how to do a presentation in english

Blog > English Presentation Structure (Introduction, Closing) & useful Phrases

English Presentation Structure (Introduction, Closing) & useful Phrases

02.21.20   •  #powerpoint #presentation #english.

When giving a presentation in english, there are certain guidelines you should follow. Maybe you haven't got a lot of experience presenting - or you would simply like to refresh your already existing knowledge - we're here to teach you the basics about presenting and provide you with a free list of useful phrases and the basic structure you can in your presentation!

1. Structure

The general structure of a presentation is the following:

• Introduction

It is up to you to design these three parts. Using videos or everyday-examples can be a great way to introduce the audience to the topic. The important thing is that you capture the audience's attention from the beginning by making an interesting introduction. The main part is where you present your topic, ideally divided into sections. You can be creative with it - incorporate images, videos, stories or interactive polls . We generally recommend using different kinds of elements, as that makes the presentation more lively. Make sure your main part is well structured, so your audience can follow. In the conclusion, you should give a short summary of the points you made without adding any new information. You can also make an appeal to your audience in the end.

2. Useful Phrases

Here you'll find several phrases that you'll need in every presentation. Of course, you should adapt them and use them in a context that is suitable for your setting. The phrases are divided into subcategories so you can find what you're looking for more easily.

Starting your Presentation

In your introduction, you should:

Welcome your audience

Good morning/afternoon/evening everyone!

Ladies and gentlemen, I welcome you to my presentation about...

Introduce yourself

I am ... (from company ...) and today I would like to introduce you to the topic of ...

My name is ... and I am going to talk about ... today.

Icebreakers (for audience engagement)

Icebreaker polls are an amazing way to engage your audience instantly. They function as a fun and playful element at the beginning, giving you the perfect start you need to give a successful presentation. Click here to read our detailed post about icebreaker polls!

Mention the presentation topic and the reason for giving the presentation

I am grateful to be here today and tell you you about...

I would like to take this opportunity to talk about ...

I am here today to talk to you about ...

The reason why I am here today to talk about ... is ...

The purpose of this presentation is to ...

My goal today is to ...

Hopefully, by the end of the presentation, you will all know more about ...

Give a short overview of the content

To make it as understandable as possible, I divided my presentation into ... parts. In the first part, I will concentrate on ..., the second part will be about ..., ...

First of all, I will give you a short introduction, then we will move on to ...

... and finally, I will give you some insights to ...

Here are a few phrases that you could use during the whole presentation, but especially in the main part.

Engage your audience

In order to raise the audience's attention and improve their engagement, it is extremely important to make contact with them. A great way to do so is by adding interactive elements such as polls. If you would like to know more about this topic, read our article on How To Boost Audience Engagement . You can also use a software like SlideLizard , which allows you to conduct live polls, do Q&A sessions with your audience, share your resources and many more benefits that take your presentation to the next level.

Please raise your hand if you ...

Have you ever thought about ... ?

I would like to do a poll about ...

Please ask any questions as soon as they arrive.

On one hand, … on the other hand…

Comparing … with …, we can see that…

Clearly, … makes more sense than …

Whereas Option A is …, Option B is …

Making new points

Firstly,… Secondly,…

What also has to be mentioned is…

Next, I would like to bring up the topic of…

That being said, now we are going to take a look at…

Let's move on to the next topic.

On the next slide,…

The last thing I would like to mention is…

We made a whole blog post about how to pose questions in your presentation: The Right Way to do a Question Slide .

Talking about images or videos

In this image you can clearly see that ...

We are now going to take a look at a picture/video of ...

I'm going to show you a video by ... about ... now.

I've prepared a video about ...

Talking about statistics and charts

I am now addressing this graph that refers to the results of study XY.

In the graph on this slide, you can see that ...

The average is at ...

This graph clearly shows that the majority ...

According to this graph, the focus should be on ...

What that study tells us for practice is that we should ...

Emphasizing

I would like to emphasize the importance of ...

Moreover, it has to be said that ...

I want to stress the importance of ...

We always have to remember that ...

This is of high significance because ...

That part is especially important because ...

When something goes wrong

I am sorry, but it seems like the projector isn't working.

Could someone please help me with ...?

Is anybody here who knows how to ...?

Could someone give me a hand with ...

I would like to apologize for ...

I apologize for the technical problems, we are going to continue in a minute.

I am sorry for the inconvenience.

End of Presentation

In the conclusion, you should...

Sum up the main points

In conclusion I can say that…

To sum up the main points,…

With all mentioned aspects taken into consideration, I can say that…

Make an appeal

So please, in the future, try to be conscious about...

Please take a moment to think about...

I would like to encourage you to...

Thank your audience and say goodbye

It was a pleasure being here today.

Thank you for listening and goodbye.

Thank you for being such a great, engaged audience. Goodbye.

Thank you so much for listening, see you next time.

What is the structure of a presentation?

Your presentations should always have an Introduction, a Main part and a Conclusion.

What is a good way to begin a presentation?

You can start by introducing yourself, giving an overview of your topic, telling a little story or showing the audience an introductory video or image.

What are good phrases to use in English presentations?

There are many phrases that will make your presentation a lot more professional. Our blog post gives you a detailed overview.

Related articles

About the author.

Pia Lehner-Mittermaier

Pia works in Marketing as a graphic designer and writer at SlideLizard. She uses her vivid imagination and creativity to produce good content.

Get 1 Month for free!

Do you want to make your presentations more interactive.

With SlideLizard you can engage your audience with live polls, questions and feedback . Directly within your PowerPoint Presentation. Learn more

Top blog articles More posts

Elegant Architecture - Free PowerPoint Template

How to add a Countdown Timer in PowerPoint

Get started with Live Polls, Q&A and slides

for your PowerPoint Presentations

The big SlideLizard presentation glossary

Hybrid event.

When an event consist of both virtual and in-person parts, this is called a hybrid event. This type of event is popular as it combines the benefits of both online and live events.

Break-out-Room

In live online training, it is sometimes useful to divide the students into small groups for certain exercises, as it would be impossible to have conversations at the same time. Break-out-rooms are used so that people can talk to each other without disturbing the others. When the exercise is over, they are sent back to the main room.

Audience Demographics

Audience Demographics are the characteristics of listeners like age, gender, cultural backgrounds, group affiliations and educational level. The speaker has to consider all these characteristics when adapting to an audience.

Informative Presentations

An information presentation is created when no solution is currently available. Facts, data and figures or study results are presented and current processes are described.

Be the first to know!

The latest SlideLizard news, articles, and resources, sent straight to your inbox.

- or follow us on -

We use cookies to personalize content and analyze traffic to our website. You can choose to accept only cookies that are necessary for the website to function or to also allow tracking cookies. For more information, please see our privacy policy .

Cookie Settings

Necessary cookies are required for the proper functioning of the website. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information about the number of visitors, etc.

We use essential cookies to make Venngage work. By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.

Manage Cookies

Cookies and similar technologies collect certain information about how you’re using our website. Some of them are essential, and without them you wouldn’t be able to use Venngage. But others are optional, and you get to choose whether we use them or not.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are always on, as they’re essential for making Venngage work, and making it safe. Without these cookies, services you’ve asked for can’t be provided.

Show cookie providers

• Google Login

Functionality Cookies

These cookies help us provide enhanced functionality and personalisation, and remember your settings. They may be set by us or by third party providers.

Performance Cookies

These cookies help us analyze how many people are using Venngage, where they come from and how they're using it. If you opt out of these cookies, we can’t get feedback to make Venngage better for you and all our users.

• Google Analytics

Targeting Cookies

These cookies are set by our advertising partners to track your activity and show you relevant Venngage ads on other sites as you browse the internet.

• Google Tag Manager
• Infographics
• Daily Infographics
• Popular Templates
• Accessibility
• Graphic Design
• Graphs and Charts
• Data Visualization
• Human Resources
• Beginner Guides

Blog Beginner Guides How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

Written by: Krystle Wong Jul 20, 2023

A top-notch presentation possesses the power to drive action. From winning stakeholders over and conveying a powerful message to securing funding — your secret weapon lies within the realm of creating an effective presentation .  

Being an excellent presenter isn’t confined to the boardroom. Whether you’re delivering a presentation at work, pursuing an academic career, involved in a non-profit organization or even a student, nailing the presentation game is a game-changer.

In this article, I’ll cover the top qualities of compelling presentations and walk you through a step-by-step guide on how to give a good presentation. Here’s a little tip to kick things off: for a headstart, check out Venngage’s collection of free presentation templates . They are fully customizable, and the best part is you don’t need professional design skills to make them shine!

These valuable presentation tips cater to individuals from diverse professional backgrounds, encompassing business professionals, sales and marketing teams, educators, trainers, students, researchers, non-profit organizations, public speakers and presenters. 

No matter your field or role, these tips for presenting will equip you with the skills to deliver effective presentations that leave a lasting impression on any audience.

Click to jump ahead:

What are the 10 qualities of a good presentation?

Step-by-step guide on how to prepare an effective presentation, 9 effective techniques to deliver a memorable presentation, faqs on making a good presentation, how to create a presentation with venngage in 5 steps.

When it comes to giving an engaging presentation that leaves a lasting impression, it’s not just about the content — it’s also about how you deliver it. Wondering what makes a good presentation? Well, the best presentations I’ve seen consistently exhibit these 10 qualities:

1. Clear structure

No one likes to get lost in a maze of information. Organize your thoughts into a logical flow, complete with an introduction, main points and a solid conclusion. A structured presentation helps your audience follow along effortlessly, leaving them with a sense of satisfaction at the end.

Regardless of your presentation style , a quality presentation starts with a clear roadmap. Browse through Venngage’s template library and select a presentation template that aligns with your content and presentation goals. Here’s a good presentation example template with a logical layout that includes sections for the introduction, main points, supporting information and a conclusion: 

2. Engaging opening

Hook your audience right from the start with an attention-grabbing statement, a fascinating question or maybe even a captivating anecdote. Set the stage for a killer presentation!

The opening moments of your presentation hold immense power – check out these 15 ways to start a presentation to set the stage and captivate your audience.

3. Relevant content

Make sure your content aligns with their interests and needs. Your audience is there for a reason, and that’s to get valuable insights. Avoid fluff and get straight to the point, your audience will be genuinely excited.

4. Effective visual aids

Picture this: a slide with walls of text and tiny charts, yawn! Visual aids should be just that—aiding your presentation. Opt for clear and visually appealing slides, engaging images and informative charts that add value and help reinforce your message.

With Venngage, visualizing data takes no effort at all. You can import data from CSV or Google Sheets seamlessly and create stunning charts, graphs and icon stories effortlessly to showcase your data in a captivating and impactful way.

5. Clear and concise communication

Keep your language simple, and avoid jargon or complicated terms. Communicate your ideas clearly, so your audience can easily grasp and retain the information being conveyed. This can prevent confusion and enhance the overall effectiveness of the message. 

6. Engaging delivery

Spice up your presentation with a sprinkle of enthusiasm! Maintain eye contact, use expressive gestures and vary your tone of voice to keep your audience glued to the edge of their seats. A touch of charisma goes a long way!

7. Interaction and audience engagement

Turn your presentation into an interactive experience — encourage questions, foster discussions and maybe even throw in a fun activity. Engaged audiences are more likely to remember and embrace your message.

Transform your slides into an interactive presentation with Venngage’s dynamic features like pop-ups, clickable icons and animated elements. Engage your audience with interactive content that lets them explore and interact with your presentation for a truly immersive experience.

8. Effective storytelling

Who doesn’t love a good story? Weaving relevant anecdotes, case studies or even a personal story into your presentation can captivate your audience and create a lasting impact. Stories build connections and make your message memorable.

A great presentation background is also essential as it sets the tone, creates visual interest and reinforces your message. Enhance the overall aesthetics of your presentation with these 15 presentation background examples and captivate your audience’s attention.

9. Well-timed pacing

Pace your presentation thoughtfully with well-designed presentation slides, neither rushing through nor dragging it out. Respect your audience’s time and ensure you cover all the essential points without losing their interest.

10. Strong conclusion

Last impressions linger! Summarize your main points and leave your audience with a clear takeaway. End your presentation with a bang , a call to action or an inspiring thought that resonates long after the conclusion.

In-person presentations aside, acing a virtual presentation is of paramount importance in today’s digital world. Check out this guide to learn how you can adapt your in-person presentations into virtual presentations . 

Preparing an effective presentation starts with laying a strong foundation that goes beyond just creating slides and notes. One of the quickest and best ways to make a presentation would be with the help of a good presentation software . 

Otherwise, let me walk you to how to prepare for a presentation step by step and unlock the secrets of crafting a professional presentation that sets you apart.

1. Understand the audience and their needs

Before you dive into preparing your masterpiece, take a moment to get to know your target audience. Tailor your presentation to meet their needs and expectations , and you’ll have them hooked from the start!

2. Conduct thorough research on the topic

Time to hit the books (or the internet)! Don’t skimp on the research with your presentation materials — dive deep into the subject matter and gather valuable insights . The more you know, the more confident you’ll feel in delivering your presentation.

3. Organize the content with a clear structure

No one wants to stumble through a chaotic mess of information. Outline your presentation with a clear and logical flow. Start with a captivating introduction, follow up with main points that build on each other and wrap it up with a powerful conclusion that leaves a lasting impression.

Delivering an effective business presentation hinges on captivating your audience, and Venngage’s professionally designed business presentation templates are tailor-made for this purpose. With thoughtfully structured layouts, these templates enhance your message’s clarity and coherence, ensuring a memorable and engaging experience for your audience members.

Don’t want to build your presentation layout from scratch? pick from these 5 foolproof presentation layout ideas that won’t go wrong. 

4. Develop visually appealing and supportive visual aids

Spice up your presentation with eye-catching visuals! Create slides that complement your message, not overshadow it. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words, but that doesn’t mean you need to overload your slides with text.

Well-chosen designs create a cohesive and professional look, capturing your audience’s attention and enhancing the overall effectiveness of your message. Here’s a list of carefully curated PowerPoint presentation templates and great background graphics that will significantly influence the visual appeal and engagement of your presentation.

5. Practice, practice and practice

Practice makes perfect — rehearse your presentation and arrive early to your presentation to help overcome stage fright. Familiarity with your material will boost your presentation skills and help you handle curveballs with ease.

6. Seek feedback and make necessary adjustments

Don’t be afraid to ask for help and seek feedback from friends and colleagues. Constructive criticism can help you identify blind spots and fine-tune your presentation to perfection.

With Venngage’s real-time collaboration feature , receiving feedback and editing your presentation is a seamless process. Group members can access and work on the presentation simultaneously and edit content side by side in real-time. Changes will be reflected immediately to the entire team, promoting seamless teamwork.

7. Prepare for potential technical or logistical issues

Prepare for the unexpected by checking your equipment, internet connection and any other potential hiccups. If you’re worried that you’ll miss out on any important points, you could always have note cards prepared. Remember to remain focused and rehearse potential answers to anticipated questions.

8. Fine-tune and polish your presentation

As the big day approaches, give your presentation one last shine. Review your talking points, practice how to present a presentation and make any final tweaks. Deep breaths — you’re on the brink of delivering a successful presentation!

In competitive environments, persuasive presentations set individuals and organizations apart. To brush up on your presentation skills, read these guides on how to make a persuasive presentation and tips to presenting effectively . 

Whether you’re an experienced presenter or a novice, the right techniques will let your presentation skills soar to new heights!

From public speaking hacks to interactive elements and storytelling prowess, these 9 effective presentation techniques will empower you to leave a lasting impression on your audience and make your presentations unforgettable.

1. Confidence and positive body language

Positive body language instantly captivates your audience, making them believe in your message as much as you do. Strengthen your stage presence and own that stage like it’s your second home! Stand tall, shoulders back and exude confidence. 

2. Eye contact with the audience

Break down that invisible barrier and connect with your audience through their eyes. Maintaining eye contact when giving a presentation builds trust and shows that you’re present and engaged with them.

3. Effective use of hand gestures and movement

A little movement goes a long way! Emphasize key points with purposeful gestures and don’t be afraid to walk around the stage. Your energy will be contagious!

4. Utilize storytelling techniques

Weave the magic of storytelling into your presentation. Share relatable anecdotes, inspiring success stories or even personal experiences that tug at the heartstrings of your audience. Adjust your pitch, pace and volume to match the emotions and intensity of the story. Varying your speaking voice adds depth and enhances your stage presence.

