• What do I want the audience to do and remember?
  
  

• Keep your expectations realistic-the typical audience's attention span will be short. Twenty minutes after the presentation, most people will have a hard time remembering what you had to say unless you've clearly identified your main messages.

1. Prioritize! If you have nine different messages you want to deliver, and repeat each one only once, the likelihood of people remembering those will be slight. If, however, you have three main points that you want to deliver and you can work those into your presentation three different times, the audience will be more likely to remember those major points.
   
   

2. Write your ending first. Doing so clarifies what it is you want your audience to do and remember. Begin this section by thinking through what it is you want to say and then write, "In conclusion,… point 1, point 2, point 3."
   
   

3. Select the beginning-be sure to sell yourself! This is a great time to remember that most people need to be sold on who it is that's delivering the messages. They don't know who you are, they don't know your company, they don't know your company's product, what your company stands for, your company's record, your company's reputation. All these need to be answered before you can "sell" them your messages. Look at your introduction as an opportunity to let the audience know who you are, who you employ, how long you've lived in the community. Share any of your company's successes and reputation and what your vision is. This personalizes you, and relates you with the audience before you try to sell your message to the group.
   
   

4. Fill in the middle (you have only six to ten minutes left to state your points). Now that you have your beginning and your ending, it's very simple to prepare the middle part of your presentation. There are several ways to arrange a proper flow from the beginning to the end. You can arrange your points by topic, by chronological order, begin with what the audience knows and move to what it doesn't know, or by a question/answer or problem/solution format. Once you've put this together, your presentation is prepared.
   
   

5. Rehearse! Even though you may feel funny, the best way to rehearse your presentation is to stand up and say it out loud. Put your introduction, your three main points, and conclusion on note cards when you rehearse. Rehearsing with these cards will help you decide whether you need just your notes or if you need to have more in front of you. However, it's nearly always better if you don't read your presentation word for word. Rehearsing your presentation also allows you to make sure you'll stay within your allotted amount of time. Again, if you find yourself speaking longer than the allowed time, look for ways to prioritize and simplify your presentation.

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