Have you ever been in that awkward situation as an audience member when you are not sure if the speaker is done yet? Maybe you looked around at your colleagues, waiting for someone to clap first, waiting for some sort of indication that the presentation was completed. A speech isn’t done simply when you’ve stopped speaking; there are a few steps you must take first before your presentation comes to a complete stop.
Finish What you Started
Consider your speech to be a sandwich; the intro and conclusion are both slices of bread with the meat of your information in the middle. Therefore the easiest way to finish off a presentation is to go back to your introduction. If you opened with a joke or a story, conclude with something similar. You may want to try asking the audience a question or presenting them with a problem in your introduction, that way you can provide the answer during your closing remarks.
Personalize It
If you haven’t found a way to incorporate yourself into the presentation, your ending might be the best place to do so. Use this space for personal stories or to share how the information you are presenting has effected or shaped your life in any way. You can use this as a time to draw the audience in one last time and make it about them. If you know who you are speaking to well enough you should be able to find a way that they are affected by what you have to say. If you’re not sure, you could use the time to invite the audience to take action or give them something to do when they leave the presentation.
When in Doubt, Summarize
It’s not as dynamic, but a simple summary of your points will suffice when no other option seems right. Your audience will at least leave the speech knowing the key points that you wanted to get across. You might even want to sum up your entire speech into one single statement or idea. A lasting impression can still be made with just the basics. Your closing remarks are your last chance to shine so if you just phone it in your speech can easily lose impact. A good close should wrap everything up and reiterate your point. And don’t forget to thank your audience for their time at the end!
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