Opening your presentation with a bang

culled from:speak-first.com

1 Make a bold claim

If you start with a dramatic or provocative claim, you’re guaranteed to get attention and people will listen to what you have to say next.

2 Invite them to ‘imagine’

Starting with the word ‘imagine’ places your audience in the centre of an experience and straight away makes them active participants in the presentation. Once the audience starts imagining, the presentation is brought to life with pictures, sounds and feelings, rather than being restricted to the presenter’s words. You could ask them to imagine an idealistic or visionary future for example, or to imagine being in someone else’s shoes.

3 Present a striking fact or statistic

This is particularly effective when it’s surprising or counter-intuitive and is a simple and powerful way to grab the attention of the audience. Obviously it needs to relate to the purpose of your presentation and should include accurate and verifiable numbers where possible.

4 Ask a question

Asking the audience a question is one of the most powerful ways of getting them engaged right from the start. It also has the added benefit of keeping them alert and on their toes for the rest of the presentation, because they know you may ask another question at any point!

5 Tell a story or anecdote

The keys to starting with a story or anecdote are: make it relevant to the audience, share a personal experience to build an emotional connection, keep it short so you don’t lose them.

6 Use an aphorism or proverb

Proverbs, aphorisms or familiar sayings can be a great way of opening, provided they relate closely to your message. Use them carefully though, or they might come across as tired, obvious clichés.

7 Be mysterious

Audiences are easily hooked when you arouse their curiosity. In the mystery opening, you give them ambiguous clues before revealing your point or subject matter. Clues might be images on screen, an object placed on their seats, or posing a question that you don’t answer until later in your presentation. You need to make sure you get the timing and delivery right so people don’t get irritated by the ‘game’ you’re playing.

8 Introduce an analogy or metaphor

Analogies, similies and metaphors are comparisons between two apparently unrelated items. They’re a practical, engaging way of making a complex or theoretical concept easier to understand.

9 Commence with a quote

A well-known or obscure quote from someone can be an extremely effective way of opening. Out of common courtesy (and the interest of the audience) make sure you name whoever said or wrote the quote.

10 Crack a joke

This is a dangerous one, but if you pull it off your audience will be amused and enamoured by you and you’ll have them engaged and in a good mood. Just remember that humour is subjective however, so you risk the joke falling flat or offending people if you get it wrong!

Continue and close with a bang

Many of these tools can be used during the presentation as well as for the opening. They are great ways to keep the presentation interesting, engaging and relevant.

Your close is just as important as your opening. You need to bring things to an emphatic, satisfying, positive conclusion, rather than stopping because you’ve run out of steam. The easiest way to do that is to refer back to what you said at the start. That way, your opening and closing remarks act as bookends to your presentation. When referring back to your opening comment, show how what you have presented is relevant and will make a difference.