книги / Business English for Students of Technical Universities

studies, using humour, standing close to the audience, or speaking off script may increase the attention level of the audience.

However, there are more tricks and details in the presentation making process that can make it or break it.

Have you heard about video presentations? They can be pretty engaging. You can try making a presentation with animated characters and scenes to add some action to it and keep the attention of your audience. This is one of the tricks for an effective presentation. But, of course, the style of your presentation depends on the topic you choose.

So, how to make an effective presentation? Below is our cheat sheet of 10 dos and don’ts for making your presentations persuasive and attentiongrabbing:

1.Do think about your key message first, outline its supporting points and examples, rehearse it loudly, and time it. Start working on your slides only after finishing the mentioned steps. Remember that the presentation needs to stand by itself while the slides are for spicing it up to provide some visual experience.

2.Do a 15-word summary. Can you sum up your idea in only 15 words? If not, reformulate it and try again until you manage to encapsulate the whole presentation in 15 words. This is a helpful technique used by outstanding public speakers.

3.Do browse a user-friendly presentation platform. The choice of presentation platforms is quite large nowadays.

4.Do put yourself in the listeners’ shoes. When crafting your speech for the presentation, try to listen to it as if you are the audience. What piece of information is important to them? What may be boring for the listeners? Apply WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) technique before finalizing your speech, allowing your audience to absorb all the important info.

5.Do choose photos wisely. Utilize quality images that communicate the concept of your presentation and aren’t compositionally complex. Ideally, photos should help convey your message to the audience without diverting their focus from your speech.

6.Don’t stuff the slides with text. Otherwise, your audience’s attention will be split between what you’re speaking, and what they are reading. As a result, the effectiveness of both your speech and the slide text will only be weakened. List the specifics and any other info that supports your speech.

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7.Don’t read! This is a golden rule for every public speaker. Public speaking is a skill worth developing. If you’re unable to reproduce your speech without the cues, it shows you don’t fully understand the message you’re conveying, which in its turn is a huge minus for your presentation. So, don’t slack off and do your homework diligently preparing your speech.

8.Don’t plan body language. Be natural and relaxed with gestures. Their main function is to extend your message and reveal the emotions behind the topic of your presentation. The audience intuitively feels deliberate gestures, as they don’t match your other bodily signals.

9.Don’t apologize. Don’t use apologies if you don’t know an answer to a question raised by the audience. It’s totally okay not know to answers to all the questions. Also, don’t say “I’m sorry” for your nervousness. Remember, listeners often can’t find out your anxiety until you declare it loudly.

10.Don’t overuse effects and transitions. No matter how enticing effects the most presentation platforms offer, resist the temptation to use them for every other slide of your presentation. The practice shows that effects and transitions don’t really enhance the listeners’ experience. However, if you’re inclined to use them, choose the most unobtrusive ones and keep it consistent.

Task 4. Read the text again. Write “T” (True) or “F” (False) for the following statements. Change the false sentences so that they become true.

1)A well-structured text, quality images, and great public speaking skills belong to the key points of an effective presentation. ____

2)The style of your presentation depends on the topic you choose. ____

3)Start working on your slides before writing the full text of your presentation.

____

4)Outstanding public speakers can encapsulate the whole presentation in one page. ____

5)WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) technique allows the speaker to put himself in the listeners’ shoes. ____

6)For your presentation choose the photos, which can be entertaining, funny and colourful. ____

7)The slides of the presentation should contain as much text information as possible; your speech will be more effective. ____

8)The golden rule for every public speaker is to reproduce the speech without cues. ____

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9)If you don’t know an answer to a question raised by the audience it’s totally okay to use apologies. ____

10)You shouldn’t overuse effects and transitions that are offered by the most presentation platforms. ____

Task 5. Discuss the following questions with your partner:

1)What other tips can you think of for preparing a presentation?

2)How do you usually work on your presentation?

3)Make a list of your own tips and create a poster presenting your tips.

Task 6. Which of the following would you definitely include in your presentation? Explain your choice.

•some jokes;

•the title or subject of your talk;

•your name;

•purpose: why the subject will interest your audience;

•details of your job;

•a “menu” of main points that you will cover;

•visuals;

•details of the background situation;

•a summary;

•factual information, organized as main points.

Task 7. Read the phrases a-g. They can be used for organizing and sequencing points in a presentation. At which step of your presentation would you use each of the phrases? Match the phrases a-g with the steps 1-7 in the framework in the picture below.

a)My second point is …

b)So first, I’m going to tell you about …

c)My objective is to …

d)Now let me summarize the main points again.

e)The subject of my presentation is …

f)I’ve divided my talk into three parts. First, … Second, … And third, …

g)Now I’ll come to my last point.

