VB036/05
Adapted from Williams, Erica J. Presentations in English. Honkong: MacMillan, 2008.
Week 5 Presentations
Which of these statements about visuals do you agree with?
1) The presentation handout should not be the same document as the presentation slides.
2) It’s OK if there are English spelling mistakes on a slide as no one expects me to be perfect.
3) You shouldn’t use too many colors.
4) I need to include all details and data on my slides – that’s my business and that’s what my
audience expect!
5) A good presenter uses visual material to support the message and not to give the message.
6) I see and I remember.
7) The slides are the first thing I prepare as they’re the most important part of my
presentations.
8) If the slides are detailed enough, I can just read them aloud if I forget what I was going to say.
9) There should never be more than seven words on a slide.
10) The audience should listen to me and not worry about the slides too much.
11) A picture is worth a thousand words.
12) The audience can always read if they can’t understand me.
13) Every visual aid should lead to my conclusion.
14) It’s annoying and confusing if a presenter talks about subjects that are not even on the slide.
15) Less is more.
16) I appreciate it when the presenter doesn’t rely on PowerPoint but does something a little
different, such as using a flip chart or objects.
Phrases to interact with visuals
Now let’s look at/let’s have a look/let’s take a
look…
Now let me show you…
Let’s move on and look at…
The next slide shows…
As we/you can see…
As the figures/graph/chart indicate(s)…
From the figures/graph/chart we can see…
…which you can/view see here.
…which can be seen here.
This is an example/model of…
It is important to notice that…
What is interesting/important here is…
Let’s focus on…
The next image compares/shows/describes…
At the top we/you can see…
On the left we have…
I’d like to draw your attention to…
VB036/05
Adapted from Williams, Erica J. Presentations in English. Honkong: MacMillan, 2008.
Exercise: Steve Jobs – Unveiling the iPhone
A) You will watch two parts from the Steve Jobs iPhone presentation. How would you
describe his presentation style? Is it formal or informal? Personal or impersonal?
B) Watch these parts again and focus on Job’s use of the following presentation techniques.
A) The unveiling of the product
a. Slides
b. Silence
c. Delivery stress
d. Body language
B) iPod demonstration
a. Slides
b. Silence
c. Delivery stress
d. Body language
C) What did you think of his style (and the presentation as a whole)? Did you find it effective?
Why did he present in such a manner?