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Do's and Don'ts of Conference Presentations

 by Lorie Kloda

 

I've been a professional librarian for only five years, but in that time have attended 11 conferences and presented papers and posters at six - at the local, national, and international level. I don't claim to be an expert, but my experience has provided me with some insight into what works and what does not, from the perspective of both a conference presenter and participant. Here, I provide some Do's and Don'ts on conference presentations.

 

Do

  • Confirm details with conference organizers.

    Make sure you know exactly where you will be presenting, what equipment will be provided, the length allotted for the talk and for questions, how many participants are expected at your talk, whether you are presenting as part of a series of speakers, and other information that will help you to prepare the content and format of your talk.

  • Prepare the appropriate amount of content.

    Just because the conference has offered you a laptop, projector, and Internet connection, does not mean you have to use all of these. If your talk is only 20 minutes long, a few slides supplemented by a handout may suffice. The literature review, demographic details of your institution, and historical timeline leading up the project are not nearly as important as the project or research itself, and should therefore not comprise more than 20% of your talk. For a traditional lecture-style presentation, the rule is one slide for every three minutes. If you are leading a workshop or a more interactive type of presentation, try to organize the time in such a way that some optional content can be omitted if time is running out.

  • Prepare your materials in advance.

    These could be audiovisual materials such as slides, handouts, or a poster. Make sure you give yourself enough time to create these presentation- enhancers and to make photocopies, or in the case of the poster, have it printed and laminated. Bring these with you to the conference, and have a back-up plan just in case. For example, for a slideshow saved on your laptop, you may also want to e-mail it to yourself and have a copy saved on your memory stick. For a handout, bring a reasonable amount of copies and have the file available electronically should you need to make more.

  • Get feedback on your public speaking skills.

    If you teach or give presentations as part of your job, ask a trusted colleague to watch you and provide constructive criticism. Or, if your institution has a teaching improvement unit, ask for a consultation. There are some habits that are hard to break, but perhaps you can learn to mitigate these.

  • Be professional and polite.

    This applies when you are setting up for the conference presentation or poster, during the talk, and after your presentation. If a piece of equipment is unavailable, do not have a tantrum. Smile, and ask about alternatives. If someone interrupts your presentation, or bombards you with irrelevant questions, take a deep breath and remember that participants can tell who the rude person is; don't let that person be you. Remember, you not only want to leave a good impression of yourself, but of your institution.

  • Be yourself.

    While presentation tips may be useful for some people, don't do something that you're not comfortable with or that doesn't fit with your personality. If you get very nervous during presentations and do not like to use humor, don't start with a joke. People can tell when someone is behaving insincerely. It also helps to wear comfortable clothes in which you feel both confident and professional.

 

Don't

  • Rely on PowerPoint or other slideshow applications.

    Not all numerical data need to be displayed as graphs. Not all numerical data need to be reported in a presentation, and certainly not crammed into one slide. Select the information you want to convey first, then organize it, then, if necessary, create some slides to orient and engage participants during your talk. If you use an application such as PowerPoint, make sure you are familiar with the tool's features. Do not overuse animation or transitions between slides, as these are gimmicky and will cheapen your talk.

  • Automatically create handouts from your slides.

    Contrary to popular practice, you do not need a handout. If you wish to supply participants with a record of your presentation, consider what information would be essential, and then determine if that information is already available in some other form. Most conference programs include the abstracts of all presentations, and increasingly, conference web sites post presentation files after the conference has ended. Consider other information that might be useful, such as a reading list, links to related web sites, diagrams, or samples of a product or service you are demonstrating.

  • Read your paper.

    Yes, you're "giving a paper." No, this does not mean it is all right to go up to the podium and read it. Or, even worse, to send someone to read your paper on your behalf. This is a conference; you are there to interact and discuss with colleagues. Your institution did not pay to send you to do something we can all do at our desks.

  • Give a canned presentation.

    Although you may have given a similar talk elsewhere, try to take some time to adapt your presentation. Consider your audience, the length of time allotted, the conference theme(s), and other conference presentations that may relate to your topic.

 

Some of these may be more personal pet peeves than hard and fast rules for conference presenters. Keep in mind, though, that while you have been accepted to present, the conference is for the participants. If you focus on their needs and expectations, your presentation will very likely be a success.

 

Online Resources:

 

Lorie Kloda is Instructional Technology Librarian at the McGill University Life Sciences Library. She has presented at conferences on the topics of information literacy instruction, academic integrity, and consumer health.