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How to Create a Video Introduction That Hooks Your Audience
That’s all the time you have got to hook your audience before they move on to another video.
If you miss your chance to impress and engage your viewer in this short period, you won’t have another shot.
How can you engage your audience in such a short amount of time?
Let’s take a look at five techniques you can use to write a video introduction that hooks your audience right away.
1. Create a Curiosity Gap with Your Video Intro
Your video has something that your viewers want; it’s what makes your viewers click on your video when they see it on their screens. Business people call this your “value proposition”— the value your video promises them.
Your video’s value proposition could be
- a solution to a painful problem
- an interesting idea they haven’t thought about
- a funny sketch promising a laugh, and more.
In any case, before you sit down to write your video introduction , make sure to figure out what it is.
Before you sit down to write your video introduction, make sure to figure out the value proposition of your video.
Once you have figured it out, you want to tease the viewer with what marketers call a curiosity gap — the difference between what your viewer knows and what they want to know.
As the name suggests, a curiosity gap makes the viewer curious about your video’s premise—you can already trigger that feeling through the title and thumbnail —without revealing what is.
Bloomberg’s following video creates a curiosity gap right from the title and thumbnail — you may guess what city it is, but it’s not easy to figure out. The video starts by mentioning the city the video refers to — Mexico City — while showing one of the city’s main landmarks. By the time you click the video to figure out the city from the story, it’s already too late; the story has hooked you.
The key to creating a powerful curiosity gap is to delay your video’s main idea while assuming they are familiar and knowledgeable about your video’s topic and build your introduction from there.
Think of it as the experience of opening a Kinder Surprise or a McDonald’s Happy Meal — kids love to buy them because they know they will get a toy, except that you didn’t know which one.
The following video from Vox uses an interesting headline by referring to services we all know—Netflix—but shocks you in the last part of the headline when it says—“ all without the internet. ”
The first 30 seconds mix images of Cuba, the country where this mysterious service is based, with the narrator talking about the ease of using Netflix and other streaming services. Suddenly, the narrator asks, how do these services work in an authoritarian country like Cuba?
It’s important to balance the feeling the curiosity gap creates so you don’t confuse them; if you play too hard to get, it will feel condescending — i.e., you will make them feel like they’re not smart — thus destroying any chance of engaging them.
Easily Create Attention-Grabbing Video Intros
2. Use Aristotle’s Technique
You already know the attention span of the average viewer is short. As such, your video introduction should go straight to the point, showing the viewer what they will learn in the video.
One popular way to introduce your video’s central premise from the start is to use what’s known as “ Aristotle’s technique ,” or, as philosophers call it, the “ Aristotelian triptych .”
Leaving all the philosophical ideas behind, Aristotle’s technique is a three-part technique public speakers and content writers use to present an argument.
Here’s how it works:
- Tell your audience what you will tell them —both in your introduction and headline, tell them precisely what they will learn in the video.
- Tell them what you want to tell them —in the video, show them what you promised you would show them.
- Tell them what you told them —in the last few seconds of the video, recap everything you talked about.
Here’s one example from Tim Schmoyer from Video Creators, who uses the first seconds to give background to the video’s topic, and then he explains what he will talk about in the rest of it.
Aristotle’s technique is particularly useful when creating tutorials and technical videos where clarity of thought is paramount. The best part is, it’s incredibly easy to implement; all you do is explain what the video is about.
3. Tell Them a Story
It’s no secret to say that people like storytelling, especially when it comes to video format. A comparison between the films released over the last 100 years shows that almost the majority of the movies have been fictionalized stories, with non-fiction documentaries representing a negligible part of the industry.
Image Source: Tableau Public
That’s to say that telling your viewers a story is a guaranteed way to hook them before they can click away. The question is, how do you create a story quickly?
Telling your viewers a story is a guaranteed way to hook them before they can click away.
It turns out, you can use the S.I.C. storytelling formula , the technique writers use to develop a story in a few paragraphs. Here’s how it works:
- Start by developing a situation — that is, start by defining a background and character to your story, and a problem that connects the two.
- Create interest by explaining how the problem unfolded, how your characters faced it, and how the situation changed.
- Finish with a conclusion where you show how the characters overcame the challenge and what they learned — the “moral” of the story.
Wendover Productions is a channel that covers topics on “ how the world works .” Sam Denby, the host, covers “boring” topics like airports, shipping, and logistics, yet the channel has over 2.70 million subscribers. How does he manage to get such an immense following? By telling stories.
Ask yourself, “ what’s the story behind my video? ” There’s always a character — real or invented— that your video can relate to; find that character, the problems they faced, and show them in your introduction.
4. Show a Preview in Your Video Introduction
Your video title and thumbnail play a key role in hooking your viewer, which is what the Bloomberg example illustrated. Marketers call this “click-bait:” you spike your viewer’s interest and promise something that seems shocking, interesting, or unique.
The problem is, your promises can quickly fall short if you don’t use that initial interest to hook them. Your video introduction must prove that your video will show your viewers something of worth; otherwise, you will lose them.
Your video introduction must prove that your video will show your viewers something of worth; otherwise, you will lose them.
Start by showing a preview of the most important, shocking, or interesting part of the video, especially if that preview connects to the video’s thumbnail and/or title.
Casey Neistat, one of YouTube’s foremost influencers, always uses previews, both in his videos’ thumbnails as well as in the intro. The following video covers his traveling experience in a $21,000 plane ticket, Casey starts with a seemingly random yet fascinating question.
15 seconds later, he shows a card where he explains what the video is all about—how he got the ticket and the travel itinerary. Once he has hooked the viewer with an exciting preview and some background information, he starts the video at the beginning of the story.
Video previews are effective when the video shows a fun, fascinating, or awe-inspiring clip from your video, like in Niestait’s video.
Here’re some more tips on how to make your video thumbnail do its best.
5. Create a Video Introduction That Makes Them Laugh
One of the main benefits videos have over text is that they allow for a much greater range of emotions. The more emotions you can elicit in the viewer, the more you will engage them.
From the unlimited number of emotions available, laughter is one of the most essential human traits you can use in your videos. Laughter creates an emotional bond between the viewers, among a large array of benefits .
Starting your videos with a laugh is a guaranteed way of engaging your viewers quickly, which explains why some of YouTube’s most popular videos are bloopers and other funny clips.
Here’s how you can create a funny video introduction:
Break their expectations
Humor is all about breaking your viewers’ expectations.
Consider Groucho Marx’s famous quote: “ Those are my principles, and if you don’t like them… well, I have others. ”
What makes it funny is the pun after the ellipsis; it’s the unexpected and unapologetic lack of morals Groucho claims to have that makes his joke funny.
When you write your video introduction, ask yourself, “ what’s the expectation your viewers have about the topic of your video? ” Take it and flip it over its head.
In the first 25 seconds of the following video, the narrator—which happens to be called “Sciencephile the AI” and uses an artificial voice generator to narrate the script—builds momentum around the complexity of the video’s subject.
At first, you’d think Sciencephile the AI is referring to physics, as the video’s title suggests the video is about. But then, he breaks the expectations with some funny remarks.
Laugh at yourself
There’s no better way to use humor than to show your viewer that you, the host, are just like them. We are all drawn to think that whoever speaks to use in a video—or presentation, for what it’s worth — is an authority.
Use that bias we all have embedded to laugh at yourself. It will break the ice between the viewer and you, and you will gain their respect.
Joe Scott has built a large YouTube channel covering mostly science topics while using a mix of self-deprecating jokes, weird faces, and awkward silences. He has even created a “character” around himself, which makes his videos unique and funny.
Whether this “character” is real or not is irrelevant; these attributes make his videos funny and engaging, even when he covers complex topics.
Exaggerate a point
Exaggeration, or “hyperbole,” is a comedic device comedians use to make fun of a commonly accepted situation or idea. By exaggerating this idea, you are implicitly telling your viewers that you both know what or who you are talking about. This makes the viewer feel special and unique, something that builds trust between the viewer and yourself.
Jeff Nippard is a fitness expert who publishes videos on muscle building. In the following video, he parodies the “bro culture” that, after the global lockdown, started creating videos on training at home.
The first few videos already start by having Jeff sip coke (which is a common joke among fitness enthusiasts as something a beginner would do) and other ridiculous exercises, like “sip curls”—bicep curls done with milk jugs while drinking the milk at the same time.
Hook Your Audience with Your Video Introduction
With these five techniques, you will not write your video introductions like you did before. Now you know that catching your viewer’s attention early in your video is critical to engage them and increase your audience retention.
Find the right curiosity gap, introduce it fast, mix it with a story, and a funny remark, and you will hook them right away. Which of these five techniques are you going to use in your next video introduction?
Also, if you’re looking for an easy-to-use video intro creator – try Wave.video! You won’t regret it, we promise.
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Business Presentation Introduction Examples & Templates
Learn how to create a business presentation introduction that gets attention in the first 15 seconds. See real-life business presentation introduction examples & samples.
Dominika Krukowska
9 minute read
Short answer
What makes a good presentation introduction.
Data shows that a good presentation introduction is all about grabbing attention in the first 15 seconds.
An effective presentation introduction includes interactive design, a big idea, and a mystery to hook the audience in. A good introduction improves reader engagement and increases reading time.
You have only 15 seconds to earn your audience’s attention
Imagine a sprinter at the Olympics. They've trained for years, but a false start costs them the race. A weak introduction is the false start for your presentation, costing you your audience's attention and engagement.
But there's a way to get back on track and back in the race.
Our analysis of over 100,000 presentation sessions shows that the first 3 slides and the initial 15 seconds determine the success of your entire presentation.
These first slides and first moments decide whether a reader will give you their full attention or bounce never to look back.
In this post, we'll guide you on how to craft an introduction that ensures a strong start, keeps your audience engaged, and sets you up for a winning presentation.
Ready? Let’s dive in.
What is the purpose and goal of a presentation introduction?
The introduction in a business presentation has 4 goals: (1) to provide context by introducing the topic, (2) to build authority and trust by introducing the team (3) to manage expectations by giving a preview of the presentation content, and (4) to ignite interest by introducing a big idea.
What are the main types of presentation introductions?
8 types of presentation introductions:
- Personal intro: Unveils the speaker's background and expertise.
- Team intro: Showcases the experience and accomplishments of a team.
- Company intro: Unfolds the company's vision and values
- Topic intro: Sets the stage for the discussion topic.
- Product intro: Highlights the product's unique features and benefits.
- Project intro: Outlines the project's roadmap and expected milestones.
- Business plan intro: Provides a sneak peek into a business's strategic blueprint.
- Executive summary (Report intro): Summarizes a report's key insights and takeaways.
How to write presentation introductions that keep people reading
The introduction slide is the gateway to your presentation. Here are some tips to ensure your audience can't resist reading on:
Start with a hook: Start with a captivating bit of information - a surprising statistic, a bold statement, or a thought-provoking question.
Show relevance: Highlight why your presentation is important to your audience.
Keep it simple: Make your introduction clear and concise to avoid overwhelming your audience.
Include visuals: Incorporate relevant visuals to enhance your message.
Use interactive elements: Using running numbers to present stats or giving your audience something to play around with, like sliders or tabs to click through, is another proven way to boost engagement.
Add a personal touch: Make your introduction resonate with your specific audience by personalizing it. This can get 68% more people to read your presentation in full and increase the average reading time by 41%.
Manage expectations: Provide an estimated reading time to set clear expectations and lower your bounce rate by 24% .
How to design a presentation introduction that grabs attention?
Designing an engaging presentation introduction is a crucial step in capturing your audience's attention.
Here are some strategies you can use to create an impactful introduction:
Video introduction
A video introduction adds a personal touch to your presentation. It brings in the human element with voice, gestures, and expressions, establishing a connection with your audience. This non-verbal communication is crucial for building relatability and trust.
According to our research, presentations with a video in their cover slide have 32% more people interacting with them .
And this doesn’t just refer to the top part of your deck. By embedding any video into your presentation, you can get people to read it 37% longer and enjoy a 17% increase in the CTA click-through rate.
This can be a short clip that introduces the topic or a brief message from the presenter. Our interactive editor allows you to easily embed videos in your slides by uploading them to the media library or pasting a URL.
Here’s an example of an introduction slide with a video:
Text and image
Pairing a story with a relevant image can create a memorable connection. Whether it's a personal photo for an individual introduction, a team photo for a group introduction, or a symbolic image for a company introduction, the right image can enhance your narrative.
Our platform offers a variety of design options to help you craft this perfect pairing. You can either choose your own images or let our AI assistant take care of it for you. You can also select the placement and adjust the proportions so that it doesn’t overpower your key message.
Here’s an introduction slide sample using a mix of text and images:
Timeline (History slide)
A timeline slide can take your audience on a journey through your company's or your personal history. It allows your audience to appreciate each significant milestone individually, adding depth to your presentation and making it easier to follow.
And, on top of that, giving your readers slides they have to click through makes them 41% more likely to scroll it all the way down to the bottom and read it 21% longer.
Here's an example of a history slide:
Multiple introductions (Tabs)
Tabs offer a neat way to introduce multiple aspects within the same context. You can dedicate a tab each for the speaker, the team, leadership, partners, and the company.
This feature also allows you to tailor your introduction to different audience personas, ensuring that your content resonates with everyone. An AI text generator can reduce the time spent on these different messages.
Here’s an example of an introduction slide using tabs:
Best examples of how to write and design your presentation introduction
When it comes to creating a compelling presentation introduction, real-life examples can provide invaluable insights. Let's explore how 4 Storydoc clients have leveraged the platform's features to create impactful starts to their presentations.
Yotpo is an e-commerce marketing platform that provides solutions for managing customer reviews and loyalty programs. Their presentation starts with a dynamic variable, allowing them to personalize the experience for each viewer with just a few clicks.
The introduction slide features a video showcasing their product in action, while the third slide uses a timeline to explain how to measure the product’s impact, complete with screenshots for clarity.
This approach not only engages the viewer but also provides a comprehensive overview of the product's capabilities. And, by sharing how to use data-driven insights to make the most of the platform, it helps build trust and credibility with potential customers.
WiseStamp , an email signature manager solution, uses dynamic variables on their first slide to embed the prospect's name and their company's name.
The introduction slide visualizes what the prospect's email signature would look like if they signed up for WiseStamp. All the data, including the name, address, phone number, and website, can be pulled directly from the CRM thanks to robust integration capabilities .
And, once they’ve seen the end result, prospects can also watch a short video showing how the product works.
All this combined makes potential customers feel like the presentation was created specifically for them, when in reality it takes just a few clicks to create unlimited versions of any deck.
The end result? A completion rate of 60% and a CTA conversion rate of 10%!
Octopai , an automated data intelligence platform, also leverages the power of personalization by including a dynamic variable on the cover slide.
The introduction slide grabs the readers’ attention by using a running number to present an agonizing problem statement. The third slide uses shocking statistics to reiterate the main issue plaguing the industry, paired with relevant images.
This approach effectively highlights the problem that Octopai solves. It can easily be personalized to include the prospect’s specific pain points, either found online or mentioned during the discovery call, making them more likely to be interested in the solution.
And, it worked wonders for the Octopai team! Their salespeople could easily create several versions of the same deck using the intuitive editor, leading to more demos booked and improved sales calls.
Orbiit , a virtual networking platform, provides a link to a shorter executive summary on their first slide for prospects who don't have time to read the whole presentation. Using the analytics panel, they can easily see who clicked on it and who didn’t, and follow up accordingly.
The introduction slide uses running numbers to present statistics regarding networking benefits before moving on to the main problem statement.
This engaging approach shows the importance of solving the issue and positions Orbiit as the perfect solution provider right from the start.
If you want to see more presentation introduction samples, check out our examples section .
