A good introduction to the delivery of your presentation is extremely important. The first minute or so sets the stage for the rest of your talk.
You should start with an upbeat, positive mood. The first impression you make lasts. You want to quickly gain the attention, interest, and respect of your audience. Your first words should be lively, interesting, clear, and simple.
Start by expressing the fact that you’re glad to be there. A statement like, “I’m glad/excited/pleased/thrilled to be here” is almost obligatory. It invites the audience to be glad that they’re there, too. Your excitement is infectious and infuses the session with your energy.
Claudyne Wilder, in the July, 2007 issue of her newsletter, “Wilder’s Presentation Points,” said the following:
“A presenter who says, ‘I know you are busy people and have many things to do. Thank you for coming.’ only reminds everyone of all the things that they aren’t doing because they are sitting and listening. Distracting the audience before the presentation even begins is hardly a positive way to begin!”
Your introduction should answer the following
- Who are you?
- What is your topic?
- Why is it important?
Who are you?
If you will be introduced, re-mention your name and re-affirm the most important fact about yourself that the audience will find meaningful, such as your experience with the topic. Otherwise, provide a slightly longer introduction, but just enough to let people know why they should listen to you.
What is your topic?
Give a brief explanation of your topic, just a little longer than the title of your talk. Don’t give away the secret of your talk, but whet their appetite.
Why is it important?
Finally, tell the audience why the topic is important to them. What will they have gained by the time the talk is finished? Don’t feel shy to promise that they’ll learn something useful; they really want to know that.
The entire opening should only take a minute or two. More than that, and it becomes boring because the audience will be impatient to hear the main content of your presentation.
Lori Giovannoni, in her e-book, So You Want to Be a Speaker, says, “Your intro should be well rehearsed, clear and filled with confidence. This is not the time to stammer and stutter and hope for the best. A poor intro will drop the energy in the room and you will spend the next half hour trying to recapture it.”
Here are some other ideas for openers:
- Ask your audience a question and ask them to raise hands in reply. For example, “How many of you regularly give presentations to small audiences of 1 to 10 people?”
- Begin with an interesting, relevant quote. Then use that quote to launch your talk. For example, “Author and columnist Earl Wilson said, ‘If you wouldn’t write it and sign it, don’t say it.’ This gives us a clue as to how you can gain believability from your audience.”
- Mention something another speaker said, or a current event, that is related to your presentation.
- Start with a short, relevant personal story or experience.
When you’ve written your introduction/opening, rewrite it and edit it until you like it. Then practice giving it out loud. Practice again. Time it. Record it and listen to it. Make adjustments and practice the new version. You should be able to speak it out without looking at your notes. When you’re done, you’ll have a great opener to your presentation!
Check out my other post on this topic, “How to start a presentation.”
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I am 6th grade and I need to do the presentation about Bosnia and Herzegovina… And everyone knows my name because they all are my friends… I think it would be weird for me to introduce myself… What should I do to get people’s attention?
Our teacher said that he is fairly disappointed about our introduction and conclusion… I would be thankful if you help me
Esther, You are right that you don’t need to introduce yourself in a classroom of your classmates. One way to get people’s attention would be to find some surprising fact about Bosnia and Herzegovina. Then you could start with, “Do you know that ….?” For example, you could ask your parents and parents of your friends where they are — show them a map. I bet that almost no one will be able to find them on the map. So you could start with, “Do you know that 90% of people don’t know where Bosnia and Herzegovina are?” Or you… Read more »
Hi,i am a 3rd year B.E student.I have to do the presentation about Global Wireless e-Voting.can you please help me, how to start my presentation and how to gain the attention of my audience?
hi i am a sophmore , and me and two other ppl r presenting a powerpoint on pandora (a godess) my teacher explained that “we should do an interesting introduction not just say,” my name is…this is a powerpoint on pandora” im not sure how my intro should be. help?
What is an interesting or surprising fact about Pandora? Start with that. For example, “Did you know that Pandora was the first mortal woman?”
“The first mortal women on earth, the releaser of disease,death and sorrow..pandora” sounds good? (:
and i do have stage fright, teachers have even deducted points off because i start out talking strong but i get real shacky and shy and my voice fades, ive been dealing with this for awhile, any recomdations? (thank you so much for your help)
Practice more. Videotape yourself and watch the videotape. Practice on your friends. Take a deep breath between sections–it’s good to pause! Don’t be too formal, be more conversational.
