“No matter how high-stakes or complex the presentation, your audience is only going to take away a few key ideas.” – Monica Lueder, Art Director and Executive Presentations Manager at Microsoft.

You know the first task in developing a presentation is to analyze your audience. Your audience analysis will steer you in creating and delivering your presentation.

However, even after analyzing your audience, how do you prepare and deliver a presentation on a complicated subject and make it understandable for your audience?

Below are three ways you can do this from the book Super Communicator by Frank Pietrucha: simplify your content, don’t oversimplify, focus on clarity. Quotes signify excerpts from Super Communicator.

Simplify Your Content

“Give your audience a reason to care so they will pay attention and become engaged.”

You drive a car. Do you need to know how your car works to drive it? Of course not. You want to know how to use the benefits of a car, like traveling anywhere when you want, how to use the air conditioner in the summer, and how to use the heater in the winter. These benefits do not require you to know how your car works.

It is the same with your presentations on complicated subjects. Present your presentation content’s benefits. Sure. Some audience members will always want the details; however, these audience members will be few. It is best to talk to these people during a break or after your presentation.

Remember, less is more. You will make more of an impression on your audience with less material. Do you think your audience would remember more if you had six or three main points in their presentation? Less is more memorable.

Here is an example from history. On a blustery Fall day on November 19, 1863, two men spoke during the Civil War on the Gettysburg battlefield. The first one spoke for two hours; the second said 272 words. Of course, the latter speaker was President Abraham Lincoln reciting what would become known as the Gettysburg Address.

Do you remember who the first speaker was? My guess is you don’t. His name was Edward Everett, a great orator who previously served as U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the fifteenth governor of Massachusetts.

Abraham Lincoln made simplification a winner in the Gettysburg Address. Make simplification a winner in your presentations.

Simplification is a “double-edged sword.” If you simplify too much, you will insult your audience. So, don’t oversimplify.

Don’t Oversimplify

Albert Einstein once said, “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler”

If your presentation has many critical details, it will be hard for the audience to keep track of them. Also, you run the risk of your audience getting distracted by the details.

Chances are your audience has some familiarity with your presentation subject. Some may have a deep understanding of what you are saying. The rule is “Don’t insult your audience.”

You need to put in the time to get to know your audience before you determine at what level you should present your presentation. “Knowing what material to include and what to leave out is critical to explaining anything.”

So you have simplified your content, but not to the point where you have oversimplified your content.

The next task for you is to focus on making your presentation content clear.

Focus on Clarity

“You could have found the cure for cancer or an alternative power source, but if you can’t articulate your concept clearly and intelligibly, you will have a much harder time getting people to believe your claim.”

“While the rules of writing” and speaking “simply haven’t changed,” your speaking audience’s “expectation that” speakers “offer us clarity is higher.”

Record some of your presentation practices and have them transcribed. Many software packages on the open market can do this for you. After you have cleaned up the transcription language, use the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level feature of Microsoft Word to discover the grade level of your presentation.

“May business people” speak “at the college level – somewhere between grades 12 and 15. That’s too challenging for most audiences, even if they are college graduates. You want to shoot for somewhere between grade level 8 and 10 on this scall when communicating to a professional audience.”

We have talked about three ways to make your complicated content understandable based on the book Super Communicator by Frank Pietrucha: simplify your content, don’t oversimplify, and focus on clarity.

The world is getting more complicated with each passing day, hour, and second. Your job in your presentations is to uncomplicate your content and make it understandable for your audiences.

Wouldn’t you love all the presentations you attend to be this way?

Call to Action

• Before you even practice the first time for all of your future presentations, show your presentation notes to someone you trust to give you their evaluation of the complexity of your presentation; revise your content accordingly

• Know your audience “like the back of your hand” to determine the point where you will simplify no further

• When you practice your presentation in front of your practice audience, ensure you emphasize you want them to evaluate you on the clarity of your message

Frank DiBartolomeo is a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and award-winning speaker, presentation and interview skills coach, and Professional Member of the National Speakers Association. He was awarded Toastmasters International’s highest individual award, Distinguished Toastmaster because of his outstanding work in public speaking and leadership.

Frank formed DiBartolomeo Consulting International (DCI), LLC (www.speakleadandsucceed.com) in 2007. The mission of DCI is to help technical professionals to inspire, motivate, and influence their colleagues and other technical professionals through improving their presentation skills, communication, and personal presence. Reach Frank at frank@speakleadandsucceed.com and (703) 509-4424.

Don’t miss Frank DiBartolomeo’s latest book!

“Speak Well and Prosper: Tips, Tools, and Techniques for Better Presentations”

Available now at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com