7 Trends in Public Speaking and Presentations (Part 2)
Presentation technology has changed quite a bit since the days of overhead projectors and clip art. The Public Speaker walks you through the latest trends in presentations in Part 2 of this series.
Lisa B. Marshall
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7 Trends in Public Speaking and Presentations (Part 2)
I think most of us have a love/hate relationship with PowerPoint.
It’s easy. It’s predictable. You can throw a presentation together quickly, if you need to.
But should you?
In Part 1 of this two-part series on presentation and conference trends, we discussed 7 general trends in presentation style. In short, presentations are getting more casual, more focused on audience participation, and continuing the trend toward in-person relationships.
In this second part of our series, I’ll cover 7 more trends, this time focusing on conference and presentation technology. We’ve come a long way since projectors and clip art!
Trend #1: There’s an App for That
Conference guide, event, and presentation apps are quickly becoming common, even standard, particularly at larger conferences. More engaging than paper program guides, these apps are providing agendas, video, contact exchange, and even more customizable content right at your attendees’ fingertips.
There are even multi-event apps that let you carry over essential information and branding from one conference to the next, with attendees only needing to download one app. If you haven’t considered using one of these (or having a programmer build or tailor one for you), you should. It’s an economical, progressive way to interact with your audience who has arrived expecting to interact with you.
Trend #2: Putting the Crowd to Work
Speaking of interacting, I’m sure you’ve heard the news. The collective intelligence is in. Crowd sourcing through mobile audience polling devices can be used to capture opinion, generate audience analysis, and provide real-time feedback to assist in changing the course of a presentation.
I even know of one pastor who uses polling software to engage his congregation! He told that it helps to engage the quieter members and allows them to ask questions anonymously. He simply posts the questions in his presentation, then has a separate screen set up for the responses. He was very enthusiastic about his use of this technology.
Trend #3: Technology for Small Meetings
I mentioned in Part 1 of this series that smaller meeting rooms are requiring advances in small group technology. For example, we’re now using big screen TVs as monitors and with that, we’re switching from VGA to DVI, and also to 16:9 HD (so be sure to have the right connectors with you).
As presentation groups get smaller and more intimate, personal or pocket projectors, which hold files and project onto a surface are also becoming popular. These types of presentations are often impromptu and need to remain highly flexible since your conversation partners will be driving the direction of the presentation. I often suggest a highly linked presentation that allows you to navigate as you wish—releasing you from the standard linear progression.
And using your iPad or iPhone as your clicker is trending (it’s possible now, but still clunky), just as using your iPad, iPhone, or tablet as your presentation screen is already becoming standard for small group meetings. I find simply saving presentations as PDFs and moving through them without presentation software is the best way to manage this situation.
Trend #4: Look – No Hands!
As the in-person, relational trend continues, presenters are looking for nuanced ways to interact with, rather than stand in front of, their audiences. Smart watches, bracelets, and products such as Google Glass allow a more hands-free and therefore more engaging experience. The ability to move slides with gestures rather than with a clicker (e.g. Kinect technology) is a subtle way to keep a casual, personal tone about your presentation while still remaining acutely in charge of it.
Trend #5: Plan Past the PC
As we get more mobile, planning for responsive site design for your presentations is becoming more and more critical. Creating a responsive presentations with Responsive Web Design (RWD) and Adaptive Web Design (AWD) in mind allows viewing in a variety of ways and on a variety of screens (tablets, PCs, phones, and TVs). This will become increasingly important as we continue into the post-PC generation. Here’s a tutorial I found that explains this in more detail
Trend #6: Increase the “Wow Factor”
When I suggested you get rid of the lectern, I really meant it. For those with big budgets and technical teams to assist with marketing efforts, projection mapping and 3D video mapping is now available and can produce some stunning effects.
This type of presentation is more like an experience. It is highly engaging and memorable and certainly because of the novelty will be highly shared on social media. Don’t know what I’m talking about? You really need to see it to understand. Here are a few examples.
Integrating LED lighting with A/V systems to more specifically support themes and branding can increase your wow factor. And software that manages multiple devices like projectors, lights, smartboards, and screens all at one time makes creating new effects possible. This new generation of presentations has the possibility to transcend the traditional experience and be something downright spectacular.
Trend #7: Pile on the Extras
Nowadays, you need to be easily casual, professional, efficient, outgoing, progressive, and engaging.
Finally, a lot is being asked of presenters these days. Conference organizers want any additional value they can get from speakers and often this includes book signings, video trailers, endless cross-posting to social media, and post-presentation social gatherings. For my most recent gig, I was asked to make a video trailer about the event and my keynote presentation, to deliver an additional a break-out session, and set up a table for a book signing event.
Nowadays, you need to be easily casual, professional, efficient, outgoing, progressive, and engaging. You need to understand and use technology. You need to know how to engage, interact, and provide real value beyond your topic. Oh, and you also need to actually know what you’re talking about.
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Now that you know the latest trends in presentation style and technology, there’s no excuse to keep living in the past. Spice up your presentations with a more audience-centric style and wow your listenrs and viewers with the latest technology. An please, no more clip art!
Have you seen any trends in presentation that I didn’t cover in this series? I’d love to hear about them. Leave a comment below.
This is Lisa B. Marshall, Helping you maximize sales, manage perceptions, and enhance leadership through keynotes, workshops, books, and online courses. Passionate about communication; your success is my business.
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Tablet meeting and other images courtesy of Shutterstock.
About the Author
Lisa B. Marshall Lisa holds masters with duel degrees in interpersonal/intercultural communication and organizational communication. She’s the author of Smart Talk: The Public Speaker’s Guide to Success in Every Situation, as well as Ace Your Interview, Powerful Presenter, and Expert Presenter. Her work has been featured in CBS Money Watch, Ragan.com, Woman’s Day, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, and many others. Her institutional clients include Johns Hopkins Medicine, Harvard University, NY Academy of Science, University of Pennsylvania, Genentech, and Roche.