Yes, good start.
hye..i m a 9th standard student,and i want to give an introduction…on the topic lokpal bill.so would you please tell me..how to began my presentation…
Ishika, I don’t recognize that name, “lokpal bill.” Is it a person? If so, perhaps you can start with a surprising fact. Good luck!
Hi I am a 6th grader and I am doing a presentation on Justin Bieber and I dont know how to start it. Can you please help me?
Find some strange or funny fact about him and start, “Did you know that ….? That will get your audience interested. Maybe find a funny photo, too. Good luck!
Hello. I am an international researcher at a University and I am supposed to present my project in an international competition in from of a panel of internation judges. How do I introduce myself before I go to the main topic of my presentation? like who I am, where I am from, what do i do? Is it possible to provide me with a sentence? Thank you.
There won’t be any introduction for you at all? Not even your name? There won’t be a printed item with the list of presenters? If not, or even if there is, I would work it into the beginning of the presentation rather than a sentence before your topic. Is the competition based on the research — who did the best research? You could simply put your name and university on the title slide under the name of your presentation/research. You don’t need to say anything. Focus on the research. But, if you want to tell a story about how you… Read more »
Thank you. I will be starting with a story. I had an one on one coaching recently regarding this competition and I had my name and university on my slide just below my topic. After the presentation, one of the judge mentioned that I did not properly introduce myself, like my background, where I am from and so on. The reason was because I have a french accent, and the judge was wondering where I was from an so on.
Hi , I am doing a presentation about paper lantern and I don’t know how to start it. Can you please help me?
I’m not sure what you could say about paper lanterns, but perhaps start with a question to the audience, asking them what they use them for. Do something to engage the audience. Good luck!
i have to give a presentation on my internship.. how do i introduce & start my presentation to have a powerful impact on my examiner???
It’s hard to say, since I don’t know what your internship is about. Perhaps find a famous, philosophical quote and relate it to your internship to show you’ve thought deeply about its implications. Perhaps show a diagram placing the company where you worked in the context of the whole world, so they can see that you appreciate the larger impact of what they’re doing. Perhaps use a diagram showing the skills you learned and how they’ll apply to your professional life. Then go on and elaborate. Good luck!
Hi,
I am a first year business student and me an my group need to do a presentation about the new venture we created. What would be a good introduction and how can we make our presentation interesting and engaging?
Thank you.
Rose, have you ever watched Shark Tank on TV? I’d recommend it, because the presentations are always engaging. They demo their product, wear costumes, etc.
Aside from that, start by talking about the problem that your venture solves and relate it to the audience. “Have you ever experienced that….? Wasn’t it frustrating? How great would it be if….? Good luck!
Hi, i am doing a degree in early years and i have to do a 10 minute power point presentation on language and language theory in the early years. I am a little unsure how to start it because the group i am doing it in front of 5 people who already know my name and my job role?? also the presentation is all about how i promote language theory in my nursery setting so i am a little unsure about how to start it really.
thanks for reading
Tell a short story, ask a question, say a surprising fact, say something that’s different from usual. For example, you could start, “In this program, I’ve learned a lot of theory about language, but when I had an opportunity to use it in a nursery setting, I discovered some valuable approaches.”
hi, i am a student of pharmacy, and i have been given a topic of function of auxin(a phytohormone). can u please help me, that how would i start my topic and introduce myself in front of my classmates, as i’ll be the 3rd member in my group presentation of total 5 members. thanks,
Since I have NO idea what that is, it’s hard to give you an answer. Why is it important or interesting? Any stories about what happens when it doesn’t function properly?
Hi. I have to do a presentation over a lab that I did-oil spill cleanup. I’m not sure how to start. Could you give me some pointers, please? Thanks.
Hi ,
I am a student in the high school , I am going to give a presentation next week about positive thinking , I wonder how to start my presentation especially that I am with 3 friends in it !
Tell a horror story about an oil spill cleanup or just silently show some photos of birds covered with oil. Something striking.
