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Episode 35 of the profitable speaking podcast, where we provide practical tips and insights to help you succeed as a public speaker. In today's episode, I'm going to look at my top 10 tips for racing your next conference presentation. We're going to be diving into the world of conference presentations and equipping you with the top 10 tips that will skyrocket your performance and leave a lasting impact on your audience. Whether you're a seasoned speaker or about to deliver your first presentations, these simple yet powerful strategies will ensure that you ace your next conference presentation with competence, charisma and finesse. So grab your notepad, get ready to unlock the secrets to captivating presentations that will elevate your various and new heights. Let's jump right in. Number one craft compelling speech. The key to acing a conference presentation lies in crafting a compelling speech. You need to focus on creating a clear and concise message that resonates with your audience, structure your speech with a strong opening, a well-developed body that's for your main point and a memorable conclusion that leaves a lasting impact. I like to use the 131 method, that's have one main topic, three subtopics that talk about that topic and then one reminder at the end to pull it all together for the audience. Now, as you go through and you build your 131 method, don't forget to build in your sale. Use facts and examples and case studies to set you up as the expert so that people want to hire you to work with them. Remember you need to think about your audience. You need to know who they are, how they got here, where they came from, why they're even in the audience and what they need to know to change their lives. When you're building your speech, remember to build it big and then trim it back. Put everything in practice it and then throw out the bits that don't work. That way you get a nice cohesive sort of flow to remember using the 131 method and, of course, you add the pretty last. So just keep it plain, just use your basic PowerPoint layout with your information on it and then, when you get to the end, then you can add in all your photos and all that, but get the speech written and tied it up and then do it. Another one craft a compelling speech.

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Number two improve your visual impact. That was a mouthful. Visuals play a crucial role in enhancing your presentation. Invest time in designing visually appealing slides that complement your content. Use colors, fonts and graphics that align with your message and maintain a consistent visual theme throughout your presentation. So one of the things that really bugs me is 1980s styles PowerPoints. They look like they were done by one of my old year one level students. It's terrible. Seriously, you're a professional speaker. You need to improve the look of your PowerPoint keynote.

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Whatever program that you use when you're presenting on stage, it's not good enough to put a cheap, nasty, default looking PowerPoint up there for people to look at. It distracts from your message and it distracts from your overall presentation. You can look at a million dollars, but if your PowerPoint looks like it was done by a year one, it's really embarrassing. So please use a professional template. You can buy templates from Invato or you can go to five or up work and get someone to make it look pretty based on your ideas. These days, you can even use AI in PowerPoint to build the slides. So put your information in and drop a photo on and you'll see it come up with the AI and it will suggest a range of layouts. Now the trick is to use consistently, as you choose, that different layout for each slide, but it's pretty reliable and overall it actually looks really good.

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Remember, also brand it using your brand, your logo and your colours only. Don't have mixed colours throughout. If your main colours are golden, black and white, then use golden, black and white. Don't add pink or blue. Use consistency. We see this in every other form of production, whether it be television or books or whatever. Consistency is always through the whole document. There's no excuse but to use doing all sorts of things in your PowerPoint. Keep it clean, keep it fast, keep it nice and, of course, you can use QR codes on each page as well to send people to somewhere where they can download a gift via email. So lots of things you can do to improve your visual impact.

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Number three use real photos, not stock photos. When it comes to visuals, using real photos instead of stock images can significantly enhance the authenticity of your presentation. Real photos out of personal touch can help your audience connect with your message on a much deeper level. If you incorporate relevant and high quality images that support and enhance your content, it will make a difference to your overall presentation. Stock photos are boring. Let's base the facts okay. We can recognise them from a mile away, and especially if you're not in America, because straight away you can tell from the mixed people and the clothes and the way they look, that they are not Australian or Singaporean or New Zealand or whatever. Okay, straight away, like it really stands out, and honestly, use your own pictures. Okay, go out and take some photos. Get some photos taken. Ask friends if they've got pictures of something so it looks like a real photo. Someone's been to the architecture and you want a photo of that. Ask anyone. Been frantic. Get a photo of this. No doubt someone will have it. We all have millions of digital photos ripped, taken and stored either in Apple photos or in Google photos. Nothing says I lived this that I'm talking about better than your own stock images, your own photos Over four.

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Get your audience to take action by doing simple activities. Engage your audience by incorporating simple activities in your presentation. Okay, this could be as interactive as asking questions, conducting polls or even little group discussions between one to three people. These activities don't keep your audience involved, but also encourage active learning and participation. The way I find that I've mentioned before is to use a little workbook or worksheet. You get people writing and then you can ask them for their answers. Okay, they fill it in, they discuss it with the person next to them and allows you to get feedback from the floor because they're going to give you answers and then you can write it down on a flip chart. So so much you can do when you get people to take some action, when you get them thinking, it also keeps them all because they're afraid you might ask them for an answer. Now, obviously, you only take volunteers from the audience, but it still keeps everybody else on their toes. It activates their brain and that's really important when you're trying to help them achieve something different through your speaking.

