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Today we are looking at signposting during presentations. Signposting is informing listeners  about what is to be  present  in a presentation. and then constantly  listeners where they are during a  presentation.

Dialog

… (fade in) and that about wraps it up for the detailed sales figures. …… Now, let’s see what we can conclude from the sales data. I’ve  divided this section of the presentation into three parts. First, we’re going to review historical sales in this market sector.  Next, we will discuss developing sales trends, and finally we will compare our performance with our chief competitors. So, let’s talk about some of the history of our particular market niche. Our whole industry came of age in ... (fade out)

… (fade in) ok, that covers the history of sales in the marketplace. Now, let’s move on to some of the trends in recent sales that we have observed. First, I’ll give a detailed analysis of industry sales trends by region. Then, we’re going to examine our own sales in these same regions. And we’ll finish this section by going over our sales trends for new products. Everybody with me? Well, then… let’s turn our attention to this first chart, which shows overall sales trends
…(fade out)

Debrief

Any presentation requires a clear strategy or plan to help you reach your objectives. The aim is not to pass away twenty minutes talking non-stop and showing a lot of nice pictures. It is to convey a message that is worth hearing to an audience who want to hear it.

However, how many speakers really hold an audience's attention? What is the secret for those who do?


 First, find out about the audience and what they need to know.
 Plan what you're going to say.
Say it clearly and concisely.
And make sure to signpost throughout the presentation.

Well, what is signposting? The term “signposting” comes from signs posted on street corners, which tell travelers where they are and where they are going. In presentations, Signposting is informing the listener as to what things are going to be talked about, and when sections have been completed and new sections are opened.

This helps to focus the audience’s attention. Once the audience knows what subjects and sections are to come, they can listen to the information from the right perspective, and know how to “file” this information away in the proper places in their minds. One does not want the audience wondering what subjects you are talking about, or how the information currently being presented fits into the larger theme of the presentation. Make it simple for the listener. Lead the listener through the presentation with signposting.

How does one signpost? A good speaker uses various signposting signals to help hold the audience's attention and make the parts of the presentation very clear
– he does this as he introduces them, and as he moves through them. 

One type of signal is to introduce a list.
This could begin with a phrase like

I’ve divided this section of the presentation into three parts.

The speaker then says what the three things are and talks about each one at the required level of detail. For example:

'There are three types of price that we have to think about - economic price, market price and psychological price. Let's look at each of these in more detail.

First, economic price. This is based on production costs and the need to make a profit ... (and the speaker goes on to describe this type of price in more detail.)

After that, he goes on to talk about the market price and so on.

Another signaling technique is to give a link between parts of the presentation.

Tell the listeners where one part of the talk finishes and another starts. For example, a well-organized presentation usually contains different parts and progression from one part to the next part, with clear phrases like:

 That's all I want to say about the development of the product.

 Now let's turn to the actual marketing plan.



Let’s now take a look at sales results

This technique is very helpful to the audience, including those who are mainly interested in one part only.

Another type of signaling is sequencing of information.

This usually follows a logical order, usually based on time. So a project may be described in terms of the past, the present and the future.

Key words in sequencing information are:

first, then, next, after that, later, at the end, finally, etc.

Still another technique, which helps to emphasizekey points, is careful repetition

of what has been talked about

Examples are:

As I've already said, there is no alternative but to increase production by 100 per cent.

or

I'd like to re-emphasize the main benefit of the new design – it achieves twice as much power with half as much fuel.

Here are some other examples of emphasizing points which have already been talked about:

 As we saw in part 2…

 As we covered during our discussion of weight savings…

Recalling our look at sales projections for the next decade…

Here are some useful signposting phrases that should be used to guide listeners.

To move on (to go to the next subject):

Let’s move on to the situation in our overseas markets.

To expand on (to give more information on a point):

Could you expand on the issue of pricing?

To digress (to change to another subject):

If I can digress for just a moment, what about the plans for our new office?

To go back (to go to a point earlier in the presentations):

Lets go back to the first item on the agenda.

To recap (to repeat/summarize a previous part of the presentation):

So, to recap, our sales for the third quarter have been strong in all regions.

To conclude (to bring to an end):

I’d like to conclude by discussing the future of our company.

To summarize (to give the main points):

Next, Peter is going to summarize our marketing strategy.

To turn to (to move on):

I’d like to turn to the question of hiring new staff.

To elaborate on (to give detailed information on):

The next presentation will elaborate on our sales plans for next year.

Although many phrases can be used to indicate the end of a section and the beginning of another, there is one single word that can be used in almost all cases to signal ends and beginnings. This word is “so,” most often followed by a pause. We encourage our podcast listeners to use other phrases to make your presentations more interesting, but when one cannot think of a signposting phrase quick enough, the word “so” is a very handy replacement.

Listen and practice these examples, and pay special attention to the pauses:

 So, what can we conclude from this data?

 So, let’s move on for our market for air conditioners.

So, lets take a look at this chart.

So, what can we expect from the future?

So, what can the past teach us?

Now, a final point concerning signposting and structuring of information

Psychologists have suggested that concentration is reduced after about thirty minutes without a break or a change in activity. Furthermore, audiences should not be overburdened with technical details or given too many facts to remember.

It is claimed that to ask people to remember more than three things in a five- minute talk is way too much. Some say that seven points is the maximum number of things anybody can remember in any presentation. Any such calculations are probably not very reliable, but every speaker needs to think about exactly how much information of a particular type a specific audience is likely to absorb and to plan accordingly

And, in keeping with our own advice, we are going to conclude this Podcast well inside of thirty minutes, just to make sure you absorb all of what we’ve just covered. And our final signpost is “Thanks for listening…!”

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