Why Bad Presentations Happen to Good Causes - The Goodman ...

Building Better Presentations
How to Take Your Audience from A to B
There are many different ways to structure a presentation, and if you attend seminars or
read books on the subject, you will invariably encounter experts who tout their way as the
way. In my opinion, the best structure is the one you are most comfortable with, and even
that may change from one presentation to the next.
There may be times when a problem-solution format is best. On other occasions, a
presentation that follows the arc of a story may be most appropriate. Or you may find
yourself building a case like a courtroom lawyer. These are all reliable choices, but the
important point here is that you have to choose. Presentations need structure just as tall
buildings need steel frames. Otherwise, the whole thing can come crashing down on
your head.
The following section outlines a basic structure that can serve you well for a variety of
subjects. I encourage you to investigate other possibilities (the books in the Resources
section offer several), but if you are like many of our survey respondents who seek a better
way to organize their material, the framework below may be the best place to start.
The Audience: Start Here
A common mistake in planning a presentation is asking yourself the seemingly innocent
question, “What do I want to say?” Unfortunately, this places the initial focus on you and
your material and not where it actually belongs: on the audience. Start with this question,
and you are off on a path of building a case (or telling a story, or solving a problem) that
may seem compelling to you, but may fall on deaf ears.
Joel Bradshaw, a veteran political strategist who frequently works with environmental
organizations, has seen many clients make this mistake. “Most conservation organizations
think that you persuade people by marshaling a series of scientific arguments and facts
to change people’s minds,” says Bradshaw. “In reality, that isn’t what happens. You change
people’s minds by figuring out what is important to them – which is rarely science – and
you present arguments on their terms.”
To keep your focus on the audience, as Bradshaw recommends, think of the presentation
as their journey along the continuum below.
A
Where they are. Where you want
them to be.
B
pg. 19