5. Incorporate multimedia elements

Spice up your presentation with a dash of visual pizzazz! Use slides, images and video clips to add depth and clarity to your message. Just remember, less is more—don’t overwhelm them with information overload. 

Turn your presentations into an interactive party! Involve your audience with questions, polls or group activities. When they actively participate, they become invested in your presentation’s success. Bring your design to life with animated elements. Venngage allows you to apply animations to icons, images and text to create dynamic and engaging visual content.

6. Utilize humor strategically

Laughter is the best medicine—and a fantastic presentation enhancer! A well-placed joke or lighthearted moment can break the ice and create a warm atmosphere , making your audience more receptive to your message.

7. Practice active listening and respond to feedback

Be attentive to your audience’s reactions and feedback. If they have questions or concerns, address them with genuine interest and respect. Your responsiveness builds rapport and shows that you genuinely care about their experience.

8. Apply the 10-20-30 rule

Apply the 10-20-30 presentation rule and keep it short, sweet and impactful! Stick to ten slides, deliver your presentation within 20 minutes and use a 30-point font to ensure clarity and focus. Less is more, and your audience will thank you for it!

9. Implement the 5-5-5 rule

Simplicity is key. Limit each slide to five bullet points, with only five words per bullet point and allow each slide to remain visible for about five seconds. This rule keeps your presentation concise and prevents information overload.

Simple presentations are more engaging because they are easier to follow. Summarize your presentations and keep them simple with Venngage’s gallery of simple presentation templates and ensure that your message is delivered effectively across your audience.

1. How to start a presentation?

To kick off your presentation effectively, begin with an attention-grabbing statement or a powerful quote. Introduce yourself, establish credibility and clearly state the purpose and relevance of your presentation.

2. How to end a presentation?

For a strong conclusion, summarize your talking points and key takeaways. End with a compelling call to action or a thought-provoking question and remember to thank your audience and invite any final questions or interactions.

3. How to make a presentation interactive?

To make your presentation interactive, encourage questions and discussion throughout your talk. Utilize multimedia elements like videos or images and consider including polls, quizzes or group activities to actively involve your audience.

In need of inspiration for your next presentation? I’ve got your back! Pick from these 120+ presentation ideas, topics and examples to get started. 

Creating a stunning presentation with Venngage is a breeze with our user-friendly drag-and-drop editor and professionally designed templates for all your communication needs. 

Here’s how to make a presentation in just 5 simple steps with the help of Venngage:

Step 1: Sign up for Venngage for free using your email, Gmail or Facebook account or simply log in to access your account. 

Step 2: Pick a design from our selection of free presentation templates (they’re all created by our expert in-house designers).

Step 3: Make the template your own by customizing it to fit your content and branding. With Venngage’s intuitive drag-and-drop editor, you can easily modify text, change colors and adjust the layout to create a unique and eye-catching design.

Step 4: Elevate your presentation by incorporating captivating visuals. You can upload your images or choose from Venngage’s vast library of high-quality photos, icons and illustrations. 

Step 5: Upgrade to a premium or business account to export your presentation in PDF and print it for in-person presentations or share it digitally for free!

By following these five simple steps, you’ll have a professionally designed and visually engaging presentation ready in no time. With Venngage’s user-friendly platform, your presentation is sure to make a lasting impression. So, let your creativity flow and get ready to shine in your next presentation!

Discover popular designs

Infographic maker

Brochure maker

White paper online

Newsletter creator

Flyer maker

Timeline maker

Letterhead maker

Mind map maker

Ebook maker

How it works

Transform your enterprise with the scalable mindsets, skills, & behavior change that drive performance.

Explore how BetterUp connects to your core business systems.

We pair AI with the latest in human-centered coaching to drive powerful, lasting learning and behavior change.

Build leaders that accelerate team performance and engagement.

Unlock performance potential at scale with AI-powered curated growth journeys.

Build resilience, well-being and agility to drive performance across your entire enterprise.

Transform your business, starting with your sales leaders.

Unlock business impact from the top with executive coaching.

Foster a culture of inclusion and belonging.

Accelerate the performance and potential of your agencies and employees.

See how innovative organizations use BetterUp to build a thriving workforce.

Discover how BetterUp measurably impacts key business outcomes for organizations like yours.

A demo is the first step to transforming your business. Meet with us to develop a plan for attaining your goals.

• What is coaching?

Learn how 1:1 coaching works, who its for, and if it's right for you.

Accelerate your personal and professional growth with the expert guidance of a BetterUp Coach.

Types of Coaching

Navigate career transitions, accelerate your professional growth, and achieve your career goals with expert coaching.

Enhance your communication skills for better personal and professional relationships, with tailored coaching that focuses on your needs.

Find balance, resilience, and well-being in all areas of your life with holistic coaching designed to empower you.

Discover your perfect match : Take our 5-minute assessment and let us pair you with one of our top Coaches tailored just for you.

Research, expert insights, and resources to develop courageous leaders within your organization.

Best practices, research, and tools to fuel individual and business growth.

View on-demand BetterUp events and learn about upcoming live discussions.

The latest insights and ideas for building a high-performing workplace.

• BetterUp Briefing

The online magazine that helps you understand tomorrow's workforce trends, today.

Innovative research featured in peer-reviewed journals, press, and more.

Founded in 2022 to deepen the understanding of the intersection of well-being, purpose, and performance

We're on a mission to help everyone live with clarity, purpose, and passion.

Join us and create impactful change.

Read the buzz about BetterUp.

Meet the leadership that's passionate about empowering your workforce.

For Business

For Individuals

How to give a good presentation that captivates any audience

Jump to section

What are the main difficulties when giving presentations?

How to create an effective presentation, after that, how do i give a memorable presentation, how to connect with the audience when presenting.

If you’ve ever heard someone give a powerful presentation, you probably remember how it made you feel. Much like a composer, a good speaker knows precisely when each note should strike to captivate their audience’s attention and leave them with a lasting impression.

No one becomes a great public speaker or presenter without practice. And almost everyone can recall a time one of their presentations went badly — that’s a painful part of the learning process.

Whether you’re working within a small creative team or a large organization, public speaking and presentation skills are vital to communicating your ideas. Knowing how to present your vision can help you pitch concepts to clients, present ideas to your team, and develop the confidence to participate in team meetings.

If you have an upcoming presentation on the horizon and feel nervous, that’s normal. Around 15-30% of the general population experience a fear of public speaking . And, unfortunately, social anxiety is on the rise, with a 12% increase in adults over the last 20 years . 

Learning how to give a good presentation can dismantle your fears and break down these barriers, ensuring you’re ready to confidently share your point of view. 

It’s the week before your presentation, and you’re already feeling nervous . Maybe there’ll be an important mentor in the room you need to impress, or you’re looking for an opportunity to show your boss your value. Regardless of your countless past presentations, you still feel nervous. 

Sharing your vision and ideas with any sized group is intimidating. You’re likely worrying about how you’ll perform as a presenter and whether the audience will be interested in what you offer. But nerves aren’t inherently negative — you can actually use this feeling to fuel your preparation.

It’s helpful to identify where your worries are coming from and address your fears. Here are some common concerns when preparing for an upcoming presentation:

Fear of public speaking: When you share your ideas in front of a group, you’re placing yourself in a vulnerable position to be critiqued on your knowledge and communication skills . Maybe you feel confident in your content, but when you think about standing in front of an audience, you feel anxious and your mind goes blank.

It’s also not uncommon to have physical symptoms when presenting . Some people experience nausea and dizziness as the brain releases adrenaline to cope with the potentially stressful situation . Remember to take deep breaths to recenter yourself and be patient, even if you make a mistake.

Losing the audience’s attention: As a presenter, your main focus is to keep your audience engaged. They should feel like they’re learning valuable information or following a story that will improve them in life or business.

Highlight the most exciting pieces of knowledge and ensure you emphasize those points in your presentation. If you feel passionate about your content, it’s more likely that your audience will experience this excitement for themselves and become invested in what you have to say.

Not knowing what content to place on presentation slides: Overloading presentation slides is a fast way to lose your audience’s attention. Your slides should contain only the main talking points and limited text to ensure your audience focuses on what you have to say rather than becoming distracted by the content on your slides.

Discomfort incorporating nonverbal communication: It’s natural to feel stiff and frozen when you’re nervous. But maintaining effective body language helps your audience stay focused on you as you speak and encourages you to relax.

If you struggle to incorporate body language into your presentations, try starting small by making hand gestures toward your slides. If you’re working with a large audience, use different parts of the stage to ensure everyone feels included. 

Each presenter has their own personal brand and style. Some may use humor to break the ice, while others might appeal to the audience’s emotional side through inspiring storytelling. 

Watching online presentations, such as TED talks, is an excellent way to expose yourself to various presentation styles and develop your own. While observing others, you can note how they carry themselves on stage and learn new ways to keep your audience engaged.

Once you’ve addressed what’s causing your fears, it’s time to prepare for a great presentation. Use your past experience as inspiration and aim to outshine your former self by learning from your mistakes and employing new techniques. Here are five presentation tips to help you create a strong presentation and wow your audience:

1. Keep it simple

Simple means something different to everyone.

Before creating your presentation, take note of your intended audience and their knowledge level of your subject. You’ll want your content to be easy for your intended audience to follow.

Say you’re giving a presentation on improving your company’s operational structure. Entry-level workers will likely need a more straightforward overview of the content than C-suite leaders, who have significantly more experience. 

Ask yourself what you want your audience to take away from your presentation and emphasize those important points. Doing this ensures they remember the most vital information rather than less important supporting ideas. Try organizing these concepts into bullet points so viewers can quickly identify critical takeaways.

2. Create a compelling structure

Put yourself in your audience member’s shoes and determine the most compelling way to organize your information. Your presentation should be articulate , cohesive, and logical, and you must be sure to include all necessary supporting evidence to strengthen your main points.

If you give away all of your answers too quickly, your audience could lose interest. And if there isn’t enough supporting information, they could hit a roadblock of confusion. Try developing a compelling story that leads your audience through your thought processes so they can experience the ups and downs alongside you. 

By structuring your presentation to lead up to a final conclusion, you’re more likely to keep listeners’ attention. Once you’ve reached that conclusion, you can offer a Q&A period to put any of their questions or concerns to rest. 

3. Use visual aids

Appealing to various learning styles is a great way to keep everyone on the same page and ensure they absorb your content. Visual aids are necessary for visual learners and make it easier for people to picture your ideas.

Aim to incorporate a mixture of photos, videos, and props to engage your audience and convey your key points. For instance, if you’re giving a presentation on anthropology subject matter, you could show your audience an artifact to help them understand how exciting a discovery must have been. 

If your presentation is long, including a video for your audience to watch is an excellent way to give yourself a break and create new jumping-off points for your speech.

4. Be aware of design techniques and trends

Thanks to cutting-edge technology and tools, you have numerous platforms at your disposal to create a good presentation. But keep in mind that although color, images, and graphics liven things up, they can cause distraction when misused.

  Here are a few standard pointers for incorporating visuals on your slides: 

• Don’t place blocks of small text on a single slide
• Use a minimalistic background instead of a busy one
• Ensure text stands out against the background color
• Only use high-resolution photos
• Maintain a consistent font style and size throughout the presentation
• Don’t overuse transitions and effects

5. Try the 10-20-30 rule

Guy Kawasaki, a prominent venture capitalist and one of the original marketing specialists for Apple, said that the best slideshow presentations are less than 10 slides , last at most 20 minutes, and use a font size of 30. Following this strategy can help you condense your information, eliminate unnecessary ideas, and maintain your audience’s focus more efficiently.

Once you’re confident in creating a memorable presentation, it’s time to learn how to give one. Here are some valuable tips for keeping your audience invested during your talk: 

Tip #1: Tell stories

Sharing an anecdote from your life can improve your credibility and increase your relatability. And when an audience relates to you, they’re more likely to feel connected to who you are as a person and encouraged to give you their full attention, as they would want others to do the same.

Gill Hicks utilized this strategy well when she shared her powerful story, “ I survived a terrorist attack. Here’s what I learned .” In her harrowing tale, Hicks highlights the importance of compassion, unconditional love, and helping those in need.

If you feel uncomfortable sharing personal stories, that’s okay. You can use examples from famous individuals or create a fictional account to demonstrate your ideas.

Tip #2: Make eye contact with the audience

Maintaining eye contact is less intimidating than it sounds. In fact, you don’t have to look your audience members directly in their eyes — you can focus on their foreheads or noses if that’s easier.

Try making eye contact with as many people as possible for 3–5 seconds each. This timing ensures you don’t look away too quickly, making the audience member feel unimportant, or linger too long, making them feel uncomfortable.

If you’re presenting to a large group, direct your focus to each part of the room to ensure no section of the audience feels ignored. 

Tip #3: Work on your stage presence

Although your tone and words are the most impactful part of your presentation, recall that body language keeps your audience engaged. Use these tips to master a professional stage presence:

• Speak with open arms and avoid crossing them
• Keep a reasonable pace and try not to stand still
• Use hand gestures to highlight important information

Tip #4: Start strong

Like watching a movie trailer, the first seconds of your talk are critical for capturing your audience’s attention. How you start your speech sets the tone for the rest of your presentation and tells your audience whether or not they should pay attention. Here are some ways to start your presentation to leave a lasting impression:

• Use a quote from a well-known and likable influential person 
• Ask a rhetorical question to create intrigue
• Start with an anecdote to add context to your talk 
• Spark your audience’s curiosity by involving them in an interactive problem-solving puzzle or riddle

Tip #5: Show your passion

Don’t be afraid of being too enthusiastic. Everyone appreciates a speaker who’s genuinely excited about their field of expertise. 

In “ Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance ,” Angela Lee Duckworth discusses the importance of passion in research and delivery. She delivers her presentation excitedly to show the audience how excitement piques interest. 

Tip #6: Plan your delivery

How you decide to deliver your speech will shape your presentation. Will you be preparing a PowerPoint presentation and using a teleprompter? Or are you working within the constraints of the digital world and presenting over Zoom?

The best presentations are conducted by speakers who know their stuff and memorize their content. However, if you find this challenging, try creating notes to use as a safety net in case you lose track.

If you’re presenting online, you can keep notes beside your computer for each slide, highlighting your key points. This ensures you include all the necessary information and follow a logical order.

Tip #7: Practice

Practice doesn’t make perfect — it makes progress. There’s no way of preparing for unforeseen circumstances, but thorough practice means you’ve done everything you can to succeed.

Rehearse your speech in front of a mirror or to a trusted friend or family member. Take any feedback and use it as an opportunity to fine-tune your speech. But remember: who you practice your presentation in front of may differ from your intended audience. Consider their opinions through the lens of them occupying this different position.

Tip #8: Read the room

Whether you’re a keynote speaker at an event or presenting to a small group of clients, knowing how to read the room is vital for keeping your audience happy. Stay flexible and be willing to move on from topics quickly if your listeners are uninterested or displeased with a particular part of your speech.

Tip #9: Breathe

Try taking deep breaths before your presentation to calm your nerves. If you feel rushed, you’re more likely to feel nervous and stumble on your words.

The most important thing to consider when presenting is your audience’s feelings. When you approach your next presentation calmly, you’ll put your audience at ease and encourage them to feel comfortable in your presence.

Tip #10: Provide a call-to-action

When you end your presentation, your audience should feel compelled to take a specific action, whether that’s changing their habits or contacting you for your services.

If you’re presenting to clients, create a handout with key points and contact information so they can get in touch. You should provide your LinkedIn information, email address, and phone number so they have a variety of ways to reach you. 

There’s no one-size-fits-all template for an effective presentation, as your unique audience and subject matter play a role in shaping your speech. As a general rule, though, you should aim to connect with your audience through passion and excitement. Use strong eye contact and body language. Capture their interest through storytelling and their trust through relatability.

Learning how to give a good presentation can feel overwhelming — but remember, practice makes progress. Rehearse your presentation for someone you trust, collect their feedback , and revise. Practicing your presentation skills is helpful for any job, and every challenge is a chance to grow.

Enhance your presentation skills

Discover coaching that transforms your public speaking and boosts your confidence in presenting.

Elizabeth Perry, ACC

Elizabeth Perry is a Coach Community Manager at BetterUp. She uses strategic engagement strategies to cultivate a learning community across a global network of Coaches through in-person and virtual experiences, technology-enabled platforms, and strategic coaching industry partnerships. With over 3 years of coaching experience and a certification in transformative leadership and life coaching from Sofia University, Elizabeth leverages transpersonal psychology expertise to help coaches and clients gain awareness of their behavioral and thought patterns, discover their purpose and passions, and elevate their potential. She is a lifelong student of psychology, personal growth, and human potential as well as an ICF-certified ACC transpersonal life and leadership Coach.

