Whether they’re Shakespeare or Andrew Lloyd Webber, anyone who has a story to tell follows the same natural structure to tell it:

• Introduction/Prologue – to silence the crowd and get permission to tell your story:  grabs the audience’s attention, and gives them a reason to keep reading, listening or watching. You introduce the one sentence message or call to action which your speech is based around, and attach it to a hook which makes everybody want to know more.

• Act 1: Context, characters & challenges –  sets the scene and defines the questions that the story will answer. Makes the audience care about the characters in the story. In fiction, this is where you get to know the characters we’ll be following throughout the story, but in business this might be a brief look at the state of the industry, recent financial figures, or achievements to date. Your purpose here is to set the scene for you to explain the actions you’re taking or justify your suggestions. Focus tends to be on the past.

• Act 2: Choices, twists and detail -  introduces a dilemma, danger or mystery. The audience is led to consider the possible repercussions of this upon the characters who they’re by now deeply invested in. This is the set up – we know where we are, so what’s going on? Focus shifts to the present and we introduce problems, questions or dilemmas.

• Act 3: The answer and action - the climax of the story – the problem is resolved or mystery unraveled  its effects are explored and all loose ends tied up. You won’t always be able to finish with a fairy-tale solution – but think of the third act as shifting our perspective from the past and present, to the future. It’s time to discuss possible outcomes, repercussions and opportunities stemming from whatever you’ve been examining so far. Act 3 must end by bringing together everything you’ve said so far into a simple and coherent message, question or call to action.

• Conclusion/Epilogue: to send the audience away with the message ringing in their ears - the story is summarized, its lessons considered, and the audience is sent away to reflect on the well-told story, moral message, or emotional finale they have just witnessed.

Whether a story is being told as a play, film, novel, article, speech or song, this simple structure is the writer’s framework for telling a clear, concise and gripping tale.

As a presenter or speaker, whether you stand up once a year or every day, the more you embrace your role as a storyteller, the better you will be at communicating memorably. That’s why we’ve taken the structure above, and applied it to the six most common speeches which are made in business.

This series of posts will help you to develop a clear idea of how to apply this simple story structure to any presentation you make. If you get it right, you will develop presentations which demand attention, and have a clear and unmissable message.

Because although the three act structure forms the basis of most well told stories, the way you use it will depend on the type of story you’re telling. We’ve broken down the six most common speech structures, to explain how we apply Shakespeare’s story framework to them.

6 Speech Structures

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Progress Report

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Strategy Recommendation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Product Sales Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Justification of a Decision

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Training or Teaching Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Bad News Presentation

First read How to Structure a Speech or Presentation for an understanding of how to approach your speech or presentation structure.

Introduction – Define the objective

Your introduction is a quick-fire journey through the three acts to follow. There’s no need for detail, you just need to explain what you’re going to talk about.

Sentence 1: explain why you’re looking at new strategies

Sentence 2: summarise the strategy you’re recommending

Sentence 3: explain what you hope to achieve with this strategy. Concentrate on two or three benefits which you know your audience care about. This is your hook.

Act 1 – Describe the current conditions

Your audience might not agree that you even need a strategy – let alone that yours is the right one to follow. So use your first act to point out the challenges, opportunities and issues that led you to develop your strategy. Identify the problems you intend to solve and the success that this will bring.

The bridge into Act 2 – describe the consequences of doing nothing.

Act 2 – Describe the desired state

Now that you’ve painted your ‘big picture’, point out how much better things could be. Describe how these problems could be resolved and what implications that would have across the business. Your aim here is to get the audience excited, desperate to know exactly what you’re going to do to create all of these fantastic outcomes.

Act 3 – List the possible strategies, with pros and cons of each

Give the audience the options, with a focus on the effects and repercussions of each. Be clear about listing the pros and cons of each, by using signposts – “This option has two pros…”.

Conclusion – Identify the best one, describe next steps

Refer back to the pros and cons you described to draw conclusions about which is the best option. Then talk about how that option would improve the current conditions mentioned in Act 1, to reach the desired state in Act 2. If you do this right, you can really sell your idea.

Finish your presentation talking about actions – what needs to happen for this strategy to be implemented? What do you want your audience to do now?

5 More Speech Structures

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Progress Report

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Product Sales Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Justification of a Decision

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Training or Teaching Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Bad News Presentation

First read How to Structure a Speech or Presentation for an understanding of how to approach your speech or presentation structure.

Introduction – Frame the skill in terms of its importance to the audience

Summarise the main skill you’re going to provide them with, and add a hook by identifying the relevant value that skill will provide. Take time to find two or three benefits which your audience values.

Act 1 – Explain the skill or procedural steps involved

Briefly provide context – explain how the skill works and provide some evidence and justification for learning it. Then do the actual teaching.

Act 2 – Get the audience to try some aspect of the skill or procedure

We all find it easier to commit things to memory by doing them. Plus, getting the audience involved is good practice for interesting presentations or workshops. Tell them what you want them to do, recap exactly how they should do it, and tell them how long they have.

