An effective presentation begins with focused thinking. You’ll need to figure out your primary aim, which usually involves getting people to understand something or take action.
Your broad objective
Go back to that short phrase you wrote down earlier—turn it into a crisp sentence that states your goal. Begin with “I want,” and include your audience. Here are some examples:
• “I want to inform my department about the new process for proposing new product ideas.”
• “I want my colleagues to help brainstorm ideas for the project we’re about to start.”
• “I want to show people how well my team’s new system works.”
• “I want to get other managers to sign on to a set of recommendations I’ve developed for our top executives.”
• “I want to give people in my group the tools they need to reach their targets this quarter.”
Your broad objective may be nothing like those, but state it just as succinctly. Anyone should be able to understand it without reading it twice.
Your desired outcomes
Now it’s time to get specific, not about what your presentation will include (that comes later) but about what results you want. Take, for example, this objective from the preceding list:
“I want to show people how well my team’s new system works.”
You don’t just want attendees to walk away impressed with the system. You seek outcomes. What are they? Maybe you need people to identify ways they can use the system in their daily work or to take the first step toward implementation within one week. Or maybe you’d like them to troubleshoot obstacles and report back to you with their findings within 10 days.
Whatever your desired outcomes, write them down in a list. There’s no magic number, but be realistic; fewer items are usually better. That way, you’ll tighten your focus and avoid setting your own and your audience’s expectations too high.
With your broad objective and desired outcomes in hand, identify how you will measure whether you’ve met your goals.
Do you expect to leave the presentation with ideas that audience members generated? Do you want attendees to complete a set of tasks by a certain deadline? Are you trying to measure “soft” data, such as enthusiasm and buy-in? How will you gauge those?
Keep the metrics simple and easy to assess, accounting for what your audience can realistically produce. If you’re looking for feedback, you might ask people to complete a brief form or online survey. If deliverables are part of the mix, provide a handout that lists those items—something physical that audience members can carry away with them and that you can easily send to people who missed the presentation.