6 presentation skills and how to improve them

How to make a presentation interactive and exciting, tell a story they can't ignore these 10 tips will teach you how, 3 stand-out professional bio examples to inspire your own, how to write a speech that your audience remembers, reading the room gives you an edge — no matter who you're talking to, 18 effective strategies to improve your communication skills, writing an elevator pitch about yourself: a how-to plus tips, your guide to what storytelling is and how to be a good storyteller, similar articles, how to pitch ideas: 8 tips to captivate any audience, the 11 tips that will improve your public speaking skills, 30 presentation feedback examples, fear of public speaking overcome it with these 7 tips, how to not be nervous for a presentation — 13 tips that work (really), 8 clever hooks for presentations (with tips), stay connected with betterup, get our newsletter, event invites, plus product insights and research..

3100 E 5th Street, Suite 350 Austin, TX 78702

• Platform Overview
• Integrations
• Powered by AI
• BetterUp Lead™
• BetterUp Manage™
• BetterUp Care®
• Sales Performance
• Diversity & Inclusion
• Case Studies
• Why BetterUp?
• About Coaching
• Find your Coach
• Career Coaching
• Communication Coaching
• Life Coaching
• News and Press
• Leadership Team
• Become a BetterUp Coach
• BetterUp Labs
• Center for Purpose & Performance
• Leadership Training
• Business Coaching
• Contact Support
• Contact Sales
• Privacy Policy
• Acceptable Use Policy
• Trust & Security
• Cookie Preferences

How to make a great presentation

Stressed about an upcoming presentation? These talks are full of helpful tips on how to get up in front of an audience and make a lasting impression.

The secret structure of great talks

The beauty of data visualization

TED's secret to great public speaking

How to speak so that people want to listen

How great leaders inspire action

SpeakUp resources

Starting a presentation in english: methods and examples.

• By Jake Pool

If you’re going to make it in the professional world, most likely you’ll have to give a presentation in English at some point. No reason to get nervous!

Most of the work involved lies in the introduction. You may or may not need an English presentation PPT file, your topic, audience, or time limit may vary, but a strong opening is a must no matter what! Everything that follows can build from the opening outline you present to your audience.

Let’s look at some guidelines for starting a presentation in English. If you can master this part, you’ll never have to worry about the rest!

Opening in a Presentation in English

While it’s important to have your entire presentation organized and outlined, planning and organization are especially important in the introduction. This is what will guide you through a clear and concise beginning. Let’s look at how to start a presentation with well-organized thoughts .

Introduction Outline

• Introduce yourself and welcome everyone.
• State the purpose of your presentation
• Give a short overview of the presentation

As we say, it’s as easy as 1-2-3. (No need for a more detailed English presentation script!) Let’s examine the first step.

1. Introduce Yourself & Welcome Everyone

The self-introduction is your opportunity to make a good first impression. Be sure to open with a warm welcome and use language that is familiar and natural. Based on your audience, there are a few different expressions you can use to start your presentation.

If you’re presenting to coworkers who may already know you:

• Hello, [name] here. I would like to thank you all for your time. As you may know, I [describe what you do/your job title] I look forward to discussing [topic] today.
• Good morning/afternoon/evening everyone. Thank you for being here. For those who don’t know me, my name is [name], and for those who know me, hello again.

If you’re presenting to people you’ve never met:

• Hello everyone, it’s nice to meet you all. My name is [name] and I am the [job/title].
• Hello. Welcome to [event]. My name is [name] and I am the [job/title]. I’m glad you’re all here.

There are certainly more ways to make an introduction. However, it’s generally best to follow this format:

• Start with a polite welcome and state your name.
• Follow with your job title and/or the reason you’re qualified to speak on the topic being discussed.

2. State the Purpose of Your Presentation

Now that your audience knows who you are and your qualifications, you can state the purpose of your presentation. This is where you clarify to your audience what you’ll be talking about.

So, ask yourself, “ What do I want my audience to get from this presentation? ”

• Do you want your audience to be informed?
• Do you need something from your audience?
• Do you want them to purchase a product?
• Do you want them to do something for the community or your company?

With your goal in mind, you can create the next couple of lines of your presentation. Below are some examples of how to start.

• Let me share with you…
• I’d like to introduce you to [product or service]
• Today I want to discuss…
• I want to breakdown for you [topic]
• Let’s discuss…
• Today I will present the results of my research on [topic]
• By the end of this presentation, you’ll understand [topic]
• My goal is to explain…
• As you know, we’ll be talking about…

When talking about the purpose of your presentation, stick to your goals. You purpose statement should be only one to three sentences. That way, you can give your audience a clear sense of purpose that sets them up for the rest of the presentation.

3. A Short Overview of the Presentation

The final step in starting your presentation is to give a short outline of what you’ll be presenting. People like a map of what to expect from a presentation.

It helps them organize their thoughts and gives a sense of order. Also, it lets the audience know why they’re listening to you. This is what you’ll use to grab their attention, and help them stay focused throughout the presentation.

Here are some examples of how you can outline your presentation:

• Today, I’m going to cover… Then we’ll talk about… Lastly, I’ll close on…
• We’re going to be covering some key information you need to know, including…
• My aim with this presentation is to get you to… To do that we’ll be talking about…
• I’ve divided my presentation into [number] sections… [List the sections]
• Over the next [length of your presentation] I’m going to discuss…

That’s it! It’s as simple as 1-2-3. If you have a fear of public speaking or are not confident about presenting to a group of people, follow these three steps. It’s a simple structure that can get you off to a good start. With that in mind, there are other ways to bring your introduction to the next level too! Read on for bonus tips on how to really engage your audience, beyond the basics.

For a Strong Presentation in English, Engage your Audience

Presentations aren’t everyone’s strongest ability, and that’s OK. If you’re newer to presenting in English, the steps above are the basics to getting started. Once you’re more comfortable with presenting, though, you can go a step further with some extra tricks that can really wow your audience.

Mastering the skill of engaging an audience will take experience. Fortunately, there are many famous speakers out there you can model for capturing attention. Also, there are some common techniques that English-speakers use to gain an audience’s attention.

*How and when you use these techniques in your introduction is at your discretion, as long as you cover the 3 steps of the introduction outline that we discussed earlier.*

Do or say something shocking.

The purpose of shocking your audience is to immediately engage them. You can make a loud noise and somehow relate the noise to your presentation. Or, you can say, “ Did you know that… ” and follow with a shocking story or statistic. Either way, the objective is to create surprise to draw their attention.

Tell a story

Telling a story related to your presentation is a great way to get the audience listening to you.

You can start by saying, “ On my way to [location] the other day… ” or “ On my way here, I was reminded of… ” and then follow with a story. A good story can make your presentation memorable.

Ask your audience to take part

Sometimes a good introduction that captures attention will involve asking for help from the audience. You can ask the audience to play a quick game or solve a puzzle that’s related to your presentation. Also, you could engage the audience with a group exercise. This is a great way to get people involved in your presentation.

There are many more ways to engage the audience, so get creative and see what you can think up! Here are some resources that will help you get started.

Also, if you want to get better at public speaking (and help your English speaking too!), a great organization to know about is the Toastmasters . The organization is dedicated to helping you be a better speaker, and there are many local groups in America. They offer free lessons and events to help you master your English speaking, and also offer additional help to paying members.

The Takeaway

A presentation in English? No problem, as long as your introduction sets you up for success . Admittedly, this can be easier said than done. Native speakers and non-native speakers alike sometimes struggle with getting a good start on their English presentation. But the advice above can help you get the confidence you need to lay a good foundation for your next speech !

Free practice (Facebook group)

Phone: +1 (510) 560-7571

Terms of Use

Privacy Policy

Company Home

Log In   0 The website uses cookies for functionality and the collection of anonymised analytics data. We do not set cookies for marketing or advertising purposes. By using our website, you agree to our use of cookies and our privacy policy . We're sorry, but you cannot use our site without agreeing to our cookie usage and privacy policy . You can change your mind and continue to use our site by clicking the button below. This confirms that you accept our cookie usage and privacy policy.

Free English Lessons

Presentations in english – video.

Download PDF

In this lesson, you can learn how to make presentations in English.

Do you have to make presentations in english in your job imagine you have to give an important presentation in english tomorrow. how would you feel about it, this business english lesson will help you learn useful phrases and techniques to introduce yourself and your topic, keep your ideas organised, deal with problems, and respond to questions from audience members., quiz: presentations in english.

Now, test your knowledge of what you learned in the lesson by trying this quiz.

There are 20 questions, following the same order as the lesson.

You will get your score at the end, when you can click on ‘View Questions’ to see all the correct answers.

Quiz Summary

0 of 20 Questions completed

Information

You have already completed the quiz before. Hence you can not start it again.

Quiz is loading…

You must sign in or sign up to start the quiz.

You must first complete the following:

0 of 20 Questions answered correctly

Time has elapsed

You have reached 0 of 0 point(s), ( 0 )

Earned Point(s): 0 of 0 , ( 0 ) 0 Essay(s) Pending (Possible Point(s): 0 )

• Not categorized 0%

Well done! You’ve finished!

That’s an excellent score! Congratulations!

A perfect score! Congratulations!

1 . Question

For those who don’t ________ me, my name’s Elaine, and I work in the HR department.

Choose the missing word.

2 . Question

Write the words in the correct gaps. There is one word you don’t need to use.

Before we , let me myself : I’m Jenny and I’m the head of purchasing.

3 . Question

Put the words in order to create something you might say at the start of a presentation.

View Answers:

4 . Question

Put these sentences in order to create the introduction to a presentation.

• Finally, I’ll suggest some solutions for how we might tackle them in the coming year.
• I’ll begin by highlighting some of the issues that have faced the retail sector during the pandemic.
• Then I’ll explain what we believe are our greatest challenges.

5 . Question

I’ll begin by lining out the policies, and then I’ll go on to highlight what they mean for you and your working habits.

The highlighted words are not used correctly; there should be one word (an -ing verb) instead. Write the correct word below.

6 . Question

Write the missing word to complete a common phrase used to introduce an interesting fact.

Did you that the average office worker in London spends more than two hours commuting to and from work?

7 . Question

Complete the gaps in Dale Carnegie’s famous quote about making presentations, using the verbs ‘say’ and ‘tell’ in the correct form.

“ the audience what you’re going to ; it, and then them what you’ve .”

8 . Question

Next, I’d like to talk about the new marketing drive to attract teens.

The highlighted words are an example of what?

• signposting language
• getting the audience’s attention
• inviting questions
• introducing yourself

9 . Question

Let’s move ________ and discuss the latest customer feedback report.

Choose the correct word.

10 . Question

At this , I’d to to the company’s performance on punctuality.

11 . Question

Put the words in order to create an example of signposting language.

12 . Question

Let’s examine this in more ________.

Choose the two words that are possible.

13 . Question

14 . question.

Write a two-word phrasal verb that’s used as signposting language at the end of a presentation. (You use the same phrasal verb to mean put paper around an item before giving it as a present).

To , let’s remind ourselves of why this should matter to everyone here.

15 . Question

So, you’ve heard what I have to say. What conclusions can you take ________ from this?

16 . Question

Which question is not an example of a filler phrase, which you might say if you need some thinking time?

• Where was I?
• So, what was I saying?
• What’s the word in English again?
• What’s your take on this?

The odd one out – in other words, the answer you’re looking for – is a question that asks for someone’s opinion.

17 . Question

Complete this signposting language with a seven-letter word that means ‘make something clear’. You might say this if you realise you need to explain something in a different way.

To , I wanted to say that …

18 . Question

Write the words in the correct gaps to create a sentence you might say to delay answering a question. There is one word you don’t need to use.

I’ve time for questions at the end of this session, so we’ll your idea later.

19 . Question

• You’ve raised an important point there. What does everyone else think about this?

What technique is this an example of?

• delaying the answer to a question
• deflecting the answer to a question
• dismissing a question

20 . Question

Thanks for your putting in , but I don’t see how that’s connected to what I’m saying.

The highlighted words are not used correctly; there should be a one-word noun instead. Write the correct word below.

1. How to Introduce Yourself and Your Topic

If some people in the audience don’t know who you are, you should introduce yourself and your position.

In a more formal setting, you could say something like this:

• Good morning everyone. For those who don’t know me, my name’s Simon, and I work in the marketing department.
• Hello everybody. Before we begin, let me introduce myself briefly: I’m Reese and I’m the head of HR.

If you work in a more informal company, you could say:

• Hi guys; if you don’t know me, I’m Sylvia and I work in digital marketing.
• Hello! I see some new faces, so I’ll introduce myself first: I’m Julia and I’m one of our customer service team.

Next, you need to introduce your topic.

If your presentation topic is simpler, you could just say one sentence, like this:

• Today, I’m going to be talking about our new HR policies and how they affect you.
• I’d like to talk to you today about quality control and why we’re all responsible for quality control, whichever department you work in.

If your topic is more complex, you might add more detail to break your idea into stages. For example:

• Today, I’m going to be talking about our new HR policies and how they affect you. I’ll begin by outlining the policies, and then I’ll go on to highlight what they mean for you and your working habits. Finally, I’ll briefly discuss why we feel these new policies are necessary and beneficial for us all.

Here’s another example:

• I’d like to talk to you today about quality control and why we’re all responsible for quality control, whichever department you work in. First of all, I’ll explain why ‘quality control’ has a broader meaning than you might expect. I’ll continue by giving examples of real quality control, and why this matters for all of us. To finish, I’ll be asking you to think of ways you can incorporate quality control into your working habits.

Here, you saw two examples. You can use these as templates to begin your presentation:

• I’ll begin by… and then I’ll… Finally, I’ll…
• First of all, I’ll… I’ll continue by… To finish, I’ll…

Okay, now you can practice! We’d like you to do two things.

First, practice introducing yourself informally, and explaining your topic in a simple way, with one sentence.

Then, practice introducing yourself formally, and explaining your topic in a more detailed way.

Pause the video and practice speaking. All the language you need is in this section.

Learn more about this topic with another free English video lesson from Oxford Online English: Greetings and Introductions .

Ready? Let’s move on!

2. How to Make a Strong Start

I’m sure that in your life, you’ve heard good speakers and bad speakers.

Good speakers grab your attention and don’t let go. You want to hear what they have to say. You feel interested and energised by listening to them.

Bad speakers are the opposite. Even if you try to make yourself listen, you find that your attention drifts away. Your eyelids feel heavy, and you have to struggle to stay awake.

So, here’s a question: what’s the difference between good speakers and bad speakers? And, how can you make sure you speak effectively when you make your presentation in English?

Here’s one way to think about it: bad speakers don’t think they have to earn your attention. Good speakers understand that no one has to listen to them, so they work hard to make you want to pay attention.

What does this mean for you, and your presentation?

Getting people’s attention starts from the beginning. You need to make it clear what people should expect from your presentation, and why they should care about what you have to say.

Sounds like a nice idea, but how do you do this?

Here are three techniques you can use.

One: establish a problem which many people in your audience have. Then, establish that you have a solution to their problem.

For example:

• Have you ever felt unfairly treated at work, or felt that the work you do isn’t appreciated? We’ve been working to design new HR policies that will make sure all staff get fair recognition for their contribution to the company.

In this way, you take a boring-sounding topic like HR policies, and you make it more relevant to your audience. How? By connecting it with their experiences and feelings.

The second technique? Mention an interesting fact, or a surprising statistic to get people’s attention.

• Did you know that the average office worker spends eight hours a day at work, but only does four hours of productive, useful work? I’m here to tell you about ‘quality control’, and how you can use this idea to make better use of your time.

Finally, you can engage people by telling a short story and connecting it to your topic. Stories are powerful, and they can add an emotional dimension to your topic if you do it well. For example:

• I once met a young salesman—I won’t mention his name. He spent several weeks building a relationship with a potential client. He worked overtime, and he was working so hard that he was under severe stress, which started to affect his personal life. In the end, he didn’t close the deal—the clients signed with another firm. Today, I’m going to talk about confidence as a sales tool, and how you can avoid the traps that this young man fell into.

Use one of these three techniques in your introduction to connect with your audience and show them why they should be interested in what you have to say.

Here’s a question for you: which technique would you prefer to use, and why?

