Engaging Presentation Cheatsheet for All Designers

I’m here to present the design work to you.

“We have been working on this project over the past few weeks. We initially tried strategy A incorporating x, y, and z. However, we soon realized it wasn’t as effective as we anticipated so we switched to strategy B also experimenting with strategy C…”

Let’s stop here since you have lost interest by this point.

Why?

Because the story hasn’t engaged you.

If the audience isn’t engaged, what’s the point of a presentation?

What makes stories so interesting is not the story. It is the interaction that takes place when we share them. …At the beginning of this piece, I told a story and you decided how you would interact with me.

— Tom Green <The art of the interactive storyteller>

Cheatsheet of an Engaging Presentation

To engage your audience effectively, it’s crucial to establish a sense of connection with your story as soon as possible. The sooner, the better.

the moment and effectiveness of making a presentation engaging

Don’t know where to start? Here’s a cheatsheet regardless of the size of your meeting or audience:

1. An invitation email before the presentation.
2. A framework at the start of the presentation.
3. A few talk & show tips during the presentation.

Cheatsheet 1. An Invitation Email (Before the Presentation)

The invitation email serves as the earliest and best opportunity to engage your audience. It should address three key questions:

1. Purpose: Why do we have this meeting?
2. Topic: What are we going to present?
3. Questions/Expectations: What are we asking of the audience?

A good example of how to incorporate these questions into an email:
“Dear [Name],
…During the presentation, we would like to discuss [Purpose] by going through [Topic]. We hope to get your valuable insights and feedback on [Questions/Expectations] by the end of the meeting…”

This email not only clarifies the meeting scope but also sets the right mindset for your audience as they prepare to join the presentation. It might even inspire some audience to offer assistance in certain aspects of the presentation.

Bonus: For more email examples and templates, you can also refer to this Calendly blog.

Cheatsheet 2. A Framework (Start of the Presentation)

A clear framework (aka, context + introduction) sets the stage for an engaging presentation. It should include:

1. Where we are: Recap the project brief and its relevance to any prior work.
2. What we’ve been doing: Provide a high-level overview of the work progress.
3. What we’re going to show: Offer a preview of the main content.
4. What kind of feedback do we want: Remind the audience of what aspects they should and should not focus on in their comments.
5. If there are any questions before the presentation.

An engaging framework serves as more than just a structural outline; it also warms up your audience before delving into the main presentation.

Not every point listed above requires a slide or text box. Some can be briefly addressed verbally if time is limited or the attendees are already familiar with them.

Bonus: Regarding the ideal length of a framework, Wes Kao wrote about how to start right before you get eaten by the bear. (TL; DL: roughly 10–20% of the presentation duration)

Cheatsheet 3. A Few Talk & Show Tips (During the Presentation)

After setting the framework, we want to maintain the audience’s high level of engagement. We can achieve this through effectively talking and showing:

1. Encourage the audience to share previous experiences rather than opinions. People are more comfortable and willing to discuss what they know they know.
2. Avoid reading directly from slides; instead, narrate the story behind them. Structural talking points are useful but don’t read aloud word by word.
   Use signposts such as “first, second, third” or check out this simple hack called summary transition.
3. Maintain visual hierarchy by following the same order as talking points. Typically, Takeaway > Evidence > Context.
4. Reduce the objects on a slide to a minimum. The fewer objects, the quicker cognition, the better information retention, and the more engaging the discussion. With limitations and extreme focus, we understand more.

Reduce the objects on a slide to a minimum.

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away”.

— Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Final Words

In general, here’s the cheatsheet for creating an engaging presentation that empowers you:

1. Send an invitation email before the presentation
2. Set a clear framework at the start of the presentation
3. Talk and show effectively during the presentation

Follow the cheatsheet and keep practicing, and you will find how such a presentation can pave the way for meaningful design outcomes.

Bonus

If you’re short on time or still honing your skills, consider this straightforward framework:

💡 State what you are going to present → Present it → Repeat what you just presented.

Super simple, right? But remarkably useful.