You are confident. You have rehearsed. You have a powerful, logical argument. You are ready to take on the task of presenting your points in a way that does not distract from your argument. In business presentations, the drama should be in the content, not in the person. In addition to the words you are using, your message is also told through nonverbal communication. Follow these tips when presenting your message in person:

Leave the Appropriate Distance Between Yourself and the Audience

Although a public speaker may be 12 to 15 feet from the first row of listeners without being viewed as aloof and impersonal, a management presenter (who generally deals with far fewer people) should be no more than four to five feet away. If you are any farther away, the listeners may regard you as either stuffy or fearful. If you get any closer, people will become uncomfortable.

When you are speaking to a group with which you have a limited personal or professional relationship, start speaking from a position farther away and move in slightly as the presentation progresses and as you establish rapport. But do not get too close. A tall presenter, for example, who approaches within inches of his listeners and leans forward, is expressing dominance more than friendliness. To judge whether you tend to invade others’ personal space, recall whether people ever inched away from you when you were engaged in informal conversations.

Physical distance rules vary from one culture to another. Some people often want to be within inches of each other when they speak, whereas others expect even more distance than you might be used to. Make sure that you know your audience.

Stand Erect

Good posture gives the impression of authority. You can correct poor posture by standing against a wall and pressing your spine flat against it. Feel what it is like to be standing straight and make the most of it.

While you are making your presentation, make a conscious effort not to fold your arms. Folded arms seem to encourage slouching, and it certainly sends a message of defending or protecting yourself. There is a difference between good posture and stiffness, however. If you march briskly to the front of the room and do not move for the rest of the presentation, you signal rigidity more than authority.

Consider Your Appearance

Psychologists have found that attractive people are more persuasive than unattractive people. Anyone can cultivate attractiveness through good grooming and clean, neat, professional dress. A presentation is not the place to make a statement with your clothes – flashy clothes divert attention from your argument.

Standard business dress is suits or jackets and a tie for men, and conservative suits or coordinated outfits for women. Although standards in non-traditional organizations may be more lenient, in general it is safer to stay on the side of conservatism. Anything too far from the norm will cause the audience to fix on the distracting feature rather than your argument. You want to convey competence in the subject matter, and what you wear can support you or undermine you.

When presenting your message, appearance is important because you want to be perceived as an expert in your field, and how you look is the first thing people notice about you. You should have clean clothes that are fitted properly, with nothing too tight or too baggy. Your hair should be clean and tidy. You do not want to present yourself to a group while wearing wrinkled or unkempt clothing, as you can lose credibility with your audience. Think about how many times you have heard the expression ‘clothes make the man – or woman.’

Move About and Use Gestures

A presenter who stays glued to the lectern, or any other one position is quite possibly terrified, and everyone soon knows it. To give the impression of self-confidence, move about the room and use your hands. Behaving like a confident presenter will help you to become more confident.

Take advantage of your natural gestures but avoid using one over and over. Some presenters, when told that they need to add movement, adopt one gesture (raising an arm, for example) and use it repeatedly. At worst, such programmed gestures send the audience into a hypnotic state; at best, they are distracting. Tailor your gestures to reinforce your point. For instance, by bringing your hands together, you can assure your audience that your proposal “brings it all together.” Similarly, you can refer to the ramifications of a problem by tracing ever-widening circles in the air.

Because most management presentations involve visual aids, you can add movement by simply pointing out the most important features on the visual. Moving around the room is helpful if it does not deteriorate into the measured pacing of a caged tiger. By pausing completely, you will emphasize the importance of what you are saying.

Control Your Facial Expressions and Mannerisms

Although we all know people who say, “If you cut off my hands, I would not be able to talk,” very few people actually overdo gestures. Facial expressions, on the other hand, are difficult to control and often give an embarrassingly accurate clue as to how you really feel. Beyond checking yourself on videotape, the best way to control facial expressions is to make sure you are comfortable with your material and be prepared to respond honestly and openly to any questions.

Try to maintain an accessible, open presence. Remember that a smile breaks down barriers. When you smile at someone, they generally smile back. Also, as you talk, show interest in what you are saying. If you are not interested, how can your audience be?

Maintain Eye Contact

You will lose support faster by staring at your notes, looking only at the visual, or focusing on a spot high on the back wall than by any mistakes you may make in the content of your presentation. Similarly, if you direct yourself exclusively to the key decision maker in your audience, he or she will feel more uneasy than flattered, and others in the room will feel unimportant.

Try, at some point in the presentation, to look at each participant with the goal of giving each, in turn, the brief message, “I can see that you grasp what I am saying.” Then, for your own comfort, try to focus on people who respond with a nod or smile rather than on people who seem bored or hostile.

The Value of a Pause

If you are speaking within a negative or outright hostile situation, it is easy to become defensive and even angry. Instead of quickly answering every question (which increases the pressure and makes it difficult to maintain your composure), explore the value of a pause. A pause can give you a mini-break to collect your thoughts and deliver them well. It can also stop you from getting caught in an angry or emotional outburst.

Use pauses to your advantage. If someone asks a question and you need to collect your thoughts, you can take a moment to glance at your notes if you are using some, take a deep breath (not noticeable to anyone else), and then answer.

Attitude

Attitude is everything. Have you ever listened to someone who is a know-it-all? Someone who does not actually care if you are listening? If you have, spending a day listen to them lecturing to you can be dreadful and their message is totally lost because you do not care to hear it. Be sincere when you are speaking to your audience. Remember, you have something important to share but you need to respect your audience and be willing to encourage input when needed. A lecture or course is considered successful when the instructor receives questions or feedback from the audience, thereby allowing them to put the message into practice after the presentation. Attitude can be sensed even over the phone.

Use Nonverbal Communication is an excerpt from Velsoft’s new course Honing and Delivering Your Message, which prepares students to develop a message and remain on topic when they are presenting that message to the media and public.