Business presentation introduction do’s and don’ts
To ensure your introduction hits the right notes, here are some key do's and don'ts:
✅ Ignite interest with a compelling hook, like a surprising fact or a provocative question.
✅ State the purpose of your presentation clearly. Make sure your audience understands why they should care.
✅ Enhance your introduction with strategic visuals. A picture can speak a thousand words.
✅ Tailor your introduction to your specific audience. Make them feel seen and understood.
✅ Include an estimated reading time. It helps set expectations.
❌ Flood your audience with too much information upfront. Keep it simple and intriguing.
❌ Begin with a lengthy personal introduction that doesn't directly relate to your topic.
❌ Include large blocks of text. They can be overwhelming and off-putting.
❌ Send generic introductions. They can make your audience feel disconnected.
❌ Leave your audience in the dark about how long your presentation will take.
How to write your intro based on data from previous interactions with clients
By analyzing how clients interact with your content, you can then tailor the introduction of your following presentation to their preferences and expectations.
Say the first presentation was a sales one pager, you can use the engagement data gained there to tailor the intro for your sales proposal.
You can use engagement data to answer which slides and topics they engaged with and which they skipped, or if they viewed a video, used a calculator, filled out a form, or clicked your CTA.
You can then use this information to deduce what they really care about and use that information in your next intro.
The only problem is that with traditional static presentation makers like PowerPoint or Google Slides the only information you can get is whether the email where you attached them was opened.
You’re completely blind to what happens after you hit ‘Send’, good or bad.
But if you upgrade from static PowerPoints to Storydoc’s AI business presentation maker you get out-of-the-box analytics with multi-layered engagement information down to the slide and button interactions.
You can learn more about presentation analytics here:
Advanced: How to personalize your introduction at scale?
According to our research, personalizing your presentation can greatly improve your presentation performance. For example, including a personal note in your presentation can get 68% more people to read it in full and share it internally 2.3x more often.
But personalization takes time. Time which most of us can’t afford to spend on every reader.
However, this can easily be done at scale by integrating Storydoc with your existing tech stack.
Doing this will enable you to pull customer data directly from your CRM and into your presentations with a single click (and send back engagement data to your CRM!).
All you have to do is use dynamic variables in your presentations the same way you’d use them in your email automation.
Address your readers by name, use their company logo and branding, and include a note or a video that addresses their specific pain points.
This is how it works:
Advanced: How to introduce multiple people, companies, or subjects?
When you're tasked with introducing various elements, tabs can be a game-changer. They allow you to neatly organize and present different entities such as the speaker, team, or company, each in their own dedicated space.
This way, you can customize the content to suit different audience personas.
For a more chronological approach, the timeline slide can be a great tool. It enables you to guide your audience through the history of your company or personal journey, highlighting each significant event individually.
It's a simple yet effective way to make your introduction more engaging and informative.
Make a beautiful interactive presentation introduction from a template
Creating a presentation from scratch can feel like climbing a mountain. You need to figure out the layout, the message, the story, and the visuals—it's a lot to handle!
But what if you could skip the uphill struggle and get a head start? That's where interactive introduction slide templates shine.
They offer you a ready-made design and content structure, guiding you on where to place your key points for maximum impact. It's like having a roadmap to a successful presentation.
So, why not take the shortcut? Pick a template and start building your engaging interactive presentation introduction today!
Hi, I'm Dominika, Content Specialist at Storydoc. As a creative professional with experience in fashion, I'm here to show you how to amplify your brand message through the power of storytelling and eye-catching visuals.
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10 Strong Opening Slides to Start A Presentation (With Examples!)
Hrideep barot.
- Presentation
It is weird how now that we all live on our laptops and depend on them for entertainment and livelihood, things that shock us aren’t that many. This is a big itchy spot when it comes to engaging audiences and having a killer opening.
Lets focus on getting that perfect first slide in your presentation to help you kick off on the right foot.
How to open presentations
Opening presentations is an extremely daunting task. The worry of putting your best foot forward but at the same time not coming across as arrogant and the whole issue with fanning your armpits just before you step on the stage.
Yeah, I know. I relate, I think most of us do. We have braved those sweat patches and we have conquered.
It is time to up our opening game and while I will be getting to the ways we can do that, you can also check out this video for a quick idea.
What should be the first slide of a presentation?
Your first slide, needs to be impactful, with minimal content. An extremely difficult balance to maintain, but! Not impossible.
Your first slide, traditionally, is your name, the topic you are going to speak on and maybe on or two other details with MAYBE an image or some other graphics.
Gone are the days when we open speeches or presentations the traditional way, nothing wrong with it, but doing something “not normal” often helps us get people’s attention and that is the easiest way to get your points across and have them received positively.
Let’s check out a few ways you can open slides for a strong opening!
Strong Opening Slide Ideas
We’ve got our thinking cap on, let’s get cracking!
There are so many ways we can have a strong opening, even when you think presentations limit you.
Think of it this way, because people know you’re going to presenting something, they are going to give you full control of a projector. A big ass screen for all to see. If that isn’t filled with potential, I don’t know what is.
Well, with great power comes great responsibility, so let’s check out a few ways we can have killer opening slides , while of course being responsible… ish.
Idea 1: Introduction
There is no better way to get the audience to remember you than putting a giant photo of yourself on the screen and going, this is me, – an extremely edited version of me, but still, me. 🙂
Buddy. No. That was an attempt at being the funny – clever person. Clearly it didn’t work.
Don’t get me wrong, talking about yourself is good, important even to some extent, but that is it you see, it isn’t the fact that you’re talking about yourself that is the problem but what are you talking about that is.
The usual go to is to list out your biodata for the audience to read on the screen, while you speak the exact same thing off of the presentation. This is where we go wrong, no one wants to know about all your seven Ph.Ds. Bruce. (get the reference please)
Be proud of your qualifications, you earned them, but know when and where which qualification might be useful.
For example, you are a certified chartered accountant and have written plays that were on Broadway. In a screenwriting workshop / panel / seminar, as great as getting your chartered accountancy is, your experience as a writer holds way more value and is what will help you get the audience’s attention.
Let’s create an opening slide with the above example.
I used these polaroid photo ideas because for a play on Broadway, we’d love to see pictures! You can use tasteful pictures and even stock photos to help your audience get the right idea of your background.
Of course, I used these random paper elements to give it a more “writer” feel and also because this is my aesthetic, but you need to remember that this is your presentation and no cookie cutter mould will work. Even templates are meant to be edited to suit your needs.
Idea 2: Quiz
Is this to make your audience feel dumb? As much as that chaotic evil side of you may want to. Never do that. Respect their experiences as much as you would want them to respect yours.
Starting off with a quiz is a great way to warm up the crowd and get them involved in your presentation. Give them something to think about and it honestly doesn’t matter if they get it right or wrong, what matters is that they are trying to answer and interact!
Quizzes are a great ice breaker and also a great tool to get the audience going, you can also try to have a one off question or a series of questions.
Lets take the slide as an example, it could be for a presentation on a film industry and the question could be, guess the film from these three pictures, or they could be three different questions.
Remember as an opening slide, it should neither be text nor image heavy, just the right amount.
You could even create a game out of those quizzes and have checked off your list and even use these as a starting off point and come back to the topics (which could be your answers) while using this quiz as a reference point. The possibilities are endless!
Idea 3: Stimulation of Imagination
It always great to know what your audience is thinking, or in the least get them thinking!
You see, once they start thinking, they begin forming an opinion about the topic, which gets them invested and since you are the person addressing the topic, they will begin comparing their point of view / opinion with what they are saying.
There will always be different perspectives, what matters here is that they are invested enough to pay attention to you.
A really easy way to help them get started with forming an opinion is, asking them to take a minute to think about something.
For example: Think about a dancing monkey.
Can some of you describe the monkey you imagined, in the comment section? Was it wearing tap shoes and a top hat? Was it wearing a marching band uniform? Did it have your best friend’s face on it? Mine did!
Each of you had your own Dancing Monkey, and if thinking about it for a few seconds made it your own, imagine the attachment you can build by just spending a few minutes or even the duration of a presentation on it!
For example, you’re taking a presentation on perspectives or psychology. You can display this image and ask them what they think of it. Some may think about freedom, some loneliness and some people’s thoughts may be so profound that we could’ve never thought of it!
Idea 4: Video
This could work just as marvellous as sharing an image and opening a short discussion on its interpretations. You could even start with a video and use it as a segue into your presentation.
For example this video could be used as a great example for a marketing strategy by the brand and could be a great way to get the audience interested given the emotional quotient and relatable sibling content.
Idea 5: Image
Using an image might not necessarily mean that you can only invite the audience to imagine and think on their own. You can use an image to start your presentation and help get your point across.
You see that how the image is the hero of the slide? There is text, definitely, but much smaller, it looks as a complementary to the image instead of the other way around.
In this slide for example, assume poverty is the topic, a very telling image of poverty could help get the conversation started and make the audience more receptive of the topic.
An image in a way helps them “put a face” to the issue and that makes is easier for you to hold their attention and keep it.
Idea 6: Quote
It is well known and understood how impactful the right quote at the right time can be.
Lets focus on some things that people can often get wrong when using quotes.
Firstly, using long quotes, this is a no no when it comes to presentations because, then the audience will be in a rush to read the whole quote and if your point is made before then, well, we won’t get the desired effect will we?
Another thing to keep in mind is to not have a quote just to use it as a quote, pretty cryptic, honestly it is simple, if you are giving a presentation on a person and using their quote or you are using a random quote, make sure to have something to add to it.
It could be something simple. For example when talking about a person’s life:
“When this person said this, they were on their death bed, but they had lead a vivacious life until then to say the least, let’s start at the very beginning…”
Notice how despite there being a background picture, a text box, a bird in the corner, and all that, the text is what is the hero of the slide. You could even add a picture of the person whom you are quoting if it seems relevant.
Remember to always give credit where it is due. It never hurts.
Idea 7: Story
Who doesn’t love a good story? Storytelling is a major part of public speaking where animation, emotion and gestures and tones play a huge role in delivering your point.
With presentations, you need to remember to not just select any story, you need find / write a story that connects well to your topic, for example, if we are speaking about technology, a story about Alice and her looking glass don’t really give you much room to work in a segue.
Storytelling is a whole other conversation, check out this article to learn more about public speaking and how storytelling factors into it: Public Speech Into Story: 3 Steps To Telling A Captivating Story
Here the pictures are the heroes, and while words are important, make them complementary to what you are speaking.
Starting off with a joke is also a very popular trick and I think why should it be this or that, why should it be a joke or a story, why can’t it be a humorous story?
Now don’t go fretting about because it doesn’t have to be fictional, it could even be an anecdote from your experiences or maybe one comic strip you found online.
When it comes to humorous speeches, it can be quite intimidating, but here is an article I think will help you wade through these waters: A Guide To Using Humour In Your Speech
Idea 8: Examples
This is a great way to introduce your topic to a crowd that doesn’t know your topic well. Create examples or situations to help your audience gain a smooth entry into your presentation.
It is like math, it is fun when you understand, and that means you care and give attention to it.
You can also use case studies or make your examples into stories to make it more subtle and seamless.
Here is where a traditional topic, sentence and image layout of an opening slide is best suggested. You can build this in any direction and still be able to relate to your slide.
Idea 9: Hard Facts
Facing facts instances that are always either pleasantly welcomed or hard to swallow. Hitting the audience with hard facts works really well, especially if what you are going to talk about is a difficult or sensitive issue.
An astonishing fact is bound to catch people’s attention and you can always use it to your advantage!
According to Femme International, over the last 20 years, the sanitary pad sector has bloomed and advanced; they have taken over the industry and 85% of menstruating women in the country use napkins. As society progressed and the taboo on periods were lifted from many regions, a new problem came up. One which is really harmful. We all know that the blood that comes out during our periods is harmful and full of bacteria. Now include this bacteria filled blood with a pad which takes 500-800 years to decompose. That’s right, 500-800 years of a used sanitary napkin breeding bacteria in rivers, drains, soil and the sea. A menstruating woman uses 15-20 pads for one cycle. Which sums up to 7,200-9,600 pads over an average period of 40 years. This is just for one woman. According to UNICEF roughly 26% of the world’s population are menstruating women. This means that 2.28 BILLION women are going to use over 9,000 pads EACH during their menstruating years.
Always try to not keep your introductory slides text heavy, but when starting with facts, try to highlight them, notice how the topic and the image are not very prominent but play their part in bringing together the entire slide while the first thing you read is the fact, underlined and set in the middle.
Try to play around with the layouts, figure out what suits your needs the best.
Idea 10: Controversial Statements
Who doesn’t love controversies?
Even if we know something is clickbait, it still catches our eye. Even if we know something to not be possible, when someone says it – with conviction, our ears do perk up.
It doesn’t have to be something extraordinary, just not ordinary enough that it catches people’s attention and in the end, you can always use it to connect your conclusion to your introduction.
Here is a great TEDTalk that would help you understand what I am talking about.
If you plan to use this method, it is easier to dive into your slides after you’ve made the statement and start elaborating on it instead of right at the beginning, it could start with your topic or some proof or where ever your presentation takes you!
Final Thoughts
A presentation carries as much personality as its maker, if you want the right impact you need to use the templates, infographics and tools available to you to the fullest, but remember, there is a thing called “too much” as well.
The easiest way to kill it with your presentations is to keep it neat, in your aesthetic and to the point. Make it engaging, make it colourful, make it black and white. It would work perfectly if it bounces off your personality on stage.
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What is a video presentation?
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Let’s all agree, presentations have been there for quite a period of time. Infact the first presentation program was launched way back in 1987 and was available only in Mac. Later Microsoft acquired it and rebranded it as Microsoft Powerpoint. Nowadays presentations are everywhere, be it in educational institutions, companies, organizations, and so many other places. As we evolved over the years, the importance of video also started to grow rapidly which has now lead to presentations take a new format which is Video presentations .
In this blog, we’ll look at everything that you need to know about video presentations right from the definition to examples, presentation templates , and the best presentation video maker to create video presentations.
Here’s what we’ll be covering in this presentation video ultimate guide:
- Why video presentations are increasingly popular and effective
- Video presentations stats
- Types of video presentations
- What is a video presentation maker
- Video presentation template
- How to make a video presentation with PowerPoint
- How to create a personalized video presentation
- Powerpoint video presentation tips
- Best video presentation maker/Software
A video presentation could be defined as a video in which multiple slides are used along with audio, video narration along with animation, images to communicate certain specific information with an audience in an engaging manner.
Even after putting a lot of effort into static presentations to make them interactive and engaging there was always a problem of static presentations are lengthy and most cases boring failing to capture the audience’s attention. To give you a perspective, 79% of the audience feel most presentations to be boring.
This particular problem is solved with the usage of video presentations as the size of the duration of a video presentation is brought down drastically. Plus video presentations are easy to consume. Viewers can watch it at their pace and it doesn’t mandate all the stakeholders to be present in a physical or virtual place at the same time.
- There are over 35 million PowerPoint presentations created every day and presented to an audience of 500 million people.
- 89% of people still use PowerPoint to create presentations out of which 43% say they don’t have an alternative.
- 87% of marketing people use video in their marketing efforts.
- 78% of people consume videos online in a week with 55% consuming videos every day.
- 70% of businesses are creating more videos in 2021 compared to 2020.
- 69% of people prefer to learn about a product through a video.
- Most people turn out of a PowerPoint presentation after 10 minutes.
Presentation videos are now used for various use cases across different fields. Here is a list of seven different types of video presentations.
1. Sales presentation videos
Sales video presentations or video prospecting involves sales folks giving a quick outline of what the company and product has to offer to their prospects. Another type of sales presentation video also includes sales enablement presentation videos done by Marketing teams to upskill sales folks for better selling.