Act 3 – Review and summarize, including stuff the audience did not try

First give some feedback. Reinforce the value of the skill they’ve just learned (another fact, anecdote or case study), then recap how the whole skill or process works – repetition is the other vital part of committing something to memory. Next you can discuss other uses or variations of the skill, and any practical, logistical or contextual issues.

Conclusion – Describe what they can do to continue learning the skill

Sum up in one or two sentences why the skill is important by discussing how it can be used and the benefits the audience can expect, then close with options for building upon your presentation.

5 More Speech Structures

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Progress Report

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Strategy Recommendation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Product Sales Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Justification of a Decision

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Bad News Presentation

First read How to Structure a Speech or Presentation for an understanding of how to approach your speech or presentation structure.

Introduction – Frame the customer ‘need’ that the product, service, or idea addresses

If you’ve been charged with giving a sales presentation, chances are you already know what to do here. Your introduction needs to create a gap for your product to fill. Show your audience that they need the product – that’s your hook. Then promise to solve the problem you’ve described with your product, idea or service.

Act 1 – Describe the need in more detail

Set the scene by talking in more detail about the need you’re addressing. How is the problem you’re solving affecting people or businesses now? Identify the problems your audience cares about and stress those – then promise (if you can!) that your product solves that problem.

Act 2 – Describe how your solution addresses the need

Introduce your product and talk about it in terms of the problems you’ve set out. Link each feature (and only choose those features that are most relevant to today’s audience) to a problem you have identified, and a benefit, like so:

“The wheelmax 2000 wheels are four times thicker than industry average [feature], so punctures are reduced by 45% [problem]. Now off-road mountain bikers can have more of the fun, and none of the hassle [benefit] of punctures in the middle of their best-ever journey.”

Act 3 – Prove the benefits of buying in to your solution

It’s time for evidence. Provide facts, stats and case studies that back you up and relate directly to your audience, and the problems you spent the first act studying.

Conclusion – Get agreement on a next step

Summarise your argument, and spell out exactly what you want to happen next. Open up for conversation, so that you can come to an agreement.

5 More Speech Structures

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Progress Report

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Strategy Recommendation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Justification of a Decision

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Training or Teaching Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Bad News Presentation

First read How to Structure a Speech or Presentation for an understanding of how to approach your speech or presentation structure.

Introduction – Show what happened and clarify the damage/costs

People probably already know the bad news. That shouldn’t be the focus of the presentation, so summarise it in the introduction and make sure everyone understands both why and how it’s bad. Concentrate on the facts of the case. Facts and evidence. Costs, casualties, corollary damage.

Act 1 – Explain how & why it happened – legal advice needed

Provide context and explanations (rather than excuses). Take legal advice to avoid making any silly mistakes, but in general don’t apportion blame or make any unsound claims (i.e. use your common sense). Answer the questions your audience has (either find out what they are before you stand up, or ask for them here).

Act 2 – Show interim steps put in place to limit/contain damage

Explain what you’ve done so far, and the things you’ll be doing in the short term. Address these points in order of importance.

Act 3 – Explain the path to a permanent ‘fix’

Cover all of the important things which need to be done, in order of importance. Be sure to relate these actions, when necessary, back to the issues you identified in Act 1. Which mistake will this rectify, and how?

Conclusion – Who is responsible for ensuring the fix

Your audience needs a clear statement from you that lessons have been learnt. You’ve shown that by taking actions to resolve the issue, so point that out. Finish with a clear call to action for all parties involved in the ‘clear up’.

5 More Speech Structures

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Progress Report

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Strategy Recommendation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Product Sales Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Justification of a Decision

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Training or Teaching Presentation

First read How to Structure a Speech or Presentation for an understanding of how to approach your speech or presentation structure.

Introduction – Frame the situation

Summarize the dilemma, and significance of the choice. Hook your audience by explaining why the decision matters – i.e. explore some of the potential repercussions.

Act 1 – Describe the criteria for success and prioritize them

This is where you set the scene, by discussing what outcomes would be best for the business and why. Prioritise the outcomes you discuss so that everyone knows what to look for in Act 2. The most persuasive presentations are those where the audience is helped to make the decision for themselves.

Act 2 – Describe alternatives and options

Explore the different options and how they would work, then discuss their pros and cons and possible repercussions.

Act 3 – Compare options to criteria and eliminate those that don’t meet criteria

Use logic to bring the room to a common agreement upon the choice you’ve made by using the success criteria as the tool for eliminating options. Identify which options don’t meet the criteria and eliminate them, then show which options are left.

If there are a few remaining alternatives, it may be worth recapping their pros and cons, to set up your selection.

Conclusion – Recommend best remaining alternative

Endorse the choice using the success criteria you outlined in Act 1. Finish your presentation with a strong message about the suitability of this choice (because it’s going to achieve the things you prioritised in the beginning), and any call to action you need to get the decision implemented.