Okay, now you’ve introduced your topic and you have everyone’s attention. What next?

3. Using Signposting Language

There’s a famous quote about making presentations:

• “Tell the audience what you’re going to say; say it, and then tell them what you’ve said.”

Have you heard this before? Do you know who said it?

This comes from Dale Carnegie , a very successful American salesman and writer. He lived a long time ago, but his advice is still relevant today.

So, here’s a question: what does the quote mean?

It means that your presentation shouldn’t just give information. You also need to show people how your information is organized.

To do this, you need signposting language.

Let me give you an example to explain.

Imagine you go to a website. The website is full of really useful, interesting information. But, the information is all on one page. There’s no organization, and you have to scroll up and down, up and down this huge page, trying to find what you need. Would you stay on that website?

Probably not. You’ll find a website which makes it easier for you to find the information you need.

What’s the point here?

The point is that having interesting or relevant information is not enough. How you structure and organize your information is equally important.

If you don’t structure your presentation clearly, people won’t pay attention, just like you won’t stay on a website if you can’t find the information you want.

So, how can you do this?

You use signposting language. This means using words and phrases to show the audience where your points begin and end, to show what’s coming next, and to remind them about things you talked about before.

• Okay, that covers the new policies. Next, I’d like to move on and discuss what these policies mean for you.
• Now that you’ve heard a bit about what not to do, let’s focus on positive advice to help you be more effective salespeople and close more of your leads.

When you say something like this, you aren’t giving people information about the topic of your presentation. Instead, you’re showing people where you are, and where you’re going next.

It’s a kind of signpost. You don’t need signposts to travel from one place to another, but they can make it easier.

What else can you use signposting language for?

You can use signposting language to move from one point to the next. For example:

• Next, I’d like to talk about…
• Let’s move on and discuss…
• At this point, I’d like to turn to…

You can use signposting language to add detail to an idea:

• Let me go into some more detail about…
• Let’s examine … in more depth.
• I’d like to elaborate on…

You can use signposting language to show that you’ve finished your main points, and you’ve reached your conclusion:

• To wrap up, let’s remind ourselves of why this should matter to everyone here.
• Let’s review the key points from this session.
• So, you’ve heard what I have to say. What conclusions can you take away from this?

If you have an important presentation in English, practice using signposting language.

Use signposting language to move between points, to show when you’re giving a summary or going into more detail, and to signal that you’ve reached your conclusion.

Okay, but things don’t always go so smoothly in real life. We know that! Let’s look at some advice and language for dealing with problems during your presentation.

4. Dealing With Problems

Imagine you’re making your presentation in English. What could go wrong? What problems could you have?

There are many common problems:

You might forget where you were, or forget an important word. You might realise that you said something wrong, or you didn’t explain something clearly. You might forget to mention something important. Or, someone might ask you an awkward question, which you have no idea how to answer.

Of course, there are other possibilities!

Let’s think about these problems. What can you do, and more importantly, what can you say in these situations?

First of all, it’s a good idea to make a cue card with key points, as well as any important vocabulary you need. If you lose your place, or you forget a word, it could help.

However, you can’t prepare for everything. So, it’s useful to learn some phrases to deal with problems smoothly.

If you lose your place, and can’t remember what to say next, you can use a filler phrase like:

If you still can’t remember, look at your cue card with your main points.

Of course, forgetting something isn’t ideal. But, if you do, it’s better to keep talking, rather than just standing there in silence.

What if you make a mistake, or you realise that you didn’t explain something well?

You could say:

• Let me rephrase that.
• Actually, what I meant to say is…
• To clarify, I wanted to say that…

In this way, you can correct yourself without admitting that you made a mistake!

What if you realise that you forgot to mention something important?

Use a phrase like this:

• Let me just add one more thing:…
• I’d like to add something to a point we discussed earlier.
• Let me return to an earlier point briefly.

Again, this allows you to correct your mistake in a confident way, so you look like you’re in control.

Finally, what do you do if someone asks you a difficult question, which you can’t answer?

You have a few options. First, you can delay giving an answer. For example:

• I’ve allocated time for questions at the end of this session, so we’ll address your idea later.
• I’m not in a position to answer that right now, but I’ll get back to you later this week.

This gives you time to think of an answer and do some research if you have to!

Next, you can deflect the question, by asking a question back, or maybe by asking other audience members what they think. For example:

• That’s an interesting question. Before I answer, I’d like to know: what’s your take on this?

Finally, if the question is irrelevant, you can dismiss the question and move on. For example:

• Thanks for your input, but I don’t see how that’s connected to what I’m saying.
• I don’t mean to be blunt, but I don’t think that’s relevant to today’s discussion.

Notice how you can use phrases like thanks for your input, but… or I don’t mean to be blunt, but… to make your language more indirect and polite.

So, for dealing with difficult questions, just remember the three d’s: delay, deflect, dismiss!

Thanks for watching!

We Offer Video Licensing and Production

Use our videos in your own materials or corporate training, videos edited to your specifications, scripts written to reflect your training needs, bulk pricing available.

Interested?

More English Lessons

Business english lessons.

• Facebook 111
• Odnoklassniki icon Odnoklassniki 0
• VKontakte 0
• Pinterest 0
• LinkedIn 26

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

• Carmine Gallo

Five tips to set yourself apart.

Never underestimate the power of great communication. It can help you land the job of your dreams, attract investors to back your idea, or elevate your stature within your organization. But while there are plenty of good speakers in the world, you can set yourself apart out by being the person who can deliver something great over and over. Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired together are more memorable); don’t underestimate the power of your voice (raise and lower it for emphasis); give your audience something extra (unexpected moments will grab their attention); rehearse (the best speakers are the best because they practice — a lot).

I was sitting across the table from a Silicon Valley CEO who had pioneered a technology that touches many of our lives — the flash memory that stores data on smartphones, digital cameras, and computers. He was a frequent guest on CNBC and had been delivering business presentations for at least 20 years before we met. And yet, the CEO wanted to sharpen his public speaking skills.

• Carmine Gallo is a Harvard University instructor, keynote speaker, and author of 10 books translated into 40 languages. Gallo is the author of The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman  (St. Martin’s Press).

Partner Center

• PRO Courses Guides New Tech Help Pro Expert Videos About wikiHow Pro Upgrade Sign In
• EDIT Edit this Article
• EXPLORE Tech Help Pro About Us Random Article Quizzes Request a New Article Community Dashboard This Or That Game Popular Categories Arts and Entertainment Artwork Books Movies Computers and Electronics Computers Phone Skills Technology Hacks Health Men's Health Mental Health Women's Health Relationships Dating Love Relationship Issues Hobbies and Crafts Crafts Drawing Games Education & Communication Communication Skills Personal Development Studying Personal Care and Style Fashion Hair Care Personal Hygiene Youth Personal Care School Stuff Dating All Categories Arts and Entertainment Finance and Business Home and Garden Relationship Quizzes Cars & Other Vehicles Food and Entertaining Personal Care and Style Sports and Fitness Computers and Electronics Health Pets and Animals Travel Education & Communication Hobbies and Crafts Philosophy and Religion Work World Family Life Holidays and Traditions Relationships Youth
• Browse Articles
• Learn Something New
• Quizzes Hot
• This Or That Game
• Train Your Brain
• Explore More
• Support wikiHow
• About wikiHow
• Log in / Sign up
• Education and Communications
• Presentations

How to Give a Presentation

Last Updated: May 19, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Patrick Muñoz . Patrick is an internationally recognized Voice & Speech Coach, focusing on public speaking, vocal power, accent and dialects, accent reduction, voiceover, acting and speech therapy. He has worked with clients such as Penelope Cruz, Eva Longoria, and Roselyn Sanchez. He was voted LA's Favorite Voice and Dialect Coach by BACKSTAGE, is the voice and speech coach for Disney and Turner Classic Movies, and is a member of Voice and Speech Trainers Association. There are 10 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 527,841 times.

Giving a presentation terrifies most of us, especially when talking before a crowd of people about an unfamiliar topic. Never fear! There are ways to make a good presentation. The more presentations you do, the easier they will become!

Preparing For the Presentation

• It's best to have 1 main thesis statement or overarching theme and 3 main points that back-up or flesh-out your main theme. Any more than that and your audience is going to start losing interest. This means that any facts and information that are a part of your presentation should back up these 3 main points and overarching theme.
• For example: If you're giving a presentation about 17th century alchemy, bringing up the history of alchemy is fine (and probably necessary), but don't mire your audience in its history instead of focusing alchemy in the 17th century. Your 3 points could be something like "alchemy in public opinion," "famous 17th century alchemists," and "the legacy of 17th century alchemy."

• Pick your very best supporting facts, information, or quotes for your presentation. Don't bury your audience in information.

• Make sure you're using media to enhance your presentation and not to drown it out. The presentation is key. Anything else is just accessorizing.
• For example: to get back to 17th century alchemy, to back up your information about alchemy in the public opinion, you might want to show images from public pamphlets about the dangers of alchemy and see what people of the time period had to say about it and see what the more famous alchemists had to say about it.
• Also, you want to make sure that you pick a medium that you are comfortable in and thorough in knowledge. If you don't know a thing about PowerPoint, maybe consider writing your main points on a white board, or passing out handouts with your main points and evidence on them. [3] X Research source

• A good tip is to film yourself or audiotape of yourself giving your practice presentation so you can see what distracting verbal and physical tics you have, so that you can work on eliminating them before the presentation itself. (Verbs tics would be things like "um..." and "uh..." and using "like" inappropriately; physical tics are things like shifting your weight from foot to foot or messing with your hair.) To stop yourself from saying "um" or other unwanted tics, be aware you're doing it first, then speak more slowly and deliberately. Breathe deeply and feel free to pause and appreciate the silence. These will all help you to have mastery over your tics.
• Just remember that rehearsals usually run about 20% shorter than your actual presentation, so take that into account if you're running on a time limit.

• For example, if you aren't comfortable wearing heels, don't wear them just for the presentation. You'll be distracted by your discomfort and that will come across in the presentation. There are plenty of good shoe choices that have no or a low heel.
• Clean, nice slacks or a skirt and nice, button-down shirt in neutral colors are always good choices for presentation wear. You also don't particularly want your clothing choice to distract from the presentation, so perhaps avoid that brilliant hot pink shirt.

Giving the Presentation

• Before the presentation, clench and unclench your hands several times to deal with the adrenaline and then take 3 deep, slow breaths.
• Call up a smile, even if you feel like hurling. You can trick your brain into thinking that you're less anxious than you actually are and you'll also be able to hide your nervousness from your audience.

• Make eye contact with your audience. Don't stare at one particular person, but section up the room and make eye contact with someone in each section on a rotational basis.
• Have a big, welcoming smile on your face, with lots of energy, so you start out from a strong and engaging place.
• Ask questions of your audience and take questions during your presentation. This will make it more of a conversation and therefore more interesting.
• Tell an amusing anecdote to illustrate your point. From the above examples about 17th century alchemy, you could find an amusing alchemical anecdote from the time period, or you could talk about your own forays into alchemy.

• Move around, but make your movements deliberate. Don't nervously shift your feet (in fact, it's a good idea to imagine that your feet are nailed to the floor except for those times you deliberately choose to move).
• Use your vocal inflections to create a more dynamic presentation. Vary your voice as you're talking. Nobody ( ever ) wants to sit there and listen to someone drone on and on in dull monotone, no matter how interesting the material (think Professor Binns from Harry Potter; that's what you don't want).
• Try to create a balance between rehearsed and spontaneous. Spontaneous, on the spot, movement and asides can be great as long as you are really comfortable, otherwise they can sidetrack your presentation and make it rambling. Mess around with spontaneous and rehearsed when you're practicing and you'll get a feel for it.

• Quickly introduce your topic and don't assume that your audience is familiar with all the terms, especially if your topic is one that isn't widely known.
• Figuring out why you want (or have to) give this presentation will help you work with an overarching story/theme. Maybe you want to pass the class. Maybe you're convincing people to give you money or join you in a philanthropic endeavor or act for a social or political reason. Channel that desire into your presentation. You're answering the question of why they would want to pass you or why they would want to fund you. That's the story you're telling.

• Make use of pauses, and learn to be comfortable with silences. Silence can be a powerful presentation tool and gives you a chance to take a moment to recompose. By taking pauses, you can slow down your breathing and be more deliberate in your speech, avoiding speaking too quickly.
• Have water with you and take a sip when you feel you're going too fast.
• If you have a friend in the class or meeting, arrange with them beforehand that they will let you know with a signal whether you're talking too quickly. Look over their way occasionally and check your progress.
• If you find that you're running out of time and you haven't finished, simply drop or summarize your leftover material. Acknowledge the leftover material as something that can be discussed later or in the Q&A.

• Make it clear what the listeners now know and why it is important that they have this new information.
• Conclude with examples or stories about your main point and take home message. You might want a slide which summarizes your presentation. For example, you might conclude with a story about the nature of alchemy in the modern era (perhaps in a film) to show its malleable nature.

What Is The Best Way To Start a Presentation?

Community Q&A

• Have a short Q&A session at the end of each subtopic. Q&A sessions will improve audience engagement. It also acts as a welcome break for audience in case of long presentation. For this though, you will need to know the subject you choose well. Make sure you understand and have more than just the basic knowledge about the topic you choose. Thanks Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0
• Use pictures or visuals. Pictures and visuals show that you know what you're talking about, and it gives the audience a picture of what you're talking about. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Try to have a "leave behind" message, something that your audience can take away that reminds them about your presentation, like a flyer or a book, for example. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

Tips from our Readers

• Use pictures! A good way to use pictures is through PowerPoint. If you don't have PowerPoint, you can print the pictures onto a board (paper, card board, or larger paper).
• Don't be nervous. Practice and do just like you did in practice. If you are nervous, the audience will know.
• Try to do some hand jesters. Speak loud and clear. Make eye contact with them. Be confident.
• Let the audience have an opportunity to interact with you.

• Don't make your speech too long, unless it is really good, and you have to have done speeches for a long time to have them be that good and long. Stick to short and sweet. Thanks Helpful 50 Not Helpful 11
• Don't put off work to the last minute. Then your work will be most likely sloppy. If you do well under pressure, do your project a bit at a time and maybe it will get done. Or, try doing it all at the beginning, so then you have the whole rest of the time to play or check your assignment. Thanks Helpful 36 Not Helpful 16
• Jokes are usually not okay, especially in a professional setting. A light hearted comment is fine, but don't make it seem like a comedy show. Thanks Helpful 12 Not Helpful 3
• If you speak in a too fast/slow or monotone voice, people will not want to hear you! Aim for a conversation voice (but slightly louder) with natural pauses (commas and periods). Develop a tone depending on what you're talking about. It's more interesting and engaging to hear someone speak in a serious tone rather than a monotone when speaking about world hunger. Thanks Helpful 9 Not Helpful 2
• If you suffer from twitchy fingers, be mindful to move your hands during your presentation only when necessary, or the audience may notice and feel you are unprepared. Thanks Helpful 8 Not Helpful 3

You Might Also Like

• ↑ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/young-entrepreneur-council/13-tips-for-giving-a-kill_b_3728093.html
• ↑ https://www.niu.edu/presentations/prepare/index.shtml
• ↑ https://algonquincollege.libguides.com/studyskills/creating-presentations
• ↑ https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/how-to-prepare-the-presentation
• ↑ http://www.washington.edu/doit/TeamN/present_tips.html
• ↑ https://counseling.uiowa.edu/self-help/30-ways-to-manage-speaking-anxiety/
• ↑ https://www.hamilton.edu/academics/centers/oralcommunication/guides/how-to-engage-your-audience-and-keep-them-with-you
• ↑ http://hbr.org/2013/06/how-to-give-a-killer-presentation/ar/1
• ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-slow-down-your-speech-when-presenting-sharon-maree-jurd-cfe/
• ↑ https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/how-to-conclude-a-presentation

About This Article

Before you give a presentation, spend some time crafting what you will say. Most presentations should center on a thesis, or main idea, and contain about 3 supporting points. Cutting unnecessary content will ensure your presentation is impactful. Once your presentation is done, practice delivering it in front of a mirror or while recording yourself so you can identify and correct any issues. To calm your nerves before you present, try clenching your fists a few times and taking several deep breaths. For more advice about giving presentations, like whether to use visual aides, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No

• Send fan mail to authors

Reader Success Stories

Nkosinathi Mathebula

Jun 14, 2017

Did this article help you?

