Enjoy today's post from Angie Bong, a member of the Educational Programs Committee. This one is about what they have done to make your educational programs better; read on...
The Association has made so many fantastic changes and additions for the 2008 Annual Meeting, it seems as if nothing is standing in our way of reaching the – the best Annual Meeting yet - which is only 21 days away, in case you’ve forgotten. The Annual Meeting Planning Team has worked tirelessly over the past year because, especially in hard economic times with limited travel budgets, we want you to get every penny’s worth from your Annual Meeting experience.
The Annual Meeting provides a great opportunity for members to reconnect with friends and colleagues, to visit with our associate members about the exciting opportunities and services they can provide, to celebrate with those who have contributed so much to the fraternal movement, and of course, to learn and grow. One particularly valuable learning opportunity at the Annual Meeting is the vast array of programs presented by our stellar members.
The Annual Meeting has featured many amazing presenters and programs in the past, yet the Educational Programs Committee thought we could help provide an even better educational opportunity for our members by creating some resources to help ensure programs are meeting members’ needs. We poured over past Annual Meeting evaluations, consulted with some of the best presenters in the field, and scoured the Web for the best presentation advice we could find, and we are so pleased to present the AFA Annual Meeting – Best Practices for Successful Presentations.
The Best Practices for Successful Presentations resource was designed as a tool for all Annual Meeting presenters to help them design the best possible program based on what you have said makes for a great presentation. It was distributed to a coordinating presenter from each presentation team today: Here’s a sneak peek of some of the best practices we shared with them today:
· Begin with the end in mind. A snazzy title does not make up for a lousy idea. Be thoughtful about your learning outcomes. What do you want participants to learn? What emotions do you want to stir? What are you offering that audience members cannot get elsewhere? How can outcomes be sustained outside the Annual Meeting? Review your learning outcomes with the audience at the beginning of the presentation.
· If you are presenting a best practice from your college/university, organization, or company, make sure you cover how audience members can apply the same concept at another institution, organization or company. Or, do some research on other entities that are implementing similar practices and share how the concept has worked elsewhere.
· Prepare your program ahead of time. Have someone you trust review your content before you present. Participants can see right through a program that was thrown together in the hotel lobby 10 minutes before the presentation. Great presenters who are not prepared can still produce a bad program. You owe it to your audience to prepare well even if you are the best presenter ever.
· Know your audience and develop rapport. Try to imagine who is most likely to attend your presentation. If you were an audience member, what would you want to know or understand? What would be confusing? Let the audience know they are important and are the reason you are there. Mingle with participants before the presentation begins to help build rapport.
· Be enthusiastic. Be sincere. Be authentic. Find your passion and allow it to shine through as you give your presentation. Enthusiasm is contagious and passion will help you connect with your audience.
We hope that you will be as impressed as we are with the great programs in store for you this year. The Association is committed to you and your feedback, and as such is striving to continually improve. Resources like the Best Practices for Successful Presentations are helping us reach the peak. We can’t wait to sit back and enjoy the view.
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