5 More Speech Structures

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Progress Report

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Strategy Recommendation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Product Sales Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Training or Teaching Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Bad News Presentation

First read How to Structure a Speech or Presentation for an understanding of how to approach your speech or presentation structure.

Introduction – describe the issue or assignment, and why it’s important

If a progress report is a simple update about whatever you’re working on, your introduction provides a quick recap of what that is. Your hook (what gets everyone interested) should be one or two ideas about the effects your work will have. Introduce your call to action if you have one.

Act 1 – describe where you started,  where you are now and the critical outstanding steps that will get you where you want to be

Your purpose here is to set the scene – first, explain why what you’re doing is important. Next, introduce the context you’ve been working in and the problems you’re trying to address.

Act 2 – prioritise problems and explain (options) how they’re being addressed

Now that we’ve set the scene, this is where things start happening. Explain the problems you’re addressing, and prioritise them. Talk about action – what you’ve been doing and what else you plan to do.

Act 3 – describe successes to date – positive progress made, remind them of the ‘big picture’

Why are you giving a progress report? Usually it’s to make sure everyone understands what you’re doing, why, and that they have confidence in your strategy. You’ve already explained the what and why, so instill confidence in your audience by explaining your progress so far.

First, talk about how far you are through implementing each strategy or action you outlined previously. Then discuss the outcomes you’ve seen so far, and the results you’re expecting to see (backed up by evidence).

Detail what else you plan to do, and what effects that will have.

Conclusion – Action Steps

Here, you can give a round-up of all three acts by showing how your actions and plans relate to the problems you outlined in Act 1. Follow this up with a message about the positive impacts you’ve seen so far.

Make sure you close with a clear statement about the steps which still need to be taken to achieve your goals.

5 More Speech Structures

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Strategy Recommendation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Product Sales Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Justification of a Decision

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Training or Teaching Presentation

Click here for: Speech Structure – The Bad News Presentation

So we know why readability is important for effective writing and presenting, and we know that you should choose your font carefully, but you must admit there is a baffling array of fonts and typefaces available.  (Just to be a little bit geeky about this, a Font is a complete set of characters in a particular size and style of type.  For example, Arial Narrow is one font, Arial Black is another – Arial is the Typeface – the collection of fonts).  Even just to scroll through all the fonts available on your computer could take ages and it isn’t always obvious what they’re going to look like anyway.  If you feel that you are wasting too much of your life on that particular exercise, take a look at wordmark.it.

You simply type in the word or word string you want and it displays, on one screen, the words styled in all the fonts available to your computer. Once found, it’s one of those things you didn’t realise you couldn’t live without!

In our series on Personal Branding we explained that the way you and your slides look contributes to your audience’s impression of you.  Creating a ‘look’ is a great way to give yourself a recognisable brand, and with the resources available online, it is actually easier than you might think.

Even if you don’t naturally have the eye of a designer,  Adobe Kuler is a fantastic tool to help you pick a colour scheme.  It lets you create one from scratch, or from the online community or upload an image that you wish to base your scheme around. Once you’ve decided on the mood and type of colour scheme (complementary, monochromatic etc) you can easily get the colour values to use in either your Prezi or Powerpoint presentation. It’s well worth a look – none of us need look like amateurs anymore.

Just as with a Google Map, your Prezi needs to get you and your audience from one point to another.

A map has a big picture of the area you are interested in and also smaller, but relevant, details which focus on the specific area you want to use. It has the right amount of detail for you to follow the route to reach your destination. That’s why it’s a great example to use when designing your Prezi. It has detail, not distractions!

Imagine if the map you were using took you off at tangents, telling you about interesting shops and who works there, how many and what type trees are next to the road you were travelling and what colour the front doors are on all the houses you would pass! These kinds of details would be irrelevant to you in reaching your destination and would actually get in the way of you reaching it successfully. The road numbers, junctions and direction of travel would be much more useful.

Imagine too, if you only ever got to see a small part of your route with very little detail. It would be really hard to know if you were on the right track in the first place and wouldn’t help you to return to it if you lost your way.

So, not enough information and you and your audience won’t reach your planned destination. Too much and everyone will become confused, distracted and lost!

Prezi design

At the Prezi design stage you need to create a clear path to your goal. Your Prezi needs enough detail, presented in an interesting way, to make your message easy to follow and memorable.

Imagine that your overall message is the big map view. You can then zoom to helpful and related details along the way, giving regular views of the big picture to remind your audience where they are and how it is relevant.

Strip back the content of your Prezi to the bare bones and ask yourself:

• What is my message?
• What would really help the audience understand it?
• How can I make it more memorable?

The map idea is relevant for any presentation you are working on, but particularly for Prezi where the temptation is to put in too much content and zoom and pan to it all. To be successful in your Prezi design, remember the map, and you will find your presentation is more focussed, memorable and effective.