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Remember, teachers follow a format when they teach a class. Okay, they talk about the topic they're going to do, they show an example, they do some background related questions, they then demonstrate how to do it, then they get the class to do it, then they discuss the results and then they do an activity based on the original one and then they review it. There's a reason for this process. The reason is it works. It's been tested billions of times in billions of classrooms all around the world. Do little things like that Follow a little format, building in there, okay.

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Number five is give something away for free. Powerful way to leave a lasting impression on your audience is by offering something valuable for free. Okay, it can be an e-book, a downloadable resource or access to exclusive content. By providing this out of value, you not only build goodwill, but you also establish yourself as a credible authority in your field. Okay, it helps you collect emails, help you connect with people, ongoing so you can support their success. Okay, you can give a bonus that goes with the speech and make sure to relate it specifically to the topic. It's not worth giving away something that's not related. I suggest you hold off to the end or close to the end, not the last thing you talk about, otherwise people will be getting ready to go. But mention it early on. I'm going to give you access to this here, or I'll give you access to my PowerPoint. You can download the bullet points so you can take those bullet points of what you covered on stage, maybe turn it into a little mini ebook and, quite frankly, you could do that by either taking the points and talking or feeding it into AI and getting it to expand on them. Whatever you want to do. And then, finally, make sure that free thing looks like a million dollars. Okay, use Canva to do the layout or get someone to show up work to make it look nice. Again, stop handing out stuff that looks like it was done by a year one student. It's annoying and it's old fashioned. Okay, we've come a long way. You can do better.

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Number six practice. Okay, I've said this too many times Practice is key to delivering a polished and confident presentation, and confident is the key word here. When you rehearse your speech multiple times, paying attention to your timing, your gestures, your delivery, you get better. Okay, simple Practice in front of a mirror, record yourself or get feedback from someone you trust. The more you practice, the more comfortable you will be and the more prepared you'll feel on the day of the presentation.

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As I put lots of slides in my initial practice slide deck and then I cull them, I move them and I insert new ones, I'll go through a presentation 10 times. Okay, even if it's 45 minutes long, it will take me 10 times to get it down to something really good. I do it through and then, when I get it to the point where I feel pretty comfortable with it, I lock it down. I stop pulling out slides, I stop doing stuff. Okay, gotta draw a line in the sand where you're not going to make any more changes. Okay, get to the point where you know where you're going and when you see the slide, it automatically comes to your head. And then get better than that. Okay, so you get to the point where you know what the next slide's going to be. Now, that's not always possible if you're doing one-off speeches, but if you are doing the same sort of speech, you can get to the point where you don't really need the slides, and that's when you might get a bit slick.

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Practice it up. Practice seven watch the speeches before yours and add references Before your presentation. Take time to watch other speeches or presentations at the conference. This will give you a sense of the audience's interests and the overall tone of the event. Incorporate relevant references and key takeaways from the previous speaker to create a seamless flow and show your engagement with the conference theme. Okay, this is really important. Take note of anything related to your topic Just a couple. You don't need like 50 paragraphs two or three things. And then, when you get on stage and you get to a point, you say, oh, and I agree with Mary or Joe who said this, because that fits in here with what I talk about. So, yes, they really work together. Okay, it shows you present in the room to everybody who's there. It also gives cutoffs to the other speaker for their great thinking and, if you can show where their thinking fits into your framework or your ideas, ties the conference together better.

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Use real life stories that have emotion. Number eight stories have a unique power to captivate audiences and make your message memorable. We all know this. Okay, incorporate real life stories that invoke emotions and connect with your audience's experiences. Whether it's a personal anecdote, customer success story or an example, make sure it aligns with your key points and supports the overall message. It must be related to what you're talking about. Nothing hits harder than real life stories told. Okay, they must have emotion. A story is just a story without emotion. It doesn't have any impact. Sometimes it's hard to do, but please try. I'm trying I've always tried to do better at this. Okay, people will tell you when you hit the mark. Recently, when I was talking in Singapore, I told a story about leaving the office and coming home, my kids saying that they never saw me because I was always in the office, I'd leave soon after they got up and I'd get home shortly before they went to bed because they were very young. It was quite heartbreaking, but a number of people and I've told me. Quite a few people came up afterwards, especially men, and said to me that they knew exactly what I was talking about and that was really hard hitting for them. Okay, so these little stories can make a big difference to your impact. So when you're doing a story, make sure you write it out a bit, make sure it points down and then build it by practicing. Okay, sometimes it's good to write an outline of the story and then practice it and build it up.

