How to start a presentation - the 3 step formula
When you start a speech or presentation, it’s essential that you start with impact.
Your audience decides within about 30 seconds if they will tune out, or if they will give you their undivided attention.
That’s why your goal needs to be to intrigue your audience from the very outset.
Here’s my 3-step formula on what you need to include, as a minimum, to be engaging, when you start your presentations.
1. A strong, relevant hook
Add a powerful opener (hook) to “reel” your audience in.
There are so many different, interesting ways to start strongly with a hook.
You could use a shocking or surprising statistic, a thought-provoking quote or question, a personal story, a video, a graph/diagram/infographic, some humour or a suitable prop.
Use your imagination and have fun with this. You could even include several hooks for added impact!
Check out this blog post for some food for thought on different hooks you can use.
2. A compelling main message
You need a punchy thesis statement or main message, to convey to your audience the gist of what you will be covering in your presentation.
Your main message is like an anchor, from which all your main points need to relate.
As an example of crafting a main message:
Let’s say your presentation’s purpose is to persuade your audience to include meditation breaks during the school day.
Your main message/thesis statement could go something like this:
“Today, I’m going to talk to you about why meditation and relaxation breaks should be part of the school day and I’ll explain why including these breaks will dramatically improve the mental health and wellbeing of children and adolescents.”
3. An overview of your presentation.
Think of yourself as a tour guide, taking your audience on a journey with you. Before you all head off on the tour, you let everyone know what sights and landmarks they will see along the way.
Likewise, as a presenter, give your audience an overview of your presentation, with the main points that you will be covering.
People like to see the big picture before you drill down into the fine details.
In the case of a presentation about the importance of meditation in schools, your overview could be:
“In my presentation, I will cover what meditation is, how it it can help promote good mental health, and will demonstrate a simple meditation exercise that you can practise every day.”
Special note:
Persuasive speeches or presentations require a few more add-ins at the start. Please refer to the blog post how to start a persuasive speech..
So, there you have it - the 3 elements to include at the start of every presentation.
Implement this basic 3-step formula and you’ll get off to a strong, confident start and attract your audience’s attention from the outset!
© 2024 Susan Weser. All rights reserved.
Susan Weser is the Founder of Speaking2Win, a boutique public speaking and presentation skills consultancy, based in Melbourne, Australia. Susan’s mission is to demystify public speaking and presenting. She loves to fast-track her clients’ public speaking success, empowering them with the skills and confidence to excel in all their public speaking endeavours.