Prashant Mahasagar Sangson

Aug 8, 2017

Dharmender Mangla

Apr 26, 2016

Hedika Amani

Jan 14, 2019

May 5, 2016

Featured Articles

Trending Articles

Watch Articles

• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• Do Not Sell or Share My Info
• Not Selling Info

Don’t miss out! Sign up for

wikiHow’s newsletter

• Student Login:

How to Organize Your Introduction for a Presentation [+ FREE Presentation Checklist]

May 1, 2018 | Business Professional English , Free Resource , Public Speaking & Presentations

This lesson on how to organize your introduction for a presentation in English has been updated since its original posting in 2016 and a video has been added.

Getting ready to present in English? Here’s how to make sure your introduction for a presentation in English is successful.

But first… When you think about a presentation, I know you’re thinking about something like a TED video or a presentation at a conference. You’re thinking about a speech, with PowerPoint slides and a big audience.

But did you know we use the same skills when we share new information or ideas with our work colleagues? Or when we tell stories to our friends and family? The situation or speaking task may be different but we still use the same skills.

When presenting information or telling stories, we need to:

• Capture a listener’s attention
• Share information, ideas, or opinions
• Give the important details
• Make your information memorable
• Get your audience (family, friends, colleagues or strangers) to agree, to take action, to change their mind, etc.

So today you’re going to learn how to take the first big step in your English presentation: how to start with a great introduction.

The introduction is the most important part of your presentation. It is the first impression you’ll make on your audience. It’s your first opportunity to get their attention. You want them to trust you and listen to you right away.

However, that first moment when you start to speak is often the hardest. Knowing how to best prepare and knowing what to say will help you feel confident and ready to say that first word and start your presentation in English.

Be sure to include these 5 things in your inroduction.

Lesson by Annemarie

How to Organize Your Introduction for a Presentation in English and Key Phrases to Use

Organize Your Introduction Correctly

Okay, first let’s focus on what you need to include in your English introduction. Think of this as your formula for a good introduction. Using this general outline for your introduction will help you prepare. It will also help your audience know who you are, why you’re an expert, and what to expect from your presentation.

Use this general outline for your next presentation:

• Welcome your audience and introduce yourself
• Capture their attention
• Identify your number one goal or topic of presentation
• Give a quick outline of your presentation
• Provide instructions for how to ask questions (if appropriate for your situation)

Use Common Language to Make Your Introduction Easy to Understand

Great, now you have the general outline of an introduction for a speech or presentation in English. So let’s focus on some of the key expressions you can use for each step. This will help you think about what to say and how to say it so you can sound confident and prepared in your English presentation.

“The introduction is the most important part of your presentation. It is the first impression you’ll make on your audience. It’s your first opportunity to get their attention. You want them to trust you and listen to you right away.”

Welcome Your Audience & Introduction

It is polite to start with a warm welcome and to introduce yourself. Everyone in the audience will want to know who you are. Your introduction should include your name and job position or the reason you are an expert on your topic. The more the audience trusts you, the more they listen.

• Welcome to [name of company or event]. My name is [name] and I am the [job title or background information].
• Thank you for coming today. I’m [name] and I’m looking forward to talking with you today about [your topic].
• Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen. I’d like to quickly introduce myself. I am [name] from [company or position]. (formal)
• On behalf of [name of company], I’d like to welcome you today. For those of you who don’t already know me, my name is [name] and I am [job title or background]. (formal)
• Hi everyone. I’m [name and background]. I’m glad to be here with you today. Now let’s get started. (informal)

Capture Their Attention

For more information about how to best capture your audience’s attention and why, please see the next session below. However, here are a few good phrases to get you started.

• Did you know that [insert an interesting fact or shocking statement]?
• Have you ever heard that [insert interesting fact or shocking statement]?
• Before I start, I’d like to share a quick story about [tell your story]…
• I remember [tell your story, experience or memory]…
• When I started preparing for this talk, I was reminded of [tell your story, share your quote or experience]…

Identify Your Goal or Topic of Presentation

At this stage, you want to be clear with your audience about your primary topic or goal. Do you want your audience to take action after your talk? Is it a topic everyone is curious about (or should be curious about)? This should be just one or two sentences and it should be very clear.

• This morning I’d like to present our new [product or service].
• Today I’d like to discuss…
• Today I’d like to share with you…
• What I want to share with you is…
• My goal today is to help you understand…
• During my talk this morning/afternoon, I’ll provide you with some background on [main topic] and why it is important to you.
• I will present my findings on…
• By the end of my presentation, I’d like for you to know…
• I aim to prove to you / change your mind about…
• I’d like to take this opportunity to talk about…
• As you know, this morning/afternoon I’ll be discussing…

Outline Your Presentation

You may have heard this about presentations in English before:

First, tell me what you’re going to tell me. Then tell me. And finally, tell me what you told me.

It sounds crazy and weird, but it’s true. This is how we structure presentations in English. So today we’re focusing on the “First, tell me what you’re going to tell me” for your introduction. This means you should outline the key points or highlights of your topic.

This prepares your listens and helps to get their attention. It will also help them follow your presentation and stay focused. Here are some great phrases to help you do that.

• First, I’m going to present… Then I’ll share with you… Finally, I’ll ask you to…
• The next thing I’ll share with you is…
• In the next section, I’ll show you…
• Today I will be covering these 3 (or 5) key points…
• In this presentation, we will discuss/evaluate…
• By the end of this presentation, you’ll be able to…
• My talk this morning is divided into [number] main sections… First, second, third… Finally…

On Asking Questions

You want to be sure to let you audience know when and how it is appropriate for them to ask you questions. For example, is the presentation informal and is it okay for someone to interrupt you with a question? Or do you prefer for everyone to wait until the end of the presentation to ask questions?

• If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to interrupt me. I’m happy to answer any questions as we go along.
• Feel free to ask any questions, however, I do ask that you wait until the end of the presentation to ask.
• There will be plenty of time for questions at the end.
• Are there any questions at this point? If not, we’ll keep going.
• I would be happy to answer any questions you may have now.

Capture Your Audience’s Attention

Do you feel unsure about how to capture the attention of your audience? Don’t worry! Here are some common examples used in English-speaking culture for doing it perfectly!

Two of the most famous speakers in the English-speaking world are Steve Jobs and Oprah Winfrey. While Steve Jobs is no longer living, people still love to watch his speeches and presentations online. Oprah is so famous that no matter what she does, people are excited to see her and listen to her.

BUT, if you listen to a speech by Steve Jobs or Oprah Winfrey,  they still  work  to get your attention!

The don’t start with a list of numbers or data. They don’t begin with a common fact or with the title of the presentation. No – they do much more.

From the moment they start their speech, they want you to listen. And they find interesting ways to get your attention. In his most famous speeches, Steve Jobs often started with a personal story. And Oprah often starts with an inspiring quote, a motivational part of a poem, or a personal story.

These are all great ways to help your audience to listen to you immediately – whether your presentation is 3 minutes or 20 minutes.

Here’s how you can do it.

Like Steve Jobs or Oprah Winfrey, start with a:

• Personal story or experience
• Motivational quote or line from a poem or book
• Joke (be careful with this – make sure it translates easily to everyone in the audience!)
• Shocking, bold statement (Think of Steve Jobs’ quote: “ Stay hungry. Stay Foolish .”)
• Rhetorical question ( =a question that you don’t want an answer to; the focus is to make someone think)

And finally, consider audience participation. Ask a question and get your audience to respond by raising hands.

Get the complete Presentations in English Series:

Part 1: How to Prepare for Your Presentation in English

Part 2: How to Start with a Great Introduction in Your Presentation

Part 3:  How to Organize Your Presentation in English

Part 4:  How to End Your Presentation Powerfully

As I mentioned in the video, I have two question for you today:

• What is the best introduction you’ve ever heard? Have you watched a TED Talk or a presentation on YouTube with a great introduction? Tell me about it. What do you think was great about the introduction?
• What frightens you the most about preparing your introduction in a presentation? Share your concerns with me so I can help you overcome any challenges you have.

Be sure to share in the comments below to get feedback from me and to learn from others in the Confident English Community.

Have a great week! ~ Annemarie

Get the Confidence to Say What You Want in English

Follow my 3-step solution to speak English with clarity, fluency, and freedom so you can say what you want with confidence.

You'll also get my Confident English lessons delivered by email every Wednesday and occasional information about available courses. You can unsubscribe any time.

More Like This

Better Ways to Say Yes, No, Maybe, and I Can’t in English

At its best, saying “maybe” to an invitation is awkward. It might sound like you don’t want to go. And at its worst, it can sound rude. Are there better ways to say yes, no, maybe, or I can’t in English? Absolutely. Here’s how to accept and decline invitations + requests in English.

5 Smart Questions to Ask in an English Job Interview

It’s the last question in your job interview in English and you hear: Do you have any questions for me? What should you say? Is it okay to ask a question in a job interview? Find out exactly what you should do plus 5 smart questions to ask.

How to Disagree in English Politely

Want to say “I disagree” without creating tension in the conversation? Master the art of disagreement in this lesson on, “How to Disagree in English Politely.”

#310: The Right Grammar for English Introductions

Get your English introductions just right with this step-by-step video on Grammar for English Introductions when you’re meeting someone new.

#309: How to Go Off Topic in English | English Conversation Skills

Learn how to gracefully go off topic in English without losing your audience. Whether you’re in a meeting or chatting with friends, in this lesson we dive deep into the art of smoothly navigating tangents while enhancing your English conversation skills.

#308: How to Use ‘Though’ in English [+ FREE Worksheet]

Learn and practice how to correctly use though, although, even though, and as thought in your English conversations.

© Copyright 2014-2024 Speak Confident English  |   Privacy Policy  |   Terms & Disclaimer  | Online Class Policies

Thank you, Annemarie. thanks for the generosity of sharing useful and systemative information and content.

This is really a very informative message thank you.. And it’s help me a lot

hi thank you for this It was helpful. You used simple english that i understood well.

How to start with a great presentation on composition

Thankyou for the information . It was much helpful . I will definitely use this information in my presentation 🤗

Hi, I am Thang Sok Do you have a Sample presentation?

This was helpful but can you please tell me how to start a presentation in college because this is for work in a company. My presentation is on laboratory skills and all that

Its informative

Thank you for this video! I’ve learned quite a lot and will want to use all these knowledge in presenting my thesis proposal in 2 months. About your question no. 2, I’d just like to share that the mere fact of presenting in front of many respected professionals makes me already nervous and shaky even if i have studied everything about my presentation. What do you think should i do to deal with my concern?

Could you give me advise, how to start learning English for beginner.How to prepare presentation on any topic and how to make interesting..

Thank u so much for valuable advice. Definitely I will used this in my presentation!!

Thank you very much for these kind of useful advice. I hope my first presentation will be exciting for the audience.Your video is helping me again thanks a lot 😊

hi, i’m B.COM student and I have to prepare presentation about identifying business opportunities. How to start and an attractive attention to my audience.. Please Help me…

very nise and educative piece of information thank you nancy nairobi kenya

i am starting a video speech shooting in night about a famouse person how do i start my speech with a good intro.

Hi again how do you do a introduction goodbye

Hi i do not know what you are talking about

Hi Kate, I’m sorry to hear you’re not sure about the content. I recommend reviewing the video carefully if you haven’t already. Is there something specific you have a question about?

thanks a lot for guiding in such an easier way.

Your write-up on introduction helped a lot, thank you Annemarie. I work for cross-geography team and greetings get lengthy as timezones are different e.g. “Good evening to those joining from US office and good morning to colleagues from India office”. I replaced that with “Thank you everyone for joining”. Is it okay?

Hi Amit, I’m so glad it was helpful. As for your greeting, both of your options are perfectly appropriate and friendly.

How to introduce group members in online presentation?

Great question! I’d love to use that for a future Confident English lesson.

its amazing. i can’t explain in wording. this material helping me a lot. i am so happy after use this website . its make easy for me preparing my presentation more interesting. i am thankful too u.

thanks! i use your materials to teach my students(clinets) how to prepare a presentation. is it ok to use them on my materials?

Hi! I am a student from the USP from Tuvaluan and i take CEE45 so our assessment 2 is to prepared a group presentation and we presented in school. so need your help for how to start an attractive introduction to my teacher and my fellow students, they already kwow me.

Thank you.. very helpful

Very useful

It was very use Gul for or presentations

Hi. I am a 1st year BIT student and I have to prepare a presentation on 3D Printing. how to start an attractive introduction to my teachers, when they already know about me? Can you please help me out? Thank you.

I just took 1st place for my paper that I presented at an international students conference. I used a lot of your techniques to improve my speech and I have no words to say how grateful I am to you. Keep up the good work!

😲WOW!! That’s awesome, Andrew. 🙌Congratulations on your presentation. What a wonderful response to your hard work. I’d love to know what you presentation was about. And thank you for sharing your new here. I’m thrilled to know that my techniques were helpful to you.

The title of the presentation was “Handling burnout: A study regarding the the influence of job stressors over military and civilian personel”. I can sent you my paper through email if you would like to see it.

Hi Andrew, what a fascinating topic. And it’s interesting because I just had a newspaper reporter interview me about burnout as a small business owner. Must be a hot topic. 🙂 And sure, I’d love to see it.

🔥❤ too goodd

Hello Annemarie, Thank you so much for one of the best content on the English presentation, I’ve seen. I have a question: Is it impolite or informal to start the presentation without a greeting? I’m asking this question because I’ve seen a lot of TEDTalks and in only a few of them, they greet the audience and in most of it, they quickly go to the “CAPTURING the ATTENTION” with numbers and pictures. I would be so thankful if you could answer this question as soon as possible, my presentation is so close. Best regards, Helia

Hi Helia, What a great question. It has definitely become more common to skip the greeting and go straight to capturing the attention of the audience and you’re right that we often see this in TED talks. I would say it’s best to know your audience and what might be expected. For example, at more formal, traditional conferences or lecture, it might be more appropriate to start with a welcome. I prefer to welcome/thank my audience quickly at the start when I give presentations. A welcome can be very brief, just one sentence, and then you can quickly go into …  Read more »

Hi Annemarie I would like to thank you for giving such types of presentation skills but I have a question can you give me some idea about vote of thinks.

I’m glad the lessons are helpful to you. Could you clarify what you mean by ‘vote of thinks?’ I’m not sure I understand that.

Please can you give me some idea about vote of thanks

Could you clarify what you’re asking for, Bello?

Thanks a lot

Glad it was helpful!

it is agood i learn alot from this english class

Hello.i would like to thank you for giving these beautiful tips to start a presentation.This article helped me a lot.

That’s great, Radha. Glad to hear it.

Thanks for your article. It’s simply for interpersonal skill development.

You’re welcome, Mithun. Glad to know it was helpful.

Hi Annemarie . Thank you so much for giving such helpful guildelines it’s really gonna help me

I’m glad it’s helpful, Swetha! 🙂

thank you for help me

You’re very welcome!

Hi Anne Marie, i ‘m from Catalonia and i came across with your site only by chance and i think it’gonna be so helpful for me to pass the next test for c1 level. Several weeks ago i did some rehersals with my presentation and i was so nervous and terrified about what was expected from me.

Some tips in your youtube channel are so cool !!! Thank you.

Hi Tom, I’m thrilled you’ve found this site in your preparations for your English exam and am glad to know it’s helpful! Best of luck as you continue to prepare.

Hi Annemarie Thanks it’s so useful to develop presentation skill. Fatima

You’re very welcome, Fatima! I’m glad it was helpful.

Awesome, especially this simple and clear motto: “First, tell me what you’re going to tell me. Then tell me. And finally, tell me what you told me.” This three sentences exactly explain the content you need to create a memorable presentation.

Hi Dzmitry,

Yes, I’ve always loved that simple motto on how to do a presentation. 🙂 It’s so easy to remember and tells you exactly what to do.

hello I need to introduce myself to language center. i am going to learn Danish Language and i want to introduce myself to them and i am little bit nervous because my grammar is not good at that level.so will you please guide me how to introduce myself to them with an example. i did go through your examples but that is for professionals and i am just a student (Graduate). I don’t have any experience . Please guide me how to do it.

I was in a confused state about starting a conversation and proceeding in it but when I read the guidelines you mentioned above I became confident. thank you for your innumerable ………….

Thank you so much…… it’s an excellent topic, and it helped me a lot

I’m so glad this was helpful to you! Thank you for sharing.

hi annemarie i have a few questions about a speech i have to make a englishi speech of what i want to become can you help me?