2. Educational presentation videos
Educational presentation videos involve lectures and courses taught by teachers in a live in-person or virtual classroom which are then converted into video lessons for anytime access.
3. Employee training and development presentation videos
Employee training and development presentation videos are an essential part of a new employee getting trained and used to the system in place. The training presentation being available in video form helps anyone to access them without any dependency enabling better productivity.
4. Business planning and review presentation videos
Business presentations are it planning, review, performance analysis could all be boring and time-consuming. Getting them done as a video version helps in getting key information to all the stakeholders involved.
5. Fund Raising and Company Pitch presentation videos
CEOs and founders look for VC funding to take their company to the big stage. A great presentation video selling the core value proposition of the company and project growth in the upcoming years will help catch the eyes of the investors and land the required funding.
6. Product usage explanation and How to presentation videos
New customers generally require onboarding guidance which includes walkthroughs and how-to presentations. Videos for the same enables users to take a look at them and learn to use the product at their own pace without being overwhelmed.
7. Employee onboarding and orientation presentation videos
Now with employee onboarding happening virtually, employee onboarding presentation videos are of much importance. Employees get to understand company culture, guidelines, roles, and responsibilities better and in a calmer manner through presentation videos.
8. Promotional and Marketing presentation videos
Product promotion presentations are often used by Marketing teams in various fields and virtual events. A video presentation, especially an animated video presentation, comes in handy for promoting products.
The common trend across all these different types of presentation videos is that all of them aren’t just one-time recording and usage but also could be used multiple times which brings down the resource requirements for all of the above use-cases.
A video presentation maker or a video presentation software is an app that lets you create presentation videos by using existing presentation slides or by creating new presentation slides and then converting them into videos.
There are two types of video presentation software . One that lets you screen record existing presentations and the other one that lets you create presentations by using existing templates which users can customize by adding voice, videos, images, characters, animation, etc.
Powerpoint being the most used presentation software for creating presentations we are going to look at how to make a video presentation using PowerPoint. There are multiple ways in which you can create a video out of your presentation and we have mentioned the same below.
Different methods to save a Powerpoint presentation as a video
- Directly saving Powerpoint file as a video presentation
- Using a screen recorder to record the presentation in slideshow mode
- Using a screen recorder to record the presentation in the slideshow mode with a webcam overlay
Method one:
Microsoft enables you to directly save your PowerPoint presentation as a video. Once you’re done with your presentation you’ll have to select > File > Export > Video . You can also decide to save it at the video quality of your choice which ranges from 4K HD to 480P. But remember the videos aren’t uploaded to the cloud so the better resolution you choose, the bigger will be the video size. The default video format will be MP4 or WMV.
Few things to know while saving PowerPoint presentations using this method:
- Users can choose the time spent on each slide. By default, the time spent on each slide will be five seconds. So if your video is 20 slides and you choose the default five seconds per slide the PowerPoint presentation video will be of 100 secs.
- Alternatively, you can choose manual slide timing if you feel you need to narrate more/less in a few specific slides.
- You can decide to add narrations, audio, annotate on screen, clear annotations, record webcam as well. The webcam recording is however available only in Office 365.
- You can also upload it to Microsoft streams for quick access within your organization.
Method two:
Alternatively, you can save the presentation in PowerPoint Show format(.ppsx) . This directly opens the presentation in a slideshow format for viewers.
Using a screen recorder to record the presentation in slideshow mode
Although Powerpoint lets you record presentations with narration and even video in some versions, it’s quite a complex process that takes a lot of time and effort. This is where PowerPoint screen recording tools come in handy. The PowerPoint recorders enable you to quickly and easily record your presentation, customize them based on your expectations, and share it with others.
Here is a list of the Best PowerPoint screen recorders for you to choose the best tool.
One of the best PowerPoint screen recorders is Vmaker as it’s completely free to record an unlimited number of recordings, and comes without any watermarks. Let's take a look on how to record PowerPoint presentations using Vmaker.
Here is a step by step guide on how to screen record PowerPoint presentations with audio
- Step 1: Sign up or Sign in to Vmaker and install the chrome extension .If you’re a Mac or Windows user, you can download and install the Vmaker's Screen Recorder for Mac or Vmaker's Screen Recorder for Windows .
- Step 2: Open the PowerPoint presentation that you want to record.
- Step 3: Launch the Vmaker app or chrome extension.
- Step 4: Choose screen recording mode with audio enabled and click on start recording to begin recording your presentation.
- Step 5: Add audio through narration, annotate screen, mute/unmute microphone, pause/resume recording as you wish.
- Step 6: Click on finish recording to complete your PowerPoint screen recording.
- Step 7: The video gets uploaded to the cloud in a few seconds irrespective of the video size. You can then edit, fine-tune, and then share it.
Adding a live webcam video to a PowerPoint presentation is also easier through Vmaker.
The steps and flow are pretty much the same with only the mode being different.
- Step 1: Sign up or Sign in to Vmaker and install the Mac application
- Step 4: Choose screen plus webcam recording mode with audio enabled and click on start recording to begin recording your presentation.
- Step 6: Click on finish recording to complete your PowerPoint screen recording.
Video guide on how to record PowerPoint presentation with audio and video
As mentioned earlier you can also create video presentations from scratch up by using online presentation makers. Online presentation makers enable you to create stunning video presentations by adding a range of things right from the text, audio, video, background, avatars, video screen recording , animations, transitions, effects, and much more.
Users can decide either to start with a blank presentation or choose an existing template and start personalizing it based on their needs.
Video presentation templates come in handy, especially for ones looking to create quick video presentations. You can choose any one of the templates based on your requirement and quickly edit the essential details to produce your video presentation.
Bonus: Screen Recording 101: Ultimate Resource Guide
Now that we have understood the importance of video presentations and learned how to create video presentations let’s take a look at some video presentation ideas and tips to create engaging video presentations.
Video presentations can further be enhanced by implementing certain ideas that will enable them to be engaging, seamless, and smooth for the audience. Here are some ideas that will help you create visually engaging video presentations.
- Give your first slide a powerful statement that resonates with your entire presentation video
Use characters, images, and illustrations throughout your video presentation
Ensure all slides tell a story and connect with the powerful first statement , maintain similar font size consistently throughout the presentation videos.
- Use transitions and motion graphics to make your presentation visually appealing
Ask Questions, polls, share quotes in between the video to keep viewers engaged
Conclude strongly proving or supporting your first statement, give a powerful statement that resonates with the video.
Keep the first slide of your presentation video short concise and to the point resonating with what is the key topic being covered in the video. In the example above you could see the video is about avoiding single-use plastics and that is clearly mentioned to set the tone for the video.
Using Animations, videos, images, illustrations adds value to the video presentation and helps convey the message clearly to the audience. In the above example, there is a video of a plastic bag flying to support the text given in the slide.
Ensure that the messaging in all slides of the video presentation connects with the message in the first slide. Here in this example, you can see that the slide talks about plastic taking a long time to break down which directly connects with the why you should avoid single-use plastics message in the first slide.
To offer a great visual experience for the viewers it is important to use fonts, colors, and text consistently in the video. Here in this sample presentation video, you could see font, text, spacing, amount of content, and color being uniform throughout offering a great visual experience for viewers.
Use transitions and motion graphics to make your presentation visually appealing
Transitions and motion graphics help while presenting the video presentation as the time in between helps the presenter prepare what to convey and also builds curiosity amongst the audience. In the example above you could see a wide range of transitions being available for usage on the video presentation.
One of the major factors that differentiate a good and great PowerPoint presentation is how engaged the audience are throughout the presentation. Usage of stats, quotes, polls, questions in a video presentation enables the viewers to be engaged throughout the presentation. For instance, in this presentation video above the creator has used stats along with the right illustration which is a great hook in keeping the audience engaged.
The conclusion to a video presentation is as important as the first statement and it is important to finish the video presentation by supporting or proving what was conveyed in the first slide. In this reference, the creator has brilliantly made a powerful statement to support the need to avoid single-use plastic.
Following up on what we offered in the above section here are some tips to keep in mind while creating video presentations.
- Define the purpose of the video
Identify the target audience for the video
- Decide on the script, images, and illustrations for the video
Avoid using complex language and tone for the video
Ensure you have a good video presentation maker for creating the video, avoid trying to convey too much of information in one go , make the intro and conclusion as powerful as possible, define the purpose of the presentation video.
Often ignored but the most important step in presentation video creation is the purpose definition stage. List out the key goals that you want to achieve by creating the presentation video and then pick up the most important goal that resonates with the video creation as your purpose. By defining the purpose of the video the next steps will be simplified. The purpose of the video will also automatically help in identifying the target audience of the video, brainstorming ideas for the video.
The target audience are the group of people who’ll potentially watch your videos once you publish them. Identifying and getting to know your audience enables you to decide on what exactly you’ll convey in the video, how you’ll convey the message, and not just that but also define the length of the presentation video.
Decide on the Script, Images, and Illustrations
Write the script keeping in mind the purpose of the video and the target audience you are creating the video. Decide on the relevant images, videos, gifs, and illustrations to support the text on the script. By doing so early allows creators the time to make any changes to text based on the creatives and vice versa.
The sole purpose of PowerPoint presentations is to convey information in a simpler and meaningful manner. Using complex language, data and tone defeats the purpose. Keep the language simple, break down, visualize data as much as possible, and use a subtle tone throughout the presentation video.
Earlier presentation videos were being made using multiple tools which included a presentation tool, video editor, video hosting platforms. But now we have all-in-one video presentation makers that lets you do everything right from creating to sharing the video presentation. Ensure that you pick up the right PowerPoint video maker based on your video creation needs.
Here is an elaborate list of the best PowerPoint presentation makers for you to choose from.
The beauty of presentation videos is that you get to present them. So with that being the case adding too much stuff that you have to talk about as content on each slide doesn’t make any sense. Keep the content less and break down the information to be conveyed based on each slide so that you don’t end up sharing too much information in one particular slide alone.
The opening and closing slides of your video presentation hold the key to making an impact. Make the intro and conclusion as powerful as possible by interconnecting them. By doing so anyone watching the video presentation will have a takeaway from the presentation which creates a lasting impression.
Here are a few tips specifically for creating PowerPoint video presentations. The below tips are tailored to help you improve your PowerPoint video creation.
- Decide on the font, color, and text content in each slide
- Keep the content in each slide as short as possible
- Support your content in each slide with powerful illustrations and data
Use transitions and effects but ensure that they’re not overused
Use high-quality images that are rich .
- Visualize charts, graphs, tables and add color to them
Decide on the font, color, and text content in each slide
The minor details like font, sizing, color, and the volume of content in each slide play a key role in video presentations. Define the fonts and the size of the fonts that will be used in the presentation. Ensure that the amount of content on each slide is uniform. Making sure small details like this are looked into aids in the creation of the best PowerPoint video presentations.
Keep the content as short as possible
Ensure that there is a lot of empty space in the slide and the content is kept minimum. This ensures a pleasant viewing experience when the presentation is converted into a video. As there will be narration in video presentations the explanation can be done over voice rather than adding texts in the PowerPoint slides.
Support your content with powerful illustrations and data
Adding illustrations and highlighting key data will help in engaging your audience as they’ll be paying key attention to what is being presented. Illustrations also enable you to offer a visually engaging video presentation keeping your audience engaged and hooked.
Using the built-in transitions and animations in Powerpoint is the quickest and easiest way to add an extra dimension to your presentation. Smartly ensure that you use the animations and transitions effectively so that it adds to the quality of your presentation. Also, overusing them by making excessive use of it in every slide will make the presentation look clumsy.
It’s important to have images across the presentation and the usage of images adds immense value to the presentation. Also, it is key to use high-quality ones as the usage of not-so-great ones really brings down the quality of video presentations.
Visualize charts, graphs, tables and add color to them
Using charts, tables and graphs helps the audience visualize data better. The video viewers can easily resonate with the insights shared in the narration with the visuals available on the video. Powerpoint comes with a built-in data visualization feature that enables you to create charts, graphs, tables with ease and convert them into videos.
Here is our list of the five best PowerPoint recorders for creating video presentations mainly using screen recording.
- Vmaker
- Panapto
- Techsmith Camtasia
- Ispring
If you’re looking to create video presentations by using templates, animations, characters, transitions, voiceovers, images, etc then the best option would be Animaker Deck . Animaker deck is a free avatar-powered presentation video maker.
This guide should have given you a comprehensive idea about presentation videos, the different types of presentation videos, and how to go about it in terms of planning, creation, and sharing. Do check out and start using Vmaker presentation video maker and create stunning presentation videos with ease.
If you enjoyed reading the above article, then here are a few more cherry-picked articles you might be interested in reading further!
The Ultimate Guide to Create an Instructional Video Without a Script
A Complete Guide On Product Videos ~ Definition, Types and Tips
Ultimate How-to Video Guide with Examples, Tips, and Ideas
Step by Step Guide: How to record Skype calls
How to screen record on Mac with audio
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Home Blog Presentation Ideas How to Start a Presentation: 5 Strong Opening Slides and 12 Tricks To Test
How to Start a Presentation: 5 Strong Opening Slides and 12 Tricks To Test
Knowing how to start a presentation is crucial: if you fail to capture the audience’s attention right off the bat, your entire presentation will flop. Few listeners will stick with you to the end and retain what you have told.
That is mildly unpleasant when you are doing an in-house presentation in front of your colleagues. But it can become utterly embarrassing when you present in front of larger audiences (e.g., at a conference) or worse – delivering a sales presentation to prospective customers.
Here is how most of us begin a presentation: give an awkward greeting, thank everyone for coming, clear our throats, tap the mic, and humbly start to mumble about our subject. The problem with such an opening performance? It effectively kills and buries even the best messages.
Table of Contents
- The Classic Trick: Open a Presentation with an Introduction
- Open a Presentation with a Hook
- Begin with a Captivating Visual
- Ask a “What if…” Question
- Use the Word “Imagine”
- Leverage The Curiosity Gap
- The Power of Silence
- Facts as Weapons of Communication
- Fact vs. Myths
- The Power of Music
- Physical Activity
- Acknowledging a Person
How to Start a PowerPoint Presentation The Right Way
Let’s say you have all of your presentation slides polished up (in case you don’t, check our quick & effective PowerPoint presentation design tips first). Your presentation has a clear storyline and agenda. Main ideas are broken into bite-sized statements for your slides and complemented with visuals. All you have left is to figure out how you begin presenting.
The best way is to appeal to and invoke certain emotions in your audience – curiosity, surprise, fear, or good old amusements. Also, it is recommended to present your main idea in the first 30 seconds of the presentation. And here’s how it’s done.
1. The Classic Trick: Open a Presentation with an Introduction
When you don’t feel like reinventing the wheel, use a classic trick from the book – start with a quick personal introduction. Don’t want to sound as boring as everyone else with your humble “Hi, I’m John, the head of the Customer Support Department”? Great, because we are all about promoting effective presentation techniques (hint: using a dull welcome slide isn’t one of them).
Here’s how to introduce yourself in a presentation the right way.
a. Use a link-back memory formula
To ace a presentation, you need to connect with your audience. The best way to do so is by throwing in a simple story showing who you are, where you came from, and why your words matter.
The human brain loves a good story, and we are more inclined to listen and retain the information told this way. Besides, when we can relate to the narrator (or story hero), we create an emotional bond with them, and, again – become more receptive, and less skeptical of the information that is about to be delivered.