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Task 10. Watch the presentation made on Ted channel https://ted.com/talks/ richard_st_john_8_secrets_of_success?#t-27557 Answer the following questions:

•What steps of a presentation from Task 7 could you recognize?

•Was it a successful / poor presentation? Why? / Why not? Give your reasons.

•What would you add or change in the presentation?

Task 11. Work with a partner. Ask each other the following questions:

•Do you prefer questions during or after the presentation? Why?

•How do you feel about the question period at the end of a presentation?

•How do you prepare for the question period?

•How do you deal with questions you don’t want to answer?

•What do you do if you can’t answer the question?

•How do you deal with dominant participants?

Task 12. Match the phrases on the left with those on the right to make meaningful sentences:

Task 13. Work in small groups. Imagine that you are representatives of some company. Use the information below to prepare a 3-5-minute presentation on the product your company produces. You are going to advertise this product to potential customers. Try to mention as much as possible of the following:

•Your company name;

•The main business area of the company;

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•Your positions within the company;

•General description of your product;

•The areas of application;

•Specifications of the product;

•Some extra options available;

•Advantages over the products of your competitors;

•Price range;

•Availability of demo version of the product;

•Main reasons for buying and using your product;

•Your / Sales department contacts.

Rehearse your presentation. Then show your presentation to the other groups.

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Task 14. Read the people’s opinions about the question and answer session. Which opinion do you agree with? Why?

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PART 5. TRADE FAIRS

Be audacious and memorable… but smart… and relevant.

Ken Krogue

Task 1. Look at the picture of a trade show (also known as trade exhibition or trade fair). Which of the things mentioned in the list below can you see in the picture?

The inaugural edition of the Singapore International Robo Expo (SIRE), organised by Experia Events and co-organised by the Singapore Industrial Automation Association (SIAA), was held from 1 to 2 November 2016 at the Sands Expo® and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands®. The event comprised an exhibition, product demonstrations, networking sessions and conferences.

•display/brochure stand

•exhibitor

•stand

•stand staffer

•visitor

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Task 2. Read the article about the Singapore International Robo Expo. What people and organizations given in the list might be interested in attending this event?

1)Key speakers that are engaged in discourse to address the various aspects of robotic and automation technology.

2)A company that sells some property in Bulgaria to Russian investors.

3)A construction company that has recently built a new block of luxury apartments in Dubai.

4)Visitors who have interest in „live” demonstrations.

5)Government representatives that forge partnerships and explore funding opportunities for the adoption of robotics solutions.

6)A Russian investor interested in buying property in Florida, the USA.

Singapore International Robo Expo sets its sights on boosting robotics solutions industry

Launched by Mr. S Iswaran, Minister of Trade and Industry (Industry), and themed “Forging the Future of Robotics Solutions”, SIRE served as a strategic platform for governments, private sector and academia to engage in dialogues, share industry best practices, forge partnerships and explore funding opportunities for the adoption of robotics solutions.

“SIRE debuts at a time when robotics has been gaining traction in the world due to the need for automation and better productivity. The latest World Robotics Report by the International Federation of Robotics has also identified Singapore as a market with one of the highest robot density in manufacturing, giving us more opportunities for further development in this field, and well as its extension into the services sectors,” said Mr. Oliver Tian, President, SIAA.

With $450 million pledged by the Singapore government to the National Robotics Programme to develop the industry over the next three years, the debut of SIRE is timely to cultivate the adoption of robotics and support the growing industry.

The SIRE Expo attracted strong interest from institutes of higher learning (IHLs), research institutes, local and international enterprises, with innovation and technology applicable for a vast range of industries from manufacturing to healthcare.

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The Expo also offered opportunities for visitors to view “live” demonstrations at the Demo Zone and come up close with the latest innovations and technologies. Some of the key highlights at the zone included the world’s only fully autonomous outdoor security robot developed by SMP Robotics Singapore, as well as ABB’s Yumi, IRB 14000, a collaborative robot designed to work in close collaboration and proximity with humans safely.

Showcase of latest robotic innovations

Beyond the exhibition, the full-day SIRE Convention saw the attendance of key speakers representing regulators, industry leaders and academia coming together to gain insight into the landscape of the robotics ecosystem, keep abreast of the latest know-how in the adoption of robotic technology and engage in discourse to address the various aspects of robotic and automation technology, industry trends and case studies of robotics solutions.

Speakers included Associate Professor Ang Wei Tech, Associate Chair (Research) School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Dr. Shin Kyung-Chul, Chief Executive Officer, Yujin Robot Co Ltd and Ms. Catherine Simon, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, INNOROBO, who touched on topics ranging from harnessing the potential of Robotics in Singapore to the impact of service robots on current and future needs. The convention merged the commercial expertise of the most innovative and forward-thinking companies with the ingenuity and technical expertise of the world’s finest academics. SIRE also hosted the France-

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