Hi Rebecca,

Thank you for the question. I have several lessons on the topic of presentations in English . However, for personal assistance with English or presentations, I only do that through my one-on-one classes .

thank you so much…… it’s really helpful for me….

You’re very welcome, Shalini.

Thanks its really nice to develop the presentation skills

Awesome. I’m glad it was helpful to you, Mohammed.

I have to give a demo on one of your programs next week. I would like you to check my self introduction – Good afternoon everyone and thank you for all of your presence. Before we get into the session I would like to quickly introduce myself. My name is Dinesh . I am working as a Pharmaceutical sale and promotion of the brands for Arrient Healthcare. I am in this filed for the past ten years. Before becoming trainer I worked as a medical representatives for different pharma company . I am highly interested in learning from people and …  Read more »

Please ignore my previous comment. Yea the demo was a success. So hereafter I will say”I have been in this field for the past four years. Actually I worked for different consultancies so I didn’t include an article there.

I have to give a demo on one of your programs next week. I would like you to check my self introduction – Good afternoon everyone and thank you for all of your presence. Before we get into the session I would like to quickly introduce myself. My name is Monica. I am working as a Soft Skill Trainer at Synergy School of Business Skills. I am in this filed for the past four years. Before becoming trainer I worked as a Recruiter for different job consultancy. I am highly interested in learning from people and I think teaching/training is …  Read more »

Thank you for sharing your example! One note: “I am in this field for the past four years.” –> Don’t forget, when we’re talking about something that started in the past and continues to now, we use the present perfect. How might you change this sentence to fix the grammar?

Also, we want to add an article to, “… I worked as a recruiter for [a] different job consultancy.”

I wish you much success in your demo this week! Best, Annemarie

Yea the demo was a success! So hereafter I will say”I have been for the past four years. Actually I worked for different consultancies.

I like it but I think capturing their attention is the most difficult part in preparing a presentation. From my little experience, I used to talk about something out of the scope of the presentation in order to grasp their attention. For example, I had a presentation about medical terminology and its parts (suffix, prefix —). So I provided example which is Ultra Violet then I talked about the ultraviolet in the sun and Vitamin D deficiency. They liked the talk because it is very important to them and by this topic I captured their attention more and more.

Hello Fadia, I’m sorry I’m so late in responding to your comment! I agree with you: capturing attention is very challenging to do. It requires understanding your audience, knowing what is important to them, and how to connect with them. In English-speaking culture, we often connect by telling a story or showing we understand a problem the audience has. I think you’re exactly right to talk about something that is maybe “off topic” or out of the scope of the presentation, as you said, to get their attention first. It sounds like you did a great job in your experience!! …  Read more »

hi there it was great going through your enlightening presentation skills however i would be even more delighted if you put some quotes for various PPT’s which will give us an instant ideas during the adhoc PPT like myself…just a suggestion.

Pin It on Pinterest

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience.

25 English Presentation Phrases

Does giving a presentation make you feel a little nervous?

Well, you’re not alone.

According to Forbes , giving a presentation makes 80% of us feel nervous !

The good news is that feeling nervous might be a good thing. This feeling pushes us to prepare ourselves better, and as long as you’re well prepared, you’ll do just fine.

So then, let’s take a look at how we can prepare ourselves to give amazing presentations in English. Today, we’re going to focus on the business English phrases you can count on (depend on) to make your presentation go more smoothly from start to finish.

But first, here are some tips to use when preparing for your presentation.

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Greeting Your Audience

You’re now standing in front of your audience. Before you begin your presentation, start by greeting your audience, welcoming them to the event and introducing yourself.

1. Good morning/afternoon/evening, everyone.

2. welcome to [name of event]..

Sample sentence: Welcome to our 3rd Annual Sales Leadership Conference.

• Thousands of learner friendly videos (especially beginners)
• Handpicked, organized, and annotated by FluentU's experts
• Integrated into courses for beginners

3. First, let me introduce myself. I am [name] from [company].

Beginning your presentation.

After you have given an introduction, you are ready to begin speaking about your topic. Use these phrases to get started.

4. Let me start by giving you some background information.

Use this phrase to give your audience a brief overview of the topic you’ll be discussing. This is a good way to give them an idea of what’s going on and to bring them up to date.

5. As you’re aware, …

If you’re bringing up a topic that your audience already knows about or is aware of, then you can use this phrase to introduce this known topic.

Sample sentence: As you’re aware , the CEO of DHL Express has often said that globalization is here to stay.

Transitioning to the Next Topic

Before you move on to your next point, be sure to make it clear to your audience that you’re now starting a new topic. Let them know exactly what that new topic will be. The two phrases below are very similar in meaning, and they can both be used for transitions.

6. Let’s move on to…

Sample sentence: Let’s move on to our second sales strategy.

• Interactive subtitles: click any word to see detailed examples and explanations
• Slow down or loop the tricky parts
• Show or hide subtitles
• Review words with our powerful learning engine

7. Turning our attention now to…

Sample sentence: Turning our attention now to the results of our 2016 customer survey.

Providing More Details

Use these phrases to tell your audience that you’ll be giving them a more detailed explanation of the topic. Both the words ‘expand’ and ‘elaborate’ mean to explain more fully.

8. I’d like to expand on…

Sample sentence: Now I’d like to expand on my point about increasing our market share.

9. Let me elaborate further.

Linking to another topic.

When making reference to a point you made earlier, or to remind your audience about something you said before, use these phrases to that link.

10. As I said at the beginning, …

This phrase lets you remind your audience about a point you made earlier. It can also be used to emphasize a point or theme.

Sample sentence: As I said in the beginning , we’ll see an increase in profit if we follow these five steps.

11. This relates to what I was saying earlier…

This phrase will help you make connections between ideas in your presentation. It shows that two different ideas are connected.

• Learn words in the context of sentences
• Swipe left or right to see more examples from other videos
• Go beyond just a superficial understanding

Sample sentence: This relates to what I was saying earlier about increasing production to meet the year-end demand.

12. This ties in with…

Sample sentence: This ties in with the way we’ve been doing business for the past 20 years.

Emphasizing a Point

Use these phrases to draw attention to an important point that you want your audience to note.

13. The significance of this is…

The word “significance'” is similar in meaning to “importance.”

Sample sentence: The significance of this is , if we complete this project on schedule, we’ll have more people available to work on the next project.

14. This is important because…

Sample sentence: This is important because any marketing effort we put in now will help to boost demand for our products in the long run.

15. We have to remember that …

Sample sentence: We have to remember that people are our most important resource.

• FluentU builds you up, so you can build sentences on your own
• Start with multiple-choice questions and advance through sentence building to producing your own output
• Go from understanding to speaking in a natural progression.

Making Reference to Information

Very often, you may need to support your discussion points by drawing attention and making reference to information and data from studies, reports and other sources.

16. Based on our findings, …

Sample sentence: Based on our findings, 74% of our market is made up of teenagers who find our clothing line stylish and upbeat.

17. According to our study, …

Sample sentence: According to our study, 63% of working people in this city go directly to the gym after work.

18. Our data shows …

Sample sentence: Our data shows that more than 23% of men in this town who used to drive to work now prefer to save money and the environment by cycling instead.

Explaining Visuals

To present a clearer picture of your point, you may show your data, information or examples in the form of visuals such as charts, tables and graphs.

19. I’d like to illustrate this point by showing you…

The word “illustrate” means “show,” usually with examples, data or visuals.

• Images, examples, video examples, and tips
• Covering all the tricky edge cases, eg.: phrases, idioms, collocations, and separable verbs
• No reliance on volunteers or open source dictionaries
• 100,000+ hours spent by FluentU's team to create and maintain

Sample sentence: I’d like to illustrate this point by showing you a chart of the number of people in each age group who prefer to shop online.

20. This chart shows a breakdown of …

A “breakdown” refers to the detailed parts or figures that make up the total picture. A breakdown is often used in a presentation to show all the smaller parts behind something bigger.

Sample sentence: This chart shows a breakdown of the ingredients we use in our gluten-free products.

Restating Your Point

Sometimes in order to emphasize your point, you have to state it in a way that’s easier for your audience to understand and remember. This often involves rephrasing, simplifying or clarifying your point.

21. In other words, …

Use this phrase to rephrase or reword your point in another way.

Sample sentence: In other words , we need to change our current design to make it more attractive to older children.

22. To put it simply, …

Use this phrase to simplify points that are complex or difficult to understand.

Sample sentence: To put it simply , we’ll need you to work harder at making this launch a success.

23. What I mean to say is …

Use this phrase to explain your point in a way that’s easier for your audience to understand.

Sample sentence: What I mean to say is that we need to change the way we market our products.

Concluding Your Presentation

This is the very end of the presentation. You have said everything you need to say, and now you need to finish it nicely. You may also have some time for questions. If there is time for questions, invite your audience to ask any questions they have.

24. In conclusion, let me sum up my main points.

As part of your closing statement, “sum up” (summarize, state briefly) your speech by mentioning the main points of your speech.

25. Thank you for your attention. Now I am happy to answer any questions you might have.

End your presentation by thanking your audience and offering to answer their questions.

The Top 3 Tips for Preparing Your Business Presentation in English

1. have a plan.

Always have a plan. Spend some time thinking about not only what you’re going to say but how you’re going to say it.

If English isn’t your native language, it’s very important that you think about what language you’re going to be using. Think about all the vocabulary, phrases and grammar that will make your message clear and easy to understand.

What are the big ideas you want to explain for your presentation? Which words will express these ideas best? I recommend:

• Have a clear goal in mind to help you stay on track and be logical. Whenever you feel lost during the presentation, just remember this clear, main goal. An example of a goal could be to convince potential clients to work with you. Whenever you don’t know what to say next, remember to focus on the advantages you want to present and on examples of what you did in the past to deserve their trust. Encourage them to ask you questions related to this goal.
• Research content. If you know your facts, you already have the core of your presentation prepared. Write these facts down on topic cards, give out handouts (papers) with important information or include them on your PowerPoint slides.
• Prepare the delivery. Rehearse giving the presentation several times. Some people like recording themselves, others prefer practicing in front of a mirror or having friends listen to them while presenting. Choose the method that works best for you.
• Decide whether you are going to read or speak freely. Reading can sound unnatural, but you can use certain tricks to avoid this. You can underline important sentences which you can memorize, so that from time to time you can stop reading, say your memorized lines and look at the audience. In this way, reading can be made more natural. Make sure you slow down so that the audience can follow you.

Speaking freely is much better if you can remember everything you want to say, because you will seem more knowledgeable, prepared and confident. However, this can be more stressful.

2. Use Visuals

Using some visuals can make your presentation more entertaining, easier to understand and can get your points across more convincingly. My advice:

• Decide whether you need a PowerPoint presentation or not. Do you have graphs, results or other things like this to show? Then yes, you need one. Are you just telling a story? Then you probably do not.
• Do not fill your slides with too much information. Use a maximum of seven short lines of text—even seven can be too many. Highlight key words so the audience can see the main ideas right away. Use bullet points rather than full sentences.
• If you are presenting graphs or charts , give the audience time to read them.  Do not show a huge table of data if they audience will not have time to read and understand it. Make sure you try reading each slide while timing yourself to see how long it takes, so you do not jump to the next slide too early during your presentation.

3. Structure Your Presentation Well

It is a common mistake to give an unclear and unorganized presentation. This happens when the presenter just starts speaking without a clear goal in mind. They might suddenly realize their allotted speaking time has ended, or that the audience is bored because they are not following what is being said. Here’s what you should do instead:

• Decide on three main points (or less) that you want to make. Audiences can’t usually focus on more than three points.
• Tell them from the beginning what points you will be making. Audiences like to know what to expect. Tell them the main goals of your presentation directly in the introduction.
• Presenting main points: firstly, secondly, last but not least
• Making additions: moreover, furthermore, in addition, besides, what’s more
• Making purposes clear: in order to, so as to
• Presenting reasons and causes: on account of, due to, since, seeing that
• Presenting consequences: consequently, as a result, therefore
• Expressing contrast: in spite of, despite, although, even though, however, nevertheless, in contrast, on the contrary

So with this, you’ve mastered the 25 most commonly used phrases used in presentations and my three favorite tips.

Once you learn them, I think you’ll find them very useful to you in any presentation.

Become familiar with them and I promise you’ll feel much less nervous in your next presentation.

And One More Thing...

If you like learning English through movies and online media, you should also check out FluentU. FluentU lets you learn English from popular talk shows, catchy music videos and funny commercials , as you can see here:

If you want to watch it, the FluentU app has probably got it.

The FluentU app and website makes it really easy to watch English videos. There are captions that are interactive. That means you can tap on any word to see an image, definition, and useful examples.

FluentU lets you learn engaging content with world famous celebrities.

For example, when you tap on the word "searching," you see this:

FluentU lets you tap to look up any word.

Learn all the vocabulary in any video with quizzes. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you’re learning.

FluentU helps you learn fast with useful questions and multiple examples. Learn more.

The best part? FluentU remembers the vocabulary that you’re learning. It gives you extra practice with difficult words—and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You have a truly personalized experience.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

Enter your e-mail address to get your free PDF!

We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe

How to give a good presentation in English

by Lingoda Team

Published on August 12, 2020 / Updated on October 23, 2023

For many people, giving an oral presentation is extremely nerve-racking, but the task becomes even more daunting if you are doing the presentation in English, as a non-native speaker. After all, while you may be able to communicate in everyday situations, public speaking is a different prospect entirely. Nevertheless, learning to give excellent presentations in English can be extremely beneficial, especially when you consider that  English is the international language of business , and practice makes perfect. To make the task slightly easier, we have compiled some top tips for delivering excellent presentations in the  English language , so that you can impress your employers, deliver a great sales pitch to clients, present important findings to your team, or get that excellent grade for oral presentation at school or university.

Our top tips to give an excellent presentation in English

Top 5 presentation tips, useful vocabulary to use in presentations, learn languages at your pace, think about your delivery.

Although what you say is important, the secret to delivering a great speech lies in the way you say things. In particular, when delivering a presentation in English, you should focus on speaking clearly and at a steady pace, so that your audience can understand you easily.

During a presentation , your nerves may get the better of you, causing you to speed up. However, this can make your speech far less clear, so it is important to practice pacing. You should also feel free to take the occasional pause to catch your breath, gather your thoughts, or have a drink of water; especially before introducing a new idea.

Furthermore, you must avoid speaking in a monotone voice, which can make a presentation seem dull and boring, regardless of the content. When rehearsing your speech, focus on placing emphasis on keywords and changing tone depending on what you are saying. If in doubt, watch videos of great speeches and pay attention to  how  they speak.

• Introduce yourself and establish the topic(s) you are going to discuss. Before you begin, people will want to know who you are and why they should listen to what you have to say, while pinpointing exactly what you are going to discuss can help to establish realistic expectations amongst the audience.
• Provide an overview of the presentation.   During this phase, you might want to briefly explain the format of your presentation and some of the key points. You may even wish to state some of your conclusions, which you can then expand upon throughout the remainder of the speech.
• Make sure you acknowledge when you are changing topics.   If you are giving a presentation that lasts more than a few minutes, it is inevitable that some people will tune out at certain parts, because people have short attention spans. Marking a shift in topics is a great way to ‘win back’ those who have tuned out.
• Establish early that you will take questions at the end.   Giving a presentation is difficult enough, without constant interruptions. At the same time, people may have valid questions about your presentation and the facts contained within it. State early on that you will answer questions after you have finished.
• Practice your presentation frequently.   Even native speakers will practice giving an important speech ahead of time. One tip is to give your speech in front of a mirror, so you can practice making gestures at the right time. Try to get through your entire speech without using too many filler words like ‘erm’ and ‘ahh’.