So here are your presentation introduction lines:
My name is Joanne, and I’m the Head of Marketing at company XYZ. Five years ago I was working as a waitress, earning $10/hour and collecting rejection letters from editors. About ten letters every week landed to my mailbox. You see, I love words, but decent publisher thought mine were good enough. Except for the restaurant owner. I was very good at up-selling and recommending dishes to the customers. My boss even bumped my salary to $15/hour as a token of appreciation for my skill. And this made me realize: I should ditch creative writing and focus on copywriting instead. After loads of trial and error back in the day, I learned how to write persuasive copy. I was no longer getting rejection letters. I was receiving thousands of emails saying that someone just bought another product from our company. My sales copy pages generated over $1,500,000 in revenue over last year. And I want to teach you how to do the same”
b. Test the Stereotype Formula
This one’s simple and effective as well. Introduce yourself by sharing an obvious stereotype about your profession. This cue will help you connect with your audience better, make them chuckle a bit, and set a lighter mood for the speech to follow.
Here’s how you can frame your intro:
“My name is ___, and I am a lead software engineer at our platform [Your Job Title]. And yes, I’m that nerdy type who never liked presenting in front of large groups of people. I would rather stay in my den and write code all day long. [Stereotype]. But hey, since I have mustered enough courage…let’s talk today about the new product features my team is about to release….”
After sharing a quick, self-deprecating line, you transition back to your topic, reinforcing the audience’s attention . Both of these formulas help you set the “mood” for your further presentation, so try using them interchangeably on different occasions.
2. Open a Presentation with a Hook
Wow your audience straight off the bat by sharing something they would not expect to hear. This may be one of the popular first-time presentation tips but don’t rush to discard it.
Because here’s the thing: psychologically , we are more inclined to pay attention whenever presented with an unexpected cue. When we know what will happen next – someone flips the switch, and lights turn on – we don’t really pay much attention to that action.
But when we don’t know what to expect next – e.g., someone flips the switch and a bell starts ringing – we are likely to pay more attention to what will happen next. The same goes for words: everyone loves stories with unpredictable twists. So begin your presentation with a PowerPoint introduction slide or a line that no one expects to hear.
Here are a few hook examples you can swipe:
a. Open with a provocative statement
It creates an instant jolt and makes the audience intrigued to hear what you are about to say next – pedal back, continue with the provocation, or do something else that they will not expect.
“You will live seven and a half minutes longer than you would have otherwise, just because you watched this talk.”
That’s how Jane McGonigal opens one of her TED talks . Shocking and intriguing, right?
b. Ask a rhetorical, thought-provoking question
Seasoned presenters know that one good practice is to ask a question at the beginning of a presentation to increase audience engagement. Rhetorical questions have a great persuasive effect – instead of answering aloud, your audience will silently start musing over it during your presentation. They aroused curiosity and motivated the audience to remain attentive, as they did want to learn your answer to this question.
To reinforce your message throughout the presentation, you can further use the Rhetorical Triangle Concept – a rhetorical approach to building a persuasive argument based on Aristotle’s teachings.
c. Use a bold number, factor stat
A clean slide with some mind-boggling stat makes an undeniably strong impact. Here are a few opening statement examples you can use along with your slide:
- Shock them: “We are effectively wasting over $1.2 billion per year on producing clothes no one will ever purchase”
- Create empathy: “Are you among the 20% of people with undiagnosed ADHD?”
- Call to arms: “58% of marketing budgets are wasted due to poor landing page design. Let’s change this!”
- Spark curiosity: “Did you know that companies who invested in speech recognition have seen a 13% increase in ROI within just 3 years?”
3. Begin with a Captivating Visual
Compelling visuals are the ABC of presentation design – use them strategically to make an interesting statement at the beginning and throughout your presentation. Your first presentation slide can be text-free. Communicate your idea with a visual instead – a photo, a chart, an infographic, or another graphics asset.
Visuals are a powerful medium for communication as our brain needs just 13 milliseconds to render what our eyes see, whereas text comprehension requires more cognitive effort.
Relevant images add additional aesthetic appeal to your deck, bolster the audience’s imagination, and make your key message instantly more memorable.
Here’s an intro slide example. You want to make a strong presentation introduction to global pollution. Use the following slide to reinforce the statement you share:
“Seven of nine snow samples taken on land in Antarctica found chemicals known as PFAs, which are used in industrial products and can harm wildlife”
Source: Reuters
4. Ask a “What if…” Question
The “what if” combo carries massive power. It gives your audience a sense of what will happen if they choose to listen to you and follow your advice. Here are a few presentations with starting sentences + slides to illustrate this option:
Alternatively, you can work your way to this point using different questions:
- Ask the audience about their “Why.” Why are they attending this event, or why do they find this topic relevant?
- Use “How” as your question hook if you plan to introduce a potential solution to a problem.
- If your presentation has a persuasion factor associated, use “When” as a question to trigger the interest of the audience on, for example, when they are planning to take action regarding the topic being presented (if we talk about an inspirational presentation).
5. Use the Word “Imagine”
“Imagine,” “Picture This,” and “Think of” are better word choices for when you plan to begin your presentation with a quick story.
Our brain loves interacting with stories. In fact, a captivating story makes us more collaborative. Scientists have discovered that stories with tension during narrative make us:
- Pay more attention,
- Share emotions with the characters and even mimic the feelings and behaviors of those characters afterward.
That’s why good action movies often feel empowering and make us want to change the world too. By incorporating a good, persuasive story with a relatable hero, you can also create that “bond” with your audience and make them more perceptive to your pitch – donate money to support the cause; explore the solution you are offering, and so on.
6. Leverage The Curiosity Gap
The curiosity gap is another psychological trick frequently used by marketers to solicit more clicks, reads, and other interactions from the audience. In essence, it’s the trick you see behind all those clickbait, Buzzfeed-style headlines:
Not everyone is a fan of such titles. But the truth is – they do the trick and instantly capture attention. The curiosity gap sparks our desire to dig deeper into the matter. We are explicitly told that we don’t know something important, and now we crave to change that. Curiosity is an incredibly strong driving force for action – think Eve, think Pandora’s Box.
So consider incorporating these attention grabbers for your presentation speech to shock the audience. You can open with one, or strategically weave them in the middle of your presentation when you feel like your audience is getting tired and may lose their focus.
Here’s how you can use the curiosity gap during your presentation:
- Start telling a story, pause in the middle, and delay the conclusion of it.
- Withhold the key information (e.g., the best solution to the problem you have described) for a bit – but not for too long, as this can reduce the initial curiosity.
- Introduce an idea or concept and link it with an unexpected outcome or subject – this is the best opening for a presentation tip.
7. The Power of Silence
What would you do if you attended a presentation in which the speaker remains silent for 30 seconds after the presentation starts? Just the presenter, standing in front of the audience, in absolute silence.
Most likely, your mind starts racing with thoughts, expecting something of vital importance to be disclosed. The surprise factor with this effect is for us to acknowledge things we tend to take for granted.
It is a powerful resource to introduce a product or to start an inspirational presentation if followed by a fact.
8. Facts as Weapons of Communication
In some niches, using statistics as the icebreaker is the best method to retain the audience’s interest.
Say your presentation is about climate change. Why not introduce a not-so-common fact, such as the amount of wool that can be produced out of oceanic plastic waste per month? And since you have to base your introduction on facts, research manufacturers that work with Oceanic fabrics from recycled plastic bottles .
Using facts helps to build a better narrative, and also gives leverage to your presentation as you are speaking not just from emotional elements but from actually recorded data backed up by research.
9. Fact vs. Myths
Related to our previous point, we make quite an interesting speech if we contrast a fact vs. a myth in a non-conventional way: using a myth to question a well-accepted fact, then introducing a new point of view or theory, backed on sufficient research, that proves the fact wrong. This technique, when used in niches related to academia, can significantly increase the audience’s interest, and it will highlight your presentation as innovative.
Another approach is to debunk a myth using a fact. This contrast immediately piques interest because it promises to overturn commonly held beliefs, and people naturally find it compelling when their existing knowledge is put to the test. An example of this is when a nutritionist wishes to speak about how to lose weight via diet, and debunks the myth that all carbohydrates are “bad”.
10. The Power of Music
Think about a presentation that discusses the benefits of using alternative therapies to treat anxiety, reducing the need to rely on benzodiazepines. Rather than going technical and introducing facts, the presenter can play a soothing tune and invite the audience to follow an exercise that teaches how to practice breathing meditation . Perhaps, in less than 2 minutes, the presenter can accomplish the goal of exposing the advantages of this practice with a live case study fueled by the proper ambiance (due to the music played in the beginning).
11. Physical Activity
Let’s picture ourselves in an in-company presentation about workspace wellness. For this company, the sedentary lifestyle their employees engage in is a worrying factor, so they brought a personal trainer to coach the employees on a basic flexibility routine they can practice in 5 minutes after a couple of hours of desk time.
“Before we dive in, let’s all stand up for a moment.” This simple instruction breaks the ice and creates a moment of shared experience among the attendees. You could then lead them through a brief stretching routine, saying something like, “Let’s reach up high, and stretch out those muscles that get so tight sitting at our desks all day.” With this action, you’re not just talking about workplace wellness, you’re giving them a direct, personal experience of it.
This approach has several advantages. Firstly, it infuses energy into the room and increases the oxygen flow to the brain, potentially boosting the audience’s concentration and retention. Secondly, it sets a precedent that your presentation is not going to be a standard lecture, but rather an interactive experience. This can raise the level of anticipation for what’s to come, and make the presentation a topic for future conversation between coworkers.
12. Acknowledging a Person
How many times have you heard the phrase: “Before we begin, I’d like to dedicate a few words to …” . The speaker could be referring to a mentor figure, a prominent person in the local community, or a group of people who performed charity work or obtained a prize for their hard work and dedication. Whichever is the reason behind this, acknowledgment is a powerful force to use as a method of starting a presentation. It builds a connection with the audience, it speaks about your values and who you admire, and it can transmit what the conversation is going to be about based on who the acknowledged person is.
Closing Thoughts
Now you know how to start your presentation – you have the opening lines, you have the slides to use, and you can browse even more attractive PowerPoint presentation slides and templates on our website. Also, we recommend you visit our article on how to make a PowerPoint Presentation to get familiarized with the best tactics for professional presentation design and delivery, or if you need to save time preparing your presentation, we highly recommend you check our AI Presentation Maker to pair these concepts with cutting-edge slide design powered by AI.
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How to Start a Presentation [+ Examples]
Published: September 13, 2023
The first step in mastering the art of delivering powerful presentations is understanding how to start a presentation properly.
In this post, you'll discover strategies for crafting a solid presentation opening, designing an impactful opening slide, and delivering a memorable presentation.
![→ Free Download: 10 PowerPoint Presentation Templates [Access Now]](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/53/2d0b5298-2daa-4812-b2d4-fa65cd354a8e.png "best intro for video presentation example")
Table of Contents
Why Your Presentation Opening Matters
How to start a presentation, opening slide examples, best practices for starting a presentation.
The opening of your presentation sets the tone for your entire session.
Within the first few minutes, most of your audience will decide whether they find your expertise, experience, and topic compelling enough to warrant their attention.
Think of it this way: Your opening is a preview of your presentation like a trailer is a preview of a movie. If the five-minute trailer isn’t engaging or impactful, why should the audience bother sitting through the half-hour movie?
Your opening shapes the expectations of your audience and entices them to stay engaged throughout the session.
And although you’ll still need to work to maintain their attention, getting it right from the start will spare you the challenge of re-engaging a disinterested audience right from the beginning of your presentation.
This opening statement is powerful because rather than lead with his “credentials” or “accolades,” as the audience most likely expects, he defies that expectation.
He creates a sense of intrigue that instantly piques the audience's curiosity and compels them to pay closer attention.
Infuse humor.
In Tom Thum's TedTalk titled Beatbox Brilliance , he sets a lighthearted tone by stepping on stage wearing oversized sunglasses and declaring, “My name is Tom, and I've come here today to come clean about what I do for money.”
As you might expect, this humorous approach not only elicits laughter but also surprises the audience, who are intrigued and pleasantly surprised at the tone he sets for the presentation.
Ask a question.
Graham Shaw's presentation titled “ Why people believe they can’t draw - and how to prove they can ” begins with, “Hi, I've got a question for you - how many people here would say they can draw?”
Seeing as this is a relatively lighthearted question that’s simple to answer, the audience responds immediately.
Now, what makes this a powerful opening technique is that Graham then goes on to say:
“When people say they can’t draw, I think it's more to do with beliefs rather than talent and ability. When you say you can’t draw, that’s just an illusion, and today I’d like to prove that to you.”
By immediately challenging a widely held belief among the audience and promising to debunk it during the presentation, he employs a powerful technique that keeps the audience fully engaged.
This approach makes the audience feel “invested” in the outcome of the presentation and curious as to whether he can back up his claim.
2. Tell your audience why they should be listening to you.
Getting your audience’s attention is just one part of the equation. Once you have it, you must also explain why they should “keep” listening to you. Here are some ways to do this:
Highlight relevant personal experience.
In Phil Waknell’s opening section, he talks about how he’s spent the last ten years helping conference speakers, business leaders, and entrepreneurs prepare and deliver powerful presentations .
This immediately signals to the audience that he’s someone worth listening to and positions him as a credible source of insights based on the wealth of experience he has gathered.
Highlight your expertise.
During the opening section of Dr. Lara Boyd’s presentation titled “ After watching this, your brain will not be the same ,” she says, “I’m Dr. Lara Boyd, and I’m a brain researcher here at the University of British Columbia.”
Sharing her credentials as a brain researcher is crucial to gaining her audience's trust — especially considering the technicality of her topic.
But even while creating presentations outside fields like brain research, sharing qualifications and credentials in your opening section can be a powerful technique.
This helps you position yourself as a credible authority and reinforcing your audience's confidence in your ability to deliver valuable information.
Tell your audience what’s in it for them.
In Mel Robbins’ opening section for her presentation titled “ How to stop screwing yourself over ,” she ends her introduction by saying:
“I’m here for you. I’m going to tell you everything I know in less than 18 minutes about how to get what you want.”
Although she started the section by highlighting her experiences and expertise, she went further by explicitly stating the benefits her audience can expect from her presentation.
Doing this is a great way to create a compelling reason for your audience to invest their time and attention and emphasize the value of the presentation you’re about to deliver.
3. Introduce your topic.
If your topic is relatively simple to grasp or your audience is particularly knowledgeable, introducing your topic can be as easy as “Today, I’m going to be talking to you about how we’ve built a six-figure software company in 6 months.”
However, if your topic is more complex or unfamiliar to the audience, you must do a bit more heavy lifting in your opening section.
For example, Sam Bern’s “ My philosophy for a happy life ” presentation discusses how he lives a happy life despite having Progeria disease.
However, because this condition might be unfamiliar to some audience members, he takes some time in his opening section to talk about the illness before delving into the meat of his presentation.
Similarly, if you’re presenting on a complex topic or to an audience that isn’t knowledgeable, it’s essential to consider this when crafting your opening section.
4. Leverage storytelling.
Stories can create immersive experiences that captivate the audience and convey a core message.
For example, in the opening section of Sam Bern's presentation, he tells a story about his struggles while trying to achieve his goal of becoming a drummer in his school marching band, despite living with Progeria disease.
This sets the tone for his entire presentation by conveying an inspiring message of fighting against and succeeding despite the odds.
Another great example is the opening section of Josh Kaufman’s presentation, titled “ The First 20 Hours — how to learn anything ,” where he tells a story about his experience as a time-strapped first-time parent.
This story enhances the presentation as Josh eventually shares that this experience triggered his interest in studying how to become an efficient learner.
Finally, Amy Morins’s presentation “ The Secret of Becoming Mentally Strong ” is another excellent example of leveraging storytelling.
Amy starts her presentation with a thought-provoking story about observing a Facebook friend's seemingly perfect life.
She then highlights how such comparisons can lead to negative thought patterns and emphasizes the importance of cultivating mental resilience.
