Presenting is an essential part of working in design. Love it or hate it, the way you communicate with your clients, prospects and team members will have almost as much impact as your content.

The more you understand about how to present confidently and convincingly, the more successful you’ll be. Covering both in-person and online presenting, this fast-paced two-session workshop will ensure you have everything you need to make truly successful presentations that achieve your objectives. We’ll explore everything involved in creating and leading high-quality and influential presentations and you will leave with a fresh new confidence and approach to this time-honoured skill.

This two-part workshop covers

  • The Preddy Preparation Framework

    Preparing presentations that get results.

  • Insights into using behavioural psychology for influencing

    The little things that can make a big difference.

  • Body language that’s right for the environment

    Posture, gesture, voice and eye contact.

  • Getting the set up right

    Visual aids, equipment and presentation documentation.

  • Executing the performance with finesse

    Handling nerves, pacing and pausing, and dress and appearance.

  • Presenting like a pro

    Using memory aids and notes to full effect.

You will gain

  • Knowledge, skills and techniques to put into immediate action.

  • A greater understanding of online presenting.

  • Increased presentation confidence and capability.

  • Notes, checklists and frameworks for future use.

  • An unlimited phone, email and online helpline to Shan Preddy afterwards.

Course structure

  • Part One

    Our first session takes you through The Preddy Preparation Framework, including how to use elements of behavioural psychology to get what you want. We will share tips and guidance on creating visual aids and equipment, and we’ll look at formats for notes and memory aids before sharing best practice in presentation documentation.

  • Part Two

    This is where we explore the softer side of successful presentations. We’ll look at the power of posture, gesture, voice and eye contact in developing presence and learn why pacing and pauses are important. We review ways of building rapport through dress and appearance, as well as investigating those troublesome nerves and how to deal with them.

Meet your trainer

Shan Preddy

Shan is a Partner at Preddy&Co, which runs high-performance presentation skills workshops for the design sector: all disciplines, all sizes of business, all levels of experience, worldwide. Most of her wide-ranging workshops are done as tailor-made, in-company training programmes, but Shan also regularly delivers a number of presentation skills sessions for the DBA. Her career has seen Shan working in PR and advertising as well as in senior roles in design, and she was MD of a 15-20 strong branding and communications design firm before launching Preddy&Co. She’s a popular public speaker and writer of design-sector books and articles, a Full Member of D&AD, a Fellow of the RSA, and a Founder Member of the DBA's accredited Experts' Register.

Previous feedback for Shan

At the end of the workshop I felt I had learned so much and could implement these techniques straight away.

Craig Harriott, Senior Designer, Hornall Anderson

A highly focused and practical course that has already made a difference to our business.

Adrian Barclay, Designer, Just Design

A really insightful introduction to the psychology behind communication and presentations and, most importantly, how to apply it.

Dave King, Director, StudioLR

A clear and enjoyable way of understanding how best to prepare for presentations. Shan is a great speaker!

Denise Poole, Project Manager, Echo Brand Design