Language

For most presentations, it is OK to use bad language.  I am not suggesting you swear and blaspheme your way through a presentation that is definitely wrong.  But starting a sentence with a preposition, using split infinitives, or even turning nouns into verbs is all right for most presentations.

Use conversational language.  Speak to the audience as if you are speaking to a friend.  This is just one of the reasons why reading from a script does not come across well.  When we are writing we use different formats and sentence constructions from when we are talking.

Use contractions.  Use short words and sentences, plus active verbs.  Do not be afraid of sentence fragments — people talk that way.

It is however best to avoid heavy use of jargon and abbreviations, unless you know for certain that everyone in your audience will know what you are talking about.  Be careful, it is sometimes surprising, as a vendor in a market, how little potential prospects know or understand about the market as a whole.

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