This relatable story not only resonates with her audience but also sets the stage for her message on building inner strength.
All these presentations are great examples that highlight how incorporating story-telling in your openings can be a powerful tool for creating memorable and impactful presentations.
Your presentation slides play a crucial role in determining the impact and effectiveness of your presentation.
In this section, you’ll find examples of 8 powerful opening slides across various use cases that not just support but enhance the presentation openings:
1. “ Blackboard is Getting an Upgrade ”
6. “ About Indegene ”
Although these are very different methods of injecting humor at the start of a presentation, they show how infusing humor can be a powerful tool for adding a touch of personality and creating a more enjoyable presentation for the audience.
4. Keep it short and sweet.
While it's important not to rush through the start of your presentation, keeping your opening concise is equally important. But remember, concise does not mean sacrificing substance; it simply means delivering information efficiently.
Essentially, you want an opening section that allows you to create a solid initial impression without losing the audience's interest.
So, how long should this opening secretion be?
Most successful presentation openings are under three minutes, and many are shorter, often clocking in at under one minute.
5. Embrace authenticity.
Contrary to popular belief, there isn't a specific personality that makes someone a better presenter. In fact, the most impactful presentations have been delivered by individuals with diverse characters.
Take, for instance, the contrasting styles of Tom Thum’s irreverent humor and animated mannerisms and Sam Bern, who adopts a relaxed and conversational approach. Despite their differences, both speakers have garnered millions of views for their talks.
So, rather than emulating or mimicking their presentations, the key takeaway is to embrace authenticity.
Allow your personality to shine through, lean on your strengths, and be human in your delivery.
Mastering the Art of Captivating Presentations
Starting a presentation is a skill that is as much an art as it is a science. Thankfully, it is also a skill that can be learned and honed.
By implementing the strategies in this guide and refining them through experience, you’ll become a master at delivering impactful presentations that command attention and leave a lasting impression.
All from the moment you step onto the stage.
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15+ corporate video templates (plus examples for inspiration)
- 21 May 2019
You can actually make your corporate videos fun, dynamic, and engaging enough that people will want to work for you, or with you.
We’ve gathered our favorite corporate video templates, ready and waiting for you to edit. As a bonus, we also scoured the web for the best corporate video examples to inspire you. Learn everything that goes into a corporate video and get ready to make your own today.
If this still sounds daunting, not to worry. With Biteable on your side, making a corporate video has never been easier. Biteable has hundreds of brandable video templates and business-ready scenes to choose from. Make any template your own with done-for-you editing tools and a collaborative, teams-focused workflow.
On that note, let’s dive into the templates.
Create videos that drive action
Activate your audience with impactful, on-brand videos. Create them simply and collaboratively with Biteable.
Corporate video templates to get you started (edit them now!)
Types of corporate videos
Before we dive into more corporate video templates and examples, it’s a good idea to briefly explain the different types of corporate videos.
There are two major types of corporate videos : internal and external.
Internal corporate videos are for people who work for your company. Any message that needs to be amplified can be turned into an engaging video: employee onboarding videos, workplace safety videos, and company culture explainer videos are common types.
External corporate videos can have a positive impact on your business’ bottom line. Most corporate videos act as supplements to your marketing and advertising videos, but that doesn’t mean they’re less important and that you can skimp on quality.
A corporate video maker like Biteable makes it fast and easy to create a business video that matches the quality of your marketing videos for far less money than you’d ordinarily spend.
If you’re unsure of what to use corporate videos for, here are a few corporate video ideas to start you thinking:
An about video: You probably already have an ‘about’ page on your website. But does anybody read it? A good ‘about’ video can champion what your business stands for and inspire confidence far better than a couple of paragraphs on your website.
A FAQ video: Creating videos that answer the most common questions about your product or service can reduce the workload for customer service teams and improve your overall customer experience .
A customer testimonial video: Websites with video are 53 times more likely to reach the front page of Google, so business video testimonials help you get your social proof in front of more customers (and that means more conversions).
An explainer video: People won’t buy something if they don’t know what it is. An explainer video introduces your brand and covers essential questions like what your business does, who you help, and how you can help them.
- Product or service demo videos: A good demo video helps you get more customers, eases the learning curve for new customers, and reduces the strain on your customer service teams.
There are even more types of corporate video, but if you start with these five, you’ll have a solid library of content to help customers make a smart decision (to buy from you).
Now let’s talk about some of the best corporate video examples from around the web. Plus, we’ve thrown in more editable corporate video templates to help you make the most of that inspiration.
Best corporate video examples (plus more templates)
Whether you’re working from a video template or freestyling it, there are a lot of directions you can go with your corporate videos. It all depends on the personality you want your company to project. Is your company fun and whimsical? Or do you need to take a more professional approach? Is your brand rooted in a cause? Or is your business founded solely on innovation?
Get clear on your brand voice before you start making your corporate video. This will help keep your presentation consistent from video to video.
These are some of the best corporate video examples on the web. Check them out and get inspired to make your own. If you’re going the template route, we’ve included a Biteable corporate video template along with each example.
Funny explainer video
For our first example, we’ll start with a corporate video that’s become a classic: the Dollar Shave Club explainer video.
For all intents and purposes, this is a business explainer video. But it shows a lot about the company along the way. A major reason it works is because it’s fun. That’s why people watched and shared it, and within a couple of months, everybody knew what Dollar Shave Club was.
This business video is great because it tells you everything you need to know in the first 10 seconds. You immediately know what the Dollar Shave Club is, who it’s for, and how it helps customers. By the 30-second mark, you also know why you should choose the Dollar Shave Club over the competition.
The takeaway
Your corporate explainer video can be a minute or two long, but people should get your core message in the first 10 to 30 seconds.
The Biteable template
Think the comedy approach might work for you? We’ve got just the template. This corporate video template is fast, fun, and has a great soundtrack (that you can use with your Biteable account), which makes it perfect for sharing on social media. Check it out:
Fun customer testimonial video
Slack really took things to the next level with this one.
Yes, it’s a case study. But case studies provide social proof, just like customer testimonials. And this corporate case study video is structured so it’s like a collection of customer testimonials.
A major win for this corporate video is that it effectively establishes the problem Slack solves and who Slack solves that problem for. It then goes on to show exactly how Slack helps businesses. This is an incredibly effective technique if your audience doesn’t know they have a problem in the first place.
Something else that’s going right in this corporate video example is that it shows Slack in action, so the video is a product demo too.
The takeaway
If the first step in your sales process is convincing the prospect they have a problem, this type of customer testimonial video can be really effective.
Maybe you don’t have the actors or the budget to produce something like this. That’s cool, because you don’t need it. Start with our simple and entertaining testimonial video template to get a fun and informative corporate video for a fraction of the cost.
Corporate explainer videos
This corporate explainer video for Mint really nails it. It covers every aspect of the app in a minute and a half. Quick, professional, and to the point.
The smartest thing they did with this video was to translate every feature of the app into a benefit for the user. Each point is presented in a classic, “Mint does this, so you can do that” format, so viewers immediately know if they need Mint.
The video also ends with a great call to action. Your corporate videos shouldn’t be overly promotional, but customers should know how to engage with your business once they’ve watched your video, whether it’s to make a purchase or contact customer support.
Your corporate explainer video should tell potential customers how your product or service could benefit them and what they need to do after watching the video.
Need a corporate explainer video that’s as smooth and clear as Mint’s? Start with a smooth, clear video template like this one.
Viral corporate culture video
HubSpot talent did something very smart in their talent recruiting: they made it fun and shareable with this corporate culture video.
If you watched it, this is obviously a corporate culture video. The brilliance of it is that it’s funny enough to watch, even if you’re not looking to work at HubSpot, and that’s good for reaching more talent.
It’s also good for reaching customers. Who doesn’t want to buy from a business that treats their employees well and lets them have fun (but still produces professional work)?
This corporate culture video is a clever double whammy.
Your company culture is part of your brand. So, if you have the opportunity to use it to help you build rapport with customers, do it.
The Biteable template
If you want to create a video that showcases your company culture for potential employees and entertains your customer, start with a solid corporate culture video template.
What we do video
As a consulting company, Practicus has to sell their approach just as much as their service. Their “what we do” video is an excellent example of emphasizing how their business helps customers.
If your company beliefs or your methods are something that set your business apart, you should highlight those in your corporate video. If your company works in a crowded market, the finer details like the how and why of your business can be very important differentiators that draw in new customers.
Use your “what we do” video to demonstrate how or why you do things, if that’s what makes your business different from the competition.
Differentiating yourself from the competition is important, especially for service providers. Stand out with this “what we do” corporate video template.
Authentic customer testimonial video
The key to customer testimonial videos is authenticity. Saying “real customers, not actors” at the start doesn’t cut it.
However, authentic doesn’t mean unprofessional. AirBnB nailed the perfect balance of authenticity and professionalism with this corporate video.
Yes, it’s obvious the people in this video had time to rehearse their statements. Nobody stumbles over their words or says “um” six times.
But the staging, clothing, and dialogue all feel very natural and not too over-rehearsed, which makes for a corporate video that’s high-quality but still believable.
Help your customers plan their testimonials, but don’t write testimonials for them.
B2B explainer video
HubSpot gets another place in our collection of corporate video examples because they produce some of the best B2B videos.
The reason this B2B explainer video works well is because it’s so focused. HubSpot identified the biggest advantage they have over other inbound marketing solutions – simplicity – and went after that.
Although the entire HubSpot platform is explained, the viewer comes away with a very straightforward conclusion: using HubSpot is simpler than using anything else.
If you can, identify the strongest aspect of your product or service, your unique selling proposition, and double down on it in your corporate video.
If you only communicate one thing in your corporate video, make sure it’s the thing that separates you from the competition.
Want a B2B explainer that’s going to reach decision makers? Use a corporate video template like this one to nail down that cheerful B2B vibe.
Animated explainer video
Sometimes a video really is the best way to explain things. Writing about business without being boring can be tricky.
A video can also visually lighten the mood. The Dubai Association Center did a great job of getting the most out of their corporate video by using animation to lighten the tone and hold the viewer’s attention. That’s no small feat when your product is a place for associations to set up shop.
Another area where they made a good call is the length. It’s less than a minute and a half, which is just enough time to tell viewers what the DAC does before they nod off.
Video is a visual medium. Animated videos and simple visual effects can help bolster the attention-getting aspect of any corporate video so you can deliver information that might otherwise put people to sleep.
Animation is pricey and difficult to produce, but if you use an corporate video template with ready-made animations you can handle heavier topics with ease. Check out how this animated video template makes the message visually dynamic enough to keep people interested.
That’s it for our exploration of corporate videos. Hopefully these examples and corporate video templates gave you some ideas for your own videos.
If you’re feeling inspired to make your own corporate video but didn’t find the right template in this article, check out more of Biteable’s corporate video templates here . Or start a free, 7-day trial to access hundreds more business-focused templates and brandable video scenes.
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SpeakUp resources
Starting a presentation in english: methods and examples.
- By Jake Pool
If you’re going to make it in the professional world, most likely you’ll have to give a presentation in English at some point. No reason to get nervous!
Most of the work involved lies in the introduction. You may or may not need an English presentation PPT file, your topic, audience, or time limit may vary, but a strong opening is a must no matter what! Everything that follows can build from the opening outline you present to your audience.
Let’s look at some guidelines for starting a presentation in English. If you can master this part, you’ll never have to worry about the rest!
Opening in a Presentation in English
While it’s important to have your entire presentation organized and outlined, planning and organization are especially important in the introduction. This is what will guide you through a clear and concise beginning. Let’s look at how to start a presentation with well-organized thoughts .
Introduction Outline
- Introduce yourself and welcome everyone.
- State the purpose of your presentation
- Give a short overview of the presentation
As we say, it’s as easy as 1-2-3. (No need for a more detailed English presentation script!) Let’s examine the first step.
1. Introduce Yourself & Welcome Everyone
The self-introduction is your opportunity to make a good first impression. Be sure to open with a warm welcome and use language that is familiar and natural. Based on your audience, there are a few different expressions you can use to start your presentation.
If you’re presenting to coworkers who may already know you:
- Hello, [name] here. I would like to thank you all for your time. As you may know, I [describe what you do/your job title] I look forward to discussing [topic] today.
- Good morning/afternoon/evening everyone. Thank you for being here. For those who don’t know me, my name is [name], and for those who know me, hello again.
If you’re presenting to people you’ve never met:
- Hello everyone, it’s nice to meet you all. My name is [name] and I am the [job/title].
- Hello. Welcome to [event]. My name is [name] and I am the [job/title]. I’m glad you’re all here.
There are certainly more ways to make an introduction. However, it’s generally best to follow this format:
- Start with a polite welcome and state your name.
- Follow with your job title and/or the reason you’re qualified to speak on the topic being discussed.
2. State the Purpose of Your Presentation
Now that your audience knows who you are and your qualifications, you can state the purpose of your presentation. This is where you clarify to your audience what you’ll be talking about.
So, ask yourself, “ What do I want my audience to get from this presentation? ”
- Do you want your audience to be informed?
- Do you need something from your audience?
- Do you want them to purchase a product?
- Do you want them to do something for the community or your company?
With your goal in mind, you can create the next couple of lines of your presentation. Below are some examples of how to start.
- Let me share with you…
- I’d like to introduce you to [product or service]
- Today I want to discuss…
- I want to breakdown for you [topic]
- Let’s discuss…
- Today I will present the results of my research on [topic]
- By the end of this presentation, you’ll understand [topic]
- My goal is to explain…
- As you know, we’ll be talking about…
When talking about the purpose of your presentation, stick to your goals. You purpose statement should be only one to three sentences. That way, you can give your audience a clear sense of purpose that sets them up for the rest of the presentation.
3. A Short Overview of the Presentation
The final step in starting your presentation is to give a short outline of what you’ll be presenting. People like a map of what to expect from a presentation.
It helps them organize their thoughts and gives a sense of order. Also, it lets the audience know why they’re listening to you. This is what you’ll use to grab their attention, and help them stay focused throughout the presentation.
Here are some examples of how you can outline your presentation:
- Today, I’m going to cover… Then we’ll talk about… Lastly, I’ll close on…
- We’re going to be covering some key information you need to know, including…
- My aim with this presentation is to get you to… To do that we’ll be talking about…
- I’ve divided my presentation into [number] sections… [List the sections]
- Over the next [length of your presentation] I’m going to discuss…
That’s it! It’s as simple as 1-2-3. If you have a fear of public speaking or are not confident about presenting to a group of people, follow these three steps. It’s a simple structure that can get you off to a good start. With that in mind, there are other ways to bring your introduction to the next level too! Read on for bonus tips on how to really engage your audience, beyond the basics.
For a Strong Presentation in English, Engage your Audience
Presentations aren’t everyone’s strongest ability, and that’s OK. If you’re newer to presenting in English, the steps above are the basics to getting started. Once you’re more comfortable with presenting, though, you can go a step further with some extra tricks that can really wow your audience.
Mastering the skill of engaging an audience will take experience. Fortunately, there are many famous speakers out there you can model for capturing attention. Also, there are some common techniques that English-speakers use to gain an audience’s attention.
*How and when you use these techniques in your introduction is at your discretion, as long as you cover the 3 steps of the introduction outline that we discussed earlier.*
Do or say something shocking.
The purpose of shocking your audience is to immediately engage them. You can make a loud noise and somehow relate the noise to your presentation. Or, you can say, “ Did you know that… ” and follow with a shocking story or statistic. Either way, the objective is to create surprise to draw their attention.
Tell a story
Telling a story related to your presentation is a great way to get the audience listening to you.