Introductory phrases:

The beginning of your presentation is one of the most important parts, because it sets the tone for what is to come. During your introduction, you will likely need to explain who you are, what your position is and what you are going to be discussing. The following may be helpful as introductory phrases:

“Hello everyone, my name is…” “Good morning/afternoon/evening, my name is… and I am a…” “Welcome everybody. Today I am going to talk about…”

Changing focus:

During your presentation, there may be times where you need to shift the focus, in order to make all of the points you wish to make. Drawing attention to any changes of focus can serve to give your presentation a clearer structure and can also help to keep the attention of listeners. Some examples of phrases you might use include:

“I would like to shift focus now to…” “Next, we need to consider…” “This leads me to my next point…”

Drawing attention to the slides:

In many cases, your presentation will include visual aids, such as slides on a screen, or handouts. The inclusion of visuals can help to back up the points you are making, while also making the presentation more interesting or exciting. To introduce your slides or other visual aids, you may find the following phrases helpful:

“If I could draw your attention to…” “This chart/graph/table illustrates…” “If you look up at the screen…” “I would like to show you this…” “On your handout, you may see…”

Summarising a presentation:

At the end of a presentation, it is important to summarise the main points you have made, so that you can remind listeners of what has been said. This is a chance to point out which parts of the presentation you think are especially important, and ensure everybody leaves with the key pieces of information. Useful phrases include:

“To summarise…” “In conclusion…” “I would like to recap…” “To sum up what has been said…” “So, we have covered…”

Lingoda Team

This article was produced by one of the in-house Lingoda writers.

May 08, 2024

Lingoda’s career stories: Meet Andreas, our People Engagement Specialist

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to work at a company where your passion for languages fuels your career?...

Apr 18, 2024

Reflexive pronouns and how to use them

Are you familiar with words like “myself” and “ourselves”? These are reflexive pronouns, which we use to reflect the action...

Apr 11, 2024

13 resources for English reading practice

Reading is a fundamental (and often free) aspect of learning a language. Not only can it increase your vocabulary, but...

Level up your language skills with Lingoda. Take our placement test for free and get started.

Search form

• Speaking exams
• Typical speaking tasks

Oral presentation

Giving an oral presentation as part of a speaking exam can be quite scary, but we're here to help you. Watch two students giving presentations and then read the tips carefully. Which tips do they follow? Which ones don’t they follow?

Instructions

Watch the video of two students doing an oral presentation as part of a speaking exam. Then read the tips below.

Melissa: Hi, everyone! Today I would like to talk about how to become the most popular teen in school.

Firstly, I think getting good academic results is the first factor to make you become popular since, having a good academic result, your teacher will award you in front of your schoolmates. Then, your schoolmates will know who you are and maybe they would like to get to know you because they want to learn something good from you.

Secondly, I think participating in school clubs and student unions can help to make you become popular, since after participating in these school clubs or student union, people will know who you are and it can help you to make friends all around the school, no matter senior forms or junior forms.

In conclusion, I think to become the most popular teen in school we need to have good academic results and also participate in school clubs and student union. Thank you!

Kelvin: Good evening, everyone! So, today I want to talk about whether the sale of cigarettes should be made illegal.

As we all know, cigarettes are not good for our health, not only oneself but also other people around. Moreover, many people die of lung cancer every year because of smoking cigarettes.

But, should the government make it illegal? I don’t think so, because Hong Kong is a place where people can enjoy lots of freedom and if the government banned the sale of cigarettes, many people would disagree with this and stand up to fight for their freedom.

Moreover, Hong Kong is a free market. If there's such a huge government intervention, I think it’s not good for Hong Kong’s economy.

So, if the government wants people to stop smoking cigarettes, what should it do? I think the government can use other administrative ways to do so, for example education and increasing the tax on cigarettes. Also, the government can ban the smokers smoking in public areas. So, this is the end of my presentation. Thank you.

It’s not easy to give a good oral presentation but these tips will help you. Here are our top tips for oral presentations.

• Use the planning time to prepare what you’re going to say. 
• If you are allowed to have a note card, write short notes in point form.
• Use more formal language.
• Use short, simple sentences to express your ideas clearly.
• Pause from time to time and don’t speak too quickly. This allows the listener to understand your ideas. Include a short pause after each idea.
• Speak clearly and at the right volume.
• Have your notes ready in case you forget anything.
• Practise your presentation. If possible record yourself and listen to your presentation. If you can’t record yourself, ask a friend to listen to you. Does your friend understand you?
• Make your opinions very clear. Use expressions to give your opinion .
• Look at the people who are listening to you.
• Write out the whole presentation and learn every word by heart. 
• Write out the whole presentation and read it aloud.
• Use very informal language.
• Only look at your note card. It’s important to look up at your listeners when you are speaking.

Useful language for presentations

Explain what your presentation is about at the beginning:

I’m going to talk about ... I’d like to talk about ... The main focus of this presentation is ...

Use these expressions to order your ideas:

First of all, ... Firstly, ... Then, ... Secondly, ... Next, ... Finally, ... Lastly, ... To sum up, ... In conclusion, ...

Use these expressions to add more ideas from the same point of view:

In addition, ... What’s more, ... Also, ... Added to this, ...

To introduce the opposite point of view you can use these words and expressions:

However, ... On the other hand, ... Then again, ...

Example presentation topics

• Violent computer games should be banned.
• The sale of cigarettes should be made illegal.
• Homework should be limited to just two nights a week.
• Should school students be required to wear a school uniform?
• How to become the most popular teen in school.
• Dogs should be banned from cities.

Check your language: ordering - parts of a presentation

Check your understanding: grouping - useful phrases, worksheets and downloads.

Do you think these tips will help you in your next speaking exam? Remember to tell us how well you do in future speaking exams!  

Sign up to our newsletter for LearnEnglish Teens

We will process your data to send you our newsletter and updates based on your consent. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link at the bottom of every email. Read our privacy policy for more information.

5 Tips to Boost Your Presentation Skills and Wow Your Audience

• The Speaker Lab
• May 24, 2024

Table of Contents

Crafting an unforgettable presentation requires more than just compelling content. The way you deliver your message is just as important. No matter your role—CEO, entrepreneur, author, professor, coach, or consultant—honing your presentation skills is key to effectively communicating your ideas and making a memorable impact on your audience. It may not always be easy, but we’re here to help. To help you nail it every time, we’ve compiled 10 essential tips for honing your presentation skills . From knowing your audience to practicing confident body language, we have the guidance you need to give a presentation that’s effective and memorable.

5 Essential Tips for Delivering a Killer Presentation

You’ve probably sat through your fair share of presentations—some good, some not so good. The difference between an effective presentation and one that falls flat often comes down to a few key factors. If you want to improve your skills and deliver a presentation that engages your audience, here are some essential tips you need to keep in mind.

1. Understand Your Audience

Before you even start putting together your presentation, you need to take some time to understand who you’ll be speaking to. What are their needs, interests, and expectations? What level of knowledge do they have about your topic?

Tailoring your content and delivery style to your specific audience is crucial for making a real connection and delivering value. For instance, if you’re giving a presentation to a group of executives who are pressed for time, you’ll probably want to give them key takeaways upfront. By adapting your approach and leading with the most important points, you would be able to better hold your audience’s attention and make a strong impact.

2. Practice Makes Perfect

If you only go away with one tip today, then know that having the discipline to practice is an essential presentation skill. Rehearsing your talk multiple times helps you build confidence, refine your delivery, and ensure a smooth flow. Make sure to practice out loud, as if you’re in front of the actual audience. You can even record yourself and watch the video back to identify areas for improvement. It might feel awkward at first, but it can make a huge difference in your final delivery.

3. Engage with Eye Contact

Making eye contact with your audience is one of the most powerful ways to connect with them and keep them engaged. When you look people in the eye, it builds trust and shows that you’re confident in what you’re saying.

During your presentation, make a point to scan the room and make brief eye contact with individuals in different sections. It creates a sense of intimacy and makes people feel like you’re speaking directly to them. Just be sure to keep it natural and avoid staring anyone down.

4. Use Compelling Visuals

Visuals can be a game-changer when it comes to delivering an effective presentation. Well-designed slides, images, and videos help reinforce your message, break up text-heavy content, and keep your audience interested.

The key is to use visuals strategically, not just for the sake of having them. Every visual element should serve a clear purpose and enhance your overall message. And don’t forget about quality—blurry images or cluttered slides can be more distracting than helpful.

5. Tell a Story

Humans are wired to respond to stories. Integrating storytelling into your presentation is a fantastic way to make your content more engaging, memorable, and relatable.

Think about how you can structure your presentation as a narrative arc, with a clear beginning, middle, and end. Use anecdotes, case studies, and examples to illustrate your points and create an emotional connection with your audience. Some of the best presentations are the ones that take the audience on a journey and leave them feeling inspired.

Find Out Exactly How Much You Could Make As a Paid Speaker

Use The Official Speaker Fee Calculator to tell you what you should charge for your first (or next) speaking gig — virtual or in-person! 

Master Your Body Language for Maximum Impact

Your body language can speak volumes during a presentation, often conveying just as much as your words. Mastering non-verbal communication is key to delivering a killer presentation that commands attention and leaves a lasting impression. Below are our tips for improving this presentation skill.

Maintain Confident Posture

How you carry yourself on stage can instantly impact your perceived confidence and credibility. Stand tall, keep your shoulders back, and maintain a stable, grounded stance. Avoid slouching, fidgeting, or shifting your weight from side to side, as these habits can make you appear nervous or unsure.

In addition, make a conscious effort to take up space and own the room. It’s not about being arrogant, but about projecting self-assurance and authority. Practice power poses beforehand to get in the right headspace and boost your confidence.

Use Gestures Purposefully

Incorporating hand gestures can add emphasis, clarity, and visual interest to your presentation. However, it’s important to use them purposefully and avoid overdoing it.

What’s our tip for improving this presentation skill? Use open, expansive gestures to convey confidence and inclusivity. Pointing can be effective for directing attention or making a strong point, but use it sparingly. Avoid crossing your arms or putting your hands in your pockets, as these positions can make you seem closed off or disengaged.

Vary Your Tone and Pace

Your voice is a powerful tool for engaging your audience and keeping them interested. Vary your tone, pitch, and pacing throughout your presentation to add dynamic energy and prevent monotony.

Speak with enthusiasm and conviction, allowing your passion for the topic to shine through. Use strategic pauses for emphasis or to give the audience a moment to process a key point. Adjust your volume and speed based on the room size and acoustics.

Avoid Distracting Mannerisms

Distracting mannerisms can quickly derail an otherwise great presentation. Be aware of any nervous tics or habits you might have, such as playing with your hair, clicking a pen, or saying “um” or “like” excessively.

Practice self-awareness and work on minimizing these behaviors. It can be helpful to video record yourself and watch it back to identify any distracting mannerisms you might not realize you have. Remember, the goal is to keep the focus on your message, not your quirks.

Overcoming Stage Fright and Nerves

Even the most seasoned presenters can experience stage fright and nerves. The key is to have strategies in place to manage those feelings and deliver a confident, impactful presentation.

Prepare Thoroughly

One of the best ways to combat stage fright is to be thoroughly prepared. When you know your material inside and out, it gives you a solid foundation to fall back on, even if nerves start to creep in.

For instance, you might create a detailed outline of your presentation, including key points, transitions, and any important data or examples. Using the outline, practice delivering the content out loud multiple times until it feels natural and conversational. When it’s time to actually present, you can fall back on the outline if you feel yourself start to get nervous.

Visualize Success

Visualization is a powerful tool for boosting confidence and calming nerves. In the days leading up to your presentation, take some time to close your eyes and imagine yourself delivering your talk with ease and conviction. Picture the audience responding positively, nodding along, and applauding at the end. Envision yourself feeling calm, confident, and in control. The more vividly you can imagine a successful outcome, the more likely you are to achieve it.

Breathe Deeply

Although tips on breathing exercises might seem unrelated, they’re actually an invaluable presentation skill. Think about it. When we’re nervous, our breathing tends to become shallow and rapid. This can exacerbate feelings of anxiety and make it harder to think clearly.

Before and during your presentation, focus on taking slow, deep breaths from your diaphragm. Inhale through your nose for a count of four, hold for four, then exhale through your mouth for a count of four. This simple technique can help calm your nerves and center your mind.

Focus on Your Message

When stage fright starts to take hold, it’s easy to get caught up in worries about how you’re coming across or what the audience might be thinking. Instead, try to shift your focus to your message and the value you’re providing.

Remind yourself of why your topic matters and how it can benefit your audience. Concentrate on delivering your content with clarity, conviction, and enthusiasm. When you’re passionate about what you’re saying, it shines through and connects with your listeners.

Crafting Memorable and Engaging Content

No matter how polished your delivery is, the foundation of a killer presentation is always the content itself. Crafting a memorable and engaging message is essential for making a lasting impact on your audience.

Start Strong

The opening moments of your presentation are crucial for capturing your audience’s attention and setting the tone for what’s to come. Don’t waste this opportunity with a generic introduction or a long-winded anecdote.

Instead, start with a bang. Use a surprising statistic, a thought-provoking question, or a bold statement that immediately grabs people’s interest. Make it clear why your topic matters and what your audience stands to gain from listening to you. Practice these tips and you’ll have this presentation skill mastered in no time.

Use Examples and Anecdotes

Abstract concepts and dry data can be difficult for audiences to grasp and remember. That’s where examples and anecdotes come in. These concrete illustrations help bring your ideas to life and make them more relatable.

When crafting your presentation, always look for opportunities to weave in real-world examples, case studies, or personal stories that reinforce your key points. Not only do these elements make the content more engaging, but they also help the audience see how the information applies to their own lives and experiences.

Incorporate Humor

Injecting humor into your presentation can be a great way to break the ice, lighten the mood, and keep your audience engaged. A well-timed joke or a witty observation can make your message more memorable and help you connect with your listeners on a human level.

Of course, it’s important to use humor judiciously and appropriately. Make sure your jokes are relevant to your topic and won’t offend or alienate anyone in the audience.

End with a Call to Action

Your presentation shouldn’t just be informative—it should also be actionable. As you near the end of your talk, be sure to include a clear and compelling call to action.

What do you want your audience to do with the information you’ve shared? Is there a specific step they can take to apply your ideas or further their learning? Make it explicit and easy for them to follow through.

You can also end your presentation with a challenge or a question that encourages the audience to reflect on how they can put the content into practice. It’s a powerful way to drive home your message and ensure that your words have a lasting impact.

Handling Questions and Audience Interaction

One of the most daunting aspects of giving a presentation can be handling questions from the audience. But with the right approach, this interaction can actually be an opportunity to reinforce your message and build credibility. Below are some tips on how to improve this presentation skill and close out your speech with confidence.

Anticipate Common Questions

Before your presentation, take some time to brainstorm the questions your audience is likely to ask. Consider their background, their level of knowledge on the topic, and any potential objections or concerns they might have.

Once you have a list of anticipated questions, practice answering them out loud. This will help you feel more prepared and confident when the time comes to address them in real-time.

Listen Attentively

When an audience member asks a question, give them your full attention. Make eye contact, nod to show you’re listening, and avoid interrupting or rushing to respond. If the question is lengthy or convoluted, don’t be afraid to ask for clarification. Paraphrasing the question back to the asker can also help ensure that you’ve understood it correctly and give you a moment to gather your thoughts.

Respond Concisely

When answering questions, aim to be concise and to the point. Avoid rambling or getting sidetracked by tangential information. Stick to the key facts and insights that directly address the question at hand.

If a question requires a more in-depth response than time allows, offer to follow up with the individual after the presentation. You can also direct them to additional resources or materials that provide more detail on the topic.

Redirect Off-topic Queries

Occasionally, you may receive a question that is off-topic or not directly relevant to your presentation. In these cases, it’s important to acknowledge the question while gently redirecting the conversation back to your main points.

You might say something like, “That’s an interesting question, but it’s a bit outside the scope of what we’re focusing on today. Let’s talk more about [relevant topic] and how it relates to [your key message].”

Remember, your goal is to keep the discussion focused and productive, while still making the audience feel heard and valued.

Leveraging Technology for Impactful Presentations

In today’s digital age, technology can be a powerful tool for enhancing your presentations and engaging your audience. However, knowing how to use technology isn’t always straightforward. That’s why we’re offering you some tips on how to level up this presentation skill. Below are some insights on how to use technology strategically and not let it overshadow your message.

Keep Slides Simple

When it comes to presentation slides, less is often more. Avoid cluttering your slides with too much text, busy graphics, or distracting animations. Instead, keep them clean, concise, and visually appealing.

Use a consistent color scheme and font throughout your presentation to create a cohesive look. Stick to one main idea per slide, and use bullet points or short phrases rather than full sentences.

Remember, your slides should support and enhance your message, not compete with it. They’re meant to be a visual aid , not a crutch or a substitute for your own knowledge and expertise.

Use High-Quality Images

Incorporating relevant, high-quality images into your presentation can help illustrate your points, break up text, and keep your audience engaged. But be selective about the images you choose. Avoid generic stock photos or low-resolution graphics that can make your presentation look amateurish. Instead, opt for images that are clear, compelling, and directly related to your content.