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Number 10, smile and be confident. You're the expert. Your body language and demeanour greatly influence how your audience perceives you. Smile, make eye contact and project confidence. Remember that you're the expert in your field and your presentation is an opportunity to showcase your knowledge. Embrace your expertise and let it shine through your confident and approachable demeanour. I've said it before my wife always reminds me to smile because I have a resting face and it doesn't look cool when I go to the stage. It doesn't mean I'm unhappy, it just means that's the way I am, okay, so smile. I always think of this before I hit the stage. Your parents were right okay, stand tall, pull your shoulders back.

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Okay, have some presence on stage, command that stage and move around it. Don't hide in one spot, okay, get around. Use both sides of the stage. Talk to the full audience. If there's an electric on stage, burn it. Get rid of it. Maybe you do not stand behind it. If you do, it will kill your presentation. It's painful to watch someone presenting behind an electric. There's only very few people I've seen who can do it. Horticians are probably the only one that can pull it off, to be honest, okay. And lastly, with the confidence side, you get a good suit or outfit that you feel comfortable in. That you feel confident in. That gives you power. It's like changing your frame. When you pull your suit on, your frame changes. You become the confident next to the stage. And lastly but not least, use video.

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Incorporating video into your presentations can be a game changer. Okay, dad's variety, visual interest and can effectively illustrate cobs or showcase real world examples for you. Use video clips strategically, ensuring they align with your message and seamlessly integrate into your overall presentation flow. Okay, like photos, videos really add impact. I know that, having been a teacher and I still write courses for schools and things. You can get kids something to read. You can give them pictures, but if you give them a video and then ask them. It has a much greater impact. So using video is very important in the learning process and it should be important in your learning process as well. Okay, it must be your video, or about an event that you're at, etc. So don't just use random videos to illustrate a story. It's better to actually shoot a video of yourself telling a story and then put it in your presentation than just use video of someone else telling a story. Okay, check it works. This is really important.

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One of the biggest issues is embedding video into PowerPoints and Keynotes and things like that. It's very unreliable and I'm still doing some research into trying to make that work better, because I want to use more video in mind. For example, sometimes people will convert the video to an animating GIF. It's only a short video, so you might be using video in the background of a slide or something. But either way, make sure you do your research. Make sure, when you're using video, use a tip, illustrate a point or to build ground to a story you're about to talk about. So say it's a news item and then you say sorry on that day.

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Okay, don't use video to make yourself the hero. Remember, you're up there as the guide. You're trying to make your audience the hero. You're there to help them succeed. If you want to learn more about that, go and have a look at Donald Miller's books in the Story Brands universe. There is such good stuff there about the fact you're not the hero. Yes, they might look at you as maybe being one, but that's not your job in the room. Your job is to say I did this, but you can do it too. I'm going to make you the hero. Okay, and also remember, if you're going to use video, please use high resolution video, unless it's old video, in which case you may be able to get it upscaled, because loading it into a software like Premiere Pro and that are these days with AI and you can upscale the resolution, because while you're looking at it on a screen this big, while you're prepping when people come into the room, we know how big those screens are behind us, so we need to make sure that it's clear, not pixelated.

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So, to review, when it comes to acing your next conference presentation, there are several key factors to consider. Crafting a compelling speech sets the foundation allowing you to deliver a clear, memorable message. Enhancing your visual impact with real photos not only adds authenticity, but it also captures your audience's attention. Engaging your audience through simple activities encourages active participation, creates dynamic learning environments. Offering something valuable for free leaves a lasting impression and establishes your credibility. Practice is crucial, as it redefines your delivery and refines it, and it boosts your confidence. Watching previous speeches and adding in references demonstrates your engagement with the event and helps build a cohesive narrative. Incorporating real-life stories that evoke emotion adds depth and connection. By smiling and exuding confidence, you establish yourself as the expert in stealing trust in your audience. And finally, leveraging the power of video brings your presentation to life and enhances comprehension. By applying these 10 tips in a cohesive manner, you will create a conference presentation that captivates your audience and leaves a lasting impact advancing your professional success.

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I hope you found this episode of our podcast on the top 10 tips for acing your next conference presentation interesting. If you did, I have a challenge for you Hit that like button and subscribe to the podcast right now, and then share this episode with another speaker who could use the tips and strategies I shared. Let's help each other grow our businesses and make an impact in the speaking world. Together, we can reach even more people and make a bigger difference. So don't wait. Take action now and share the love. Thanks for tuning in. Get ready for more exciting business building tips in the next episode.