You can start by saying, “ On my way to [location] the other day… ” or “ On my way here, I was reminded of… ” and then follow with a story. A good story can make your presentation memorable.
Ask your audience to take part
Sometimes a good introduction that captures attention will involve asking for help from the audience. You can ask the audience to play a quick game or solve a puzzle that’s related to your presentation. Also, you could engage the audience with a group exercise. This is a great way to get people involved in your presentation.
There are many more ways to engage the audience, so get creative and see what you can think up! Here are some resources that will help you get started.
Also, if you want to get better at public speaking (and help your English speaking too!), a great organization to know about is the Toastmasters . The organization is dedicated to helping you be a better speaker, and there are many local groups in America. They offer free lessons and events to help you master your English speaking, and also offer additional help to paying members.
The Takeaway
A presentation in English? No problem, as long as your introduction sets you up for success . Admittedly, this can be easier said than done. Native speakers and non-native speakers alike sometimes struggle with getting a good start on their English presentation. But the advice above can help you get the confidence you need to lay a good foundation for your next speech !
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How to Organize Your Introduction for a Presentation [+ FREE Presentation Checklist]
May 1, 2018 | Business Professional English , Free Resource , Public Speaking & Presentations
This lesson on how to organize your introduction for a presentation in English has been updated since its original posting in 2016 and a video has been added.
Getting ready to present in English? Here’s how to make sure your introduction for a presentation in English is successful.
But first… When you think about a presentation, I know you’re thinking about something like a TED video or a presentation at a conference. You’re thinking about a speech, with PowerPoint slides and a big audience.
But did you know we use the same skills when we share new information or ideas with our work colleagues? Or when we tell stories to our friends and family? The situation or speaking task may be different but we still use the same skills.
When presenting information or telling stories, we need to:
- Capture a listener’s attention
- Share information, ideas, or opinions
- Give the important details
- Make your information memorable
- Get your audience (family, friends, colleagues or strangers) to agree, to take action, to change their mind, etc.
So today you’re going to learn how to take the first big step in your English presentation: how to start with a great introduction.
The introduction is the most important part of your presentation. It is the first impression you’ll make on your audience. It’s your first opportunity to get their attention. You want them to trust you and listen to you right away.
However, that first moment when you start to speak is often the hardest. Knowing how to best prepare and knowing what to say will help you feel confident and ready to say that first word and start your presentation in English.
Be sure to include these 5 things in your inroduction.
Lesson by Annemarie
How to Organize Your Introduction for a Presentation in English and Key Phrases to Use
Organize Your Introduction Correctly
Okay, first let’s focus on what you need to include in your English introduction. Think of this as your formula for a good introduction. Using this general outline for your introduction will help you prepare. It will also help your audience know who you are, why you’re an expert, and what to expect from your presentation.
Use this general outline for your next presentation:
- Welcome your audience and introduce yourself
- Capture their attention
- Identify your number one goal or topic of presentation
- Give a quick outline of your presentation
- Provide instructions for how to ask questions (if appropriate for your situation)
Use Common Language to Make Your Introduction Easy to Understand
Great, now you have the general outline of an introduction for a speech or presentation in English. So let’s focus on some of the key expressions you can use for each step. This will help you think about what to say and how to say it so you can sound confident and prepared in your English presentation.
“The introduction is the most important part of your presentation. It is the first impression you’ll make on your audience. It’s your first opportunity to get their attention. You want them to trust you and listen to you right away.”
Welcome Your Audience & Introduction
It is polite to start with a warm welcome and to introduce yourself. Everyone in the audience will want to know who you are. Your introduction should include your name and job position or the reason you are an expert on your topic. The more the audience trusts you, the more they listen.
- Welcome to [name of company or event]. My name is [name] and I am the [job title or background information].
- Thank you for coming today. I’m [name] and I’m looking forward to talking with you today about [your topic].
- Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen. I’d like to quickly introduce myself. I am [name] from [company or position]. (formal)
- On behalf of [name of company], I’d like to welcome you today. For those of you who don’t already know me, my name is [name] and I am [job title or background]. (formal)
- Hi everyone. I’m [name and background]. I’m glad to be here with you today. Now let’s get started. (informal)
Capture Their Attention
For more information about how to best capture your audience’s attention and why, please see the next session below. However, here are a few good phrases to get you started.
- Did you know that [insert an interesting fact or shocking statement]?
- Have you ever heard that [insert interesting fact or shocking statement]?
- Before I start, I’d like to share a quick story about [tell your story]…
- I remember [tell your story, experience or memory]…
- When I started preparing for this talk, I was reminded of [tell your story, share your quote or experience]…
Identify Your Goal or Topic of Presentation
At this stage, you want to be clear with your audience about your primary topic or goal. Do you want your audience to take action after your talk? Is it a topic everyone is curious about (or should be curious about)? This should be just one or two sentences and it should be very clear.
- This morning I’d like to present our new [product or service].
- Today I’d like to discuss…
- Today I’d like to share with you…
- What I want to share with you is…
- My goal today is to help you understand…
- During my talk this morning/afternoon, I’ll provide you with some background on [main topic] and why it is important to you.
- I will present my findings on…
- By the end of my presentation, I’d like for you to know…
- I aim to prove to you / change your mind about…
- I’d like to take this opportunity to talk about…
- As you know, this morning/afternoon I’ll be discussing…
Outline Your Presentation
You may have heard this about presentations in English before:
First, tell me what you’re going to tell me. Then tell me. And finally, tell me what you told me.
It sounds crazy and weird, but it’s true. This is how we structure presentations in English. So today we’re focusing on the “First, tell me what you’re going to tell me” for your introduction. This means you should outline the key points or highlights of your topic.
This prepares your listens and helps to get their attention. It will also help them follow your presentation and stay focused. Here are some great phrases to help you do that.
- First, I’m going to present… Then I’ll share with you… Finally, I’ll ask you to…
- The next thing I’ll share with you is…
- In the next section, I’ll show you…
- Today I will be covering these 3 (or 5) key points…
- In this presentation, we will discuss/evaluate…
- By the end of this presentation, you’ll be able to…
- My talk this morning is divided into [number] main sections… First, second, third… Finally…
On Asking Questions
You want to be sure to let you audience know when and how it is appropriate for them to ask you questions. For example, is the presentation informal and is it okay for someone to interrupt you with a question? Or do you prefer for everyone to wait until the end of the presentation to ask questions?
- If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to interrupt me. I’m happy to answer any questions as we go along.
- Feel free to ask any questions, however, I do ask that you wait until the end of the presentation to ask.
- There will be plenty of time for questions at the end.
- Are there any questions at this point? If not, we’ll keep going.
- I would be happy to answer any questions you may have now.
Capture Your Audience’s Attention
Do you feel unsure about how to capture the attention of your audience? Don’t worry! Here are some common examples used in English-speaking culture for doing it perfectly!
Two of the most famous speakers in the English-speaking world are Steve Jobs and Oprah Winfrey. While Steve Jobs is no longer living, people still love to watch his speeches and presentations online. Oprah is so famous that no matter what she does, people are excited to see her and listen to her.
BUT, if you listen to a speech by Steve Jobs or Oprah Winfrey, they still work to get your attention!
The don’t start with a list of numbers or data. They don’t begin with a common fact or with the title of the presentation. No – they do much more.
From the moment they start their speech, they want you to listen. And they find interesting ways to get your attention. In his most famous speeches, Steve Jobs often started with a personal story. And Oprah often starts with an inspiring quote, a motivational part of a poem, or a personal story.
These are all great ways to help your audience to listen to you immediately – whether your presentation is 3 minutes or 20 minutes.
Here’s how you can do it.
Like Steve Jobs or Oprah Winfrey, start with a:
- Personal story or experience
- Motivational quote or line from a poem or book
- Joke (be careful with this – make sure it translates easily to everyone in the audience!)
- Shocking, bold statement (Think of Steve Jobs’ quote: “ Stay hungry. Stay Foolish .”)
- Rhetorical question ( =a question that you don’t want an answer to; the focus is to make someone think)
And finally, consider audience participation. Ask a question and get your audience to respond by raising hands.
Get the complete Presentations in English Series:
Part 1: How to Prepare for Your Presentation in English
Part 2: How to Start with a Great Introduction in Your Presentation
Part 3: How to Organize Your Presentation in English
Part 4: How to End Your Presentation Powerfully
As I mentioned in the video, I have two question for you today:
- What is the best introduction you’ve ever heard? Have you watched a TED Talk or a presentation on YouTube with a great introduction? Tell me about it. What do you think was great about the introduction?
- What frightens you the most about preparing your introduction in a presentation? Share your concerns with me so I can help you overcome any challenges you have.
Be sure to share in the comments below to get feedback from me and to learn from others in the Confident English Community.
Have a great week! ~ Annemarie
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Thank you, Annemarie. thanks for the generosity of sharing useful and systemative information and content.
This is really a very informative message thank you.. And it’s help me a lot
hi thank you for this It was helpful. You used simple english that i understood well.
How to start with a great presentation on composition
Thankyou for the information . It was much helpful . I will definitely use this information in my presentation 🤗
Hi, I am Thang Sok Do you have a Sample presentation?
This was helpful but can you please tell me how to start a presentation in college because this is for work in a company. My presentation is on laboratory skills and all that
Its informative
Thank you for this video! I’ve learned quite a lot and will want to use all these knowledge in presenting my thesis proposal in 2 months. About your question no. 2, I’d just like to share that the mere fact of presenting in front of many respected professionals makes me already nervous and shaky even if i have studied everything about my presentation. What do you think should i do to deal with my concern?
Could you give me advise, how to start learning English for beginner.How to prepare presentation on any topic and how to make interesting..
Thank u so much for valuable advice. Definitely I will used this in my presentation!!
Thank you very much for these kind of useful advice. I hope my first presentation will be exciting for the audience.Your video is helping me again thanks a lot 😊
hi, i’m B.COM student and I have to prepare presentation about identifying business opportunities. How to start and an attractive attention to my audience.. Please Help me…
very nise and educative piece of information thank you nancy nairobi kenya
i am starting a video speech shooting in night about a famouse person how do i start my speech with a good intro.
Hi again how do you do a introduction goodbye
Hi i do not know what you are talking about
Hi Kate, I’m sorry to hear you’re not sure about the content. I recommend reviewing the video carefully if you haven’t already. Is there something specific you have a question about?
thanks a lot for guiding in such an easier way.
Your write-up on introduction helped a lot, thank you Annemarie. I work for cross-geography team and greetings get lengthy as timezones are different e.g. “Good evening to those joining from US office and good morning to colleagues from India office”. I replaced that with “Thank you everyone for joining”. Is it okay?
Hi Amit, I’m so glad it was helpful. As for your greeting, both of your options are perfectly appropriate and friendly.
How to introduce group members in online presentation?
Great question! I’d love to use that for a future Confident English lesson.
its amazing. i can’t explain in wording. this material helping me a lot. i am so happy after use this website . its make easy for me preparing my presentation more interesting. i am thankful too u.
thanks! i use your materials to teach my students(clinets) how to prepare a presentation. is it ok to use them on my materials?
Hi! I am a student from the USP from Tuvaluan and i take CEE45 so our assessment 2 is to prepared a group presentation and we presented in school. so need your help for how to start an attractive introduction to my teacher and my fellow students, they already kwow me.
Thank you.. very helpful
Very useful
It was very use Gul for or presentations
Hi. I am a 1st year BIT student and I have to prepare a presentation on 3D Printing. how to start an attractive introduction to my teachers, when they already know about me? Can you please help me out? Thank you.
I just took 1st place for my paper that I presented at an international students conference. I used a lot of your techniques to improve my speech and I have no words to say how grateful I am to you. Keep up the good work!
😲WOW!! That’s awesome, Andrew. 🙌Congratulations on your presentation. What a wonderful response to your hard work. I’d love to know what you presentation was about. And thank you for sharing your new here. I’m thrilled to know that my techniques were helpful to you.
The title of the presentation was “Handling burnout: A study regarding the the influence of job stressors over military and civilian personel”. I can sent you my paper through email if you would like to see it.
Hi Andrew, what a fascinating topic. And it’s interesting because I just had a newspaper reporter interview me about burnout as a small business owner. Must be a hot topic. 🙂 And sure, I’d love to see it.
🔥❤ too goodd
Hello Annemarie, Thank you so much for one of the best content on the English presentation, I’ve seen. I have a question: Is it impolite or informal to start the presentation without a greeting? I’m asking this question because I’ve seen a lot of TEDTalks and in only a few of them, they greet the audience and in most of it, they quickly go to the “CAPTURING the ATTENTION” with numbers and pictures. I would be so thankful if you could answer this question as soon as possible, my presentation is so close. Best regards, Helia
Hi Helia, What a great question. It has definitely become more common to skip the greeting and go straight to capturing the attention of the audience and you’re right that we often see this in TED talks. I would say it’s best to know your audience and what might be expected. For example, at more formal, traditional conferences or lecture, it might be more appropriate to start with a welcome. I prefer to welcome/thank my audience quickly at the start when I give presentations. A welcome can be very brief, just one sentence, and then you can quickly go into … Read more »
Hi Annemarie I would like to thank you for giving such types of presentation skills but I have a question can you give me some idea about vote of thinks.
I’m glad the lessons are helpful to you. Could you clarify what you mean by ‘vote of thinks?’ I’m not sure I understand that.
Please can you give me some idea about vote of thanks
Could you clarify what you’re asking for, Bello?
Thanks a lot
Glad it was helpful!
it is agood i learn alot from this english class
Hello.i would like to thank you for giving these beautiful tips to start a presentation.This article helped me a lot.
That’s great, Radha. Glad to hear it.
Thanks for your article. It’s simply for interpersonal skill development.
You’re welcome, Mithun. Glad to know it was helpful.
Hi Annemarie . Thank you so much for giving such helpful guildelines it’s really gonna help me
I’m glad it’s helpful, Swetha! 🙂
thank you for help me
You’re very welcome!
Hi Anne Marie, i ‘m from Catalonia and i came across with your site only by chance and i think it’gonna be so helpful for me to pass the next test for c1 level. Several weeks ago i did some rehersals with my presentation and i was so nervous and terrified about what was expected from me.
Some tips in your youtube channel are so cool !!! Thank you.
Hi Tom, I’m thrilled you’ve found this site in your preparations for your English exam and am glad to know it’s helpful! Best of luck as you continue to prepare.
Hi Annemarie Thanks it’s so useful to develop presentation skill. Fatima
You’re very welcome, Fatima! I’m glad it was helpful.
Awesome, especially this simple and clear motto: “First, tell me what you’re going to tell me. Then tell me. And finally, tell me what you told me.” This three sentences exactly explain the content you need to create a memorable presentation.
Hi Dzmitry,
Yes, I’ve always loved that simple motto on how to do a presentation. 🙂 It’s so easy to remember and tells you exactly what to do.
hello I need to introduce myself to language center. i am going to learn Danish Language and i want to introduce myself to them and i am little bit nervous because my grammar is not good at that level.so will you please guide me how to introduce myself to them with an example. i did go through your examples but that is for professionals and i am just a student (Graduate). I don’t have any experience . Please guide me how to do it.
I was in a confused state about starting a conversation and proceeding in it but when I read the guidelines you mentioned above I became confident. thank you for your innumerable ………….
Thank you so much…… it’s an excellent topic, and it helped me a lot
I’m so glad this was helpful to you! Thank you for sharing.
hi annemarie i have a few questions about a speech i have to make a englishi speech of what i want to become can you help me?
Hi Rebecca,
Thank you for the question. I have several lessons on the topic of presentations in English . However, for personal assistance with English or presentations, I only do that through my one-on-one classes .
thank you so much…… it’s really helpful for me….
You’re very welcome, Shalini.
