelines and submission:.

• 36 inches by 24 inches
• 24 pt size or larger
• For descriptive title - 72 pt font size or larger

Poster presenters should refer to  “How to make a better poster link”  as a guideline

• Students, staff, faculty, family, and friends who may be unfamiliar with terminology and have no prior knowledge in the sciences.

Include the following required components:

• A descriptive title (72 pt font size or larger)
• Names of authors (students and faculty)
• Name of Institution for all authors (Skagit Valley College)
• Background/introduction information
• Figures/tables/images of results
• Figure legend included for each figure, table, image presented in poster. Figure legend should include a short description of results presented in figures/tables/image.
• Main conclusion of research

How to submit:

• Posters will be submitted through Canvas in STEM courses
• Deadline for poster submission TBD
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• Last Updated: Apr 23, 2024 10:49 AM
• URL: https://subjectguides.library.skagit.edu/stempresentation