Tips on how to Begin a Presentation [+ Examples]

Step one in mastering the artwork of delivering highly effective shows is knowing the best way to begin a presentation correctly.

On this publish, you will uncover methods for crafting a strong presentation opening, designing an impactful opening slide, and delivering a memorable presentation.

Desk of Contents

Whereas there is not a one-size-fits-all strategy to beginning a presentation, profitable shows throughout all niches share widespread denominators contributing to their effectiveness.

On this part, you’ll study 4 important methods these shows leverage and the best way to incorporate them into your subsequent presentation opening.

1. Lead with an attention-grabbing opener.

Capturing the viewers’s consideration is among the most vital but difficult duties audio system face when beginning a presentation. Listed below are some real-world methods that make this process a bit simpler.

Incite curiosity.

In Phil Waknell’s TedTalk, titled “The three Magic Components of Superb Shows,“ he opens with an fascinating assertion: ”Most individuals who come to talk at Ted are right here as a result of they‘ve succeeded. I’m right here as a result of I have not.”

This opening assertion is highly effective as a result of moderately than lead along with his “credentials” or “accolades,” because the viewers almost certainly expects, he defies that expectation.

He creates a way of intrigue that immediately piques the viewers’s curiosity and compels them to pay nearer consideration.

Infuse humor.

In Tom Thum’s TedTalk titled Beatbox Brilliance, he units a lighthearted tone by stepping on stage carrying outsized sun shades and declaring, “My identify is Tom, and I’ve come right here immediately to return clear about what I do for cash.”

As you may count on, this humorous strategy not solely elicits laughter but additionally surprises the viewers, who’re intrigued and pleasantly stunned on the tone he units for the presentation.

Ask a query.

Graham Shaw’s presentation titled “Why individuals imagine they will’t draw – and the best way to show they will” begins with, “Hello, I’ve acquired a query for you – how many individuals right here would say they will draw?”

Seeing as it is a comparatively lighthearted query that’s easy to reply, the viewers responds instantly.

Now, what makes this a robust opening method is that Graham then goes on to say:

“When individuals say they will’t draw, I feel it is extra to do with beliefs moderately than expertise and skill. Once you say you may’t draw, that’s simply an phantasm, and immediately I’d prefer to show that to you.”

By instantly difficult a extensively held perception among the many viewers and promising to debunk it throughout the presentation, he employs a robust method that retains the viewers totally engaged.

This strategy makes the viewers really feel “invested” within the final result of the presentation and curious as as to whether he can again up his declare.

2. Inform your viewers why they need to be listening to you.

Getting your viewers’s consideration is only one a part of the equation. After you have it, you have to additionally clarify why they need to “maintain” listening to you. Listed below are some methods to do that:

Spotlight related private expertise.

In Phil Waknell’s opening part, he talks about how he’s spent the final ten years serving to convention audio system, enterprise leaders, and entrepreneurs put together and ship highly effective shows.

This instantly alerts to the viewers that he’s somebody price listening to and positions him as a reputable supply of insights based mostly on the wealth of expertise he has gathered.

Spotlight your experience.

In the course of the opening part of Dr. Lara Boyd’s presentation titled “After watching this, your mind is not going to be the identical,” she says, “I’m Dr. Lara Boyd, and I’m a mind researcher right here on the College of British Columbia.”

Sharing her credentials as a mind researcher is essential to gaining her viewers’s belief — particularly contemplating the technicality of her subject.

However even whereas creating shows exterior fields like mind analysis, sharing {qualifications} and credentials in your opening part is usually a highly effective method.

This helps you place your self as a reputable authority and reinforcing your viewers’s confidence in your capacity to ship priceless data.

Inform your viewers what’s in it for them.

In Mel Robbins’ opening part for her presentation titled “Tips on how to cease screwing your self over,” she ends her introduction by saying:

“I’m right here for you. I’m going to let you know all the things I do know in lower than 18 minutes about the best way to get what you need.”

Though she began the part by highlighting her experiences and experience, she went additional by explicitly stating the advantages her viewers can count on from her presentation.

Doing it is a nice solution to create a compelling cause in your viewers to take a position their time and a focus and emphasize the worth of the presentation you’re about to ship.

