How To Make Your Presentation POP!

So you've submitted a talk for Ignite OKC. You've come up with a clever title and crafted a description that will surely lure voters your way. You've bulleted out your points. You've timed out your speech. You've made certain you actually have five minutes worth of things for people to hear...

But wait.

What about what those people will see? You panic. Rifling through your ideas, you scour Flickr and Google Images looking for anything that will help you illustrate your topic. You have to put something on the screen. Anything. Right?

Slow down there, gipper. There's definitely a right (and a wrong) way to aesthetically augment your talk.

Here are five good tips for making your Ignite OKC presentation POP:

1. Less is more -- Just because you have 14 feet of wide open presentation space doesn't mean you need to fill it up. Cluttered slides distract the audience from what you're saying. We can't have people missing Step 3 of the "Five Steps to Surviving a Fall from 30,000 Feet," now can we?

2. Timing is everything -- Having slides advance every 15 seconds might frighten the newbie presenter, but more seasoned speakers know how to use the controlled pace to their advantage. A well-timed word followed by a well-placed image will make the audience go wild.

3. Different is good -- iStockPhoto images work great for presentations to the board of directors, but you'll be presenting to a board of crickets if you use one in your Ignite talk. Take the time to search out powerful, unique images for your presentations and you'll be remembered for it.

4. Talk is cheap -- People attend Ignite events to hear from the speakers, not read them. Be judicious in your use of text. Or as our friend Smokey the Bear likes to say: "Only YOU can prevent carpal tunnel syndrome."

5. Life is a cabaret -- An oft-overlooked visual aspect of all good presentations is the animation of the speaker himself. You are the conduit between the screen and the audience. Your actions, motions and expressions on stage should facilitate a connection between the two.

There you have it. Five surefire ways to make your Ignite OKC presentation stand out. Now get to work. These things take time, you know.

Oh, and if you read this blog entry and you want to know what to expect from our motley crew of presenters, mosey on over to www.igniteokc.com/talks and vote for your favorite topic.