Thanks its really nice to develop the presentation skills
Awesome. I’m glad it was helpful to you, Mohammed.
I have to give a demo on one of your programs next week. I would like you to check my self introduction – Good afternoon everyone and thank you for all of your presence. Before we get into the session I would like to quickly introduce myself. My name is Dinesh . I am working as a Pharmaceutical sale and promotion of the brands for Arrient Healthcare. I am in this filed for the past ten years. Before becoming trainer I worked as a medical representatives for different pharma company . I am highly interested in learning from people and … Read more »
Please ignore my previous comment. Yea the demo was a success. So hereafter I will say”I have been in this field for the past four years. Actually I worked for different consultancies so I didn’t include an article there.
I have to give a demo on one of your programs next week. I would like you to check my self introduction – Good afternoon everyone and thank you for all of your presence. Before we get into the session I would like to quickly introduce myself. My name is Monica. I am working as a Soft Skill Trainer at Synergy School of Business Skills. I am in this filed for the past four years. Before becoming trainer I worked as a Recruiter for different job consultancy. I am highly interested in learning from people and I think teaching/training is … Read more »
Thank you for sharing your example! One note: “I am in this field for the past four years.” –> Don’t forget, when we’re talking about something that started in the past and continues to now, we use the present perfect. How might you change this sentence to fix the grammar?
Also, we want to add an article to, “… I worked as a recruiter for [a] different job consultancy.”
I wish you much success in your demo this week! Best, Annemarie
Yea the demo was a success! So hereafter I will say”I have been for the past four years. Actually I worked for different consultancies.
I like it but I think capturing their attention is the most difficult part in preparing a presentation. From my little experience, I used to talk about something out of the scope of the presentation in order to grasp their attention. For example, I had a presentation about medical terminology and its parts (suffix, prefix —). So I provided example which is Ultra Violet then I talked about the ultraviolet in the sun and Vitamin D deficiency. They liked the talk because it is very important to them and by this topic I captured their attention more and more.
Hello Fadia, I’m sorry I’m so late in responding to your comment! I agree with you: capturing attention is very challenging to do. It requires understanding your audience, knowing what is important to them, and how to connect with them. In English-speaking culture, we often connect by telling a story or showing we understand a problem the audience has. I think you’re exactly right to talk about something that is maybe “off topic” or out of the scope of the presentation, as you said, to get their attention first. It sounds like you did a great job in your experience!! … Read more »
hi there it was great going through your enlightening presentation skills however i would be even more delighted if you put some quotes for various PPT’s which will give us an instant ideas during the adhoc PPT like myself…just a suggestion.
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How to Introduce Yourself in a Presentation [with Examples]
In this post, we are going to cover the best way, a very simple three-step process that will help you introduce yourself in a presentation. A summary of the steps is below.
- Start with your name and company (or organization or school).
- Tell your audience what problem you can solve for them.
- Share some type of proof (social proof works best) that you can solve this problem.
I will break down each step into a simple-to-follow process. But first… a little background.
First, Identify What Your Audience Wants from Your Presentation
So, before you design your introduction, think about what your audience wants from your presentation. Why do they want to spend their valuable time listening to you? Are going to waste their time? Or, are you going to provide them with something valuable?
For instance, I have expertise in a number of different areas. I’m a public speaking coach, a keynote speaker, a best-selling author, a search engine optimization specialist, and a popular podcaster. However, if I delivered that sentence to any audience, the most likely reaction would be, “So what?” That sentence doesn’t answer any of the above questions. The statement is also really “me-focused” not “audience-focused.”
So, when I start to design my self-introduction, I want to focus just on the area of expertise related to my topic. I’m then going to answer the questions above about that particular topic. Once you have these answers, set them aside for a second. They will be important later.
How to Introduce Yourself in a Presentation in Class.
Instead, you probably want to add in a fun way to start a speech . For example, instead of introducing yourself in your class speech and starting in an awkward way, start with a startling statistic. Or start with a summary of your conclusion. Or, you could start the presentation with an inspirational quote.
Each of these presentation starters will help you lower your nervousness and decrease your awkwardness.
If you are delivering a speech in a speech competition or to an audience who doesn’t know you try this technique. Just introduce yourself by saying your name , the school you represent , and your topic . Make it easy. This way you get to your content more quickly and lower your nervousness.
Typically, after you get the first few sentences out of the way, your nervousness will drop dramatically. Since your name, school, and topic should be very easy to remember, this takes the pressure off you during the most nervous moments.
Obviously, follow the guidelines that your teacher or coach gives you. (The competition may have specific ways they want you to introduce yourself.)
How to Introduce Yourself in a Business Presentation — A Step-by-Step Guide.
In a professional setting, when new people walk into a meeting and don’t know what to expect, they will feel uncomfortable. The easiest way to ease some of that tension is to chat with your audience as they come into the room.
By the way, if you are looking for a template for an Elevator Speech , make sure to click this link.
Step #1: Start with your name and company name (or organization).
This one is easy. Just tell your audience your name and the organization that you are representing. If your organization is not a well-known brand name, you might add a short clarifying description. For instance, most people outside of the training industry have never heard of The Leader’s Institute ®. So, my step #1 might sound something like…
Hi, I’m Doug Staneart with The Leader’s Institute ®, an international leadership development company…
Still short and sweet, but a little more clear to someone who has never heard of my company.
Should you give your job title? Well… Maybe and sometimes. Add your title into the introduction only if your title adds to your credibility.
For example, if you are delivering a financial presentation and you are the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of your company, you might mention that. Your title adds to your credibility. However, if the CFO is delivering a presentation about the value of joining a trade association, the CFO title adds little credibility. So, there is very little value in adding the title.
Step #2: Tell your audience what problem you can solve for them.
For instance, if my topic is how to deliver presentations, I have to determine why the audience would care. What problem will they have that I can help them with? For my audiences, the problem that I most often help people with is how to eliminate public speaking fear. Once I have the problem, I add that to my introduction by using the words, “I help people…”
Hi, I’m Doug Staneart with The Leader’s Institute ®, an international leadership development company, and I help people eliminate public speaking fear.
However, if my topic is How to Close a Higher Percentage of Sales Presentations , I’d likely want to alter my introduction a little. I might say something like…
Hi, I’m Doug Staneart with The Leader’s Institute ®, an international leadership development company, and I help people design more persuasive sales presentations.
I have expertise in both areas. However, I focus my introduction on just the expertise that is applicable to this audience. If I gave the first introduction to the second audience, they will likely respond by thinking, well, I don’t really get nervous speaking, so I guess I can tune out of this speech .
So, create a problem statement starting with, “I help people…” Make the statement apply to what your audience really wants.
Step #3: Share some type of proof (social proof works best) that you can solve this problem.
By the way, if you just do steps #1 and #2, your introduction will be better than most that you will hear. However, if you add Step #3, you will gain more respect (and attention) from your audience. Without adding some type of proof that you can solve this problem, you are just giving your opinion that you are an expert. However, if you can prove it, you are also proving that you are an expert.
This is the tricky part. For some reason, most people who get to this part feel like they haven’t accomplished great things, so they diminish the great accomplishments that they do have.
For instance, an easy way to offer proof is with a personal story of how you have solved that problem in the past.
A Few Examples of How to Introduce Yourself Before a Presentation.
For instance, one of my early clients was a young accountant. When I was working with him, he came up with the following introduction, “I’m Gary Gorman with Gorman and Associates CPA’s, and I help small businesses avoid IRS audits.” It was a great, audience-focused attention-getter. (No one wants to get audited.) However, as an accountant, it wasn’t like his company was getting a lot of five-star reviews on Yelp! So, he was kind of struggling with his social proof. So, I asked him a series of questions.
Me, “How many clients do you have?”
Gary, “Over 300.”
Me, “How many small business tax returns have you processed?”
Gary, “Well, at least a couple hundred a year for 15 years.”
Me, “So, at least 3000?” He nodded. “How many of your 300 clients have been audited since you have been representing them?”
He looked at me and said, “Well, none.”
So, we just added that piece of proof to his talk of introduction.
I’m Gary Gorman with Gorman and Associates CPA’s, and I help small businesses avoid IRS audits. In fact, in my career, I’ve helped clients complete over 3000 tax returns, and not a single one has ever been audited.
Here Is How I Adjust My Introduction Based on What I Want the Audience to Do.
For my proof, I have a number of options. Just like Gary, I have had a lot of clients who have had great successes. In addition, I have published two best-selling books about public speaking. I also have hundreds of thousands of people who listen to my podcast each week. So, I can pick my evidence based on what I want my audience to do.
For instance, if I’m speaking at a convention, and I want the audience to come by my booth to purchase my books, my introduction might sound like this.
Hi, I’m Doug Staneart with The Leader’s Institute ®, an international leadership development company, and I help people eliminate public speaking fear. One of the things that I’m most know for is being the author of two best-selling books, Fearless Presentations and Mastering Presentations.
However, if I’m leading a webinar, I may want the audience to purchase a seat in one of my classes. In that case, my introduction might sound like this.
Hi, I’m Doug Staneart with The Leader’s Institute ®, an international leadership development company, and I help people eliminate public speaking fear. For instance, for the last 20 years, I’ve taught public speaking classes to over 20,000 people, and I haven’t had a single person fail to reduce their nervousness significantly in just two days.
If my goal is to get the audience to subscribe to my podcast, my intro might sound like…
Hi, I’m Doug Staneart with The Leader’s Institute ®, an international leadership development company, and I help people eliminate public speaking fear. One of the ways that I do this is with my weekly podcast called, Fearless Presentations, which has over one million downloads, so far.
Use the Form Below to Organize How to Introduce Yourself in a Presentation.
The point is that you want to design your introduction in a way that makes people pause and think, “Really? That sounds pretty good.” You want to avoid introductions that make your audience think, “So what?”
If you have a speech coming up and need a good introduction, complete the form below. We will send you your answers via email!
Can You Replace Your Introduction with a PowerPoint Slide?
Is it okay to make your first slide (or second slide) in your presentation slides an introduction? Sure. A good public speaker will often add an introduction slide with a biography, portrait, and maybe even contact information. I sometimes do this myself.
However, I NEVER read the slide to my audience. I often just have it showing while I deliver the short introduction using the guide above. This is a great way to share more of your work experience without sounding like you are bragging.
For tips about how many powerpoint slides to use in a presentation , click here.
Remember that There Is a Big Difference Between Your Introduction in a Presentation and Your Presentation Starter.
When you introduce yourself in a presentation, you will often just use a single sentence to tell the audience who you are. You only use this intro if the audience doesn’t know who you are. Your presentation starter, though, is quite different. Your presentation starter should be a brief introduction with relevant details about what you will cover in your presentation.
For details, see Great Ways to Start a Presentation . In that post, we show ways to get the attention of the audience. We also give examples of how to use an interesting hook, personal stories, and how to use humor to start a presentation.
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7 Creative Ways to Start Any Presentation (With Examples!)
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Published Date : December 4, 2020
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Creating an effective presentation is challenging and needs a lot of effort to become engaging with your audience. Many questions are indeed rounding up your head.
Like how to start a PowerPoint presentation and a class set-up presentation, it helps people, such as entrepreneurs, organize and disseminate their ideas flawlessly.
It clarifies intentions, concepts, and other feasible topics specifically. They may differ from execution, events, and for whom the presentation.
With that, the bottom line and the question is how to do it. How do you start a board meeting presentation, or how do you start a presentation introduction in class?
Many students are also struggling with how to start a case study presentation, and young entrepreneurs or start-ups are struggling with how to start a business presentation.
To ease the tension and upgrade your confidence , furthermore those people above, I will share some tips, steps, and how to start a presentation example.
Why Presentation is Important in Persuading
Presentations break communication barriers. Across this, it brings mutual understanding to the audience.
In winning your stances and goals, having and knowing how to start a presentation is a must. It helps you more to give an idea of what your topic could be through moving pictures and graphics in reality.
The role of presentation in persuading can be categorized into many factors. First, it helps your audience to feel more comfortable with your spiels.
Second, you have the chance to tell your options, choices, summary, and the result of your case study, etc., within your presentation. Especially can be stoop on how to start a business presentation.
Lastly, knowing how to deliver and how to start a presentation in persuading your listener includes support for your audience’s decision. Through it, the concept of persuasion becomes more reliable with tangible materials.
It is evident in thesis defenses and academic proposals. To start a case study presentation, you must present facts, stats, related studies, and other materials.
And to achieve that in a well-presented way, you need to think and come up with a composition associated with your topic to make it reliable and credible.
Different Ways to Start a Presentation
Difficulties on how to start a case study presentation and the things you need to behold within your PowerPoint presentation would be easy after sharing with you this advice.
As for direction and advice, take a look at this list to start a presentation generally.
1. Start With a Strong Claim
The beginning is always the hard part of a presentation. But like a bottle of water, after it gets opened, the water inside can flow smoothly to your gulp.
Meaning after spitting out your first words, everything should follow accordingly to your presentation. That’s why it is the most crucial when you are learning how to start a presentation.
Try to use the iconic lines of a famous philosopher —striking advice of a hotshot entrepreneur for your business proposal presentation.
Through this, you can have a good impression on your listener. Shook them and contradict their ideas; indeed, you can have an intense or beneficial presentation.
2. Know Your Prospect
Besides technicalities and visuals, knowing first the current state, perspective, wants, and needs of your prospect or audience is vital.
Before the presentation, you can send them a pre-assessment or survey consisting of what they want to see and learn and things to keep them interested, or you need to get their attention and interest.
3. Assist the Flow With Visuals
Showing your audience a good spiel in presenting your developing ideas and concepts through pictures that can’t be put quickly in language can break communication drawbacks.
Apart from describing your idea in a presentation, you are also giving quick ways to dice abstract ideas.
4. Moving Pictures
Pictures and videos are great instruments for nurturing your ideas and your audience counterparts.
The power of moving pictures is evident as the film business and the movie industry is booming and depicting fictional stories into reality.
5. Break People’s Expectation
To break the set expectations of your audience for you, always stick to your premise. Whether on business, academics, proposals, and other topical presentations.
Call an action to smash misconceptions about your particular presentation.
6. Spill Surprising Stories
Bring stories and the characters in life. Create conflict and suspense to highlight your goal’s presentation.
It also helps you to organize your presentation’s information to be catchy and relatable. Touching stories can affect audience decision-making.
7. Know When to Pause
Don’t present vague ideas, premises, and concepts. Stop bombarding your audience.
After a round of applause or before speaking, take a three-second pause. Observe your audience’s facial expressions.
With that, you can focus on your tone. It is also an indication that you want to give your audience a short rest.
Orai helps you perfect your speech with feedback on your tone, tempo, confidence , and conciseness .
Things to Avoid on Presentation
Introducing your name along with your topic is not acceptable and is not a killer intro. To nail a presentation, be careful and prevent unnecessary elements.
Here is the list of recommended things you should avoid on how to start a presentation.
1. Cliché Sentences
Do you believe that the flow and relevancy of your presentation depend on your introduction?
If you do believe, avoid cruddy beginnings, initials, and phrases. Instead of stating, “What will your presentation be about,” give them an idea of why they need it and why it is worth sharing.
2. Plain Visuals
Stop using standard PowerPoint templates, discarded pictures, and non-HD videos. For engaging your audience, mastering your spiels is not enough to convince your listeners.
The balanced presentation consists of a good speech , spiels, and an enticing display. Instead of using plain visuals, use simple but complex graphics.
3. Lame Transitions
It is not all about effects or glitching transition effects but about how you transmit your spiels. Always open your arguments with a bang and end them using striking remarks.
4. Unstable Stats and Facts
Don’t use outdated data, studies, and facts. Don’t go to less up-to-date data websites.