If you’re using graphs or charts to present data, make sure they’re easy to read and interpret. Use colors and labels strategically to highlight key insights and trends.

Embed Videos Strategically

Videos can be a great way to add variety and interest to your presentation. They can help illustrate complex concepts, provide real-world examples, or evoke an emotional response from your audience.

However, it’s important to use videos judiciously and strategically. Avoid relying on them too heavily or using them as a crutch for weak content. Make sure any videos you include are high-quality, relevant, and add value to your overall message.

It’s also a good idea to test your videos beforehand to ensure they play smoothly and without technical glitches. Nothing derails a presentation faster than a video that won’t load or has poor audio quality.

Ensure Smooth Transitions

Smooth transitions between slides and sections of your presentation are key to maintaining a professional and polished look. Abrupt or jarring transitions can be distracting and disrupt the flow of your message.

Practice navigating through your slides beforehand to ensure that everything flows logically and seamlessly. Use consistent transition effects throughout your presentation, but avoid overusing flashy or gimmicky animations.

It’s also a good idea to have a backup plan in case of technical difficulties. Bring a printed copy of your slides or have them saved on a USB drive in case the technology fails. The show must go on, even if your fancy transitions don’t.

Free Download: 6 Proven Steps to Book More Paid Speaking Gigs in 2024​

Download our 18-page guide and start booking more paid speaking gigs today!

Avoiding Common Presentation Mistakes

Even the most well-crafted presentation can fall flat if you make some common mistakes. Here are a few pitfalls to avoid to ensure your message lands with maximum impact.

Over-Reliance on Notes

While it’s fine to have some notes or a general outline to guide your presentation, relying too heavily on them can be a major distraction. Reading directly from your notes or slides can make you seem unprepared or disengaged from your audience.

Instead, aim to internalize your content so that you can deliver it naturally and conversationally. Use your notes as a gentle reminder of key points, but don’t let them become a crutch. If you do need to reference your notes, try to do so subtly and sparingly. Glance down briefly, then look back up and make eye contact with your audience as you speak.

Reading Slides Verbatim

One of the biggest mistakes presenters make is simply reading their slides word-for-word. Not only is this boring for your audience, but it also makes your slides redundant. If you’re just going to read them aloud, why bother having them at all?

Your slides should be a visual aid, not a script. Use them to highlight key points, provide visual examples, or reinforce your message with data or graphics. And remember that the bulk of your content should come from your own knowledge and expertise.

If you find yourself tempted to read directly from your slides, it’s a sign that you either have too much text on them or you haven’t practiced enough to feel confident delivering the content on your own.

Rushing Through Content

When you’re nervous or pressed for time, it can be tempting to rush through your presentation at breakneck speed. However, this can leave your audience feeling overwhelmed, confused, and disconnected from your message.

Remember, your audience needs time to process and absorb the information you’re sharing. Speak at a measured pace, pausing occasionally to let key points sink in or to allow for questions.

If you find yourself running short on time, resist the urge to speed up. Instead, prioritize your most important points and cut out any extraneous information.

With a few tips, anyone can improve their presentation skills. By understanding your audience, crafting compelling content, and mastering your delivery, you’ll be well on your way to giving presentations that truly resonate.

Remember, it’s not about being perfect. It’s about being authentic, engaging, and delivering value to your audience. So take these tips, make them your own, and go out there and wow your audience. You’ve got this!

• Last Updated: May 24, 2024

Explore Related Resources

Learn How You Could Get Your First (Or Next) Paid Speaking Gig In 90 Days or Less

We receive thousands of applications every day, but we only work with the top 5% of speakers .

Book a call with our team to get started — you’ll learn why the vast majority of our students get a paid speaking gig within 90 days of finishing our program .

If you’re ready to control your schedule, grow your income, and make an impact in the world – it’s time to take the first step. Book a FREE consulting call and let’s get you Booked and Paid to Speak ® .

About The Speaker Lab

We teach speakers how to consistently get booked and paid to speak.  Since 2015, we’ve helped thousands of speakers find clarity, confidence, and a clear path to make an impact.

Get Started

Let's connect.

[email protected]

Copyright ©2023 The Speaker Lab. All rights reserved.

• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• Terms and Conditions
• British Council Global
• Accessibility

© 2024 British Council

• Mini English Lessons
• Business English

How to Ace Your Business Presentation in English

So, you need to make a business presentation in English.

First of all, congratulations! To be in your position, you must have invested a huge amount of time and effort in your English language skills. You should be proud.

That said, we totally understand that giving a presentation in a second language can be a challenge. You may be worried that your audience won’t understand your accent. Perhaps you are wondering whether you need to use specific vocabulary. Maybe you’re not sure how best to handle questions from your audience.

If this sounds like you, don’t worry. In this post, we’re going to run through our top tips for acing your business presentation in English. Even if you’ve already made a few presentations in the language, we’re sure you’ll find these suggestions helpful.

So, read on to learn more. And before we start, let us wish you the very best of luck in delivering your next presentation.

Understand your audience

As with all forms of communication, it’s vital that you understand who your audience is. Even in the business world, you can find yourself speaking to very different groups of people.

For example, if you are giving a presentation to members of another company, you would certainly be more formal than when you give a presentation to members of your own team. In each case, you need to think about what your audience will expect from your presentation.

So, before you write a word, ask yourself these questions about your audience. Who are they? What interests them? What do they need to know? What do you want them to do as a result of your presentation?

One useful tip for writing your presentation is to imagine your audience is a single person. It’s easier to write convincingly if you have a single person in mind. Try it!

Mind your language

Most audiences will expect you to give your presentation using formal Business English . Don’t make the mistake of confusing Business English with business jargon .

Successful Business English uses language that is simple, direct, professional and easy to understand. Business jargon on the other hand, relies on obscure phrases, clichés, and acronyms. In many cases, business jargon is complex, not very precise and a barrier to good communication .

We have some useful resources on Business English on this page . However, if in doubt, keep the language of your presentation as simple and clear as possible. It’s also a good idea to use sentences with the active, rather than the passive voice. This allows you to use fewer words, which makes your sentences shorter and more engaging.

To give an example, this is a sentence in the passive voice:

The interview was failed by over one third of applicants.

Now compare this sentence, which is in the active voice.

Over one-third of applicants failed the interview.

To learn more about the active and the passive voice, check out this explainer from the British Council.

Practise, practise, practise

If English isn’t your first language, it’s more important than ever to practise your presentation before delivering it. By practising, you’ll feel more comfortable using English in a business setting. You’ll be able to work on any words or phrases you find difficult to pronounce, or you can change them to words or phrases you are more comfortable with.

Ideally, you should practise giving your presentation in front of someone else. That way you can get useful feedback on what works well, and what doesn’t. If that’s not possible, make a video of yourself giving your presentation. When you see yourself on screen, it will give you helpful insights into ways you can improve your delivery.

Don’t forget to introduce yourself

It may sound obvious, but don’t forget to introduce yourself at the very beginning of your presentation. It not only breaks the ice , but it’s an opportunity to get the audience on your side. If you are presenting to native English speakers, you may wish to tell them that English is not your first language – but don’t apologise for it! If anything, your audience will be impressed that you can give a presentation in a second language.

Have a clear structure

When people learn to teach in the UK, they are often told to structure their lessons in this simple way:

• Say what you’re going to say
• Say what you’ve said

In other words, introduce the session by explaining what you intend to talk about. This sets the audience’s expectations – they know what’s going to happen.

You then use main part of the session to make your presentation. There are many effective ways of doing this, and we’ll cover some of these soon.

Finally, finish by summarising the most important points of your presentation. This helps your audience to remember them clearly.

One other tip, if you plan to let the audience ask questions, it’s a good idea to tell them you’d prefer to answer them at the end of the presentation. This will discourage them from interrupting your presentation at the wrong moment.

Use storytelling

People love stories. If you can capture your audience’s imagination with a story, you can make a very powerful impression.

For example, imagine you are giving a presentation about how to commission new advertisements for your company. You want to make the point that good copywriting as just as important as good visual design.

You can either make your point directly, like this:

“Successful adverts rely on good writing as well as good design. If you change the wording of an advert, it can often result in extra sales – or fewer. Therefore, the words we choose are as important as the images we use.”.

Or you could begin with a story, like this:

“I want you to imagine it’s the year 1907. A man called Louis Victor Eytinge is in prison, convicted of murder. He’s a drug addict, suffering from tuberculosis. He’s unlikely to live, never mind get out of jail. Yet, by 1923 he walked free into a well-paid advertising job and a career as a Hollywood screenwriter. How? He had written his way to freedom. I want to use his story to show you why, if we want successful adverts, we need to commission powerful writing as well as good design.”

Which version of the presentation would you rather listen to?!

Remember pace and pitch

One useful tip for acing your business presentations in English is to vary the pace and pitch of your delivery.

While you don’t want to speak too fast, it’s a good idea to use a different pace for different parts of your presentation. For example, when you want to communicate a key point, speaking more slowly will help people understand that you think it is important.

Equally, it’s a good idea to vary the pitch of your voice. Try and keep this as natural as possible, but experiment with using a higher pitch when asking questions and a lower pitch when beginning your sentences. One good way to learn how to vary your pitch is to listen to UK news broadcasts – news presenters are expert at varying the tone of their voice to keep listeners interested.

Add a call to action

Most business presentations are given for a specific purpose. You may want to convince another company to work with you. Or you may want to convince your own firm to invest in a new kind of product. You may simply be explaining to colleagues how a new training scheme will work.

Whatever the purpose of your presentation, always remember to tell your audience what you want them to do. This is a ‘call to action’. Do you want your audience to email you their ideas? Or send you a funding proposal? Or arrange a meeting?

No matter what you need your audience to do, don’t forget to tell them. And at the very end, be sure to thank them for their time!

More business presentation tips

There are many other tips we could share with you on how to ace a business presentation in English. For example, it’s never a good idea to read your presentation from a piece of paper – it’s not engaging and it means you can’t easily make eye contact. It’s also tempting to rely too heavily on visual aids like PowerPoint, but if you get it wrong your audience will read your slides instead of listening to you. On the other hand, it can really engage an audience if you ask them to work together in small groups to share ideas or solve problems.

However you choose to make your presentation, if you prepare well, speak clearly and work hard to connect with your audience, you are very likely to succeed. And if you’d like to improve your presentation skills even further, why not try live online classes with English Online ? They can help you succeed in any career where using English is essential.

Leave a comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Posts

• Social English

Your Ultimate Guide to Adapting Communication Styles to Different Situations

Ever found yourself wondering why a well-intended message didn’t land as expected? Or perhaps you’ve been on the receiving end of conversations that just […]

From Conflict to Collaboration: How to Manage Difficult Conversations at Work

Addressing challenging discussions at work is rarely enjoyable, but it’s something we all encounter sooner or later. These conversations have a big impact on […]

Conquer Communication: Overcoming passive-aggressive behaviour at work

Have you ever been in a meeting where a sarcastic “Sure…” throws the whole atmosphere off balance? Welcome to the world of passive-aggressive behaviour […]

Get Exclusive access to offers and promotions

Enter your email address below to join the english online mailing list..

Personal details will be held by the British Council and will only be used in relation to your request. Please read our terms of use for more information.

Releasing Windows 11, version 24H2 to the Release Preview Channel

• Windows Insider Program Team

Hello Windows Insiders!

Today, we are making this year’s annual feature update Windows 11, version 24H2 (Build 26100.712) available in the Release Preview Channel for customers to preview ahead of general availability later this calendar year.

Windows 11, version 24H2* includes a range of new features such as the HDR background support, energy saver, Sudo for Windows , Rust in the Windows kernel, support for Wi-Fi 7, voice clarity and more. It also includes many improvements across Windows. For example, we are introducing a scrollable view of the quick settings flyout from the taskbar, the ability to create 7-zip and TAR archives in File Explorer (in addition to ZIP), and improvements for connecting Bluetooth® Low Energy Audio devices. We will be sharing more details in the coming months on many of the new features and improvements included as part of Windows 11, version 24H2 leading up to general availability. Please note that the new AI features such as Recall announced earlier this week will not be available on your PC after installing this update today as they require a Copilot+ PC. For more information on those new AI features and Copilot+ PCs, see this blog post here .

As part of this update, we’re also evolving the Copilot** experience on Windows as an app that will be pinned to the taskbar. This enables users to get the benefits of a traditional app experience, including the ability to resize, move, and snap the window – feedback we’ve heard from users throughout the preview of Copilot in Windows. This model also allows Microsoft to more agilely develop and optimize the experience based on user feedback. This change will be making is way to Insiders in the Canary, Dev, and Beta Channels shortly.

Windows Insiders in the Release Preview Channel can install Windows 11, version 24H2 via our “seeker” experience in Windows Update. This means if you are an Insider currently in the Release Preview Channel on a PC that meets the Windows 11  hardware requirements , you can go to Settings and Windows Update and choose to download and install Windows 11, version 24H2 if you want. Once you update your PC to Windows 11, version 24H2, you will continue to automatically receive new servicing updates through Windows Update (the typical monthly update process). For instructions on how to join the Windows Insider Program and join your PC to the Release Preview Channel,  click here .

PLEASE NOTE: Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels will not be able to switch to the Release Preview Channel as they are on builds already based on Windows 11, version 24H2 but are on higher build numbers. These Insiders don’t need to switch. 

Commercial*** customers enrolled in the  Windows Insider Program for Business  can begin validating Windows 11, version 24H2 on PCs in their organizations. For these customers, the Windows 11, version 24H2 feature update is available through Windows Update for Business (WUfB) and Windows Server Update Service (WSUS). Azure Marketplace will be coming soon. You can learn more about deploying pre-release feature updates using  these deployment methods here . Should any issues arise, IT admins in organizations deploying Release Preview updates can request Microsoft Support .

And finally – ISOs are now available for download for Windows 11, version 24H2 via the Windows Insider ISO download page .

Thanks, Windows Insider Program Team

*Please note that Cortana, Tips, and WordPad are removed after upgrading to Windows 11, version 24H2. These apps are deprecated .

**Copilot in Windows is being rolled out gradually to Windows Insiders across our global markets. Customers in the European Economic Area will be able to download the Copilot in Windows experience as an app from the Microsoft Store (coming soon).

***We consider a device a commercial device if it is not running the Windows 11 Home edition AND is being managed by an IT administrator (whether via Microsoft Endpoint Manager or other management solution) or has a volume license key or commercial ID or is joined to a domain.

Premium Digital Projector for Planetariums

The VELVET LED projector developed and manufactured by ZEISS is the only one in the world that has been created in every respect for astronomical displays in planetariums. It impresses not only with its enormous contrast ratio of 2,500,000 : 1, but also with its outstanding image quality.

• Highest Contrast
• Brilliant Colors
• Ultimate Sharpness

Perfect Blending

Black night sky and bright stars thanks to top contrast

As the only DLP projector on the market, VELVET achieves a contrast ratio comparable to ZEISS' fibre-optic star projection. VELVET LED provides an absolutely black image background. No grey background light brightens the night sky. Stars and objects shine on deep black.

DLP Technology and LED Light Sources for Brilliant and Stable Colors

DLP technology provides stability and ensures consistent colours and brightness for many years. Even after many thousands of hours of operation, a VELVET LED projector delivers excellent picture quality. The high contrast of the projector results in high color saturation. The eye perceives the high-contrast and color-intensive projection as particularly brilliant and pleasant. The new LED light sources provide an improved colour space compared to previous models.

ZEISS Optics for Pin-sharp Pixels and Excellent Pixel Contrast

Not only the number of pixels determines a good picture. Only the entire reproduction quality of the projection device defines sharpness and image impression. The VELVET LED incorporates ZEISS optics of the highest quality, guaranteeing impressive image quality. This is why a 6k dome image generated with VELVET LED looks sharper and crisper than many an 8k image from other systems.

Thanks to the absence of any backlighting by the VELVET projectors, there is no need for mechanical masks within or in front of the projection lenses, which is necessary with other projector technologies to reduce the visibility of channel blends. The transitions between the individual image channels are invisible with VELVET LED, the dome image is perfect.

Product Video ZEISS VELVET LED

• ZEISS VELVET LED product presentation in English

Additional Information

Do you have any questions.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Form is loading...

Your form is being submitted...

• Your file(s) couldn't be submitted. Please abort to return to the form.

If you want to have more information on data processing at ZEISS, please refer to our data protection notice .

Quick answers to frequently asked questions