3. Introduce your subject.

In case your subject is comparatively easy to know or your viewers is especially educated, introducing your subject could be as straightforward as “Right now, I’m going to be speaking to you about how we’ve constructed a six-figure software program firm in 6 months.”

Nevertheless, in case your subject is extra complicated or unfamiliar to the viewers, you have to do a bit extra heavy lifting in your opening part.

For instance, Sam Bern’s “My philosophy for a contented life” presentation discusses how he lives a contented life regardless of having Progeria illness.

Nevertheless, as a result of this situation could be unfamiliar to some viewers members, he takes a while in his opening part to speak in regards to the sickness earlier than delving into the meat of his presentation.

Equally, in case you’re presenting on a fancy subject or to an viewers that isn’t educated, it’s important to think about this when crafting your opening part.

4. Leverage storytelling.

Tales can create immersive experiences that captivate the viewers and convey a core message.

For instance, within the opening part of Sam Bern’s presentation, he tells a narrative about his struggles whereas making an attempt to attain his objective of changing into a drummer in his college marching band, regardless of residing with Progeria illness.

This units the tone for his total presentation by conveying an inspiring message of combating in opposition to and succeeding regardless of the chances.

One other nice instance is the opening part of Josh Kaufman’s presentation, titled “The First 20 Hours — the best way to study something,” the place he tells a narrative about his expertise as a time-strapped first-time mother or father.

This story enhances the presentation as Josh finally shares that this expertise triggered his curiosity in learning the best way to turn out to be an environment friendly learner.

Lastly, Amy Morins’s presentation “The Secret of Changing into Mentally Robust” is one other wonderful instance of leveraging storytelling.

Amy begins her presentation with a thought-provoking story about observing a Fb good friend’s seemingly good life.

She then highlights how such comparisons can result in unfavourable thought patterns and emphasizes the significance of cultivating psychological resilience.

This relatable story not solely resonates together with her viewers but additionally units the stage for her message on constructing internal power.

All these shows are nice examples that spotlight how incorporating story-telling in your openings is usually a highly effective software for creating memorable and impactful shows.

1. “Blackboard is Getting an Improve”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide of a presentation to tell and educate instructors about important modifications to the instructing infrastructure.

What we like: Change could be uncomfortable, particularly when modifying important infrastructure. That is why it’s vital to straight confront why the change is going on proper from the start of the presentation.

Finest for: Shows that deal with important modifications, particularly those who might evoke discomfort and straight affect the viewers.

2. “Exploring ChatGPT for Efficient Instructing and Studying”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide of a presentation that teaches instructors the best way to use ChatGPT to interact and assist their college students.

What we like: This opening slide successfully units the tone for the presentation by capturing the viewers’s consideration with a compelling hook and impactful picture.

The phrase “ChatGPT is a disruptive, rising expertise,” paired with the putting picture of a obtrusive crimson button, conveys the magnitude and significance of this emergent expertise and piques the viewers’s curiosity from the beginning.

Finest for: Shows that discover developments or subjects which are new, cutting-edge, and even controversial.

3. “State of the Cloud 2023—The AI period”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide of a presentation that explores the affect of the “AI period” and the “cloud economic system” on the financing ecosystem.

What we like: That is one other wonderful instance of opening a presentation with an attention-grabbing hook.

“Dwelling within the multiverse” is an unsettling however fascinating concept that instantly captures the viewers’s consideration and units the stage for a thought-provoking presentation.

Finest for: Shows that introduce new or disruptive concepts to your viewers and require their full consideration and curiosity.

4. “2022 Ladies within the Office”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide of a briefing on the important thing findings from McKinsey & Firm’s “2022 Ladies within the Office research.”

What we like: This opening slide is superb as a result of it supplies a wealth of supporting knowledge as an alternative of instantly delving into the research’s findings.

Sharing particulars, such because the variety of contributors and the research‘s methodology, not solely strengthens the credibility of the analysis — it primes the viewers by addressing the essential query of why they need to care in regards to the research’s outcomes.

Finest for: Shows that ship very important findings that require extra context for the viewers to understand their relevance totally.