I have to do a power point presentation in my class. How should I introduce my self – I am also doing business proposal
Unless your teacher expects you to introduce yourself, you don’t need to, since everyone in the class knows you, right? If it’s a huge class, that might be a different story. You could intertwine something about yourself into the business proposal — something about you that led you to decide that this proposal was the right thing.
Hello, Going through your previous replies, i must say you have done a wonderful job sharing your views and responding to each queries. I have one too 🙂
I am close to recruitment in a university as a lecturer, and before the official joining, the faculty head asked me to present a favorite topic of mine in front of the rest of the faculty members. I decided to present my Master’s thesis, but how would I introduce myself in front of my future co-workers? And what other details (apart from education details) would be relevant in the introduction slide?
Samir, Congratulations on your new job! I don’t think you want to put more than your education details on the first slide, but I think you want to say something verbally. You could introduce the topic of your Master’s thesis by saying something about how your background led you to this topic — so I’d add something personal because your future co-workers also want to get to know you as a person — but as a professional person. So don’t make it TOO personal.
i am a first year student and have been asked to make a presentation on myself, introducing myself to my new class mates and i have no clue where and how to start
Think of something unusual or especially interesting about you or your background or your goals and start with that. Then go on to the rest. Good luck!
i’m presenting a powerpoint presentation in front of my classmate together with my groupmates, I just like to have some tips on how to start my topic about recommendation report.?
Hi there, I am a grade 9 student and I have been assigned to do a presentation on the book ‘hatchet, by Gary Paulsen’. I am not too sure about what would be a good introduction to it, keeping everyone interested and involved.
your help would be great,
Please and Thank you
Since I know nothing about the book, it’s hard to say. Is there a surprising fact that you can find about the author if you do some research? Perhaps you can find a review of the book to find some background information. Did the book have an impact on you that your classmates wouldn’t expect? If the other students haven’t read it, is there a reason you think they should? How might it change their life?
Good luck!
Hello,
Im having a presentation about online shopping and I need help with my intruduction. Would you help me please?
Thanks in advance!
Hai,this page is useful to us.I am doing my 3’rd year B.E.(EEE).i am going to present a paper on power electronics and drives.will u pls help me ? in wt way i have to introduce myself and impress my audience to my topic?
Hi Ellen. Judging by the number of comments and hits on this post, it’s a topic on many speakers’ minds! As you say, when speaking, your 1st impression lasts. I agree with many of your points, like the importance of whetting people’s appetites, and saying what they’ll gain. (To me though, saying “I’m glad to be here” seems a bit trite, and the audience doesn’t care (much) how you feel. They’re absorbed by their own needs and reason for attending, especially at the start.) As you say in your post’s last bullet, you can also use a short, relevant story.… Read more »
Hi, I recently join a company, and they told me to do a presentation on SDLC(Software Development Life Cycle. The problem is I don’t know how to introduce myself before the topic begin..
If everyone there knows you, you don’t have to introduce yourself. If they don’t, I suggest that you ask someone else to introduce you and say why you were chosen to do the presentation.
hello
thank you for every thing you do.
what i need to ask about is i’ll do a presentation of my self as a final test to get a job with the company(oil and gas company) what steps shoud i fallow to present my self as well.
Think about what the employer needs. Rather than talking about yourself, talk about how you can contribute to the success of the company. Do some research on the issues and future direction of the company and address that. Finally, be sure not to use slide after slide of bulleted text. Instead, make the presentation as visual as possible and practice giving it so you know what to say without reading the slides. Good luck!
I am doing a presentation on Emigration to Canada during the Famine. I am giving the talk in front of class mates and don’t want to introduce the presentation by saying ‘Hi my name is’. Can you give me any advice with regards to coming up with an interesting introduction. Much appreciated.
Nichola, I think your instincts are right. I’d just dive right in with a surprising or shocking fact or statistic about the emigration or the famine to bring home the emotional impact the situation had on the people involved. Are ask the audience a question. “What would you do if you had no food and your children were starving?” Good luck with the presentation!
Hi.. Good morning
I am doing a presentation on indian civilisation, can you please help with in how can i start my introduction and how to get the attention of the people listing ?
As I’ve mentioned in other comments, start with a surprising fact. Perhaps something like, “Did you know that Indian civilization ….?”
Hello, I have a presentation on American Conservative Union, and I don’t know how should I introduce the topic?
What am I asking you is the introduction of this topic. Thank you