HANDS, FACE, SPACE: Tips for powerful in-person pitches and presentations

After 18 months of Zoom, webinars and god-forsaken Microsoft Teams presentations, it might just be time to start thinking about delivering in-person pitches and talks again.

Whether it’s giving a compelling conference talk, inspiring public audiences, or presenting the perfect investor pitch, we’re sharing some of our top tips to help you tell your story with confidence over on the First Create The Media blog.

Here are the highlights...

START WITH YOUR STORY

Every great talk starts with thinking about who you’re speaking to, what they need to know, and what you want them to do when they’ve finished listening. 

Then it’s a case of constructing a story that makes sense, with a clear beginning and end, and a meaty chunk of action in the middle.

Check out our tips for telling a compelling story in our previous posts Boom! Shake the Zoom and Why Every Startup Needs a Story.

LOOK INTO MY EYES…

A real audience is full of real people, who are looking to engage with you and your ideas.

Help to create a human connection by looking to people in different parts of the room and making eye contact with them for a few seconds before moving on. It feels a bit awkward at first but it’s a trick that can make every member of the audience leave the room feeling like they’ve been personally spoken to.

TAKE IT SLOW

A foolproof way to avoid sounding and feeling rushed is to properly plan and script your presentation in advance, so you know how long you expect to take. A good public speaking speed is around 150 words per minute, plus a bit of extra time for changing slides and pauses. 

Then, when you’re practising your talk, make sure you’re running through it in ‘presentation mode’: speak out loud at a slow, clear pace, rather than skimming through in your normal conversational voice or under your breath.

USE YOUR SPACE

Moving from one area to another can be used to transmit the idea of moving in geographical space, such as moving between cities or taking a voyage. 

Remember that your view is opposite to your audience, so if you’re describing moving from London to Bristol or New York to San Francisco you’ll need to move from left to right so the journey makes sense to them.

As you plan your talk, create a physical map of the stage area in your mind or on a piece of paper. Allocate locations to different parts of your presentation and practice moving between them as you talk so it feels and looks natural.

STEADY YOUR STANCE

It may not seem obvious, but standing on one leg or shifting from side to side creates a feeling of unease and uncertainty in your audience - the exact opposite of what you want when you’re trying to build confidence and belief!

The good news is that you don’t have to adopt the infamous Tory ‘power stance’ to be taken seriously. 

Focus on keeping your feet both planted squarely under your hips, brace your core and pull your shoulders back to exude confidence in the right way.

RAISE YOUR HANDS

Move slowly and deliberately, so you don’t feel like you’re just flapping your hands about or wrestling an invisible weasel. 

Quartz has a ‘handy’ rundown of some common (if a little cheesy) hand gestures beloved of TED speakers, but you can always try out other movements that work uniquely for your story such as tracing out the shapes and sizes. 

ALL KILLER, NO FILLER

Getting rid of those filler words like ummm, errrr and OK will give your public speaking a professional edge. Knowing your material and practising it obviously helps you give a polished performance, but many of us habitually use filler words without even realising we’re doing it. 

One method to remove them is to try and train yourself to deliberately pause silently at the end of each phrase as you reach for the next, rather than letting a noise fill the space instead. It’s a tricky task but it’s certainly achievable with practice. 

GET HELP

At First Create The Media, we love helping people in the life sciences unlock their power as compelling storytellers and speakers for pitches, TED talks, public events and more.  

Get in touch to find out how we can help you bring your ideas to life for the audiences that matter to you.