How often have you seen a presenter walk up to a microphone, give it a tap-tap-tap, and ask, "Is this on?" A speaker wants to start strong and keep rolling – and spending the first few seconds checking the sound equipment isn't exactly the best way to kick off a presentation. "Watching a presenter in rehearsal mode, whether with a tech or with their presentation material, does not instill a feeling of confidence in their listeners," says Jean Howard, director of business development at TPG Trade Show and Event Marketing. "Do your sound and tech check before standing in front of your audience." It's better to hit the stage with confidence and dive in.


Thoughtful speakers often undermine their credibility with the seemingly benign "I'm sorry." Matt Hill, president of The Hill Group, suggests avoiding this common snafu. "Nervous presenters often open with 'I'm sorry if I seem a little nervous. I'm not really used to doing this sort of thing.' Now you've given your audience something else to focus on other than your presentation," Hill says. Nervousness is common, but there's no need to advertise it to your listeners. And sure, the inevitable presentation snag will crop up from time to time – e.g., a slide in the wrong order or a missed talking point. There's no need to apologize for hiccups the audience may not even be aware of, and those they may notice are better handled with positivity, according to Hill. "For instance, there's insufficient in-booth seating, and a speaker is tempted to apologize to those standing. Don't do it," Hill says. "Instead, just roll with it and say, 'It looks like we have a full house! I'll speak up so those in the back can hear me.'" Save your mea culpa for situations that really require it.


Too often presenters looking to project confidence oversell their expertise and their company's products or services by promising a magic elixir to solve everyone's woes. Serious prospects, though, have likely done their research before stepping foot on the trade show floor. They know their industry and are seeking products and services that address specific pain points they feel acutely. "Every prospect is aware that they know their business and customer base better than you do," says Dan Cox, creative director at Live Marketing Inc. Remember that presentations are, ideally, jumping-off points for attendees. "It takes time to develop a client relationship through ongoing conversations. Use your presentation to start a conversation and not shoot yourself in the foot right off the bat," Cox cautions.


Even the best-prepared presenters are going to field questions that they simply don't have an answer for, and it's tempting to say you don't know. While you definitely shouldn't fabricate an answer, you don't want to kill the conversation either. "If you answer prospects' questions with 'I don't know,' it abruptly stops the conversation and shows disinterest in fulfilling their needs," says Emilie Barta, a freelance trade show presenter and virtual emcee. "Plus, it may appear that you are not knowledgeable about your products or services – or are unable to help them solve their problems." Instead, she recommends having a plan in place to segue conversations to the appropriate subject-matter expert. She suggests saying something like, "That's a great question. Let's find out the answer at the end of the presentation."


"Starting with a joke is usually a mistake," Hill says, because landing a wisecrack at the start of a presentation is a lot harder than it looks." You're just as likely to be met with silence and eyerolls than you are to have an audience rolling with laughter. And no speaker wants to spend the rest of a presentation recovering from a bad start. Worse is when presenters opt for an edgy, off-color joke beginning with something like, "So a rabbi, a minister, and a priest walk into a bar..." Such attempts at humor are likely to upset listeners. "As a rule, don't joke about (or even mention) politics, religion, race, income levels, etc." Hill says.


As the adage says, there's no such thing as bad advertising. So don't give your competitors free publicity by naming them in your presentation. Besides directing attendees to other options, many listeners will be put off by the bad-mouthing of other companies – especially if they happened to have just left a perfectly hospitable meeting with one. "Make your story all about you and why your brand or solution is superior," Cox says. "There's no need to mention the competition by name." Because as another well-known saying goes, it's hard to sling mud and keep your own hands clean.


Verbal crutches are those words and phrases that, um, many presenters pepper their talks with, ya know? We all know we should avoid them, yet they, like, consistently creep into presentations. "It's the way we stall while searching for the right thought or word," says Christina Piedlow, president and CEO of TPG. She recommends writing your script in a conversational way and memorizing the word at the beginning of each sentence. "Then rehearse, rehearse, rehearse," she says. "Plus, taping yourself presenting in front of a colleague or friend can let you know if you're ready to face an audience."


Don't offend your listeners by telling them that you're going to "dumb it down" for them. While it's true that you shouldn't overwhelm your audience with too much information and insider jargon, you definitely don't want to alienate them by being condescending and seemingly arrogant. "The best presenters are those that can explain complex products and services in a simple and clear way that leaves listeners feeling like they are peers instead of second graders," Hill says. This means stripping down your content to the core essentials and crafting your message so that the troublesome parts are easily accessible through striking visuals and clear explanations.


You'd think we'd be beyond delivering slides with paragraphs of information in eight-point font, but you'd be surprised how often it still happens. "Never throw up a slide with a pile of content that the audience isn't going to have the time or patience to read," Howard says. If audience members wanted to read a lengthly treatise about your offerings, they'd just hop on your company's website or grab some in-booth literature and skip your presentation altogether. "Spare them the pain and disinterest of a slide you'll apologize that they can't and won't read, and show them one they can," Howard says. E