How should you prepare if the audience is culturally diverse or if you are presenting to an audience in another location?

An extemporaneous presentation involves planning, but the contents arent written down like in a memorized or manuscript presentation. For example, your manager might ask you to come to a meeting prepared to talk about ideas for a trade show booth to help attract clients. You might think about some ideas and rehearse how youll share them with the group but not necessarily write them down.
The content of your message, including the format of your presentation and visuals, is important as is your body language and tone. Watch The Importance of Body Language in Presentations (12:24), which demonstrates the importance of your body language when giving a presentation.
You should practice your presentation so you will be familiar with the content and confident in your delivery. In addition, you should anticipate questions that might arise and allow the audience time to ask those questions. Thinking about todays business climate, How should you prepare if the audience is culturally diverse or if you are presenting to an audience in another location?
For the culturally diverse crowd, the goal is to simplify the language and learn more about the cultures communication and cultural preferences. You want to be cognizant of any differences in nonverbal communication between your culture and their culture, adapt your dress to the culture, and solicit feedback to ensure you are understood. For distance presentations or Internet conferencing, be sure to learn the Internet software or service you are using and to connect with the audience by building rapport upfront. This helps keep the audience engaged and feeling connected to the message. Sometimes, you might be presenting in a group with a team of other people. When this happens, you should select only the top performing teams who can contribute; make certain all team members have a common understanding and agree on the purpose of the presentation and its contents.
In this lesson, youve learned about the structure and contents of a presentation, and some ways to successfully present ideas and information to others. In the end, you must organize your thoughts, convey ideas clearly, and hold the audiences attention while doing so. You can do so by considering to whom you are delivering your message and by writing content that will appeal to their needs. These skills can help you communicate well and achieve success in any business field.
Summarizing Your Learning
The following activities are meant to help you practice the concepts that you studied in this lesson and prepare you for the graded assignments. They are not turned in to your instructor.
1. Read the assigned chapter in the textbook.
2. Review the key terms flashcards.
3. Download Audio Summaries from the textbook companion Web site for on-the-go review.
4. Play “Beat the Clock” on the textbook companion Web site to master concepts.
5. Complete the crossword puzzle on the textbook companion Web site to review key terms.
6. Watch the chapter video on the textbook companion Web site to learn about communication issues at a fictitious company.
Assessing Your Learning