My company’s internal conference is in a couple of weeks, so this seems like a good time to have a quick rant about some presentation failings I’ve seen over the last year or so.

If you want to, or are planning to present at a conference (or even just a usergroup), please, please, please pay attention to the following.

Don’t read your presentation

Please don’t read the bullets on your slides one by one. Please also don’t read a speech off your phone. If I wanted to have something read to me, I’d get an audio book.

A presentation should feel dynamic. It is, and should feel like, a live performance.

If you need reminders or cue cards, that’s fine, but put keywords on them, points that need to be discussed, not the entire speech

Watch your font size

This is for the slides but especially for the demos. Font size of 30 is probably the smallest you should be using on slides.

In demos, if I’m sitting in the back row and can’t read the code, there may be a problem. My eyes are not the best though, so that might be a failing on my part. If, however, I’m sitting in the second row and can’t read the code, there’s definitely a problem.

If the conference insists on, or offers time for a tech check, take the opportunity to check your fonts. A tech check isn’t just ‘does my laptop see the projector? Yes, done.’ Walk to the back of the room, go through all the slides, start your demo, walk back to the back of the room. Make sure that everything is clearly visible.

Minimalistic slides

Please don’t put an essay on your slide. Please don’t have fancy animation (unless you’re doing a presentation on animation). Don’t have things that flash, flicker, spin or dance.

It’s distracting, and it probably means your audience is watching your slides and not listening to you. You should be the star of the presentation, not your slides. They’re a support character.

Themes

I like the Visual Studio dark theme. It’s nice to code with, it’s absolutely terrible on a projector. Especially if the room is not dark. For projectors you want strong contrast. Dark font on light background usually works. Dark blue on black does not, two similar shades of blue doesn’t.

Check that your demos are visible, check that the code is readable from the back of the room.

Learn how to zoom in, whether with the windows built in tools or installed apps. Use the zoom any time that what you’re showing may not be clear.

Repeat the question

Especially if the session is being recorded. Your voice is being recorded, the audience isn’t. It is so frustrating to listen to a recorded session, hear a minute of silence followed by the presenter giving a single word answer.

Even if the session is not being recorded, acoustics often make it possible for the presenter to hear a question while part of the audience hasn’t.

It also gives you a chance to confirm that you heard the question correctly and gives you a few moments to think on an answer.