Treat the facts and stats as vitamins for your presentation, as it helps your exhibition look reliable and robust.
5. Colorless Templates
Pick templates that fit your topic and theme—download innovative templates and slides. Analyze your presentation structure.
Make sure to go for a font that suits perfectly to the presentation. Go for roadmaps, unique mats, and decks.
Check out this video for more tips on how to avoid presentation pitfalls:
Steps to Enhance Your Visual Presentation
To sort things specifically on how to start a presentation. Here are the steps and tips on how to start a PowerPoint presentation.
Step 1: Get a Color Palette
“Colors speak louder than texts.”
Aside from shapes, figures, and moving objects, picking the right color palette for your presentation can beautify the board’s ambiance if that’s the case.
Logos and company icons have their color combination to mark and emphasize their brand to all consumers. It may also apply to presentations.
If you want to be considered or remembered, start by choosing the right color palette.
Step 2: Create a Theme
The theme supports the flow of your topic; it is the backbone of your presentation. Not considering this element can’t make your topic vague and not intact.
Step 3: Add Hyperlinks
Going back to how to start a presentation, comparing specific ideas is a waste of time. Using hyperlinks, you can offer your audience a “video game” theme.
Step 4: Play Short Video or Create GIFS
Before or after spiels about a particular slide, play a short video as an icebreaker. It helps you to feed your audience with a large amount of information in a shorter period.
Step 5: Practice the Presentation with Spiels in Every Portion
Practice helps you to attain presentation skills. You can interact with your audience, disseminate the messages clearly, and analyze your listeners’ mindset.
You can also improve the flow of run-throughs. These will support you to polish and enhance persuasive skills.
Practice your perfect speech with Orai
Presentation Checklist
Besides sharing the tips and steps on how to start a presentation, let me give you a sample presentation checklist to support and organize your presentation.
This checklist may vary in every presentation. You can create and set your reminders.
Vital Points of a Presentation
To use your time wisely , try this outline on creating a presentation, such as how to start a board meeting presentation and more.
This table only serves as a sample outline. It may also vary depending on your topic and forte.
How to Start Business Presentation and Other Samples
For all entrepreneurs, this portion is for you. To gratify your needs and to enlighten you on how to start a business presentation. Here are the basics.
- Create a Plan
Always start with a concrete plan to strengthen the body of your presentation. With that, your listeners can’t easily stab your presentation.
- Pick The Right Deck
If you are discussing in a formal setting, pick a deck with gray colors, choose dominant colors, and then combine.
- Tell Stories and Laugh
To balance the whole presentation, put some icebreakers and funny idioms about your topic. Make sure it is sensible.
- Add Verbal Cues and Signpost
It helps your audience to get intact through the presentation. Try to use signal transitions, such as words or phrases that would give interconnections.
- Collect Images and Charts
Of course, images and charts are vital. Make sure to use HD photos and reliable maps from data websites.
- Initiate Audience Interaction
After the presentation, evaluate it by asking your listeners if they have any questions.
Questions like these must be considered and answered in your presentation.
- How would you design your material?
- How factual is it?
- What is the target deadline? Show your timeline.
Watch this live speech or business seminar to get different hooks and other strategies to impress your listeners with your business presentation:
3 Essential Parts on How to Start a Board Meeting Presentation
As your supervisor and other executives watch you presenting, stand tall and present like a boss through these points.
- Create the Structure of Your Presentation
It organizes the presentation and connects the main points to sub-points. With that, you can have minimal effort but impactful results.
- Build Big Introduction
Try to begin asking the “why’s,” furthermore, enlighten them of “hows.” How to conduct, how to execute, and how to surpass their limits.
Stop introducing your presentation with your name. Always start to implore your audience with no cliché intro.
- Develop Your Data and Tell Crucial Parts
You can be ideological, symbolic, and rhetorical, and these things are not yet easy to comprehend without visuals. That’s why it is essential to develop and expand your data to make it understandable.
Suppose you want to have a good impression when presenting a business proposal to your bosses and other hotshots. Watch this video on striking tips and techniques for a presentation:
Vital Aspects of How to Start a Case Study Presentation
Case study presentations are more technical, unlike the other displays. It should be specific, tangible, credible, and substantial.
Also, here are the vital points to follow.
- Show the Possible Results. Collect the possible outcomes or predicted results. With that, you can jump to “how” you will carry the topic into different methods and production.
- Prepare Back-Up Studies. Always have a backup; there are some unexpected circumstances, emergencies, and other possible matters that may ruin your original presentation. It is wise to prepare around three to six backup studies you can easily refer to.
- Connect to Your Prospect’s Situation. Research on their state, status, and other related ideas. It will help your case study to get a thumbs up.
- Focus on Deals. Keep in mind that you have a target deal. Always connect your study to the current agreement and profitable offers.
How to Start a Presentation Introduction in Class
Facing new students is challenging, right? If you want to get a good impression from your class in different situations, take a look at these tips.
- Present Yourself With Manners
Tell them briefly who you are and why you are there in front of them while showing the right conduct and manners.
- Cite Your Objectives and Its Relevance
The material or your material must be the center of any presentation. Discuss its factuality and how tangible it is. Along with these, tell stories that may catch their interest and attention throughout the presentation.
- Leave Interesting Statement
End it with a bang! Make them think and stare at you. You can also give them riddles and some metaphorical set of words as an ending remark .
Indeed, you will gain their participation, plus you are helping your listeners to think critically.
Become a pro presenter. Download Orai and start practicing
How to Make an Unforgettable Start-Up Presentation
To give more emphasis on how to start a business presentation and to help young entrepreneurs. I’ll share with you this detailed outline. I hope you tuck this with you.
1. Set Goals For Your Business Presentation
Always set the stage with objectives. Since you are presenting to get clients and investment, it would help if you cleared how long it takes your business proposal.
2. Start With Provoking Questions or Stories
Never underestimate the power of storytelling. Initiate your presentation with real-life stories.
Stating provoking questions can grab attention, positive or negative, is a good result. It helps you to get your listener’s ears and eyes.
3. Show Alarming Statistics, Graphics as a Clue
This recommendation is similar to a word game, the “4-pics, One Word,” demonstrating the idea or topic with photos will be more immersing.
Visuals are one of the key points to expand a presentation. They are depicting patterns, diagrams, and trends. Lend quick analysis and predictions.
By using graphics, you can easily sustain the interest of your listeners and attract more viewers.
4. Know Your Material
Master your presentation and fill loops. And on your topic. Study the weak points and establish more of the strengths of the presentation.
With that, you can derive the information smoothly. Take note of this. It is also vital on how to start a board meeting presentation.
5. Add Business-Related Stories and Humor
Put the top 10 successful corporations, traders, companies, and other information that may help you present your goal. Flash the motto of some famous entrepreneurs. Analyze or contradict it to gain more attention.
Try to spiel some business jokes as an icebreaker. Any possible facts about business that you can use — catch it!
6. Hold Your Audience With Visuals
Play videos like a Public Service Announcement (PSA), but make sure it is connected to your topic.
Learn how to start a business presentation that has movement and action for society. With that, your listeners may think your presentation is worth investing in.
7. Relax and Have an Early Set-Up
Stay calm and don’t even think about drawbacks or shortcomings, especially the night before the presentation.
Make sure to pamper your body. Create also a plan B for unexpected circumstances.
8. Calculate Your Time and Sort it Into Parts
In your run-through, always set a timer. It gives you a heads up if you may look rushing or too slow in explaining each slide.
Being not responsible for other people’s time is a turn-off, especially in business, where time is essential in the industry.
To present other samples wisely. Let me share some videos to rock and how to start a presentation:
What are some examples of great presentation structures and delivery techniques?
Successful presentations like “How Google Works” and “Start with Why” prove the power of clarity and simplicity. Both Schmidt and Sinek captivate audiences with straightforward messages enhanced by visuals (slides or whiteboard) that support, not overpower, their narratives. The lesson: ditch complexity, focus on your core message, and deliver it with a conviction for maximum impact.
How can group presentations be structured effectively?
Effective group presentations require thorough rehearsal, clean transitions, and speaker handovers. Recap your section, introduce the next speaker, and gesture towards them to link sections and keep the audience engaged.
How can physical movement enhance the delivery of my presentation?
Ditch the podium! Move around the stage to grab attention, connect with listeners, and emphasize key points. Strategic shifts in location signal transitions, while your energy and passion come alive through purposeful movement. Make your presentation dynamic and memorable – get moving!
How can I structure a presentation using the remaining method approach?
To master the “remaining method,” Briefly introduce the controversy, dive deep with your side (logos & pathos!), acknowledge and dissect opposing solutions, and then unveil your “remaining solution” as the superior answer. Wrap up with a strong summary and a call to action. Guide your audience, earn trust, and win them over!
What are the key elements involved in storytelling for presentations?
Ditch the dry facts! Captivate your audience with stories. Use classic structures like the hero’s journey or jump into the action with “in media res.” Craft your narrative with a clear plot, relatable characters, and a consistent tone. Tie it all back to your key points for maximum impact. Storytelling makes presentations memorable, engaging, and impactful – go forth and win hearts (and minds)!
How can I structure my presentation using the problem-solution method?
Hook them, hit them, fix them! Problem-solution presentations start with a clear pain point, delve deep with causes and impacts (think logic and emotions!), and then unveil your solution as the hero and its amazing benefits. Finish with a call to action – tell them what to do next! Simple, powerful, persuasive.
What are some common presentation structures beyond the typical format described in the passage?
Forget the slides; show and tell! Demo presentations explain the “what” and “why” of your product, then dazzle with a live showcase. Highlight problem-solving and potential uses to keep them hooked. Leave them curious and wanting more with a glimpse of what your product can truly do. It’s all about interactive understanding and engagement!
What is the purpose of the Q&A session at the end of a presentation?
Q&A isn’t just an add-on! It’s a chance to clear confusion, recap key points, and answer burning questions. Wrapping up the discussion, offering deeper dives, and inviting audience participation – it’s the perfect way to seal the deal and connect with your listeners.
What should be included in the main body of a presentation?
Ditch the tangents and deliver on your promises! The main body is where you unpack your points. Organize it clearly, hit each topic with evidence and examples, summarize as you go, and link your ideas. Keep it focused, relevant, and audience-friendly – take notes, stay on track, and make your impact!
How should the introduction of a presentation be structured?
Hook, roadmap, and expectations – that’s your intro! Briefly introduce the topic, explain why it matters and what you’ll cover, and tell the audience how long they’re in for and if they can participate. Set the stage, guide them through, and make them feel comfortable – then dive in!
Why is structuring a presentation important?
Get organized, and get remembered! Structure keeps your audience engaged and learning while boosting your confidence and delivery. It’s a win-win for both the speaker and the listener!
Conclusion:
To be an effective speaker or presenter, you must master how to start a presentation. Learn the basics and dynamics.
Earn persuasive skills and grasp how to start a PowerPoint presentation with the steps and tips above to disseminate the information in a free-lingual way effectively.
I hope you find this helpful; you are free to use these tips for any goals.
You can try Orai , an AI-powered speech coach that perfectly suits your budget! They provide instant feedback on you to help with your public speaking needs. Start your free trial with Orai today!
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How to create an engaging introduction. Consider using the tips below to engage your audience before your next presentation: 1. Tell your audience who you are. Introduce yourself, and then once your audience knows your name, tell them why they should listen to you. Example: "Good morning. My name is Miranda Booker, and I'm here today to ...
" There's always a character — real or invented— that your video can relate to; find that character, the problems they faced, and show them in your introduction. 4. Show a Preview in Your Video Introduction. Your video title and thumbnail play a key role in hooking your viewer, which is what the Bloomberg example illustrated.
Here's just some of the ways you can make your message sing. 1. Start with a bold statement. A bold statement can capture your audience's attention right from the get-go. Your statement should offer something slightly unusual and maybe even a little controversial. Something to make people sit up and take notice. 2.
The introduction in a business presentation has 4 goals: (1) to provide context by introducing the topic, (2) to build authority and trust by introducing the team (3) to manage expectations by giving a preview of the presentation content, and (4) to ignite interest by introducing a big idea.
Idea 4: Video. This could work just as marvellous as sharing an image and opening a short discussion on its interpretations. You could even start with a video and use it as a segue into your presentation. For example this video could be used as a great example for a marketing strategy by the brand and could be a great way to get the audience ...
There are over 35 million PowerPoint presentations created every day and presented to an audience of 500 million people.; 89% of people still use PowerPoint to create presentations out of which 43% say they don't have an alternative.; 87% of marketing people use video in their marketing efforts.; 78% of people consume videos online in a week with 55% consuming videos every day.
It effectively kills and buries even the best messages. Table of Contents. The Classic Trick: Open a Presentation with an Introduction. Open a Presentation with a Hook. Begin with a Captivating Visual. Ask a "What if…". Question. Use the Word "Imagine". Leverage The Curiosity Gap.
Have a presentation coming up? Want to hook you audience from the start? Then watch this Lighthouse Communications video that gives you a step by step formul...
Go to File > Export > Create a Video. Select the video size (Full HD or 1080p is good enough for YouTube). Make sure you choose the ' Use Recorded Timings and Narrations ' on the drop down list. Then hit the ' Create Video ' button.
A video presentation is a presentation that can be shared and viewed as a video. Technically, for a presentation to be a video presentation, it must be an MP4 or MOV file type. A video presentation can be shared online on YouTube, Vimeo and other social media platforms. The best part of a video presentation with audio is that you can share it ...
"Living in the multiverse" is an unsettling but fascinating idea that immediately captures the audience's attention and sets the stage for a thought-provoking presentation. Best for: Presentations that introduce new or disruptive ideas to your audience and require their full attention and curiosity. 4. "2022 Women in the Workplace"
Access the "Present and record" option on the editor's top-right side or click on the three-dot menu to select it among recommended actions. Select "Go to recording studio" and set up your camera and microphone. Start recording with your notes in Presenter's View and have the options to pause and resume your recording.
The Best Video Intro Maker. Explore our extensive collection of logo reveals and intro animations in every style. Add your logo to the template of your choice and see it come alive with stunning visuals. Use it as an intro or outro to leave your brand's unique signature on every video you make. Filters.
To help you in your quest for presentation greatness, we've gathered 23 of the best business presentation examples out there. These hand-picked ideas range from business PowerPoint presentations, to recruitment presentations, and everything in between. As a bonus, several of our examples include editable video presentation templates from ...
\\An Example of How to Start a Presentation //Opening a presentation can be one of the most difficult parts of a presentation. If you're looking for ideas o...
For our first example, we'll start with a corporate video that's become a classic: the Dollar Shave Club explainer video. For all intents and purposes, this is a business explainer video. But it shows a lot about the company along the way. A major reason it works is because it's fun.
Start with a polite welcome and state your name. Follow with your job title and/or the reason you're qualified to speak on the topic being discussed. 2. State the Purpose of Your Presentation. Now that your audience knows who you are and your qualifications, you can state the purpose of your presentation.
Part 1: How to Prepare for Your Presentation in English. Part 2: How to Start with a Great Introduction in Your Presentation. Part 3: How to Organize Your Presentation in English. Part 4: How to End Your Presentation Powerfully. As I mentioned in the video, I have two question for you today:
Step #2: Tell your audience what problem you can solve for them. This is where all of the pre-work comes into play. In this step, you will use the answers to one of those questions that you answered earlier. For instance, if my topic is how to deliver presentations, I have to determine why the audience would care.
As for direction and advice, take a look at this list to start a presentation generally. 1. Start With a Strong Claim. The beginning is always the hard part of a presentation. But like a bottle of water, after it gets opened, the water inside can flow smoothly to your gulp.
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If you ever need to introduce yourself in a business, interview or school situation, here's a way to do that so you make a good first impression. There are t...