5. “13 stuff you didn’t know you might do with the S Pen.”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide of a presentation discussing the upgraded performance of the Samsung Galaxy Word’s stylus — the S Pen.

What we like: Proper from the opening slide, this presentation addresses the core drawback it goals to resolve – customers not taking full benefit of the S Pen’s capabilities.

It is usually designed to talk on to the consumer by explicitly calling out the commonest use circumstances within the first sentence, “The S Pen isn’t simply nice writing and sketching.”

Finest for: Shows that introduce a brand new product/providing or reintroduce a revamped product/providing.

6. “About Indegene”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide of an introductory presentation by a health-tech firm known as Indegene.

What we like: This presentation by Indegene hits the mark proper from the opening slide. It skillfully makes use of the “what,” “why,” and “how” inquiries to succinctly convey the corporate’s identification, choices, and target market, all inside a single panel.

It then makes use of the opposite panel to determine credibility by highlighting the corporate’s spectacular buyer base.

Finest for: Shows that require “promoting” your product or firm to the viewers. Some examples embody gross sales conferences and investor pitches.

7. “Way forward for Commerce 2021”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide for a presentation on the fourth version of the Dubai Multi Commodity Centre’s flagship report, “The Way forward for Commerce.”

What we like: Not like McKinsey’s briefing presentation, this opening slide uniquely establishes credibility by counting on the fame of the presenting group, DMCC, and the intensive analysis performed over the previous 4 years.

This various methodology of creating credibility is helpful when report findings aren’t derived from externally collected knowledge, reminiscent of surveys, however as an alternative depend on the group’s experience in understanding and analyzing developments.

Finest for: Shows that ship findings based mostly on “knowledgeable evaluation.”

8. “ChatGPT”

Picture Supply

That is the opening slide of a presentation explaining what ChatGPT is and the way writers can use it.

What we like: This opening slide makes use of an easy strategy that instantly addresses the viewers‘s questions proper from the presentation’s begin.

This strategy is efficient as a result of the first goal of the presentation is to coach the viewers about an rising and unfamiliar expertise — synthetic intelligence chatbots.

Addressing this objective straight from the opening slide is an effective way to seize the viewers’s consideration and set the tone for a priceless and informative session.

Finest for: Academic shows that introduce new or unfamiliar ideas or concepts.

One other (much less dramatic) instance could be seen in Pablos Holman’s intro part, the place he provides humor by sharing humorous pc screenshots whereas discussing hacking right into a fellow lodge visitor’s pc.

Though these are very completely different strategies of injecting humor firstly of a presentation, they present how infusing humor is usually a highly effective software for including a contact of persona and making a extra pleasant presentation for the viewers.

4. Hold it brief and candy.

Whereas it is vital to not rush by means of the beginning of your presentation, retaining your opening concise is equally vital. However bear in mind, concise doesn’t imply sacrificing substance; it merely means delivering data effectively.

Basically, you need a gap part that means that you can create a strong preliminary impression with out dropping the viewers’s curiosity.

So, how lengthy ought to this opening secretion be?

Most profitable presentation openings are below three minutes, and lots of are shorter, typically clocking in at below one minute.

5. Embrace authenticity.

Opposite to well-liked perception, there is not a particular persona that makes somebody a greater presenter. Actually, essentially the most impactful shows have been delivered by people with various characters.

Take, as an illustration, the contrasting types of Tom Thum’s irreverent humor and animated mannerisms and Sam Bern, who adopts a relaxed and conversational strategy. Regardless of their variations, each audio system have garnered thousands and thousands of views for his or her talks.

So, moderately than emulating or mimicking their shows, the important thing takeaway is to embrace authenticity.

Permit your persona to shine by means of, lean in your strengths, and be human in your supply.

Mastering the Artwork of Charming Shows

Beginning a presentation is a talent that’s as a lot an artwork as it’s a science. Fortunately, it is usually a talent that may be realized and honed.

By implementing the methods on this information and refining them by means of expertise, you’ll turn out to be a grasp at delivering impactful shows that command consideration and go away a long-lasting impression.

All from the second you step onto the stage.